GR86 GR86 - Brake Upgrade Guide

[Will300]

Hello Fellow Zoo animals

I was recently asked by @AndyRC to create a thread with information on the standard braking system used on the GR86, along with all the possible options for upgrading the brakes, the majority of information provided will be based on my knowledge from the first generation 86. The thread will be split into several different posts, each with there own heading. This initial post will contain the standard OEM brake specification. The others posts will list information on the available brake pad selection for the GR86, available discs, brake fluid and aftermarket big brake kits. This includes a spreadsheet with over 40 big brake kits.

Club Sponsors - The following companies offer discount on all brake purchases:

EBC Brakes: https://www.gr-zoo.com/pages/ebc-brakes/
Fensport: https://www.gr-zoo.com/pages/fensport/

The information provided will be accurate to my knowledge, if there is any information you would like clarification on or you feel is incorrect please let me know.

OEM brake caliper - Specifications:

Front Brakes:

Make: Tokico
Disc Size: 294x24mm
Pistons: Dual
Piston Size: Ø40.4 x 2
Caliper Type: Floating Caliper
Brake Pad Size:

Length: 137mm
Height: 56mm
Thickness: 17mm

Image from EBC Direct

Rear Brakes:

Make: Akebono
Disc Size: 290x18mm
Pistons: Single
Piston Size: Ø40.4
Caliper Type: Floating Caliper
Brake Pad Size:

Length: 111mm
Height: 40mm
Thickness: 16mm

Image from EBC Direct

 

[Will300]

Brake pads:

Here is a comprehensive list of replacement brake pad options for the standard brake calipers and aftermarket big brake kits. I have broken the list down into three sections depending on experience and usage. I've commented which brake pads can be used for both road usage and track use.

Notes: Not all brake pads listed will be available in front and rear caliper fitments.

Brake pads – Beginner / Daily Use:
These pads are a replacement for the standard brake pads and are ideally suited for every day use.

Notes: A couple of these pads have been marked for track use, this is for very light track use only, i.e. a 10 minute session.

CarboTech 1521
CarboTech AX6 - Road & Track
Cosworth Street Master - Road & Track
Counter Space Garage CP - Road & Track
DBA Brakes Street Performance
EBC Redstuff
EBC Yellowstuff - Road & Track
Endless SuperStreet
Ferodo DS Performance
Hawk HPS - Road & Track
Project Mu B-Spec
Project Mu PS
Stoptech
Winmax W1
Winmax W2
PFC Z-Rated

Brake pads – Intermediate / Fast Road & Track:
The below pads are a combination of fast road and track pad, most of these will be sufficient for daily use on the road. However their road manner might not be as efficient compared to the OEM or Daily pads, this will be due to lack of cold bite, excessive noise, excessive dust, shorter lifespan.

Notes: Not all the pads listed below meet road legal test standard.
These brake pads are for typical track use, i.e. between 15-20 minute session.

CarboTech XP8 - Road & Track
Carbon Lorraine (CL Brakes) RC5+ - Road & Track
Carbon Lorraine (CL Brakes) RC6E - Track
Counter Space Garage C1 - Road & Track
Counter Space Garage C2 - Track
Counter Space Garage CE2 - Track
DBA Brakes Xtreme Performance - Road & Track
EBC Bluestuff - Road & Track
Endless MX72 - Road & Track
Endless ME20 - Track
Endless ME22 - Track
Ferrodo DS2500 - Road & Track
Hawk HP Plus - Road & Track
PFC 08 compound - Track
Project Mu HC-CS - Road & Track
Project Mu HC+ - Road & Track
Winmax W3 - Road &Track
Winmax W4 - Road & Track
Winmax W5 - Track

Brake pads – Advanced / Track Only:
NOT FOR ROAD USE
The below pads are your typical track day or race pad, these are not suitable for road use.

