Editing S30/brakeupgrade (section)

== The Process ==

First, you begin by getting your hands on some calipers. I opted to find mine at a local dismantling yard, although an alternative is to buy them new at an auto parts store or your local Toyota dealer. Being on a very tight budget, I got mine used. Make sure that you find some that are still on the truck, this way you can see how they are assembled with pads and clips, and you'll also want to mark on them which side they belong on (driver/passenger).Once you get them, clean them up at the local carwash using degreaser first, then using the brake parts cleaner. Be sure to tape off the ends of the lines to prevent water from contaminating the brake fluid inside the calipers.

https://dev.z31library.com/xenonzcar_archive/s30/images/brakes1.jpg

Next, to make them look nice, I painted them using regular aluminum paint.

After cleaning and prepping the calipers, remove the old Z calipers. The backing plate will need to be trimmed with a hacksaw somewhat to make room for the larger calipers. To do this, you must remove the rotor.

This would be a good time to replace or re-pack wheel bearings if you need to. Before removing the rotor and plate, you may want to set the new caliper in the approximate location to get an idea of how much and what needs to be trimmed. The backing plate is held in place with four Phillips-head screws.

Mine were on pretty tight, trying to unscrew them really messed up the head of the screw, so I used good old vice grips to break the screws loose. When they are broken loose, you can finish unscrewing them with your screwdriver. Once the plate is trimmed, attach it back in its original position, and install the rotor. On this particular car, the backing plate was left off to aid in cooling the brakes, but you may want to retain yours to keep dirt and debris off of your rotors.

Next, install your brake pads, semi-metallic were used in this swap (they were supplied by the nice people at Performance Toyota of Plano). You may want to buy some of the "anti-squeal" compound that you spread on the back of the brake pads. The new calipers will now bolt into place where the old ones were.

You can use the same bolts that were on the old Z calipers. In case you didn't mark which side the calipers go on, or bought them new and aren't sure, the larger diameter pistons and the bleeder screws should be on the top half of the caliper when installed correctly.

Now comes the hardest part, for me anyway: re-attaching the brake lines. Some minor bending of the brake lines is necessary, just be careful not to pinch them. It took me a little while of working the brake tubing around so that the line would match up with the hole on the caliper. After attaching the brake lines, a good bleeding is in order.

Next, mount the tire on the rotor to check for clearance. Depending on the type of rim you have, some wheel spacers may be required to accommodate the larger calipers (you can find spacers at most auto parts stores). Usually, most aftermarket rims, and 15" Z rims will be able to be mounted without any spacers, you will just have to check your particular rim to see exactly how much room you have. Just for reference, I have 14x6 280ZX six spoke aluminum rims, and I had no problems with clearance.

Once the tires are mounted, you?re ready to head out to your favorite private testing facility! Now, your car may not stop like a Formula One car, but, with everything done properly, you should feel a noticeable difference in your Z's stopping ability. Good luck!

=== Special thanks to: ===

Mike Young

Performance Toyota of Plano

1001 Preston Road

Plano TX

800-275-8696

[[Category:Imported from Xenonzcar]]