Willwood or Baer?
Thread Starter
Teching In
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 15
Likes: 0
From: Long Island, N.Y.
Willwood or Baer? I know these brake upgrade threads have been around but I thought I would get some fresh thoughts.
I want to do a front brake upgrade on my SS. The Baerclaw GT+ system looks nice but the Wilwood 6 piston setup looks amazing. I'm just wondering if the Wilwood is mostly for the track or on the street with the right pads it will decrease stopping distance and give a nice hard pedal without heating them up?
Has anyone used the Baerclaw system?
These two systems are around the same price. Thanks...
I want to do a front brake upgrade on my SS. The Baerclaw GT+ system looks nice but the Wilwood 6 piston setup looks amazing. I'm just wondering if the Wilwood is mostly for the track or on the street with the right pads it will decrease stopping distance and give a nice hard pedal without heating them up?
Has anyone used the Baerclaw system?
These two systems are around the same price. Thanks...
You can also get the Wilwoods with street pads. The race pads are SUPER loud, and DUST tremendously. However, the Wilwoods lack dust seals so you'll have to rebuild them once every year or two but that's really easy.
TECH Veteran
Joined: Dec 2001
Posts: 4,117
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From: Ft. Lauderdale, FL, USA
When I was looking into spending $4-5,000 on a badass brake system, I was told by reps from Brembo, Bear, Mov'It and Willwood that if its a street car with street tires, there is no brake system on the planet that will decrease stopping distance at all. Braking is all in the tires. Stock brakes are much more than regular street tires can handle, so having better brakes does nothing.
Now if you're planning on driving through city streets or on the HWY like a maniac and heating up the brakes on purpose, well than they will offer better braking under heated up conditions. The experts also told me that it will be quite hard on the street to purposely make them that hot anyway, you would literally have to rag on the car to do it, so...............
I know a guy with custom Brembos all around on his Acura NSX, he also has road races the car every weekend. He has R compound tires. He took me for a ride and could have put me through the windshiel if he really wanted to and he was hardly hitting them hard. Street tires would have locked up with the way he was hitting the brakes, INCREASING stopping distance. When he drives the car on street tires he can lock them with small taps.
If its just a street car, get some nice looking Bear Eradispeeds and polish your calipers.
Just sharing what I was told
Now if you're planning on driving through city streets or on the HWY like a maniac and heating up the brakes on purpose, well than they will offer better braking under heated up conditions. The experts also told me that it will be quite hard on the street to purposely make them that hot anyway, you would literally have to rag on the car to do it, so...............
I know a guy with custom Brembos all around on his Acura NSX, he also has road races the car every weekend. He has R compound tires. He took me for a ride and could have put me through the windshiel if he really wanted to and he was hardly hitting them hard. Street tires would have locked up with the way he was hitting the brakes, INCREASING stopping distance. When he drives the car on street tires he can lock them with small taps.
If its just a street car, get some nice looking Bear Eradispeeds and polish your calipers.
Just sharing what I was told
Thread Starter
Teching In
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 15
Likes: 0
From: Long Island, N.Y.
Thanks for the input. I understand there are limitations with tires and needed heat in the brakes. I don't like the feel of the stock brakes, they fade and vibrate under hard braking. A set of Eradispeeds will probably do me nice but I have been known to overkill things 
I have a set of Erasdispeeds with Hawk pads to put on the rear. I think I'm just gonna get the Wilwoods for the front. IF I didn't have ASR I would get the Wilwood for the rear too. I'm sure it will be a big improvement and they look really cool 
I have a set of Erasdispeeds with Hawk pads to put on the rear. I think I'm just gonna get the Wilwoods for the front. IF I didn't have ASR I would get the Wilwood for the rear too. I'm sure it will be a big improvement and they look really cool He is right about the tire limitations but a six piston caliper will feel much better and keep the pad on the rotor better. i also think you get less pad deflection with better calipers.
TECH Apprentice
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 372
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From: Orlando, FL
wow..... no braking system in the world.... sounds like they had the idiot radar on. Sure if your tires were already being maxed out by your factory brakes, sure, but that's simply not the case.
Proper braking is about being able to apply as much pressure to the rotors to slow them down without locking them up. I personally have the wilwood and have hepled install a set of them, absolutely wonderful design. The E compound pads are very noisy, and dust a lot, the Q compound is very nice for street driving. On the rebuild every year or two, sure maybe, if you never wash your car and drive down dirt streets. Wilwood has designed the piston bores with tighter seels and larger o-rings to compensate for the lack of dust boots.
Proper braking is about being able to apply as much pressure to the rotors to slow them down without locking them up. I personally have the wilwood and have hepled install a set of them, absolutely wonderful design. The E compound pads are very noisy, and dust a lot, the Q compound is very nice for street driving. On the rebuild every year or two, sure maybe, if you never wash your car and drive down dirt streets. Wilwood has designed the piston bores with tighter seels and larger o-rings to compensate for the lack of dust boots.
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Thread Starter
Teching In
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 15
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From: Long Island, N.Y.
I thought the same thing, that the factory brakes aren't maxing out the tires stopping ability. I only drive the car about 2,000 miles a year and never in the rain unless I get caught and that's only happened once or twice. Always on nice paved roads so hopefully I'll be fine.
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On The Tree
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 183
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From: Orlando, FL
Why don't you just ask people who have them?
I have Wilwoods running Q compound pads on the FRONT only (stock rear brakes) on my LT1 Trans Am and I think the upgrade is tremendous. Angst911 helped me install them and I think they fit great and work better.
I would never go back to stock brakes. These brakes have saved my car from more than one near-miss.
-Ryan
I have Wilwoods running Q compound pads on the FRONT only (stock rear brakes) on my LT1 Trans Am and I think the upgrade is tremendous. Angst911 helped me install them and I think they fit great and work better.
I would never go back to stock brakes. These brakes have saved my car from more than one near-miss.
-Ryan
For braking at high speeds, aftermarket brakes would be a improvment. I don't think you can lock up a street tire at 150mph lol, but you can slow down quicker with better brakes. From all I've read, I think Willwoods would be a good choice. That is what I want. I hear they are sealed well for the street??