CarboTech XP10 (and up)
Carbon Lorraine (CL Brakes) RC6 (and up)
Counter Space Garage C21
EBC RP-1
Ferrodo DS3000
Ferrodo DS1.11 (and up)
Hawk DTC60 (and up)
Pagid RSL1
PFC 13 compound
Project Mu Racing N1
Project Mu Racing111
Winmax W6 (and up)

Here is a chart produced by EBC which lists their "track/race" pads against their competitors:

Brake pads personal experience:

Cosworth Street Master – OEM Caliper - A good fast road pad, but lacked the thermal capability when on track, will work for short stints. Ideal for year round road usage.

Ferrodo DS2500 – Big Brake Kit - Good pad compound, outstanding life but lacked feel and required warm up on cold daily use, wouldn't recommend for winter daily use.

Endless MX72 – Big Brake Kit – Probably my favourite brake compound as it's an excellent pad for both daily and track usage, whilst being easy to manage and modulate. They aren't quite as aggressive as the PFC 08's. Offers good pad life with little to medium amounts of brake dust and easy to bed in. Would highly recommend, if sourced directly from Japan. They are expensive and hard to source directly from UK resellers.

PFC 08 – Big Brake Kit – Best track pad I've tried, offers good daily characteristics and it works from cold. They have much better feel compare the the Ferrodo and offer lots of bite. Compared to the Endless they have more braking torque and offer a slight improvement in overall feel. The 08 compound is marketed for endurance racing, and from my own personal experience, they will happily do a 1 hour track session. A friend also used these on his OEM calipers and could easily do 30minute sessions.

However and it's a big however, they degrade (fall apart) when used over winter in the colder air temperatures and wet weather, so you must swap them out before winter to a more suitable pad. Another negative, is they produce a lot of brake dust which if built up can be extremely hard to remove with non acidic wheel cleaners, such as Bilt Hamber Auto Wheel.

 

[Will300]

Brake discs / rotors

Types of brake disc
There are four different types of brake discs available these are:

Standard / Plain – This is the most common type of brake disc and will be fitted to the car by default. These are perfectly fine for daily use and track use.

Image from EBC Direct website

Slotted / Grooved – A slight performance upgrade over standard / plain discs as they offer improved bite and debris clearance by allowing the pad to scrape along the surface of the groove and remove any excess pad material and gas. These have an a small affect on pad life. These are fine for daily and track use.

Image from EBC Direct website

Drilled – Drilled disc feature holes in the brake surface to allow heat and gases to escape from the disc. The holes help the brake pads bind to give increased bite. However there are a couple of downsides, once the disc starts to wear over time due to excessive heat cycles they can crack between the holes in the disc surface. This can be an MOT failure. They have a tendency to produce more noise than slotter / grooved discs. Due to these reasons I won't be recommending any drilled discs.

Image from Euro Car Parts

J-Hook - J-Hook offer the same benefits as slotted / grooved disc.

Image from CLP Tuning

Brake Disc Fitment

There are a couple of different brake disc fitments that are advertised for the GT86/GR86. Please make sure you order the following:

Type: Vented.
Front Disc Size: 294x24mm
Rear Disc Size: 290x18mm

There was a limited production run GT86 in the UK, called the Primo. This was fitted with smaller brake discs than the standard car. There are also several model variants in Japan that also used these smaller brake discs. If you fit these smaller brake discs, they are solid discs and are not the correct width required, therefore the brake pads can fall out.

If you order your brake discs from a motor-factor store rather than a specialist please double check the fitment you are getting, as a lot of motor-factors like to sell you the wrong ones.

Here is an image showing the wrong type of brake disc fitted to the rear of a Toyota GT86, if you look closely you can see there is no rear pad.

