wilwood brakes advice

[ht turbo monaro]

Looking at putting on a set of wilwood brakes, superlite 14inch 6 piston front and 4 piston rear,also iam running wilwood pedal box , After some guys that have put the same on there car, and there take on how they work and if there happy with them. :cheers:

[wheelsup351]

I put Wilwood brakes on my car. They work great and were a snap to install.

Two points of caution: 1) they kicked my wheels out an inch on either side requiring me to change offset/backspace; 2) not all wheels and centercaps will clear the wilwood hub.

I'm sure every car and app is different, but those are my experiences.

I have no regrets. :thumbsup:

[69x22]

Biggest complaint I have is the parking brake is very hard to apply, people are snapping cables trying to get them to hold. Don't know if you are going to run a parking brake or not.

[GregWeld]

Nobodies after market parking brake works. I've had Wilwoods and Baer -- and they just don't hold. Some would refer to these as "emergency brakes" -- oh... that would be a HUGE mistake! They won't even hold on a 1% grade when you're dead stopped. :lol:

[69x22]

Nobodies after market parking brake works. I've had Wilwoods and Baer -- and they just don't hold. Some would refer to these as "emergency brakes" -- oh... that would be a HUGE mistake! They won't even hold on a 1% grade when you're dead stopped. :lol:

Especially on a Nomad when you pull it up with your hand! :_paranoid

[ht turbo monaro]

Thanks guys yes was going to run park brake but maybe not , is there a park brake that does do the job that you know , but you guys are happy with the stopping power of the wilwoods??? thanks for your advise

[GregWeld]

Brakes are a SYSTEM -- and if the system is all done well and matches --- from the pedal ratio - to the master cylinder diameter/volume - etc - all of these big brake systems work killer.

One thing some buddies have had to get used to -- COLD braking.... some of these systems have street/track pads in them and the cold braking takes a little getting used to.

Another thing people fail to do -- BED THEM.... and I mean get them smoking hot bedding not just a few random hard braking stops. :cheers:

[Blake Foster]

Nobodies after market parking brake works. I've had Wilwoods and Baer -- and they just don't hold. Some would refer to these as "emergency brakes" -- oh... that would be a HUGE mistake! They won't even hold on a 1% grade when you're dead stopped. :lol:

The Bare setup in My Nova works Wicked!! i can leave it parked in my driveway that has a decent grade in neutral and no issues

[GregWeld]

The Bare setup in My Nova works Wicked!! i can leave it parked in my driveway that has a decent grade in neutral and no issues

Good! Maybe I'll bring mine up and you can make it work!
:willy: :wow: :faint:

[Blake Foster]

Greg i am SURE it is more good luck than good management!!! as i do know that alot of the time they do not work all that well.
but feel free to come by any time.

[GregWeld]

Greg i am SURE it is more good luck than good management!!! as i do know that alot of the time they do not work all that well.
but feel free to come by any time.

Blake! I'd have to get a passport for that! :rofl:

[ht turbo monaro]

Thanks greg for that info much appreciated :thumbsup: :thumbsup: thanks guys

[gearheadgarage]

I have great success w/ Wilwood e-brake holding power. We almost always use the factory intermediate cable to pull the Wilwood cables as if they were stock- this seems to be stronger & work better. Also, it is important that you ajust the e-brake shoes/drums correctly to endure proper grab- I can't stress how important this step is (but often overlooked).

[wmhjr]

I have great success w/ Wilwood e-brake holding power. We almost always use the factory intermediate cable to pull the Wilwood cables as if they were stock- this seems to be stronger & work better. Also, it is important that you ajust the e-brake shoes/drums correctly to endure proper grab- I can't stress how important this step is (but often overlooked).

You're using the factory e-brake pedal? One thing that seems constant is that if you're using a "hand operated" brake lever, I have yet to meet somebody who has had good luck in that regard. BTW, I've already spent time trying to adjust the parking brake on the inside of the rear units. Not much fun and frankly not very successful thus far.

[Wilwood Tech]

There are several factors that can erode parking brake performance. One of the most critical procedures during installation is the the routing of the parking brake cables. To ensure maximum performance from your parking brake system, the cables must be routed as straight as possible. Bends in the cable can significantly reduce efficiency and thus reduce pull force at the brake. Tight bends must be avoided with a minimum recommended bend radius of 6" to 8".
Cables should be properly restrained to prevent "straightening" of bends when tension is applied. Restrain movement of cable by affixing the cable sheath to body or chassis by fitting cable clamps at various points over the length of cable or by using original equipment cable attachments points. The clamping method chosen will require that cable sheath be held tightly without movement, crushing or causing interference to the internal cable.
Cables must be initially pre-stretched by multiple applications of the brake handle, then re-adjusted to correct tension.
Finally, if you inadvertantly drive with your parking brake on, you can glaze your shoes, which will affect their ability to hold. I hope this information is helpful.

Ken H

[GregWeld]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Fantastically helpful! Thanks for posting all those great tips and instructions!

Guess I have some work to do... cause I know for sure I didn't clamp the outer cable as it should be now that I know!
:hail: :thumbsup:

[Vegas69]

Don't reinvent the wheel, GM engineered a good parking brake. I've never had any trouble with my factory mechanism and mounting points.

People reengineer an application and automatically blame the parts involved. Been there done that myself. :D

[The WidowMaker]

theres a shop in santa fe springs california that will make you custom cables that are supposed to hold up much better. i'll see if i can find a link, or maybe tobin will chime in with the company. they also sell a stock style foot brake that you push to the floor to release. im going to try and work it in to keep from having to run a release handle.