after market brakes....

[importeater38]

ok guys...im gonna upgrade the breaks, rear and suspension before i get the stroker...makes sense right.

so lets talk brakes.

baer
ss brake co
wildwood
brembro


these all all decent companies, but the only company that offers a complete set for fronts AND rears is wildwood. This car is mostly a show car..so having a complete, finished and matching setup is important...just as performance is. SS brake co has nice calipers, but thier rotors are not cross drilled and i dunno if i like that. parts availability is also a concern...so brembo and baer worry me as they don't really cater to the domestic crowd at all. Wildwood looks good...matching front and rears, slotted, cross drilled, racing background and looks like alot easier to get parts and pads.

Anyone got anything on Wildwood?

[tuske427]

I installed a set of Wilwood's on my 1984 Trans Am. I think it's the same kit- at least the rear set is. The front will be slightly different mounting, of course. I love them, but they are noisy. The kit on the front reduces 30 pounds of unsprung weight alone... Awesome. I had to modify my spindles. I'm not sure about the 4th gen kit if you need to do that or not. I had to grind down some metal and re-tap the bolt holes.

I did not get the vented/ cross drilled rotors as they said there is no performance difference (not that I'd notice on the street, anyhow) and it cost more for them, so what was the point for me? I want function.

In addition to their kits- you may need to get flexible brake lines- as the stock ones and plumbing on my car didn't quite work withthe Wilwood calipers. (on the third gen, some of the metal lines plumb directly into the caliper- this didn't work with the wilwood- I needed flexible brake lines with the right fittings) Wilwood can sell these to you.

You'll also need an aftermarket emergency brake cable kit. I got one from Lokar. It bolted up/ works nice.

I had to remove the rear axles out of the car to install the correct backing plate. Be prepared to have gear oil, posi lube and a new gasket or sealer.

I also needed an aftermarket adjustable proportioning valve to dial in the brakes. They told me I shouldn't need it, but I did. Because you have antilock brakes, maybe you don't need one...

make sure you have decent jackstands, a good place to work and unless you're a competant machanic, expect your car to have some "down time". I ran into small hassles like having to replace bolts, do little side jobs, etc. it all ate time...

Send me your email and I can email you pics of them on there.