Installed my Wilwood Big Brakes. Is it possible to stop too good?

Wow these things are great! I can really tell the difference in braking and the unsprung weight difference really helps the handling. Not one ounce of brake fade ever and it'll lock up my 33's until the ABS kicks in. Handling changes probably aren't that big of a deal, but just something I noticed from my racing days. The joke about stopping too good? I've really gotta change how I used to brake otherwise these bite hard at low speeds making my truck lurch forward then rock back and forth a second before the body comes to a complete stop. I guess it's a good problem to have.

Very pricey, but with towing and turbos coming, I think very worth it, but if they were a factory option I definitely would have spent the money on it.

 

I better tire would help you as well

 

If the modulation bite point is that bad I hate to use them on ice or snow

 

Lol glad you like them but you and I both know stopping distance is simply a function of the coefficient of friction of your tire compound and the road surface.
You simply changed the feel of the brakes is all because if you push too hard, ABS kicks in and see above for adhesion.
Get a sticky close tread tire if you wanna stop faster. Probably looks good tho.

 

Mostly it was about brake fade when towing. Had my trailer brake stop working and even though I was only towing about 3000lbs it was noticeable.

 

I think I just need to relearn the truck a bit.

 

I've made hundreds of trips with a trailer and load around 3K with nothing but a surge brake on the trailer. Yes, you have to brake earlier than if you had no trailer. Even with my four wheel disc brake Tundra, you have to allow more stopping distance. Good on you tho to do a big expensive conversion like that. Did you do it yourself?

 

I did my lift kit in the garage, including hammer hangers, so yeah it's a simple swap, but I had to get a mobile brake service come by to bleed them since I didn't have anyone to help me do it. It cost $100 and was worth it to me versus waiting for someone, or going to get the tools to do it myself.

Oh yeah and 3k lbs isn't bad for the taco to stop on flat roads, but coming down a mountain? I prefer extra safety, and could afford it. Obviously it's a very unnecessary upgrade for 99% of people, but I've added a lot of weight to the truck since I got it.

 

What Wilwood kit did you go with? I have the same wheels and was worried about clearance. Did you have to install spacers?

 

this kit is a big enhancement with braking power. it's not too grabby so it doesn't just engage ABS like an off-on switch (wtf?), it's smooth and predictable, and provides significantly more slowing from highway speeds under load than the stock setup, which i pushed to and beyond the limit repeatedly in nearly 80k miles of hard use, often standing on the pedal with two feet and not getting enough. and true, losing 34lbs unsprung weight off the front is a game changer for handling/response which is what my truck is all about. so it does matter to those who can work with that.

it's not bad or tricky in the least on the 17" wheel kit. can't speak for the kit for 18" wheels. the pads in the kit are mellow. i had an early kit of Superlite III's with Polymatrix-D pads and those initially wouldn't stop at all, foot to the floor until they hit temp, and then it was like an on switch. very hard to drive in low traction, but they were not street pads. this kit is nothing like that, not challenging at all, not really what i would call a 'performance kit', just better performance than stock by quite a bit, nothing crazy.

no spacers here, just 17x8 et0 4.5BS wheels.

"Wilwood Tacoma Superlite 6R Front Big Brake Kit w/ 14 in. Slotted Rotors - Red Calipers 140-14578-R (12-16 6-Lug Tacoma)" https://www.extremeterrain.com/wilw...d0rjIPSqJ52_dn8lqiAaAgyrEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

i think that link above is for the 18" wheel kit. the one i use is the same kit, slightly smaller rotors, for 17" wheels. same kit, different rotors (13" vs. 14")

 

How is this kit lighter weight AND better at resisting fade?

 

aluminum calipers, 6 piston design, larger rotors. and if you look into the detail it appears ventilation may be improved through the rotors. the calipers are shockingly light when you take them from the box if you've not handled them before.

 

Yup as @su.b.rat says no spacers needed, and the brakes are awesome. I had found a coupon for 4wp and got an extra 50 off

https://www.4wheelparts.com/p/wilwo...otted-rotors-140-14577-r/_/R-BHTR-140-14577-R

 

Imo, any brake upgrade over the stock brakes is worth it. My brakes improved a 100% on my tundra when i went to slotted and drilled rotors while still running the oem calipers, and brake pads.

 

will this work with total chaos spindle gussets?

 

yes

 

Do you need to upgrade the master cylinder for this kit? Do you have a mushy brake pedal if you don’t?

 

Pretty cool

 

From my road racing days, Master cylinders and caliper piston areas needed to be "matched", taking into account the general mechanical layout and desired pedal pressures and throw.

By the way, what ever happened to load compensation front rear brake bias? I haven't seen a valve and bar link on a rear axle for quite some number of years. ABS has take over the roll?

 

Yes, ABS does it now. It's called Electronic Brakeforce Distribution, but it's just some logic in the ABS system.