[Antartican]

After searching the threads in this fine site I still haven't been able to find the correct info on what is the best thing you can do to improve your brakes in a stock 02 GT. I am bewteen buying a Brembo brake kit for around 1200 bucks. I don't even know if the stock bullit rims will fit. Or buying the Ford Cobra 13 inch brake kit for the front for not even half of the brembo. Or just buying a nice set of pads and rotors. What is the best bang for your buck. Has anyone had experience on the 13 inch cobra brakes. Do they really do a big difference bewteen the stock. What setup if the rotors and pads are the best will produce the best braking performance without the dreaded noise. Im already deaf from my exhaust and I would hate to have a high pitched noise take the other spectrum of my hearing. Thanks.

 

[silver03GT]

I know that i used the Baer Track kit on another car that i had and it made a pretty big difference. I have seen them go for around $700 and they come with 13" rotors and dual piston calipers. Actually same PBR calipers that come on the Cobra & ZR1 Vette if I remember correctly. For the money the Baer kit was very nice and came with the stainless braided line,hubcentric rings and billet caliper adapters.

 

[Jokers97GT]

I am using a 13" Cobra front brake kit p#M-2300-R on my 97 GT and I bought the kit for $399.00 from BuyFordRacing.com. It came with 13" Brembo rotors, 2 piston Cobra or Bullit calipers(your pick), brake pads already installed in calipers, mounting brackets, and new Cobra brake lines. It really made a difference over the stock brakes. I don't know what kind of pads come with the kit but I have had no noises with over 2,000 miles on them. This kit is easy to install with the only problem being the brake bleeding (sorta time consuming but not hard). I am using 98 Cobra rims with 5.72" backspacing and 33mm offset and have no clearance problems with the brake kit.

 

[Monkey Boy]

The Cobra or Bullit kit is the best bang for the buck but I am very satisfied with my EBC pads and stock sized Brembo cross-drilled and slotted rotors. I actually tested them out for the first time today and my braking capability far exceeds my tires' grip.

 

[Antartican]

I want a full kit so Im thinking that Im going to get the Baer system up front and get the red bullit calipers for the rear with a nice drilled and sloted rotors out back. Anyone have any good combo for the rear. I was wondering what was a good pad that didn't squeak too much. Thanks for the replies.

 

[meatball]

Might want to look this over: http://www.corral.net/forums/showthread.php?t=715273&page=1&pp=35

Cross-drilling & slots are more show than performance; ok if not track car. The Baer Eradispeed+1 kit (rear) is priced right but Cobra rear kits okay as well; slightly larger rotor than stock GT. All should fit inside stock Bullitt wheel though I had to remove my Eradispeed+1 rears to put on deep-dish Bullitts (ID on wheel is smaller); the Cobra rears should fit inside my deep-dish wheels w/o problem on rear. The Eradispeed+1 rear set fits inside: stock Bullitts, 17x9 Cobra R's, 17x9 Steeda Ultralite II's.

 

[Antartican]

Thanks a lot the forum really helped out. Im thinking of going with cobras for the front and just stock on the back. Its a really good deal.

 

[Monkey Boy]

Might want to look this over: http://www.corral.net/forums/showthread.php?t=715273&page=1&pp=35

Cross-drilling & slots are more show than performance; ok if not track car. The Baer Eradispeed+1 kit (rear) is priced right but Cobra rear kits okay as well; slightly larger rotor than stock GT. All should fit inside stock Bullitt wheel though I had to remove my Eradispeed+1 rears to put on deep-dish Bullitts (ID on wheel is smaller); the Cobra rears should fit inside my deep-dish wheels w/o problem on rear. The Eradispeed+1 rear set fits inside: stock Bullitts, 17x9 Cobra R's, 17x9 Steeda Ultralite II's.

Thats not true. Cross drilling helps eliminate hot gases that can get caught between the pad and rotor while slots provide a better bite on the brake pad and keep the rotor surface clean of brake dust. Why would pure race cars use something that is for show?

 

[engineer76]

After searching the threads in this fine site I still haven't been able to find the correct info on what is the best thing you can do to improve your brakes in a stock 02 GT. I am bewteen buying a Brembo brake kit for around 1200 bucks. I don't even know if the stock bullit rims will fit. Or buying the Ford Cobra 13 inch brake kit for the front for not even half of the brembo. Or just buying a nice set of pads and rotors. What is the best bang for your buck. Has anyone had experience on the 13 inch cobra brakes. Do they really do a big difference bewteen the stock. What setup if the rotors and pads are the best will produce the best braking performance without the dreaded noise. Im already deaf from my exhaust and I would hate to have a high pitched noise take the other spectrum of my hearing. Thanks.

Antartican

Go with the Cobra setup - it is a proven setup; if not the engineering team of the cobra would not have used it for this hi performance application.
I guess it will also be a lot cheaper to get new pads and replacement parts. But that is only a guess.

You see, I am just a big fan of OEM parts, or at least as close as possible - I've been disappointed so many times by so called "way better" aftermarket parts.

