I've searched and searched, and i know this question has come up a bunch of times, but it seems there's a lot of misinformation to sort through. -Some say a few years of the granada's came with 11" brakes. Is this true? What years? Others say not true... -Are caliper brackets still available to put ...say... mustang calipers on our spindles? Aside from using dual piston mustang calipers, is there any advantage to the single piston calipers over our calipers? -I've seen the slotted/drilled rotors for our cars on ebay, anybody used them? Quality? -Any other "budget" front brake changes i'm not aware of? -I'm well-versed in the explorer rear disc swap, but does this make the braking THAT much better? Or just a little? I need to be able to stop this thing a little better than i currently can! I wish someone would make good brake pads for us...
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Ford-Mustang-GT-Cougar-Falcon-front-disc-brake-Granada_W0QQitemZ8036734770QQcategoryZ33564QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem perfect for a racing application for sure; all the best pads available and cheap, could run wilwood GMIII aluminum calipers, JMO depends on your application what you need.
All 75-80 Granada and 74-77 Maverick had 11" disc front brakes. There are brackets available for original Mustang that fit later model calipers. Slotted rotors Quality? They are ordinary rotors with slots machined into them. The slots are designed to improve fade resistance at high operating temperatures. The depth of the slots in the rotor is minimal. On the one I am familiar with the slots serve as wear indicators since their bottom is at replacement depth.
Actually, disc brakes were optional in '74. All '74 Mavericks came with disc brake master cylinders though. My '74 Grabber had factory drums with a disc brake master cylinder. I believe all Granada and '75-'77 Maverick disc brakes are the same. My personal opinion is that rear disc brakes on a relatively unmodified Maverick are pointless except for looks. Seems to me drums are more then sufficient for the rear unless your car will be highly modifed and you drive it like a maniac. I think Earl Branham got his slotted rotors off ebay. He seems pleased with them. My dad bought a set for his '95 Mustang GT a couple of years ago from the same supplyer on ebay, and they have been working great for more then 2 years now. Excellent quality IMO.
Those GM caliper brackets are tempting! Those are still single-piston calipers though, right? Has anyone done that, and did they notice a difference? I've already done the swap to maverick disc brakes though, and don't have my drum spindles any more. In terms of quality on the slotted rotors, i was more wondering if they were prone to warping (like many cheap rotors). But it sounds like the quality might be "good enough" on them. The main problem i'm having is that ...well... my brakes aren't really that good. There have been times when i was racing and had to slow down, and i could just feel the brakes fading, and that makes me scared to have fun with the car. I've even thought about adapting a booster like the one in my Saab 900
i don't understand the... "was racing and had to slow down"... everyone i know that has made a pass at the "drag strip" knew they were going to "slow down" at the end so there was no "surprise". i have the drilled and slotted rotors from e bay and love them. i was suprised at there great quality ...frank...
although most of you are straight line racers, some of us like to take turns and you have to slow down first. Of course he could be slowing down so he doesnt have to put in a roll cage. If you havent switched the front to disc, do that first then decide if you still need to put in the time and money to do more.
Yeah, the drag strip! That's where i was racing! Glad to hear some feedback on the rotors, that'll be my first investment since i need them anyways. After that i think i'll do the calipers. I actually already have the disc conversion up front. I think my main problem with braking is that the pad selection is really limited. Don't get me wrong, it stops 100% better than 4x drums, but the fade is extremely noticeable, especially at the end of the strip!
