Wesley Posted July 24, 2012 Share Posted July 24, 2012 (edited) I am currently looking for the most reasonably priced vented brake upgrade. (Due to smoking the brakes and losing all pedal coming down a nice twisty road.) I currently have the 15/16 Master with front S12 Toyota Calipers with a solid rotor cross drilled and slotted and the stock rear drums. For those who wish to try and say I do not need vented. I will be pushing over 300horsepower in my build and I want to know that I have extra cooling capabilities under hard braking conditions. I have looked through all of the FAQ and understand what my options are. I have chosen to go with the S12+8 Vented option as the proportioning should be better due to the smaller piston diameter and I have a set of calipers just sitting around. My question is a spacer required for the S12+8 vented and why? I bolted up the S12+8 vented caliper onto my current solid rotor and it fits perfectly under my 15x7 rims. What is the difference between the 84 300zx Vented rotor and the solid rotor to require a spacer? What is the vented rotor changing? If there is an alternative vented rotor that works without a spacer? (But I am sure if someone had found a rotor like that it would be in the FAQ) I know that the S12W Caliper is wider than the S12+8 Vented so due to wheel clearance a spacer is required...but the S12+8 non vented is only a hair smaller than the S12+8 Vented. Anyone who has chosen the S12+8 vented over the S12W and done the swap would be helpful. As I would also love to know what pads I should be running as I am having trouble finding anything decent for the S12+8 vented. Thank You Edited July 24, 2012 by Wesley Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wesley Posted July 24, 2012 Author Share Posted July 24, 2012 "These rotors look just like the Z's except that the "hat" section where the hub bolts to, is shorter, therefore you will need a spacer to go in between the hub and the rotor." http://www.zcsd.org/tech-articles/vented-rotor-conv.php Found my own question. I still would like to know what kind of pad options I have for these calipers. Thank You Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miles Posted July 24, 2012 Share Posted July 24, 2012 Thee are many recent threads on this topic dealing with the pros and cons of the Toyota swap. Keep reading and studying the issue before you make a final decision. Pad selection has also been discussed many times and is well documented in the brake section. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
randy 77zt Posted July 24, 2012 Share Posted July 24, 2012 I have toyota calipers/vented 84 300zx rotors on my car.with the rotors drilled and running porterfield r4 pads I have no problems at thunderhill or laguna.I run oem ford brake fluid..my car is not light-1977 turboed with factory a/c.I got the spacers from modern motorsports and sourced all other parts locally.I run off the shelf organic pads when not set up for a track day-less rotor wear .I have no trouble hauling the car down a freeway off ramp at 100+mph and braking at the end even with the street pads. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zmanco Posted July 25, 2012 Share Posted July 25, 2012 You say you will have 300+ HP. Do you plan to drive on road courses? If you do, I'd suggest going straight to Wilwoods. I am running the S12+8 in front and 240SX in rear with Hawk Blue in front and Hawk HT10 in rear and now that I'm pushing the same power as you, I'm at the thermal limit before the end of a 20 minute session. Plus, those pads are expensive ($300+ for the set) and don't look I'll get more than 4 track days out of them. As a point of reference, when I ran NA (175 hp est) I never had any issues with the setup using cheaper street pads at the track, so if your plans are only for the street, then the Toyota setup should be fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedNeckZ Posted July 25, 2012 Share Posted July 25, 2012 The 300ZX rotors needed the spacer, because of the hat size. The Toyota calibers come in several different sizes. You can use the S-12W, S-12-8 or the S-13W calibers to make it work. Just check this site for the big message about it. I have them (S-12W) on my Z car right now. I have it setup more for street then track. I have semi-metal pads in the front and stock pads (280ZX Setup in rear) in the back. I have removed the bais bar (above the rear axle) in the rear and have not added a pressure adjuster in the back. I use racing hoses up front and stock hoses in the rear. It has a very neutral feel to it and I like it. I run this in Solo II and on race tracks like Second Creek in Colorado and haven't had a problem with it. With the stock setup I would come off the track with no brakes (boiling point). I like it a lot. Can not afford the more expensive setups out there. Good Luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xnke Posted July 26, 2012 Share Posted July 26, 2012 Guys, the toyota S12+8 caliper can use 1986 RX-7 Sport Suspension front brake pads IF you weld the retaining pin holes solid and re-drill them lower on the backing plate to properly center the pad material on the rotor, and remove the squealer tabs on the bottom of the pad. This opens up a LOT of track pad options. Unfortunately, this does require modifying the pads as delivered and some folks aren't equipped for that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
h4nsm0l3m4n Posted July 26, 2012 Share Posted July 26, 2012 (edited) Guys, the toyota S12+8 caliper can use 1986 RX-7 Sport Suspension front brake pads IF you weld the retaining pin holes solid and re-drill them lower on the backing plate to properly center the pad material on the rotor, and remove the squealer tabs on the bottom of the pad. This opens up a LOT of track pad options. Unfortunately, this does require modifying the pads as delivered and some folks aren't equipped for that. This is very interesting. I wanted to change to s12+8 calipers for a while now but pad selection was poorer compared to pads for s12Ws. How much lower do the holes have to be drilled? Do you have any pictures of the pad modifications you had to do? Edited July 26, 2012 by h4nsm0l3m4n Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wesley Posted July 27, 2012 Author Share Posted July 27, 2012 You say you will have 300+ HP. Do you plan to drive on road courses? If you do, I'd suggest going straight to Wilwoods. I am running the S12+8 in front and 240SX in rear with Hawk Blue in front and Hawk HT10 in rear and now that I'm pushing the same power as you, I'm at the thermal limit before the end of a 20 minute session. Plus, those pads are expensive ($300+ for the set) and don't look I'll get more than 4 track days out of them. As a point of reference, when I ran NA (175 hp est) I never had any issues with the setup using cheaper street pads at the track, so if your plans are only for the street, then the Toyota setup should be fine. Yeah i'll end up racing the car (I stayed NA Rebello built 3.0 with Megasquirt and more port and Polish than I thought possible I figure for now just upgrade to the vented in the front seeing as how I have a solid rotor right now. How does your proportioning workout running the 240sx brakes in the rear coupled with those S12+8's? Later on I'll get the 4 corners Wilwood setup. Is there a better place to buy the brake kit rather than from ArizonaZcar where its is almost $1700? Would running ducting from your lower valance to the brakes help some? Was planning on doing that myself with a square angled vacuum hose and some sort of putty for that functional look. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silver Mine Motors Posted August 1, 2012 Share Posted August 1, 2012 I've had the 240sx rear brake setup and a s12w caliper on the front. the proportionality was not good! the front was way stronger than the rear brakes. don't get drilled rotors either, they will crack sooner. brake ducting can help lower the temp down there if done correctly. look up the correct way to do it so you can get a good idea before you start. also wilwood kits don't have an e-brake , so take that into consideration. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zmanco Posted August 20, 2012 Share Posted August 20, 2012 How does your proportioning workout running the 240sx brakes in the rear coupled with those S12+8's? Even with the rear pads having a higher coefficient of friction, I can open the prop valve all the way up and the fronts still lock first. I am no longer a fan of this combination for track - there are a limited number of pad materials available and so far I have not been able to find a combination that gives enough rear brake bias and is also track worthy. I think the Silvermine approach for rear brakes (GT500) coupled with Toyota 4x4 front vented might be better. Gerry (30ounce) runs this on his stroker 260z and has been very happy with it at the track. It seems to have a better inherent balance front to rear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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