Let us know how it worked out

 

[meatball]

Thats not true. Cross drilling helps eliminate hot gases that can get caught between the pad and rotor while slots provide a better bite on the brake pad and keep the rotor surface clean of brake dust. Why would pure race cars use something that is for show?

- few of us drive hard enough on the street to have real concerns about which style to use. Total brake area is still something to shoot for, ie., larger rotors and pads.

"Some people prefer slotted rotors because of problems that came about when cross-drilled rotors first came to market. At that time, quite frequently, the holes were drilled too large, penetrating the cooling vanes and were not radiused or chamfered. The end result was that the rotor lost its structural integrity and tended to crack, so slotted rotors were developed. They do help dissipate the hot gasses, but not to the same degree as cross-drilled, usually lowering operating temperatures about 100 degrees. We always recommend cross-drilled unless you are particularly concerned with structural integrity. In some cases, only slotted rotors are available.

Which is better: cross-drilled or slotted rotors?

We recommend cross-drilled rotors for most street applications due to greater heat dissipation (up to 40% larger cooling capacity) resulting in less brake fade, more responsive wet weather performance and enhanced initial bite. Most exotic sports car manufacturers (Porsche, Ferrari, etc.) equip their cars with cross-drilled rotors as standard equipment.

Slotted rotors are the minimum we recommend; they are far better than standard OE rotors. Gas-slotted, while helping cool the rotor slightly, mainly help by letting the hot gases produced in braking escape. This helps to keep the pad in better contact with the rotor and also allows water to escape in wet-weather conditions."

http://www.surrealmirage.com/subaru/brakes.html
http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=1475905

 

[Monkey Boy]

- few of us drive hard enough on the street to have real concerns about which style to use. Total brake area is still something to shoot for, ie., larger rotors and pads.

"Some people prefer slotted rotors because of problems that came about when cross-drilled rotors first came to market. At that time, quite frequently, the holes were drilled too large, penetrating the cooling vanes and were not radiused or chamfered. The end result was that the rotor lost its structural integrity and tended to crack, so slotted rotors were developed. They do help dissipate the hot gasses, but not to the same degree as cross-drilled, usually lowering operating temperatures about 100 degrees. We always recommend cross-drilled unless you are particularly concerned with structural integrity. In some cases, only slotted rotors are available.

Which is better: cross-drilled or slotted rotors?

We recommend cross-drilled rotors for most street applications due to greater heat dissipation (up to 40% larger cooling capacity) resulting in less brake fade, more responsive wet weather performance and enhanced initial bite. Most exotic sports car manufacturers (Porsche, Ferrari, etc.) equip their cars with cross-drilled rotors as standard equipment.

Slotted rotors are the minimum we recommend; they are far better than standard OE rotors. Gas-slotted, while helping cool the rotor slightly, mainly help by letting the hot gases produced in braking escape. This helps to keep the pad in better contact with the rotor and also allows water to escape in wet-weather conditions."

http://www.surrealmirage.com/subaru/brakes.html
http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=1475905

I agree, larger pads and rotors are the best way to improve your braking. But cross-drilled and slotted rotors aren't a waste of money. Mine have made a huge difference in both gripping ability and brake fade. I'd be willing to bet that with my lighter V6 and its current brake setup, I could out-brake a GT with the Cobra or Bullit brakes with the OEM pads and rotors.

Where did you get your quote from, Powerslot? I've read it before, good info.

 

[Antartican]

Thanks for the great replies and sorry for not responding. Actually I was thnking for the cobra setup because it is very cost effective. It is only like 400 bucks. Great price. But the cross drilled is such a sexy setup. It brings my mustang up to race car status when it is parked next to a porshe and even more if it has a biger rotor. Im glad the whole cross drilled sloted thing was cleared up. I though it was too much that it was purely for looks. Im probably going to go with either a baer or cobra. But the sloteed and crossdrilled is such an awesome design. I sure will keep you posted on my decision. Thanks a lot.

 

[Jokers97GT]

If you check some company's offer the Cobra brake kit with cross drill & slotted rotors for and extra fee. Either BUYFORDRACING.com or Blue Oval Industries on ebay has these kits. They may not be listed on their web site but if you call them they may still have these kits or be able to build them. The last time I checked (last year) the kit was priced around $500.00. If they don't have these kits you can buy the drilled & slotted rotors seperate. They are easy to install. I bought the standard Cobra kit (non slooted & drilled) and had it installed with new DOT 4 brake fluid and when I am done with my PI head swap I am going to buy new FRPP drilled & slotted rotors (Front & rear) and install them at the same time. It should take me less then 1 hour since I don't have to bleed the brakes.

 

[Guest]

I told you that I could get you a killer deal on the Baer brakes...

 

[findawg]

buyfordracing.com also has the brembo gran turismo kit on their site for i believe $899 or something like that. they say it is from the cobra r... but really it is just a gran turismo kit. Shipping was around $50 or so. i would highly recommend them. the only thing i can say is you have to clean your wheels a fair amount more. not big deal in my book. and when people see the 13 inch brembo's sticking out like a sore thumb they tend to be impressed. the only other thing i can say is upgrade the rears as well. it tends to be a little front biased and shakes a fair amount as well too. hope this helps.