2002_TAWS6

Just wanted to say something first... do you LS1 F-body owners know that the VW Jetta has better brakes than our cars? i know because the other day i was making fun of a friend of mine and i couldnt even stop at the red light! those car couldnt even do 130MPH! its a shame that GM put those brakes on such powerful cars.

right now im looking for good brakes.. good enough to cause no EXTREME danger when driving 100 MPH and reduce the feeling of "NO HOPE" when doing 140 MPH and a little old lady pulls right in front of you when she's 100 meters aways...

i always noticed how people say that its dumb for a person to do such high MPH on the freeway (and i totally agree) but its not even half as dangerous as it is when driving a BMW 850i... i know because my brother has one and those brakes are super good (well super good in comparison to the f-body to say the least)

I want to be in a better and safer in my 02 Trans Am. What do I need to change specifically as far as brake components? How much am i looking on spending money here? is that duable for less that $800? What parts have to be thrown away because of GMs poor quality and what parts could be compatible with other brake system upgrades?

i have no background whatsoever on brakes so the more info I get the better.

Dope

iTrader: (2)

It's pretty obvious you have no brake background because you apparently think LS1 brakes suck?

I've never ridden in a better braking car. Maybe you have a problem? Jetta has better brakes? Not even close!

Try driving a thirdgen, or hell, even an LT1 car.

If it's not enough, get the vette brake conversion, or if you got big bucks, try the Porsche kit or a Brembo/Wilwood/Baer package.

Dope

Quickin

I'm no expert, but my stock brakes on my 98' WS6 T/A were pretty damn good. Better than any other car I've been in except my neighbors Vette and a dream ride I got once in Ferrari F-50 (almost lost my eye ***** on that one), and the Vettes just seem a little better. BMW's and a Jetta, not even close.

I'm with DOPE, you may have a brake problem. Or maybe there's ball bearings stuck in your brake pads.

Quickin

Oh, a guy took me for a ride once in his badass NSX with a set of Brembo's up front, all I can say is HOLY ****!

mitchntx

iTrader: (14)

You aren't comparing apples to apples.

I would venture a guess that a 3000lb Jetta with 10" brakes will outstop a 3800lb F-Body with 11" brakes.

And asking any car to stop from 140 to zero in 100 meters is just dumb.

DONAIMIAN

iTrader: (18)

u wana go from 140 to 0 in 100m throw it in reverse. <img border="0" title="" alt="[Wink]" src="gr_images/icons/wink.gif" /> its just a blown trany its still good, its still good <img border="0" title="" alt="[Big Grin]" src="gr_grin.gif" /> i would have to say get your brakes checked out and get a better set of rotors thry the bare eradispeed (i think thats what theyre called) look around and just go with rotors, still want more get a 6 piston kit, still want more go bungy jumping with a chain <img border="0" alt="[Burnout]" title="" src="graemlins/burnout.gif" />

2001CamaroGuy

iTrader: (6)

totally.....to say the F-body brakes SUCK is crazy! We have heavy cars.....and at 100 mph...thats a lot of momentum that those brakes have to slow. I have at times felt my brakes start to lock up and I have 265s in front and 295s in back (thats a lot of grip on the road). The only way you are going to have better brakes is to shell out the $$$.....6 pistons on the front and 4 pistons on the back.....THEN...you can say the F-body brakes SUCK <img border="0" title="" alt="[Big Grin]" src="gr_grin.gif" />

Wilwod makes a 6 piston set up for the front ($1200 I think) and a 4 piston for the rear ($600 or $800). That will stop you...I would like to have that one day....just don't have the $$$....I want a cam and supercharger <img border="0" title="" alt="[Big Grin]" src="gr_grin.gif" />