Image from GT86 Owners club

Recommended brake disc options:

Centric Blank brake discs
DBA Street Series T2
DBA 4000 Series T3
EBC Premium OE Replacement
EBC USR Fine Slotted
Project MU SCR - Pure Plus 6
StopTech Grooved

 

[Will300]

Brake Fluid

The GR86 uses a DOT3 brake fluid as standard, whilst this is sufficient for daily to day use it won't stand up to repeated high speed stops when fast driving on when on track. I'd therefore recommended switching to a higher quality DOT4 or DOT5.1 brake fluid. These offer higher fluid boiling points reducing the likelihood that the system will overheat and produce a soft brake pedal.

When looking for a quality brake fluid it's best practice to compare the Wet Boiling Point temperature range. The higher the Wet boiling point, the better the fluid will perform once it has becomes saturated with water due to the hygroscopic nature of brake fluid.

Here are a couple of recommended options:

Daily Use:
Castrol React Performance Dot 4
Motul DOT 3 & 4

Fast Road & Track:
Castrol SRF Racing Brake Fluid
EBC Racing Brake Fluid
Endless RF-650 Racing Brake Fluid
Millers Oil Racing Brake Fluid 300+
Motul RBF Range (600 & 660)

Notes: It's best practice to change brake fluid every 12 months when the car is used on track, or sooner.

 

[Will300]

Braided Brake Lines

The OEM brake lines are sufficient for all usage types and should last for years of daily use. If your looking to track the car, then consider braided lines for the extra protection offered with the stainless steel shielding.
There is no reason to upgrade unless your existing lines have started to fail, all brake lines will deteriorate over time. As the GR86 is a new car you can probably skip this step.

Here are a couple of recommended options, with a life time warranty:

EBC
Goodridge
HEL Performance
HoseTechnik / Forge Motorsport

Notes: I've only listed replacement lines from UK companies as these have a lifetime warranty, which not all foreign aftermarket kits offer.

 

[Will300]

Brake temperature measurement:

There are several ways to measure the performance of your cars braking system. The most important aspect is to understand the operating temperature of the various braking components. This won't be essential for the average user and is mostly for the experienced track user.

Brake caliper temperature stickers :
Several companies offer thermal stickers, which come in a variety of temperature ranges. For brake calipers, it's recommended to stick these on the outer piston area, as this will provide the best reading. They are useful to determine if your calipers are reaching there optimal temperature range or are over heating. These offer the best cost to performance ration of all the temperature measurements listed. They also only record the peak temperature.

Here are a couple of photo's of them on my calipers.

Optimal placement:

Sub-optimal placement - But easier to read:

They can also be stuck on various parts across the car, i.e. brake calipers, intake, differential, suspension, etc.

These are available from Demon Tweeks or via eBay
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/132862876948?hash=item1eef3e9d14:g:cPwAAOSwmUFb9JO1
https://www.demon-tweeks.com/uk/racetech-temperature-indicators-249593/
RaceTech Thermal Temperature stickers - Kit G 121°c-280°c

Notes: These stickers can be a pain to remove once applied.

Brake disc/rotor temperature paint:
One of the most important aspects of your braking system is determining if your brake discs / rotors are working within their optimal range. To find out several manufacturers offer a special temperature paint kit.
These kits contain three separate paint colours which when painted onto the top of the rotor, will change colour at a certain temperature, usually in the 400°c, 500°c & 600°c range.

Here are a couple of photos from the internet, so you can see where to apply the paint, and what it looks like once it has been heat cycled:

Images from exquisusa.com

Available from Demon Tweeks:
https://www.demon-tweeks.com/uk/a-p-racing-temperature-paint-kit-a-pcp2649-1/

Infrared Laser Thermometer:
Another useful way to measure your braking components temperature is to buy a infrared laser thermometer.
You can use this to shine the laser at a surface and a temperature reading will be displayed on a small LCD screen.

