Brake upgarde for A3 REVO'd 2.0 TDI sport

[Stevie C]

Well after just having Cruise and a TT wheel fitted to My early 2004 TDI (many thanks to Mattandrew and the guys at VW Audi Cars Bradford on Avon) the next mod I am looking at is upgarding the brakes as the standard ones just dont fill me with confidence especially as the car is REVO'd.

The car has 19" RS4 Alloys on so clearance is not a problem but budget is! Would like to change all four corners to poss the new S3 Brakes or i have heard that the brakes on the 170 DSG are larger and wondered if these would do the job.

Any advice grateful!
regards
Steve

 

[SteveTDCi]

My Golf was remapped and the brakes were fine, if you are doing serious track work then i'd consider the upgrade, but them if you were doing track work it would be cheaper to buy a track car for the amount you would spend on brakes !!

The cheapest solution is to upgrade the pads on the front, some fast road Ferrodo pads should do, if you want slightly larger brakes I believe you can use the brackets from the Golf GTi and retain your existing caliper, you would also need the rear splash guard and new discs. Larger brake kits involve new cylinders & everything and would cost 2k to do right.

 

[PNH80]

I wouldn't agree that a bigger brake kit costs £2k to do it right at all. I've looked into it (started a thread on here somewhere) and you can get a Brembo GT kit for just over a grand, probably £1200 fitted for an A3. Looks smart and classy and is a massive improvement over the stock set up. I've seen some brilliant ATE kits on Ebay for bargain prices before as well (£600), then you'd need someone to fit it. Alternatively if you were lucky enough to find some i'd imagine the Brembo's off a Leon Cupra R would fit straight on.

Either way, it's definitely an affordable mod to have done within reason. I'll be upgrading my brakes definitely. The brake fade at times on mine is a bit scary when braking at speed.

Paul.

 

[SteveTDCi]

I've never got mine to fade yet, surely if you fit larger calipers they are going to require more fluid, that will mean a larger resovior and also a larger master cylinder.

 

[hatmeow]

Steve,

There is no need to fit larger master cynlinder nor a larger reservoir. It will need more fluids but it does not mean that a larger reservoir is needed.

Brembo GT kits should fit without the need for adapters and should not cost 2,000. You can also fit Brembo / Cayenne 6 pot calipers for even more stopping power. Here is what my car looked like after fitting 6 Pot Brembos on

(Yes I had mine painted in dark grey with silver Audi logo). There was no need for a new cylinder and was just a straight bolt on.

I had mine changed because I thought the original brakes weren't enough after the MTM remap. Now it stops on a dime!

However, going for R32 calipers can be another cheaper option and you can look for a set from the breakers. Again, straight bolt on with no additional changes.

Hope this helps.

 

[Amchlolor]

I've never got mine to fade yet,

I'm with you there.
One of my regular routes is a quiet B-road.
Huge long straight, down to a small roundabout.
Regularly 100mph+, braking down to next to nowt.
Then another straight, followed by a complex of corners.
Loads of braking, in quick succession.
Never, ever, got fade.

I'd suggest a pad change, as the pads have maybe become glazed.
Certainly a cheaper option than knee-jerk replacement of the whole lot!

 

[Stevie C]

Wicked can i ask how much this set up cost? did you change the front and rear or just front?

 

[hatmeow]

Costs about US$2,000 here just for the fronts, steel brake lines, and the slotted rotors. Should not vary too much in price in UK.

I just changed the fronts without changing the rears as its very costly (just a couple hundred less) and you dont really need it anyways. Just make sure the brake bias is properly adjusted for the bigger front calipers

 

[PNH80]

Wicked can i ask how much this set up cost? did you change the front and rear or just front?

Stevie, like i said above...About a grand for the A3 Brembo kit + Fitting. So call it maybe £1200 all in. Looks the dogs, stops on a dime. Job done.

 

[newbiecrg]

For now standard S3 brake setup is more than adequate for my standard S3.

No mods planned for my car really.... Saving for a deposit on a new one instead...

Pedro

 

[PNH80]

For now standard S3 brake setup is more than adequate for my standard S3.

No mods planned for my car really.... Saving for a deposit on a new one instead...

Pedro

Pedro, you're keeping us all in suspense aren't you...Come on....what's the next car gonna be?!

Paul.

 

[newbiecrg]

well Paul I think you have a fair idea of what I want... so let's wait and see what happens in the next few months workwise...

Pedro

 

[PNH80]

Good man Pedro, make sure you keep us informed. I wait with anticipation!

 

[Gti Jazz Blue]

I just changed the fronts without changing the rears as its very costly (just a couple hundred less) and you dont really need it anyways. Just make sure the brake bias is properly adjusted for the bigger front calipers

So how do you adjust the brake Bias ?

My understanding is that the EBD handles that electronically using the ABS sensors ?

Paul

 

[hatmeow]

There is an adjustment at the master cylinder that adjusts the front rear brake bias. I dont know the exact position or the details becuase my mechanic did it for me. Sorry...