Brake upgrade options

[econti]

My pads and rotors are very worn, so it's time to fix it.
I want better braking performance.
Is there a go-to budget option for better stopping? Obviously better pads and new slotted rotors, but the calipers seem to be very small, and being sliding design they appear to suffer from heat.

Would it be worth going 5 stud and using bigger E36 brakes? Or would the extra money of doing the conversion be better spent on a bigger setup on the 4 stud?

[gbouton]

I think you'll probably be pleasantly surprised with the stopping performance with just new (quality) pads and rotors. If you're doing mostly street driving and/or light track use, there's really nothing wrong with the stock hardware. I ran Hawk HPS pads on stock rotors for street use and several track/HPDE events, and had very little fade and was impressed with the braking ability. I've since upgraded the front brakes to Massive's 300mm BBK and Hawk HT-10 pads, but only because the car has become more of a track toy at this point.

-Graham

[econti]

Worth going to braided lines? I was told that it stops the delayed brake effect by one person, but another said that was inherent in the booster itself.

What's the go with the FC RX7 calipers?

[THEhomelessONE]

+1 gbouton

I wouldn't run aftermarket brake lines, waste of money, plus higher rate of failure. I'd be worried about the rx7 upgrade messing with the brake bias, read you want to shift more bias to the rear if the car's been lowered.

I can get ABS to kick in around 80 on 225/50 re11's with OEM pads, so they're plenty strong. Problem is heat, but I think I have about 600lbs over a 318is. OEM pads usually give you the best cold bite, good for "oh sh!t" moments.