Quote:
Originally Posted by Xerok
If I decide to go with 19 inch, do I have to change the rear as well?
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From our FAQ:
Q: Is it okay to just buy your front-only brake kit?What about the rears?
A: Our front brake kits are designed to very closely mimic the OEM torque output on the front axle.That is accomplished by carefully sizing the discs and caliper pistons.For example, if we increase the disc diameter in our kit vs. stock, we decrease the overall piston area to produce the same overall torque output as the factory setup.As such, installing our front kit on your car will only have a negligible impact on brake bias.In most cases, the shift in brake bias is only in the 2-3% range.To put that in perspective, installing a more aggressive brake pad compound in your factory front calipers would typically have a greater impact on brake bias than installing our front kit while keeping the OEM front pad compound.
On most front-engine sports cars, the front brakes are taxed much more heavily than the rear brakes.That's why the front brakes are almost always larger, and why you go through 2-3 sets of front pads and discs for every set of rears you burn up at the track.The fronts do a disproportionate amount of work, and as such, they are the most critical component to upgrade.On many platforms, rear brake upgrades offer diminishing returns.The rear factory components tend to be smaller and lighter than the front components.As such, switching to AP Racing calipers and discs don't usually offer the dramatic unsprung weight savings that they do on the front. Since the rears tend to not run as hot, simply running good race pads and stainless steel lines on the rear will solve or prevent any rear brake issues.
On a rear-engine car, the rear brakes do a proportionately higher amount of work than on a front-engine car. As such, brake wear tends to be more balanced on the front and rear, and rear upgrades can be more relatively more important to the overall system performance.