Brake balance. Q45 caliper good?

[thekawaii]

I got a pair of q45 calipers long time ago, i got those because of wheel clearance issue. (and price was less than 50 bucks for the pair)

Anyway, I've been doing lots of research, I learn that with Q45 brake calipers on S13, front brake force will set to 75% if rear brake is stock.

I know too much brake force at front wheel is not ideal (bad?), so what do you guys think i should do with rear brake?Anybody has experience with Q brake setup?

==================================================extra info: re-surfaced Stock Q45 rotors with stock Q45 pads. stock S13 master cylinder, stock S13 rubber hose.

oh. stock rear Q brake will not work because it uses drum brake for e-brake. i can't live without e-brake. i need it.

for both street and more auto-x

[hannibal]

Lots of people use Z32 or Q45 front brakes without installing the rears. You shouldnt have a problem. I dont think the brake bias would change THAT much. I personally havent used wither, so I cant comment on their performance.

You should invest in stainless steel lines too. SPLParts.com sells them for $45 shipped a pair.

[ShortyS14]

I just installed my Q45 brakes (front) about a month ago and they feel great. There is a noticeable stopping difference. It takes much less force on the brake pedal to get the car to stop. I haven't been able to stomp on them yet as I am finishing up the break in, but so far I've had no problems out of them. I'm running Brembo blanks (F&R), Hawk HPS pads and SS lines. OEM front brakes Q45 upgrade

[grimple1]

just out of curiousity (and laziness of searching) do the Q45's just direct bolt on?

[cdlong]

you could run s14 rear calipers, the cylinder bore is a little larger which will shift the bias rearward a little. i'll have a set for sale in a week or so if you're interested.

[thekawaii]

I don't have ABS. It suck when i try to brake hard. (i'm beginner)what did you do to the rear setup? just stock?

[thekawaii]

They are bold-on. If you need more info. read my past threads, i asked about which brake pad, rotor to use, etc

[ILikeMy240sx]

I use z32 fronts with stock rears just like how the S14s are setup from japan except they have a larger MC...

So far, I love the way my brakes work. People say the pedal feels too spongy yada yada but my pedal feels abs fine. People who do get z32 rears do complain that the rears lock up too easy.

If I were you I would stick with SS lines and pads for the rear. floating cals in the back and sliding cals in the front would look very very odd.

[thekawaii]

oh thanks.

[cdlong]

floating cals in the back and sliding cals in the front would look very very odd.

what are you talking about?

[ShortyS14]

Yeah I still have the stock 240 rear calipers, only I put on Brembo blanks, Hawk HPS pads and SS lines. Stops just fine. If you're a "beginner" as you said, these will stop your car much sooner than the stock calipers. I haven't had the opportunity to try and lock them up yet, but from what I've read it isn't difficult to do. Oh, and I don't have ABS.

[ILikeMy240sx]

floating calipers => pistons on both sides of the caliper. None of the caliper assembly it self is going to move. Its actually the pistons on both sides that squeeze the brake pads. Z32 brakes are floating caliipers both rear and front.

Sliding calipers => there is(are) piston(s) only on one side of the caliper. As the piston(s) move to squeeze the brake pads, the "inner" assembly kind of slides so in effect both sides are squeezed. These are what majority of the brakes look like Q45 is one example.

[vvaffle]

Whats necesary to use 300zx rears and would that provide a better breaking balance?

[thekawaii]

probably. i don't know.

Anyway, i think i found a way to make e-brake work. I'll have to wait until junk yard do the 50% off sale thingy.

[hannibal]

floating calipers => pistons on both sides of the caliper. None of the caliper assembly it self is going to move. Its actually the pistons on both sides that squeeze the brake pads. Z32 brakes are floating caliipers both rear and front.

Those are called fixed calipers. Both sliding and floating are often used to refer to the kind on Q45's.

Rear brakes require the parking brake drum from a Z32. I think Q45 and J30 uses identical drums (but Ive never held them side by side). You also need to rig up parking brake lines. If you do 2 piston Z32 rears, you'll most likely need the Z32 master cylinder (17/16").

[ILikeMy240sx]

Those are called fixed calipers. Both sliding and floating are often used to refer to the kind on Q45's.

Yup you are right. Thanks for the correction.

[cdlong]

fixed cals in the back and sliding cals in the front would look very very odd.

ok, that makes more sense now. i'm pretty sure the lexus is300 is setup like that.

[GhostDriver]

A lot of cars are setup like that i.e. FC3S.