New brakes on the VR-4

Confused

Confused

Confused

Soldato
Joined
18 Oct 2002
Posts
8,016
After purchasing a set of Carbotech XP-8 ceramic brake pads for the VR-4 sometime in the middle of last year, I finally got round to looking at fitting them yesterday.

Pulled the wheels off, and stuck the pads in, to find that they are very silver, and it made my calipers/carriers look quite bad/dirty...

So, off down to Halfords, to grab a tin of silver hammerite!

IMG_8540.jpg


IMG_8543.jpg



I then went out a bit later, to follow the bedding in instructions that came with the pad.

4 stops from 70-10, with 30 seconds between each, then 4 stops from "70+"-10, with a minute between each.

This was the result of that....

d0f137bd.jpg



They'll be a bit hot, then!


The heat also kind of made a bit of a mess of the Hammerite, too, so I might need to re-do that now! :o

The brakes are MUCH better now, though! It now stops just as well as it goes! Previously, braking was a bit precarious, and repeated heavy braking was very dangerous.

The Carbotech pads will generate quite a bit of dust compared to standard pads, luckily my wheels are fairly dark, so it won't notice as much (I'll still need to clean them regularly).
 
I managed to pick them up for £100.

They've since gone up to ~£150 in my fitment... not too good, but, if they're good, it's a worthwhile investment.

I was having the ABS kick in at ~40-50mph on a perfectly dry road yesterday evening, it's never done that before!


Not sure how long they were glowing, I did calm down a "bit", although the instructions say to keep them fairly warm for about 15 minutes, so plenty of moderate braking... and 1/4 tank of fuel used, too!
 
I'm not too sure what the people I pulled up alongside at the roundabout ~30 seconds before that picture was taken must have thought!
 
Blimey. How are you finding the XP8's so far or is it too early to tell?

On a seperate note, do the Evo Brembo's bolt straight on the VR-4 or do they need bespoke brackets?

Guy who lives just along from me had the fronts on his VR-4 saloon and I was just wondering how he did it.
 
Last night the difference from stock was amazing.

Since then, I've only driven it to work this morning, fairly sedately mind! So I've not had a chance to really use them.

The Evo Brembo's are a direct fit to a facelift Galant/Legnum, pre-facelift ones (like mine) require the hub carrier and ABS sensors from a facelift (or a 99-onwards UKDM), as the mounting holes for the carriers are slightly different.

I missed out on the chance to get some facelift hub carriers, very cheaply, as I didn't realise until a few days after the car went, that I'd need them to fit Brembo's (if I decided I wanted them).
 
Looks good...

I had evo 8 brembos on my second Vr4.... didnt find it worth it really...

For those who have a facelift maybe, but otherwise good pads/discs were fine.
 
Axeboy said:
I had evo 8 brembos on my second Vr4.... didnt find it worth it really...
Click to expand...

I can see where you are coming from with that. They're certainly just about capable on the street with decent disc's and pads but I think they will come unstuck on the track.

Realistically I think they will suit me ok. I'd love some Alcon's but they are soooooooooo expensive!
 
Nice pics! I love the VR-4 - I would have bought one if I didn't go for the Legacy GTB instead. I sometimes wonder if I made the right choice.

How much spirited driving do you do or is the stopping noticeably better than stock even whilst driving more sedately?
 
I have absolutely no doubt that upgrading the brake setup is the best change you can make on a car. Being able to decelerate hard without fade & keeping it all nicely ballanced allows you to focus a lot more on other aspects of the corner & as such your driving improves greatly.

I hope your still satisfied with the change next time you give them a good monstering mate! But it is worth noting some comments above, a strong pad will inevitably require a disc to suit & fluid to cope & possibly braided hoses to tie all these changes together...
 
Last edited:
Clarkey said:
I've never seen glowing discs on a road car before, good effort!
Click to expand...

I remember being in Nottingham a while back and watching someone in a new Lexus IS (Diesel I think) absolutely nailing it along a dual carriageway between two roundabouts and an industrial estate, the brakes were glowing nicely :D
 
Muncher said:
With that amount of heat sitting in your discs you may well have boiled your fluid...
Click to expand...

Possibly, I've been planning on a fluid change anyway, I've not done it since owning the car (a year now).

[FnG]magnolia;16117490 said:
Nice pics! I love the VR-4 - I would have bought one if I didn't go for the Legacy GTB instead. I sometimes wonder if I made the right choice.

How much spirited driving do you do or is the stopping noticeably better than stock even whilst driving more sedately?
Click to expand...

I've always liked the Galant/Legnum, and never been a huge fan of Subaru's - there's advantages and disadvantages to both!

I don't do a massive amount of spirited driving, but it does happen occasionally. Plus, the standard brakes were just quite rubbish anyway, especially for the performance of the car!

Coco said:
I have absolutely no doubt that upgrading the brake setup is the best change you can make on a car. Being able to decelerate hard without fade & keeping it all nicely ballanced allows you to focus a lot more on other aspects of the corner & as such your driving improves greatly.

I hope your still satisfied with the change next time you give them a good monstering mate! But it is worth noting some comments above, a strong pad will inevitably require a disc to suit & fluid to cope & possibly braided hoses to tie all these changes together...
Click to expand...

The best discs for Carbotechs is generally regarded as plain, blank, OEM discs. Some braided lines would be nice, just to firm up the pedal a little, but the biggest difference has been fitting these pads.
 
Awesome!

Just don't sit on the brakes with them glowing, warpage would not be ideal ;)

Looking at some carbotechs/Hawk HPS/Dixcel Z pads for the Teg in the summer, when my current OEM pads should be nicely run down. Some spanking new discs and braided lines shall be in order as well.

Handling/suspension/braking modifications > expensive engine mods :)
 
-Ad- said:
Looking at some carbotechs/Hawk HPS/Dixcel Z pads for the Teg in the summer, when my current OEM pads should be nicely run down. Some spanking new discs and braided lines shall be in order as well.
Click to expand...

I put Legend Twinpots, Hawk HP+ pads and Pagid disks on a week or so ago. The difference is amazing, the way they scrub off speed repeatedly is much better. I just need to sort the rears out now.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom