Wicked big brakes for 17" wheels

So spend a grand for Porsche rotors just so you can spend $500 for a set of pads in 20k miles....ask me how I know this.

Taco brakes seem just fine for me. I go through a set of pads and a set of tires at a track weekend on the 911...lots of fun for $3k. Just how fast does one go when rock crawling?

 

That would an awesome brake upgrade for auto x

 

lol $500 pads for a 911.... you must have purchased those oem pads at the local porsche dealership.... ask me how i know...




next time, try driving your taco like you drive your 911

 

cool retro OP. Curious to see how it pans out.

I wonder what @crashnburn80 has to say.. he loves brake tech and specs. I wonder if there is a tipping point on rotor size VS caliper size. I.E what starts making the bigger difference, more piston surface area or larger/effective rotors...

380MM>360MM

 

lol damn was @crashnburn80 a 380mm?? only remember seeing a stoptech 355mm for the taco advertised

 

I’m running 380 front and rear

 

Okay... a'splain this to me Lucy, 'cause I really don't get it. Other than getting rid of all that pesky money that's taking up space in my wallet, what is the real-world benefit? I understand why a Porsche, travelling Porsche speeds needs Porsche-size brakes, but... We're talking about a compact pick-up truck that drives compact pick-up speeds and carries compact pick-up payloads.

 

I’m a slow drive with a light foot but I’ve upgraded to BBK. For my personal application, I wasn’t looking to be able to stop on a dime but rather decrease the amount of brake fade. Coming down 12,000 feet in elevation fully loaded with camp gear, recovery gear, spare parts, fully armored on 35s takes a toll on the breaks even in lower gears. Is it necessary, no. Are there alternatives, yes. Do I regret it, absolutely not.

 

right, but not on a 17" trd wheel like OP is planning on stuffing...

 

a fast moving light weight car can smoke the brakes, just as a slow moving heavy weight car can smoke the brakes...

 

Ya 360 is beef for 17.

a lot of car manuf’s use Brembo for their brakes, just white labeled. So if you can pick them up cheap like OP’s case.. Do it. The tricky thing is just figuring out the mounting bracket adapters. Then just have to remember what pads to use when changing

 

Which is a 5lug axle. You’d need to weld on different flanges onto the axle shafts. I’ve seen that done before on here but you better be an expert welder for that to hold up and it won’t be as strong as a Ford 9” which is a way easier swap and already laid out for disc brakes

 

Plenty of Porsche experience here, no need for big$ track pads. Stock Taco brakes are fine for daily, adequate for for mildly abusive circumstances, if one is aware of the limits. Many are far past those limits.

I have the full front and rear Stoptech 380mm kits for my wife's Land Cruiser... Nice stuff, if I have a chance, I'll grab some comparison pics.

More on the axle later.

 

You know you could just buy Wilwood brakes and everything bolts right up. Stop on a dime and get 5c change. I think there 1900.00 $ I’m a ambassador so they were given to me super cheep

 

Why not??

 

Definitely the biggest brakes I've seen stuffed into a Toyota 17" wheel. The largest Tacoma StopTech BBK for this wheel is 355x28mm, the 4runner StopTech BBK swap is 355x32mm. The forged wheels fit one size larger than other Tacoma/4runner 17" wheels which peak out at the 340mm rotors. 360x36 is truly impressive in size for a 17" wheel, nothing off the shelf is that large, though the StopTech kit is certainly easier while being pretty close in diameter. Always fun to do something unique though and push the limit. Props for the experimenting!

Some quick guidelines for others in understanding brake upgrades
For Rotors:
-Larger diameter rotors increase stopping torque/force (faster stops) and rotor mass/thermal capacity (better resistance to fade)
-Wider rotors increase mass/thermal capacity (better resistance to fade)
-Better rotor cooling with directional veins increase resistance to fade. Tacomas come with low-tech straight vein.

For pads
-Larger pads, make the pads run cooler. Pressure = Force/Area. Since you increase the area, and the pressure remains the same, the force goes down. Larger pads are certainly better to resist fade and keep the pads at a more ideal operating temp, but they do not help one stop faster in a single stop.
-Pad material which increases the coefficient of friction will help the brakes stop the vehicle faster, but you must also watch which material is effective at what temps. Organic pads like EBC Greenstuff for example have great initial bite with high CoF but rapidly fall off and lose CoF when they heat up.

For Calipers
-Calipers that are clamping over a larger area for a given rotor size can run larger pads, which run cooler and better resist fade
-Calipers that have increased fluid volume can have greater clamping force at the rotor, which improves stopping distance as long as it is within the ability of the master cylinder to meet the fluid needs of the caliper.
-Strengthening the caliper through forging or other means reduces flexing of the caliper, which increases responsiveness of the brakes so that force is more directly applied to the rotor rather than caliper flex.

One of the other things more overlooked in braking upgrades, is reducing rotating mass. Optimizing your wheel/tire combo for low weight can have a significant affect on braking performance, meaning saying no to ultra heavy E-load tires.

Wilwood makes a really nice kit, don't get me wrong, but their Tacoma kit is pretty small by comparison. 327mm in diameter, vs stock StopTech 355 or OPs 360mm.

 

Fair - I get the whole, "because I can" thing, and at the end of the day, probably 95% of what we add to our trucks isn't necessary; this just seems extra-special pointless to me. I've never had an issue with the brakes on my truck, and if I was doing a lot of 'near the limit' towing, there are other, less expensive, direct bolt-on options.

 

Better to have more brake and not need it, than not enough when you do.
Stock”ish” Tacoma.. original brakes are probably fine. Maybe some stainless lines and better pads. But guys with 35”+, heavy armor, overland goodies, etc a BBK is almost a must IMO.

 

Nah...more throttle is always the answer. You can throttle out of anything you need to brake for, if you’re good. Any money spent on brakes is better spent on nitrous.

 

No, go ahead and price a set of Pagid pads for a 911. Can’t drive the Taco like a 911 unless I add a Carrera emblem.