s3 uprated brakes

[strapper]

Has anybody put on an uprated front brake kit (bell's and discs) on there s3, if so what is the best to go for?

 

[Prawn]

search the forum for the Brember Junior GT kit

its basicly the same as the brembos from the seat LCR, and seems to be the best upgrade for the S3.

 

[Stewart]

Possibly one of the most discussed topics on here besides suspension so please do a search.

But a quick summary and in order of most preferred :-

1. Brembo GT/Seat Leon Cupra R front brakes - 323mm disks - 4-pot Brembos - everything bolts straight on - spacers needed on some aftermarket wheels

2. GOlf R32 front brakes - 334mm disks - 2 pot calipers - everything bolts straight on, no spacers needed - awesome stopping power from personal experience and 3 years usage - looks in clasifieds

3. Porsche 996/TT/GT3 Big reds with choice of disks - mental stopping power but custom mounting brackets need to be acquired and will deffo need spacers in excess of 13mm depending on wheel type - ECS do off the shelf kits using these calipers but are pricey

4. Tarox 6, 10, 12 pot kits - pricey and dont look as bling as Brembos but perform well - available from Awesome

 

[tominski]

I have above option 3 with Rep RS4 wheels and no spacers needed. I do however have spacers that I got with the kit, but not used if you wanted some just to be safe. Not sure on size though.. Can check if you wanted them.

 

[Paul-RS6]

Option 3 all the way. Have been Run in excess of 50K miles now.

 

[rickparmar]

for some reason i always thought the TT brakes were the same as the S3

 

[Stewart]

for some reason i always thought the TT brakes were the same as the S3

They are, apart from the 3.2 V6 TT which are the same as the R32.

I am now running GT3 Big Reds with ECS 2 piece R32 disks.

 

[Silversea]

996 GT3.
Outstanding brakes at any speed and much better pedal feel.

 

[strapper]

how much do these coversions cost?

 

[Blunteh]

More than the car does !!


(just kiddin, they aren't cheap though)

 

[ChriS3]

996 GT3.
Outstanding brakes at any speed and much better pedal feel.

Good brakes admittidly, but the brake pedal feel improvements are wishful thinking. Keeping the same master cylinder means that you need the same amount of brake fluid to fill more pistons, reducing the feel of the pedal.

 

[Silversea]

Approx 5mm more travel than with the original set-up, but without any doubt a much improved pedal feel.
If you were to measure the fluid displacement of the large single piston, I don't think it would be too much less than the 4 smaller pistons.

 

[Ess_Three]

Approx 5mm more travel than with the original set-up, but without any doubt a much improved pedal feel.
If you were to measure the fluid displacement of the large single piston, I don't think it would be too much less than the 4 smaller pistons.

You do loose feel...
I went up one size in single piston diameter (1mm increase) and lost all pedal feel on my GTI...

Going to Porsche callipers normally reduces feel and adds pedal travel as there few callipers from the Porsche range that match the A3/S3 master cylinder perfectly.

People make the mistake that going to 911 callipers gives you better brakes...it's doesn't alays work that way.
You have to be careful which 911 callipers you use to match the master cylinder sizes...one of the best ways is to use 996 C2 rear callipers which are physically smaller and have smaller pistons...but they don't look as good as huge red things and hence the placebo effect takes over and people fit the biggest Porsche callipers they can get their hands on...bad move.
You'll end up with long pedal travel and no real modulation...not to mention a brake imbalance front to rear.

If you want to fit a decent kit...the Brembo GT kit is all you'll ever need...but if you must have Porsche on the callipers (which are Brembo anyway) make sure they are compatible piston sizes...which 6 pot GT3 or Cayenne aren't!

 

[Aky]

use 996 C2 rear callipers

Not sure whether its me being thick but why use the rear ones rather than fronts? Could the fronts be used?

 

[Silversea]

Can't speak for the S3, but I'd guess the M / Cylinder is the same size as my 225 TT, I always found the original brakes to be less than ample for the car, not talking about track days etc but general day to day driving with a few blasts on favourite B roads etc.... Fitted the Mov'it kit (GT3 Mk1 4 pots with the usual 322x32 discs) opted for the BE-M46-Sport pads, I can honestly say that there was a huge improvement over the standard brake set up (brakes were like new with O/E pads), as I mentioned, the pedal has about 5mm or so more travel but the feel of the brakes are much improved. Added the 308mm ECS kit later on to the rear, which again made a bit of an improvement over the standard.

 

[Ess_Three]

Not sure whether its me being thick but why use the rear ones rather than fronts? Could the fronts be used?

You can use either...
But the rears are smaller and have smaller pistons more suited to the 23.5mm (I think) master cylinder of the S3.

Don't forget that the 911 isn't the best example of brakes to 'steal' as it's brake dustribution is way different to that of an S3 under full braking, so the pistons are sized accordingly.

But that goes against the buying ethos that the biggest, reddest Porsche brake callipers that'll fit under the wheels will be best.
They won't.
There are a lot of badly matched and poorly engineered kits available to those who have more money than concern for true improvements in braking.

Each to their own...

 

[Ess_Three]

Can't speak for the S3, but I'd guess the M / Cylinder is the same size as my 225 TT, I always found the original brakes to be less than ample for the car, not talking about track days etc but general day to day driving with a few blasts on favourite B roads etc.... Fitted the Mov'it kit (GT3 Mk1 4 pots with the usual 322x32 discs) opted for the BE-M46-Sport pads, I can honestly say that there was a huge improvement over the standard brake set up (brakes were like new with O/E pads), as I mentioned, the pedal has about 5mm or so more travel but the feel of the brakes are much improved. Added the 308mm ECS kit later on to the rear, which again made a bit of an improvement over the standard.

I don't doubt it...
But fitting a better suited set of callipers (say the Brembo GT jr kit) will give the same results in braking, with less unsprung weight, less fitment issues and will give better pedal feel...that it less of a push of the pedal compared to the Porsche callipers.

But they don't say Porsche on them...
But they do save you £500.

 

[Silversea]

But they don't say Porsche on them...
But they do save you £500.

Mine don't mention Porsche!

 

[Ess_Three]

Sorry, it wasn't aimed at you personally...

It was aimed at those who believe that a big red calliper with Porsche on it will give them 911 like braking...it won't.

 

[marmite]

I got a big Red Porsche 997 Calliper in my garage that looks really nice!

Bigger the brake the quicker you lock the wheels up!

Silversea Loving the wheels on your car..have you eaten through those MIch sports yet? notice you got Rosso's on

 

[Silversea]

Silversea Loving the wheels on your car..have you eaten through those MIch sports yet? notice you got Rosso's on

No, that picture was taken last summer, I take the wheels off over the winter, the tyres are being fitted tomorrow (crapping myself with worry about getting the tyres fitted), if they chip a wheel, they've just bought a set!!!
Can't wait to get the Rosso's off TBH, they're only half worn....

 

[dultanur]

Ess, do you know if the boxster calipers are a good match for the S3? i think they are the normal boxster (not S) front calipers...

heres a linky thingy...

http://www.awesome-gti.co.uk/audi a38l1/brakes.html

 

[Ess_Three]

Without seeing the piston sizes, it's hard to say, but I seem to think the Boxster fronts are like the 911 fronts, and he pistons are a shade too large to be ideal...

Don't get me wrong, they'll work...but could possibly be better.