74 914 Front Brake Suspension Modificatin

KYROBI · 10-21-2003, 01:30 PM

I HAVE A STOCK 74 914 AND I WANTED TO MODIFY SUSPENSION AND BRAKES.
I HAVE HEARD ABOUT 944 TURBO BRAKES BEING INSTALLLED. I'VE HEARD OF 320i BRAKES AND WHOLE 911 FRONT ENDS. WHAT ARE THE COST OF THESE OPTIONS? DO 944 TURBO BRAKES FIT ON 914 FRONT END? WHAT MODS WOULD I HAVE TO MAKE TO GET BRAKING AND HANDLING PERFORMANCE OF MODERN SEMI-SPORTS CARS. WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF IN INSTALLING A WHOLE 911 FRONT END OTHER THAN OTHER THAN 5 LUGS AND BETTER BRAKES.
DOES ANYBODY KNOW STOPPING POWER IN FEET FOR THESE MODS?
I LIVE IN THE WASH. DC AREA WONDERING IF THERE ARE ANY PORSCHE FANATICS OR SHOP IN THE AREA THAT COULD STEER ME IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.

george 4man · george 4man's Garage

i live in our area too...
i did the bmw thing for just the fronts and they are just as good if not better at locking the fronts than "m" calipers or the "s" aluminums.

i know of a 911 parts car in our area if you choose to do the 911 thing(more costly).

there was a post you can search for that had all the pad sizes, that might help you decide.

also the 5-lug conversion will open up better options as far as wheel selection and braking overkill if you like...

skline · skline's Garage

I went with a 911 front suspension on mine. I have seen some pretty trick stuff. If you really want to overkill the brakes, you can use the Volvo 240DL brakes. They make different ones for vented and non vented rotors. You would want the non vented unless you went with the 911 front setup. They are the same bolt spacing 3" as the stock and do not need to be machined like the BMW calipers. THey are 4 piston and unless you are doing a V-8 conversion, they are really overkill. Just my 2 cents.

skline · skline's Garage

Oh, I forgot you asked about suspension, my suggestion would be to upgrade your brakes and install at least the front sway bar. If you have the money and the time, install the rear one too. That will be the most significant improvement you will make to the handling of your car. Your next step would be to replace the front struts with a Koni or Bilstien and the same for the rear. Change out the springs in the rear to the 145 pound progressive and you will be thinking you were 13 again in a go cart.

bander · 10-22-2003, 05:44 AM

Someone correct me if I am wrong, but adding too big of a brake in the front, causes the stopping distance to be INCREASED. This is because you can't get full power to the rears without locking the fronts.

Any brake system in good order will lock the fronts. Stoping distance is improved by getting good ballance between the front and back so all four wheels can be near their limit at the same time. And a Prob valve only works if your rears are too big.

Heat is the big problem and bigger calipers may help a little but vented disks are the answer.

Big brakes dont make you stop faster, only better.

I went with the BMW 320i calipers and removed the prop valve. I like the setup but I still get some fade at the track.

KYROBI · 10-22-2003, 09:49 AM

I've heard that 911 brakes stop much better than 320i brakes. What about 944turbo brakes? Is this true? Is the surface area the issue? What about a 19mm master cylinder and steel brake lines? Right now my brakes are very scary. I'm thinking about auto crossing or maybe an electric motor with batteries. Is it still overkill?

Dave at Pelican Parts · Dave at Pelican Parts's Garage

If your brakes are scary, they're not in good working order. Stock brakes in top condition (yeah, tough to find!) work quite well.

For the most part, changing brake hardware will not result in large changes in stopping distance. Most of the brakes you can put on the 914 are adequate to lock the wheels up. That is all you can ask of them in any single use. (Well, that and the ability to modulate so you don't actually lock them up.) Usually, you can decrease the stopping distance more by changing your tires. Brakes stop the wheels, but tires stop the car.

Larger brakes help more in heat management. Larger rotors act as a larger heat sink, and have more surface area to be able to shed heat. Vented rotors have a whole lot more surface area, and they get (a little) air moving through the middle of the rotor which further helps to shed heat.

The 911 brakes are vented. The BMW conversion uses the stock solid 914 rotors.

--DD