<small>[ September 20, 2002, 09:50 PM: Message edited by: 2001CamaroGuy ]</small>

ssdrivingbastard

<img border="0" alt="[guns]" title="" src="graemlins/gr_guns.gif" /> GM parts <img border="0" alt="[fight]" title="" src="graemlins/gr_punch.gif" /> I warped my brake rotors twice in less the 6 months on my SS. YES THE BRAKES SUCKS!!! So I got the wilwood 6 piston front and 4 piston back. Now I have 100% better braking and it look great too!! You want safety in braking spend the money and upgrade do it right!! <img border="0" alt="[cheers]" title="" src="graemlins/gr_cheers.gif" /> to wilwood

Silver99Z

Well, let's see.
I once rode as a passenger in a Porshe 911 turbo on the Watkins Glen Roadcourse. At 148 mph, at the end of the back straight, he hit the brakes and the harness really dug into me as he got it down to about 80-85 for the turn. But that's a Porshe and puting Porshe brakes on a Camaro won't make it stop like a Porshe. Anyway, that driver also rode with me in my Camaro and commented on how well it braked. That was with factory brakes and Carbotech pads.

I've since upgraded to a Baer 4 piston caliper with 13" Corvette rotors and Performance Friction 01 compound pads. Cost $1900 plus $175 a pop for the pads (fronts only). This setup does give more stopping power, but were it not for the 6-8 roadcourse events I do a year, I wouldn't have wasted the money for it.

My .02 - keep the factory brakes and put on a set of Carbotech Panther pads along with some high temp fluid like Motul 600.

DONAIMIAN

iTrader: (18)

o yea you can only go as fast as u can stop

98_1LE

iTrader: (17)

LS1 F-bodies have good brakes; there is something wrong with your car. I can post video of my olg '98 1LE Z28 outbraking a Z06, 911's and M3's if you like. Only upgrades were good pads and fluid.

niphilli

I think you have a problem. Start with replacing the factory rotors and pads. You probably have woarped rotors. Does the peddle pulsate above 70MPH? This is how mine started (warping).

02SilverWS6

2002_TAWS6, I totally agree w/ the other responses in the group. We have good brakes! <img border="0" title="" alt="[Big Grin]" src="gr_grin.gif" /> I read somewhere that these new cars have good brakes for the amount of weight and performance they carry. Therefore, there might be something wrong w/ your car. If you were serious about stopping in that short of a distance, you're crazy! Oh and remember, the more heat tranfered to the brakes the less reliable they will become. <img border="0" alt="[chug]" title="" src="graemlins/gr_chug.gif" />

2002_TAWS6

hello people ... first of all i said IF AN OLD LADY pulls over. And this is what i meant:

im doing 140 MPH and an old lady in her cavalier 100 meters away comes in front of me doing 50MPH (on the same lane as mine)... therefore i need to slow down my speed to 70 MPH or maybe 50 MPH depending on whether i choose on staying behind her or passing her up on the other lane...

going from 140 to 0 in 100 meters is stupid. However, I am not (which many of you people made me sound like <img border="0" alt="[guns]" title="" src="graemlins/gr_guns.gif" /> ). Some people completely misunderstood me. Sorry I might of had an unclear post...

if i try to slow down from 70 to 40 in about 100 meters the brakes kind of shake or wiggle (i dont know the correct word here) but some people told me to go to the dealership and asking them to do something called "brake facing"? this is where they smooth out a plate or something. Again, I do not know a lot about brakes... as far as I know my brakes are either bad or they're not working good at ALL.

Comparing 02 Trans Ams to porsches or BMWs sounds waaaaaaaaaayyyyyyy to good for MY 02 TA WS6 since i cant even brake better than a jetta!!!

I am going to go back to the dealership this week and tell them about my shitty brakes. Because honeslty i think they provide a very unsafe environment.

Thank you for all the responses, even for those who have tried to make me look like a dumbass. A response is always better than no response. I'll provide everyone feedback as soon as I get them fixed. If they still suck then this post will still keep going.

Thanks a bunch.

