Big Phat R

I finally got around to getting the NSX calipers I bought off of Dr. Cortez last fall. They arrived in pretty rough shape (kinda rusty) and needed a thorough overhaul. I have been playing around with the idea of better brakes for the ITR over the last couple of years. 20+ HPDEs and 3 driving schools later I finally felt I was maxing out the capabilites of the stock brakes even though I already had tried numerous high performance brake pad compounds, Motul 5.1, stainless lines and the LHT MC brace (all which are very good upgrades btw).

After most track days (70+ minutes of severe brake abuse) my brakes tend to fade as the day wore on and I would always have to bleed the fluid to get rid of the mushiness in the pedal. I always found the pads to be a lot more worn on the leading edge which made me think that a 2+ piston design would be superior to max out the life of the very expensive brake pads that I was eating through.

I had a dilemma though. I wanted to stick to 15" rims for the R compound tires I used. I had recently picked up a used set of 15" MF-10s and really wanted to stick to a brake system that would allow me to use these rims. This basically ruled out everything except Spoon calipers (too $$$ and wouldn't clear my rims according to the boys at A&J), Endless ($$$), Wilwoods ($$) and NSX calipers.

I chose the NSX calipers because they were proven at the track (RTR used them in their early cars), used a thicker rotor (better heat sink) and used stock ITR pads (easy).

Install is pretty straight forward - see MiGs earlier post on fitment. I didn't test fit the 15" rims until I got to the track - but I figured they would fit and they did very nicely.

Here they are underneath a +45mm offset MF-10.



Here is the caliper clearance:



Wheel off:



Very beefy 28 mm rotor!!



Mission Raceway (near Vancouver) is a tight 9 turn track that is just under a mile in length. It is very hard on brakes as you are on them all the time. There are two hairpin turns after the two main straightaways. If you are hard on brakes you can kill a set of pads there in one day. The day I spent there was hot and sunny (see NunRacer's post of a few days ago)

Overall I noticed the following improvements compared to 10+ days there with various configurations of the stock ITR brakes:

1) no fade whatsoever all day (it was a hot day too)
2) no mushy pedal at the end of the day (didn't boil the Motul 5.1 I guess due to larger heat sink)
3) much better trail braking (I could modulate it a lot better)
4) I was able to lock up/have ABS kick in on my R compounds on a <u>regular basis</u> - I rarely had this happen with the stock brakes - only under extreme (foot through the floor boards braking).
5) too much front bias

Overall I am very happy with the changes. I was going to do a bling bling paint job on the calipers - but it got to the point where it was going to take too long and the paint just bakes off anyways... I'll see how the paint holds up - if it requires repainting soon - I'll just stick to the black stuff.

I think with the new calipers I will have to switch to a more aggressive rear brake compound as I felt I had too much front bias now (locking up). Currently I use Porterfield R4-S pads in the rear which don' t seem to have as much bite now.

Overall it was a good day at the track. I got to talk to some stripper that came by in her Corvette for a little while. I think I convinced her to attend next time

She had a nice butt. I think she was from Brazil or something. How she ended up watching us at the track - I have no idea.....who cares?!

ryu12341

how much did you pay for your whole setup? calipers, rotors, pads, etc. thanks!!!im interested in upgrading my brakes also. will this upgrade fit under 16 inch 43+ offset mf-10's?

.RJ

Nice write up/upgrade

You're missing the pic of the UPS truck delivering the parts tho

Big Phat R

&lt;edit - all prices $ USD&gt;

calipers = 250 used for two
Brembo rotors = 75 bucks each
pads = same as stock usually ~150 or so per set- depends on what you use - I use some crazy Italian Techno Freno SpA race pads which are expensive but very good
fluid = ? I get Motul cheap

And yes the calipers fit under 16s easily (they fit under 15's why wouldn't they?) Is that a trick question or something?




Modified by Big Phat R at 9:33 AM 6/11/2003

Hybrid ctr

Nice review BPR

What year NSX were those calipers from??? just curious

Batoutahell

Thanks for the write-up. Have you considered air ducting to lower temps further?

Suprdave

More Pics of girl in question?

Big Phat R

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Batoutahell &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Have you considered air ducting to lower temps further?</TD></TR></TABLE>

My Mugen CAI precludes brake ducting on the RHS . I have thought about removing the dust shields but I'm worried that the CV joints might start to crack if I do that (from radiated heat).

I haven't run into any fade problems so far (i.e. overheated). If I do get fade - I'll usually back off for a lap or to and the brakes usually come right back. I think with the thicker rotor I'm ok for now.

If I had to do an endurance race - ducting would be mandatory though - but most of my driving is done in 20 min sessions.

p.s. no more pics of the chick

JustLooking

Quick question, are the 28mm rotor off a 94 Legend Coupe GS?

sackdz

Lose the dust shields fo sho.

Thanks for the review.

kepani

I'm curious about BPR's comment on the heat shield removal and the possibility of "baking" the boots. Has anyone run into such a problem? Perhaps there is some sort of preventative measure such as "lubing" the boots before running on the track? I'm thinking normal daily driving...not a problem...but yes, under a track condition...there is an issue?

piscorpio

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Suprdave &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">More Pics of girl in question?</TD></TR></TABLE>

hehe, I thought I was the only one thinking the same.

ITRbroham

Very informative as I know of one H/T'er whose gonna go with NSX brakes for sure.

mikehonda

Not gonna bake da boot, lotsa air blowin thru dare

DarthLuder

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by JustLooking &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Quick question, are the 28mm rotor off a 94 Legend Coupe GS?</TD></TR></TABLE>

umm, he said brembo rotors.

ill phil

Is this possible, let me reword- as straight forward to do on a 4 lug set up?

NA gs-R 05 C

luv them mf-10's, but ne wayz, nice brake system.

Art Vandeleigh

what year NSX caipers? and how much are the rebuild kits for the caliper?

yoshi234

nice review BPR

yshi - who hopes shakira can make an appearance at a socal track day also

EM1 Loi

i'm digging the girl

Willard

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by sackdz &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Lose the dust shields fo sho.</TD></TR></TABLE>
no chit.

http://www.we-todd-did-racing....5NTQx

http://www.we-todd-did-racing....5NTQx

http://www.we-todd-did-racing....5NTQx

http://www.we-todd-did-racing....5NTQx

vactor

i put the legend dual piston calipers on my 95 civic about 3 years ago. very easy, but you need to take ~ 3mm off the caliper mounting brackets. otherwise a simple R and R. i am thinking of doing the same on my R, other than that i would like to lose a bit more weight. i may try the 25mm Stoptech aerorotors as a first step ... a bit on the expensive side a t$425 retail a pair, but they save 2 lbs per side and fit with stock calipers ...

Civic Minded

iTrader: (1)

I never knew they made mf-10's in 15". Do they still offer this size? I would be very interested in a set if they do...

TIA

ill phil

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by vactor &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i put the legend dual piston calipers on my 95 civic about 3 years ago. very easy, but you need to take ~ 3mm off the caliper mounting brackets. otherwise a simple R and R...</TD></TR></TABLE>

Thanks for the info

DarthLuder

Get the chick to turn around.