Weak Brakes

[PhatCat]

I feel that the brakes seem kind of weak compared to what I would have expected from my car. It's not that they are bad, they get the job done pretty decently, but I don't feel they grab as hard as they should. The pads have maybe 60% left if not more and the rotors are in great shape (clean and true), so that's not the issue. Are all E30's like this, or maybe I need a bleed?
I have considered replacing the rotors when they are cooked(long way off...hopefully) with slotted ones and high quality pads but was wondering if the weak-ish brakes are commonplace with the E30's.

[gotKRAUT]

E30s are known for their spectacular brakes, get steel brake lines, and some Ate Super Blue and pressure bleed the whole system with all new fluid, that should be more than sufficient...

otherwise if you do a lot of long term braking like canyoning or tracking you may want to invest in a set of zimmerman rotors(best for the money) and either some Axxis or Hawk pads or another comparable aftermarket pad. But if you just daily drive the car you wont need those honestly.

Step one, Flush out the system with new fluid and make sure you get all the air and old dirty fluid out...

[triggrhaapi]

Originally Posted by gotKRAUT

E30s are known for their spectacular brakes, get steel brake lines, and some Ate Super Blue and pressure bleed the whole system with all new fluid, that should be more than sufficient...

otherwise if you do a lot of long term braking like canyoning or tracking you may want to invest in a set of zimmerman rotors(best for the money) and either some Axxis or Hawk pads or another comparable aftermarket pad. But if you just daily drive the car you wont need those honestly.

Step one, Flush out the system with new fluid and make sure you get all the air and old dirty fluid out...

I am putting on SS lines, ATE Super Blue, Zimmermann cross drilled rotors and Porterfield semi-race pads this weekend. I'm pretty sure that'll do me for a while.

[gotKRAUT]

yep, that'll do just fine me on the other hand, need to measure out some brackets for the machine shop so i can run my 11" 4 pistons

[nukeduster]

if they arent grabbing hard, its one of a few things:

1: its the type of pad you are using, its either simply not agressive enough or the wrong temperature range for your style of driving.

2: you are having pad transfer problems, and the pads arent properly binding with the surface of the rotors.. in which case 5 repeated highspeed stops should fix it. (70mph - 5mph, back up to 70, etc)

3: you have massive ammounts of air in your system. air compresses, but that would cause a spongy feel, not the system to not work alltogether.

My first guess are your brakepads, brakepads and matching them to your driving style are the #2 cause for complaints with braking systems. At least, where I used to work. #1 was improper bed-in of pads which led to poor performance, premature wear, and vibrations felt thru the steering wheel.

[ldsbeaker]

Originally Posted by triggrhaapi

I am putting on SS lines, ATE Super Blue, Zimmermann cross drilled rotors and Porterfield semi-race pads this weekend. I'm pretty sure that'll do me for a while.

Dude, where do you put pics and stuff for your projects? Or do you just keep your allmighty knowledge to yourself? Sharing is good.