SC braking system upgrade
 

I know this is a long-discussed topic, but would like to get some opinions based on current available options.

I own a 76 coupe. 3.0 from an SC. booster brake pump from SC. 15" Fuchs.
Car is intended for track use, but not heavy.

In my previous 83 SC (completely stock) I've had no issue with braking power or heat/ fade.
But this car is intended for slightly heavier use. My main concern - the hairpin at the end of the straight :) I've always felt insecure as to what would happen if the brakes fail at that particular moment, or just didn't brake hard enough.

So I'm considering an upgrade for:

Slightly better braking power
Slightly better heat management
Noise - needs to be quiet, none of that whale howling like on the 964
looks - zero interest


Should I even bother with the popular Boxster upgrade?

I'm perhaps in the minority, here, but I'd say just stick good pads in the car (and I mean track pads, from Hawk Brake).

911s have huge brakes relative to their weight. If you don't have enough brake, you may be over-slowing the car going into corners.

and improve heat management up front, e.g. add 993 deflectors, etc == see this thread for some ideas http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-autocross-track-racing/450975-brake-cooling-ductwork.html

I agree with how capable the original brakes are.

On my SC, I have "Wide-A" calipers from a 3.2 Carrera. I also have cooling ducts on the front. This is a pretty great combo for the cost.

Do:
lighten the car as much as possible
use fresh brake fluid, the best is Castrol SRF but not everybody needs it, you will have to determine that
do use 964/993 cooling scoops
do use track pads w/ at least 50% material remaining
'84 -89 front rotors and matching wide A calipers provide some extra thermal head room
learn to carry more speed

motul 600 brake fluid
track pads (for the track only) .
try that then add air ducting if you have an issue.

I had brake fade in my 930. yes its hard on the nerves but I just slowed down a bit.
better bleeding seemed to fix it.
use a power bleeder.

also don't ease into the braking so to say. brake hard then ease up.

Here's a comparison of most of the better brake fluids listed in order of wet boiling point

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1626388722.gif

I will second all of this. I've made these changes incrementally on my own car over about a ten year span, and was able to evaluate the increased effectiveness of each individual step as I proceeded.

The "biggest hitter" was weight. The really cool thing is that is pays dividends everywhere else as well, not just in braking. It's not hard to take some weight out of these cars, but any significant reduction will start to erode its usefulness as a street car. You will have to decide how far you (or your spouse...) are willing to take this. I got down to about 2100 pounds wet, but it got really loud inside... just bare metal with truck bed liner. I've since added an "interior" in the form of a bit of insulation, an RS carpet kit, and an RSR style felt headliner just glued to the underside of the roof. My wife is happier, and lap times have not suffered.

The "wide A" calipers on the front were perhaps the next "biggest hitter". I had the aluminum "S" calipers, but on modern slicks, with modern pad materials, it was way too easy to put a lot of heat, and subsequently flex, into those poor calipers. My pedal would often go soft fifteen minutes into a twenty minute session. The "wide A" calipers cured that.

Some folks will recommend Boxster brakes. I considered them, did some research, and determined they would be a mistake. I still run 15" wheels, and the attendant smallish rotors. The Boxster calipers simply cover up too much of those rotors, and really don't properly "vent" when hiding inside of 15" Fuchs. And we don't need the added "clamp" on our light little cars, the "wide A" will lock 'em up at any speed. It's all about heat dissipation, and I believe the smaller "Wide A" beats the bigger Boxster caliper in our application.

Venting is important as well. I run the scoops that clamp to the bottom of the "A" arm, with the flex hose going to a vented backing plate. Not ideal, but they fit my car. They do pick up a lot of leaves in the fall, and other debris year round. And they are fragile, and they are vulnerable. The cooling scoops Bill recommends are far better in both regards.

I run the same scoop setup.

Any idea on the effectiveness compared to the fin style found on 964/993?