Available from Demon-Tweeks, Amazon, eBay, etc:
https://www.demon-tweeks.com/uk/sea...rmometer-121-high-temperature-vs941-seavs941/

EBC Racing offer a kit with DOT 4 brake fluid, temperature strips and disc heat paints.
Available from EBC Racing here:
https://www.ebcracing.co.uk/products/track-pack?rq=rn_racing-brake-pads~mk_toyota~md_gt86

 

[Will300]

Big Brake Kits

Big brake kits offer several key benefits, such as cheap consumables, longer consumable life span, better thermal management, larger pad choice, larger disc options, better looking calipers. There are also a couple of negatives such as a large initial investment cost and limited wheel fitment options. It's also worth mentioning that big brake kits aren't specifically designed to improve your overall stopping distance, this is primarily determined by your tyre compound, tyre contact patch and pad selection. The same pads in an OEM caliper will stop the car just as quickly as in a BBK, however after repeated stop the OEM setup will start to become thermally limited, which in-turn will reduce braking performance.

It’s not essential that you fit a big brake kit to your car for fast road or trackdays, several of the brake pads listed above are more than adequate for extended track use. However swapping to a big brake kit will become beneficial if you are doing 5+ trackdays a year or your finding your stock brakes to overheat even when using some of the intermediate or advanced brake pads. There are lots of big brake kit's available, some from other similar cars and from known racing manufacturers, however not all of these systems will have been designed with the GR86 in mind.

With this in mind and to help you select the correct kit for your usage, I've produced a spreadsheet which contains all the major big brake kit offerings available (over 40 options), for both front and rear calipers. The spreadsheet provides a breakdown of pro's and con's with each kit. I've also tried to include as much information I can find out about each kit, such as disc size, pad size / number, piston size, wheel fitment, etc.

Please note: The GR86 shares the same wheel hub design as the first generation GT86 & BRZ, meaning any big brake kit that fits the first generation cars will also fit on the GR86. However if you own a second generation BRZ this uses an aluminium wheel hub with a different brake mounting location, therefore not all big brake kits will fit.

Personal experience: I'm currently using the Reyland AP Racing CP9200 big brake kit on my Gen 1 BRZ, my car was used for the development of this kit. I've now had the kit on the car for 5 years and approx 40,000miles and it has been faultless in all that time, with no failures. I'm currently on my 2nd set of discs, the first set of disc's lasted 4 years with approx 10 track days per year and they still had life left. This is one of the best modifications I have made to the car as the forged calipers provides much better overall feel compared to the OEM setup. And they offer a much wider range of thermal capability, with the correct selection of brake pads the car can be driving for an hour on track without any degradation in braking ability. Would highly recommend for anyone that uses their car for daily and track use.

Big brake kit spreadsheet
Spreadsheet has also been attached in an image format, for those who can't open google docs.

Spreadsheet Key:
Green – Recommended Option
Blue – Adequate Option – Lacking some key features/info to make it a recommended option.
Red - Missing information

Rear big brake kits
There are several rear kits listed in the above spreadsheet, the OEM rear caliper is more than sufficient for all usage cases. Most endurance racing teams run the OEM rear caliper as it offers the best value to performance ratio. Therefore it's mostly a cosmetic upgrade, the majority of kits available are far to large and will have an adverse affect on braking performance and bias. The best option if you wish to run an upgraded rear caliper is to run the diamond shaped Brembo caliper as used on the performance pack and the MY08+ WRX STi, as this has a Ø40.0mm x 2 piston layout, the same as the OEM caliper.

It's also worth noting, you might need to use different pad compounds front to rear to compensate for change in brake balance.

Personal experience: I'm currently run the diamond shaped Brembo caliper on my Gen 1 BRZ. This kit has been on the car for 4 years and is still on the original discs. When fitted with Endless MX72 pads in both front and rear calipers the balance is excellent. If I run the PFC 08's pads in both calipers, the rear pads heat up much quicker and upset the balance as they produce more braking torque sooner, so you need to be careful when choosing a rear pad. Due to this reason for track use I run the PFC 08's pads in the front and the MX72 pads in the rear calipers as this retains an excellent balance.

