Hello,

I was thinking about converting my rear drum brakes to disc brakes. My '66 coupe is almost 100% stock, expect for the already converted power front brakes (by previous owner). I would like some feedback on the kits that are out there, i'm stuck between the summit kit or the SSB kit they offer. (i'm open to other suggestions) I do know that slotted or crossed drilled disk are better due to the heat, dust etc.

The car will be restored and modded in a few years. Nothing drastic, just stronger rebuilt C4 and mild to wild tuned engine, 17" wheels, 13" disc upgrade in front, silver metallic paint etc..

I also would like some feedback on how the car brakes in comparison before and after the conversion. Such as stopping power and presure points.

Thanks,
Steffan

 

Don't get cross drilled. Slotted are good for pads that are more prone to glazing and for dust removal, but they actually suck for heat absorption and dissipation. If you run higher friction pads on typical cross drilled rotors, they usually develop thermal checking in a short period of time.

Wilwood offers probably the best bang for the buck, you can get a rear hat kit with a parking brake that's basically a bolt on setup for around $650. It will give you about the best performance you're going to get without going to insanely large tires and brakes, but it's very simple looking and functional, not showy. Though you can get them with a red caliper now. Not sure on the Summit since I dunno who makes their stuff, but SSBC is decent.

 

If you're doing it for the braking..don't waste your money. Drums are fine. If you're doing it for cool factor, there are several good brands on the market, including some cheaper deals like MustangSteve and Ultrastang's setups.

 

On a high speed road course you'd need disc brakes with modern tires, factory drums will just get hot and fade out. But otherwise yeah, drums in the rear are fine with front discs that run mild compounds. Keep in mind that many new cars still use rear drum brakes.

 

I recently decided against going with rear discs and have decided to do a Trans Am style 11" drum out back. I just cannot justify the price or rear discs for the use of my car.

 

If you get the high performance rear drums like what Cobra automotive sells then they'll keep up pretty darn well with disc brakes. Of course, they're nothing like factory drums, better drum design/material(they even have a cryo treated drum) with Kevlar based shoe compounds. But, for about $100-150 more you can do Wilwoods, so again like everything....what are you willing to spend on performance.

 

I'll agree that the stock rear drums are just fine. I wouldn't mess with it.

 

I truly believe that the cats *** would be some finned aluminum drums like what came on datsun z's and oldsmobiles back in the day.

Light weight and great heat transfer properties as well. I'd bet that with some cooling ducts they'd hang with any rear disk setup.

Too bad both of the above mentioned examples are too small for our rear ends and there don't appear to be any other sources.

 

Cobra Automotive sells rear drum kits that are used in 800hp vintage racers than are 100% race cars and far outperform anyone's street car here on a road course. Their standard drums are wider 10" and they also have wide 11" drums, the drums are better material than stock with cooling fins and have a cryo treated drum option for better heat dissipation. The shoes run modern compounds, they have 2 Kevlar(iirc) based compounds, one for the street and one for racing.

Disc brakes are lighter, simpler, and in the case of something like Wilwoods, instead of 2 compounds available there's about 20. The drums are a tad cheaper, and are the primary choice for racing classes that require rear drums.

 

Thanks for all the replies so far.

As i previous mentioned, i'll rebuilt the engine with more power. Ik was planning on keeping the stock engine and tune it to somewhere between 200-300 hp. That should be fun driving in busy europe. I'm in the Netherlands, and we don't have those long and wide roads like in the USA. Because of the increase of power and especially the crowded busy roads here, i need some good brakes. If i remember correctly at the last time my car was for inspection, i had an decelleration of 6-6.5 mtr/sec2. Sure, not bad for an 44 year old car, but i did have a few near misses because some ***** (you don't want to know) weren't paying attention. Long story short, i'd rather be in the 9 mtr/sec2 decelleration range and have a good feel on the pedal (dosage) I'm not sure how to say it in technical Englisch. I just don't to hit another car or cyclist or pedestrian, this little country has more than 16 million of them.

That's why i was thinking about an rear disc brake setup 10.5" or 11.25" and the 13" upgrade up front. I thought an setup like this would be a lot safer, better and reliable.

So,

@67mustang302:
why not crossed-drilled? I'm not planning on going to the tracks, just on the street. Also some highway driving.

You can't put an price on safety, for myself and especially others. If an good set like wilwood would set me back like a €1000,- so be it. (customs, shipmentcost and taxes will raise that $650,-)

When i'm done with the car, it'll be brand new. Sure, i could buy an brand new european car, but it won't be an classic mustang. And for me that is not an option. At the bottum of the list, the costs of an restomod or an brandnew car will be the same. Sure it won't have any warrenty, but it will have a lot more fun.