GR86 GR86 - Brake Upgrade Guide

@Grblue86 thanks, seen that kit recently also. Looks very similar to the JR Kit. Umbrella seem to be developing some good products for GR86 - their BBK looks good.
 
Three4Eight said:
@Grblue86 thanks, seen that kit recently also. Looks very similar to the JR Kit. Umbrella seem to be developing some good products for GR86 - their BBK looks good.
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Their BBK only looks good - uses 44/40 mm pistons inappropriate for this application - esentially refurbished STI caliper (or ICP replica which can be bought for cheap compared to original BTW) with inverted bleaders. This kit should come with 40/40mm piston caliper for keeping optimal (like PP equipped cars) brake bias. For this kind of money you can get Brembo GT BBK for front axle.
 
MrSkubi said:
Their BBK only looks good - uses 44/40 mm pistons inappropriate for this application - esentially refurbished STI caliper (or ICP replica which can be bought for cheap compared to original BTW) with inverted bleaders. This kit should come with 40/40mm piston caliper for keeping optimal (like PP equipped cars) brake bias. For this kind of money you can get Brembo GT BBK for front axle.
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I have the STI set up on my car. I've done 3 track days and cannot say I notice any braking imbalance. Mine are rebuilt STI calipers. The kit by Umbrella I can say are the ICP ones due to the price of the kit.

The benefit of the STI caliper over others is that it is a direct fit without the need for a bridging bracket.

On mine, they were rebuilt with the nipples located to the opposite end so the larger piston is in the correct location.


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ninjin said:
I have the STI set up on my car. I've done 3 track days and cannot say I notice any braking imbalance.
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If it works for that's ok I guess ;) This topic has been beaten to death over all toyobaru forums in the existance. https://www.pointmeby.com/2016/09/24/which-big-brake-kit-bbk-should-you-get-for-the-brz-frs-gt86-86/ - there is some good info about many BBK kits out there and why swapping just sti fronts might not be optimal solution. To me the amount of money they charge for what is basically an averages joe solution to BBK at big companies money is ridiculous and not mentioning the potential issues of swapping just fronts is shady business.
 
that's the problem with spreadsheet mods..... Just because it works/doesn't work on paper doesn't mean it will be detrimental in the real world. The majority of BBK on cars are solely for 'show' rather than performance. We've raced B16 engined GP N and GP A Civics in SE Asia during the 90s until the 2000cc K series took over and we used to run 4pot ALCON or AP up front with Stock brakes at rear.

With that mod, there is even more serious brake unbalance than the 5% or so for the GR using STI calipers up front...

There was no lap time benefit in having 2/4 Pots at the rear. If it doesn't help, don't spend the money!
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ninjin said:
that's the problem with spreadsheet mods.....
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I can agree on that - if something does not work on paper it does not mean that it won't on track but please bear in mind that doing research and testing for yourself is very different from pushing product to the public. I know many ppl who run STI calipers on those cars with or without rears but most of them are enthusiasts who know what the're getting into and potential headaches. If one wants headache free kit based on new parts there are other options on the market.
 
Like I said, most who do BBK are doing for looks. The umbrella bbk won't be rebuilt STI calipers due to the cost, so will the the ICP ones. I don't know how well they work or how they are modified for the GR, that's not my place to comment as I don't know.

I can't see the umbrella kit being any different from the other BBK available on the market, in the fact that are mass produced generic parts made to fit the GR86 with supplementary hardware.

Without going into detail, I'm not sure even if the factory option Brembo setup available in other markets, gives the same braking balance (front rear) as the factory sliding calipers.

Anyway, this is a thread about oil coolers, so I'm going to stop commenting on BBK in this thread.
 
MrSkubi said:
Their BBK only looks good - uses 44/40 mm pistons inappropriate for this application - esentially refurbished STI caliper (or ICP replica which can be bought for cheap compared to original BTW) with inverted bleaders. This kit should come with 40/40mm piston caliper for keeping optimal (like PP equipped cars) brake bias. For this kind of money you can get Brembo GT BBK for front axle.
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It looks good because it’s a relatively cost effective BBK that can be legally registered on the car in EU countries. That is pretty rare as regulations are very strict. There are other ways to trim balance so that’s less of a worry. A Brembo GT kit with papers is more than twice the price.

Spending more time looking at the cooler, it looks like a clone of the JR kit. No bad thing.
 
Three4Eight said:
It looks good because it’s a relatively cost effective BBK that can be legally registered on the car in EU countries. That is pretty rare as regulations are very strict. There are other ways to trim balance so that’s less of a worry. A Brembo GT kit with papers is more than twice the price.

Spending more time looking at the cooler, it looks like a clone of the JR kit. No bad thing.
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I got my GT Kit at around 2050,00 EUR back in 2019 from official Brembo vendor. Ask for discount - it's possible to get it cheaper than current advertised prices.
 
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AEG86 said:
Big thanks to @Godspeed for customizing and supplying some RS 3 Megané Brembos, repainted in gold in a nod to the many gold brembo calipers of past JDM cars. Maybe not for everyone's tastes but they're right for me, also blue and gold together, come on.
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That's nice. Was debating the standard Red or Blue but Gold would work well with my wheels too.
 
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AEG86 said:
Big thanks to @Godspeed for customizing and supplying some RS 3 Megané Brembos, repainted in gold in a nod to the many gold brembo calipers of past JDM cars. Maybe not for everyone's tastes but they're right for me, also blue and gold together, come on.
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You're very welcome , they look great in that colour
Thanks Ian
 
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Not that I've checked, but at 20K miles and nearly three years, I reckon that my brake pads (at least) could do with changing toward the end of this year when it's service time. So time to start researching replacements.

Any suggestions or recommendations for pads/discs which might be better than OEM? On the first gen I remember PFC-Z pads were quite well regarded, also Stoptech - is it the same story for this gen?

Car is pretty much exclusively road driven, so don't really need a BBK.
 
I've got MX72 Plus pads waiting to go on when the time comes. Expensive here though, cheaper even including VAT from Japan. Same as you really. Will only change for BBK when I feel need to and for the aesthetics
 
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Second on the MX72+, barely any dust and very kind to the disc which is very special for pads with this performance level.
 
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I presume there’s been no more noise about the performance pack brakes fitted to other market cars appearing as a retrofit? I recall seeing a few rumours it would appear as an accessory kit a year or so ago but haven’t seen any more rumours since.
 
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