Here is a spreedsheet which lists the additional parts required for the rear brembo caliper swap:

Brembo Rear Caliper Parts Spreadsheet
Spreadsheet has also been attached in an image format, for those who can't open google docs.

Recommended Brake Kits:
I've noted below the recommended brake fits, if you don't wish to view the spreadsheet. Both of these kits have been tried and tested on the first generation GT86 & BRZ.

Recommended Option - OEM: Performance Pack Brembo's as fitted to the GT86 Blue Edition.
Recommended Option - Aftermarket: Reyland AP Racing CP9200 kit - 330x28mm discs

If you're interested in the OEM Performance Pack Brembo's here is a list of pad numbers and available pad compounds.

Brembo Pad Number:

WVA 23325
WVA 23092

Aftermarket pad choice:

PFC - Pad No: 1001 - Compound: Z-Rate
Pagid - Pad No: 2487
PBS - Pad No: 8017PR
Winmax - Pad No: WMP370-14.5
Carbon Lorraine - Pad No: 4066

Alternatively if you prefer the Reyland AP Racing kit here is a list of pad numbers and available pad compounds.

Carbon Lorraine:
Pad No: 5004W50T17
Compounds Available: RC5+, RC6, RC6E, RC8, RC8R
Approx Price: £210
Available from: https://www.kamracing.co.uk/manufac...p3215-d50-pads-cl-brakes-race-brake-pads.html

EBC:
Pad No: Various
Compounds Available: Bluestuff, Orangestuff, Yellowstuff, RP-1, RP-X
Approx Price: £90
Available from: https://ebcbrakesdirect.com/race-caliper-parts/ap-racing/cp9200/24000159

Endless:
Pad No: RCP015
Compounds Available: MX72, MX72 Plus, ME20, ME22, CC-Rg, CC43, M-Sport
Approx Price: £200
Available from: https://www.nengun.com/endless/

Ferodo:
Pad No: FRP216
Compounds Available: DS2500, DS3000, DS1.11, DSUNO
Approx Price: £150
Available from: https://www.kamracing.co.uk/manufac...r-cp3215-d50-pads-ferodo-race-brake-pads.html

Mintex:
Pad No: MDB1292
Compounds Available: M1144, M1155, M1166
Approx Price: £102
Available from: https://www.kamracing.co.uk/manufac...r-cp3215-d50-pads-mintex-race-brake-pads.html

Pagid Racing:
Pad No: 1361
Compounds Available: RSL1, RSL29, RST1, RST2, RST3 ,RST4, RST5, RS14, RSH42
Approx Price: £102
Available from: https://wwhttps://www.clutchstop.co.uk/products/pagid-e1361-rs29-brake-pads.htmlw.clutchstop.co.uk/products/pagid-e1361-rs29-brake-pads.html

PBS:
Pad No: 8223PR
Compounds Available: ProRace
Approx Price: £130
Available from: https://www.tegiwaimports.com/brand...pads-ap-racing-caliper-cp5200-cp3215-d50.html

Performance Friction (PFC):
Pad No: 7767
Compounds Available: Z-Rated, 08, 11
Approx Price: £150
Available from: https://www.part-box.com/pfc-7767-z-rated-brake-pad-set-7767-10?search=pfc 7767&description=true

Project Mu:
Pad No: F1076
Compounds Available: Type PS, HC-CS, HC+, R777, R999
Approx Price: £150
Available from: https://www.rhdjapan.com/search/?q=F1076

Winmax:
Pad No: WMP814-17
Compounds Available: W3, W4, W5, W6.5, WN3
Approx Price: £235
Available from: https://www.kamracing.co.uk/manufac...aliper-cp3215-d50-pads-winmax-brake-pads.html

 

[AndyRC]

Great piece of work @Will300 , much appreciated

 

[Gal14]

Awesome @Will300, great to have this to reference!

