Hi.
I thought I would show my version of a brake upgrade. My car is a V6 75, which is why I've been a forum lurker most of the time. I also live in Australia. The car is undergoing a very long but very thorough restoration to create a 'fast street' car, and will be used sparingly. Because the car is still years away from completion, I won't be able to comment on performance until then, sorry.
I will be first to say that this upgrade is 'way overkill' for my needs, but I like bling, as long as it is functional. My aim was to use as many off-the-shelf parts as possible, and Alfa-specific.
The way I see it:
* pros: braking power; bling
* cons: cost; weight; minimum 17" wheel size requirement
The list of parts:
* Alfa Romeo 159/Brera/Spider monoblock Brembo 4-pot calipers (secondhand, EUR$349 + delivery)
* caliper decals (GBP$7 + delivery)
* caliper paint (A$15.95 each, local pickup)
* Ferodo DS2500 FRP3067H pads (US$215 + delivery)
* Girodisc pad shims (US$23 + delivery)
* Tarox 2-piece brake discs, 330 x 26mm discs with Tarox F2000 style grooves (discs ~EUR$600 + delivery; centre hats EUR$260 + delivery)
* custom designed/fabricated caliper adapters (A$495, local pickup)
Approximate weights:
* original disc + studs: 6.0kg
* Tarox disc + centre hat + bolts/nuts + studs: 8.4kg
* original caliper + pins + spring clip + pads: 2.8kg
* Brembo caliper + pins + springs clip + Ferodo pads: 4.0kg
Tarox disc part number KMRD0038 (and you can specify if you want grooves, and what style). Centre hats are 75 specific, and part of the Tarox inventory but not listed in their catalogue that I've seen. You can also buy a complete kit with these discs/hats + Tarox calipers, but I prefer the Alfa Brembos. Also, you can avoid the mistake I initially made: the vendor and I did not realise that ordering 'KMRD0038' does NOT include the hats, and are the discs only. You must order the hats separately; they also have '0038' inscribed on them, but I was not told a prefix.
I also plan to change the master cylinder to a 25.4mm version.
I keep a photo log of all my work, so here are photos of the brake conversion:
Secondhand 159 monoblock Brembo calipers.
One clean, one dirty caliper.
Original 269mm disc vs Tarox 330mm disc.
These Tarox discs are single piece billet steel, not cast. Note the inscribed '2313', which is the week of manufacture (early June 2013); must have been made to order, because I ordered in May 2013.
Disc + pad + caliper.
Tarox alloy centre hats arrived. Date of manufacture '4712' (mid-Nov 2012). Needed to re-use original studs.
Test fitment of hub + hat + disc, and within existing 15" wheels. No room for calipers!
These will eventually be the wheels: OZ Racing 18x8" Superleggera 5x100 PCD, +35mm offset. With 225/35R18 tyres...I'll 'make them fit'! Plenty of clearance behind the spokes for the Brembos.
Wanted to prevent corrosion on the 'unbraked' surfaces of the discs (centre + outer edge), so masked and sprayed with VHT Caliper Clear. Subsequent surface corrosion confirmed it was a good idea.
M6 Bolts + lock nuts supplied by Tarox.
Discs + centre hats + hubs assembled.
More clearance of corners on splash guards required. Trimmed and resprayed.
Hub/disc mounted onto steering knuckle.
Back to the calipers. Compressed air to 'punch' out the pistons in preparation for spraying the calipers.
Pistons had some surface corrosion on exposed edges, but otherwise all in good condition, as were the seals. Pistons polished with a Dremel + wire brush attachment, and seals wiped clean.
Calipers masked and ready for spraying. VHT Caliper Paint, Real Red and Clear.
Many coats of red, then cured in the kitchen oven at 90 degrees celcius for 1 hour, as per VHT directions.
Heat resistant 'Alfa Romeo' caliper decals. Carefully measured dimensions, masking tape for alignment, then applied.
Then sprayed with clear, but 'orange peel' effect on the paint.
Visible side of caliper carefully sanded smooth with 800 then 1200 grade wet&dry to remove much of the orange peel. Then machine-polished using Menzerna PO1066F polish, followed by Pinnacle Paint Cleansing Lotion and Poorboy's World Wheel Wax Paste.
Final caliper stage was refitting the pistons. ATE Brake Cylinder Paste (grease) smeared onto pistons and seals. Pistons/seals pushed back into position, and thus completed!
Now the caliper adapters. These were designed and manufactured by a local engineering workshop. I provided the hardware (disc/hub mounted onto steering knuckle + caliper + bolts) and they measured and produced. I can't recall exactly what aluminium they used (it's a T6 variety), but they advised it doesn't need anodizing and will not corrode. They did a good job, catering for the tapped M14x2.0 holes spaced 130mm apart, M12 untapped holes 76mm apart, radial distance and offset.
Mounting bolts are high tensile. The M14x100mm bolts are zinc plated. Without searching endlessly, I could not find zinc plated M12x40mm x1.5 thread pitch cap screws to bolt the adapters to the knuckle, so they are simply anodized versions.
Test fitting the pieces to the steering knuckle!
And finally, showing that the pads sit nicely over the disc surface. (Note, Brembo pad spring clip not used during test fitment.)
So, hopefully that's of interest and help to some of you guys.
I've found these forums to be a huge wealth of knowledge, and generally more 'technical' than others. Well done.