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What Brakes


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#1 bluemini1979

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Posted 11 June 2014 - 05:28 PM

Hi im doing a 1.6 conversion in my mini. the engine ive got is a x16xe which will be running on throttle bodies. what brakes do people use? Are the 4 pots worth it or needed? will I need a servo? Im planning on keeping 10" wheels



#2 HarrysMini

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Posted 11 June 2014 - 05:57 PM

The problem with 4 pots (apart from being pointless on a road car), is that they limit the choice of 10" wheels you can use. I know, for example, that my Mambas will only go over the 7.5" Cooper S setup.

 

If I was you, I'd be using a rebuilt standard setup (Cooper S), with Mintex M1144 pads, and braided hoses.

 

With regards to the servo, they don't necessarily improve your brakes, but rather make you require less effort on the pedal to brake. It is entirely down to personal opinion. I like them myself.

 

If you really want fancy brakes, you really need bigger wheels, then you can venture into the 4 and 6 pots.

 

MG Metro Turbo 4 pots are supposed to be good, I've never tried them myself, and am not sure whether or not they fit over 10s.



#3 bluemini1979

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Posted 11 June 2014 - 06:06 PM

Hi thanks for your reply. I wanted to use a set of 10x6 mambas so your advice has told me I cant use that and 4 pots. would a pair of new genuine calipers be as good as a rebuilt cooper s set up thanks david



#4 HarrysMini

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Posted 11 June 2014 - 07:05 PM

Hi thanks for your reply. I wanted to use a set of 10x6 mambas so your advice has told me I cant use that and 4 pots. would a pair of new genuine calipers be as good as a rebuilt cooper s set up thanks david

Absolutely. The 7.5" new callipers you can buy from Minispares etc. are the same as ones used on the Cooper S. 

 

You could run grooved discs as well, I personally like to as they provide a channel for water to go and clean out the area between the pads and discs, so they don't score as badly.  



#5 bluemini1979

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Posted 11 June 2014 - 07:43 PM

ok thanks for your help



#6 HarrysMini

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Posted 11 June 2014 - 09:20 PM

You should also be thinking about your tyre choice. There's little point in having super-dooper brakes if you have poor quality tyres. The standard braking setup, when properly maintained, offers plenty enough braking power to lock up the wheels, and with rubbish cheap tyres, you won't be able to use the braking power. 

 

For sheer performance, the Yokohama 032r is about as good as you can get for road use, the next best thing is their A008. 



#7 bluemini1979

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Posted 12 June 2014 - 09:09 AM

I had already decided it was going to be at least the a008 :)

#8 M J W J

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Posted 12 June 2014 - 11:08 AM

Unless you plan to be flooring it everywhere and braking at the last minuet for every corner standard brakes will be fine.

 

I don't get why people always think that if you increase the engine power of a vehicle then you need to increase the stopping power. You never brake and accelerate at the same time so it doesn't matter if you have 60bhp or 600bhp. For the same weight it will still take the same distance to stop from a given speed.

 

Most Vauxhall conversions do not weigh much more (the difference is about the same as having a passenger in the car) than a standard mini so your standard brakes will still be able to stop the car in the required distance.


#9 HarrysMini

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Posted 12 June 2014 - 11:17 AM

 

Unless you plan to be flooring it everywhere and braking at the last minuet for every corner standard brakes will be fine.

 

I don't get why people always think that if you increase the engine power of a vehicle then you need to increase the stopping power. You never brake and accelerate at the same time so it doesn't matter if you have 60bhp or 600bhp. For the same weight it will still take the same distance to stop from a given speed.

 

Most Vauxhall conversions do not weigh much more (the difference is about the same as having a passenger in the car) than a standard mini so your standard brakes will still be able to stop the car in the required distance.

 

This. People just don't seem to get this.



#10 bluemini1979

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Posted 12 June 2014 - 05:01 PM

It wasn't the power that I was worried about. Stopping from 70 is the same whatever power the engine has I was more concerned about the weight

#11 Burnard

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Posted 05 July 2014 - 10:36 PM

You don't need to increase the stopping power - true.

 

What you actually NEED to increase is the brake cooling.

 

Think about it, if you can accelerate faster, then there is a high chance that you will be braking a lot more often, meaning more heat is being put into the system which needs to be dissipated, hence the need for more cooling.

 

To be totally fair, you don't necessarily have to increase the cooling, more so increase the boiling point of the brake fluid, or in other words, just use high performance DOT4 brake fluid. The fluid will normally still boil before anything else goes wrong, so as long as you used something motor sport based with a high boiling point and renew is every 12 months this on its own could negate any possible need for brake ducts etc, and still give standard feeling brakes.

 

the argument also stands that if you are accelerating faster than you are more than likely also always stopping from higher speeds than before, but as has been previously said, 70mph is the speed limit and no one on this forum ever goes faster than that, and standard brakes will be fine for that sort of speed in any mini.






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