Fulton 1

iTrader: (9)

</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Originally posted by 2002_TAWS6:
Again, I do not know a lot about brakes... </font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">I'd have to agree with you on that. <img border="0" title="" alt="[Wink]" src="gr_images/icons/wink.gif" />

With good pads the stock F-body brakes are plenty adequate for street duty. If you're feeling pulsation in the brake pedal when slowing then you likely have warped front rotors. This may be covered under warranty if you have less than 12k miles on your car - talk to your dealer on that. Otherwise you're looking at new rotors. I'd check out KVR blanks or something equivalent with a good set of pads for replacement. That's a good bang-4-buck setup. Here's more: http://www.fasttoys.net/9398fbodybrakes.html

BTW, what's with the 100m thing?

<small>[ September 21, 2002, 11:00 PM: Message edited by: Fulton 1 ]</small>

niphilli

I think your friend was talking about brake resurfacing, or "turning" this is done to the rotors because they are warped. F-bod brakes are notoriuos for this. IMHO I would go with an aftermarket set of rotors, and dont forget to install new pads while you are at it. Would not hurt to blede the brake lines while you are in there as well.

-Nick

Silver99Z

</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Originally posted by 2002_TAWS6:
<strong>
Thank you for all the responses, even for those who have tried to make me look like a dumbass.
</strong></font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Sir, you brought it on yourself. Just one final word - if you hit and kill a little old lady in a Cavalier while you're doing 140, your problem will be a charge of vehicular manslaughter, not brakes.

Dustin Butts

iTrader: (5)

For a relatively cheap investment, I replaced my warped ,heatstress cracked, wore out front brakes with new GM Durastop rotors and pads. The whole setup cost me around $250. They work great also.
No more wobbling and shimmying when I cram on the brakes from 120+ mph. Sump'n to think about anyway.

xaon

iTrader: (12)

</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Originally posted by 2002_TAWS6:
<strong>im doing 140 MPH and an old lady in her cavalier 100 meters away comes in front of me doing 50MPH (on the same lane as mine)... therefore i need to slow down my speed to 70 MPH or maybe 50 MPH depending on whether i choose on staying behind her or passing her up on the other lane...
</strong></font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">for your problem. Stupidity of doing 140mph on a populated road can't be griped about as "bad brakes." Doing 140mph in a car that would stop in 50 feet on a populated road is retarded. It takes you half a second to react, and in that half second you've got further than 100 meters.

as for your brake's problem. It sounds like you have warped rotors. The LS1 Calipers are excellent, the factory rotors however are junk. Scrap them and get a set of aftermarket ones. I had an 00 camaro, rotors were totally warped within 12k miles. I put powerslots and Performance Friction Carbon Metallic pads on it, and now at 30k miles everything is still in tip-top shape.

On my 01 formula, at 7k miles my rotors were cracked enough to see daylight through them. Being happy with the powerslots on the camaro, I purchased another pair for this car. I used Hawk HPS pads this time and although the pads were more expensive (about double), I am 100x happier with the setup now 5k miles later.

I've heard good things about the autozone replacement rotors, heard mixed results on the KVR blanks (as well as mixed results on the powerslots). Heard good results out of the baeur eradispeeds, but they are a tad too pricey for me. If I recall correctly, the Autozone rotors are like 30 bucks a peice and don't have the major warping issues like the stock ones do. If I have to replace rotors again, I will in all likelyhood try out them. (If I can put a new pair of rotors on for 60 bucks and they last 10k miles, i'm happy enough.. I can do a nice rotor/clutch/valve spring swap all at the same time of the year!) I will, however, NEVER put another set of GM rotors or durastop pads on my car.

FWIW. My cars have never seen an autocross event or any other type of racing event. I am just brutal on brakes.

EDIT: typo.

<small>[ September 22, 2002, 10:49 PM: Message edited by: xaon ]</small>

rcclass

I think that the stock rotors work pretty darn good. I have 2 years of local AutoX on mine. This year I did boil the fluid and turned the rotors blue, THEY DID NOT WARP!

I'm not easy on the brakes. I still have the origional rotors and pads. <img border="0" title="" alt="[Big Grin]" src="gr_grin.gif" />

Anyway

Roger
<img border="0" alt="[cheers]" title="" src="graemlins/gr_cheers.gif" />