 

[KobayashiMaru86]

This is a great guide. Very tempted to eventually get that AP Racing setup. It's not cheap but is complete off the shelf. Did see it mentioned a 5mm spacer for BRZ cars. My hardest part will be finding a garage to trust to fit it and the standard of mechanic (or should I say fitter) has gone downhill locally at least. May end up learning how to do it myself. Done pads before so can't be much more to fit the rest of it.

 

[ZN8]

Great post Will, I have found more info with regards to the TRD GR Monoblock kit. Its produced by Advics and is also sold as a BBK under their own branding.

Front
Piston diameter: 38mm
Caliper Weight: 2.31kg
Discs: 345mmx30mm, 8.1kg, floating 2 piece.

Rear
Piston diameter: 43mm
Caliper weight: 1.67kg
Discs: 330mmx26mm, 8.5kg, 1 piece.

2 types of pad available 'Street' & 'Circuit'

https://www.advicsaftermarket.co.jp/product/breakekit/index.html

 

[AndyRC]

Great post Will, I have found more info with regards to the TRD GR Monoblock kit. Its produced by Advics and is also sold as a BBK under their own branding.

Front
Piston diameter: 38mm
Caliper Weight: 2.31kg
Discs: 345mmx30mm, 8.1kg, floating 2 piece.

Rear
Piston diameter: 43mm
Caliper weight: 1.67kg
Discs: 330mmx26mm, 8.5kg, 1 piece.

2 types of pad available 'Street' & 'Circuit'

https://www.advicsaftermarket.co.jp/product/breakekit/index.html

@ZN8 great find the design looks the same as the GRY other than disc sizes , does anyone know if they are the same , probably a question for the GRY folk

 

[ZN8]

Quite possibly, as the GRY brakes are also produced by Advics

 

[AndyRC]

Quite possibly, as the GRY brakes are also produced by Advics

View attachment 5330

Good spot wondering if the calipers are the same size and design , AFAIK discs are 15mm larger on the GRY, if so I believe there are lots of options for aftermarket pads for the GRY?

 

[Will300]

Very interesting @ZN8, I've updated the spreadsheet.

However I'd be concerned with the brake bias, running a kit with those sized pistons.

 

[AndyRC]

Very interesting @ZN8, I've updated the spreadsheet.

However I'd be concerned with the brake bias, running a kit with those sized pistons.

@Will300 Presumably as this is a GR86 specific kit TRD/Toyota will have done the development work to make sure it’s not going to adversely affect brake bias I’m guessing it’s not that different to the TRD kit for the GT86, both made by Advics looking at photos

 

[AndyRC]

Does anyone have a registration number / VIN number for a GT86 with the Performance Pack Brembo brakes they are happy to share with me ? Reason is to try and talk to my local Parts guy and get a definitive set of Toyota Part numbers , drawings and prices for the Brembo setup so those who want to, can order these parts, which should be a straight swap and all genuine Toyota.

 

[Grblue86]

Does anyone have a registration number / VIN number for a GT86 with the Performance Pack Brembo brakes they are happy to share with me ? Reason is to try and talk to my local Parts guy and get a definitive set of Toyota Part numbers , drawings and prices for the Brembo setup so those who want to, can order these parts, which should be a straight swap and all genuine Toyota.

@AndyRC Did you manage to contact a previous owner? Possibly @James-UK can help here

 

[James-UK]

I'll look through my old documents and see if I have my old car VIN... no promises. But I'll try my best for a Yellowstone fan (go watch 1883!) @AndyRC

Edit: Sadly not, nothing that mentions the vin

 

[AndyRC]

I'll look through my old documents and see if I have my old car VIN... no promises. But I'll try my best for a Yellowstone fan (go watch 1883!) @AndyRC

Edit: Sadly not, nothing that mentions the vin

Done 1883 that got us hooked , now bingeing Yellowstone at 2/3 per night