Big brake kit

[Rootie524]

*raises hand* I too own an N-body that had those terrible stock brakes.

I replaced my rear disc with 2000 Alero rear disc, bolted right on, using my original parking brake cables and flex lines.

I replaced my front brakes with Impala brakes, disc and caliper. I had looked into using the Corvette/Camaro dual piston calipers, but at the time to get the parts, was going to cost me several hundred dollars. So I used the Impala calipers. The only modification I had to do was enlarge the caliper anchor mounting bolts in the steering knuckle to 14mm. Using the Corvette/Camaro calipers this step is not needed.

Best upgrade I have done to the car, stops quicker with more control, but the best part is, I'm not replacing pads and rotors every six months like I was when I had the stock brakes, and no, I'm not hard on my brakes, the stock N-body brakes are known for wearing out or warping quickly.

I think I had less than $250 into upgrading all 4 corners, good deal on good used parts.

oh nice. im getting the rear disc assemblies of this one guys parted out 1999 olds alero for like $70 (which is cheaper then it would all be at the junk yard) and ill definitely go the impala route. im glad to hear another bu owner did this and noticed a great difference. i really want the zo6 calipers though..but they are $100 each! so they can wait. will i need bigger rims for the impala brakes? i have stock size on now. and you say in your sig you have a stock bu at 150hp? is the whp and dyno proven? cuz i have one with a cam in it and it only made 146whp tuned..i was pissed. it seems off though..it really does..to me at least.

[Guest]

oh nice. im getting the rear disc assemblies of this one guys parted out 1999 olds alero for like $70 (which is cheaper then it would all be at the junk yard) and ill definitely go the impala route. im glad to hear another bu owner did this and noticed a great difference. i really want the zo6 calipers though..but they are $100 each! so they can wait. will i need bigger rims for the impala brakes? i have stock size on now. and you say in your sig you have a stock bu at 150hp? is the whp and dyno proven? cuz i have one with a cam in it and it only made 146whp tuned..i was pissed. it seems off though..it really does..to me at least.

Yes, you will need a mimimum of 16" wheels to clear the Impala front brakes.

150 HP, is what the owners manual rates it at, so that would be flywheel HP. Honestly I think it's down around 100 HP right now though.

[MidnightriderZ24]

i did this similar swap, impala rotors, 99-02 camaro dual piston calipers. bolts directly on. not too sure about brake hoses for your setup

[3400-95-Modified]

Kinda funny... I did the N-body spindle upgrade and put full F-body brakes on my car, and then decided to downgrade back to the N-body hardware due to the huge weight increase of the F-body stuff vs the N-body stuff.

And so far I'm much happier with the N-body stuff over my original L-body brakes. I'm also not sure why everyone suggests the Impala rotors... Are they any different than the Camaro ones? Because that's what I was using, with camaro calipers, and camaro brackets.

Actually here's the application list for a 04 Impala front rotor.

BUICK LESABRE CUSTOM(2000 - 2004)
BUICK LESABRE LIMITED(2000 - 2004)
BUICK PARK AVENUE(1997 - 2005)
BUICK PARK AVENUE ULTRA(1997 - 2005)
BUICK RIVIERA(1997 - 1999)
CADILLAC DEVILLE(1997 - 2003)
CADILLAC DEVILLE CONCOURS(1997 - 1999)
CADILLAC DEVILLE DELEGANCE 1997
CADILLAC DEVILLE DHS(2001 - 2003)
CADILLAC DEVILLE DTS(2001 - 2003)
CADILLAC ELDORADO(1997 - 2000)
CADILLAC ELDORADO ESC(2001 - 2002)
CADILLAC ELDORADO ETC(1998 - 2002)
CADILLAC ELDORADO TOURING 1997
CADILLAC SEVILLE(1999 - 2000)
CADILLAC SEVILLE SLS(1997 - 2002)
CADILLAC SEVILLE STS(1997 - 2002)
CHEVROLET CAMARO(1998 - 2002)
CHEVROLET CAMARO SS(1998 - 2002)
CHEVROLET CAMARO Z28(1998 - 2002)
CHEVROLET IMPALA(2000 - 2004)
CHEVROLET IMPALA LS(2000 - 2004)
CHEVROLET IMPALA SS(2004 - 2005)
CHEVROLET MONTE CARLO LS(2000 - 2004)
CHEVROLET MONTE CARLO SS(2000 - 2005)
OLDSMOBILE AURORA(1997 - 2003)
OLDSMOBILE INTRIGUE(1998 - 1999)
PONTIAC BONNEVILLE(2000 - 2003)
PONTIAC BONNEVILLE SLE 2004
PONTIAC FIREBIRD(1998 - 2002)
PONTIAC FIREBIRD FIREHAWK 1998
PONTIAC FIREBIRD FORMULA(1998 - 2002)
PONTIAC FIREBIRD TRANS AM(1998 - 2002)

[mfuller]

Camaro rotors are 1.25" thick, while Impala rotors are 1.1" thick - they are a better match to 99+ N-body brakes, which use 10.9x1.1" rotors stock.

[3400-95-Modified]

Camaro rotors are 1.25" thick, while Impala rotors are 1.1" thick - they are a better match to 99+ N-body brakes, which use 10.9x1.1" rotors stock.

Then how does that list I posted even work... 04 Impala rotors are the same as 2000 Camaro ones.

2000+ Impala's are 1.27" thick according to Napa. Where did you hear they are 1.1??

[reborngarcia]

i have a questions on top of all of the other ones. what year impala are the brakes coming off of? i read there and i cant seem to find it in here. i was going to do the impala rotors and the f-body calipers and braket. vur if i can save some money and just do the impala for now i will go that way. i just would like to have some years of what everything is coming off of.

[3400-95-Modified]

The years are listed in this thread.

98-02 for camaro caliper brackets and calipers, I would assume same year for Vette calipers if you want to splurge and spend money on that, its simply Z06 calipers So any year Vette that was a Z06 should work.

And 2000-2004 Impala for the rotor, if you really want to believe that the Impala rotor is ANY different over the Camaro one... Because any parts store you look at you'll find the 00-04 Impala rotor p/n is shared with the 98-02 Camaro so they are exactly the same.

I purchased EVERYTHING Camaro and it all fit my N-body knuckles and bearings with NO issues.

FYI, Napa 04 Impala premium rotor P/N NB 4886641
Napa 02 Camaro premium rotor P/N NB 4886641

Bottom line, these brakes are huge and will slow your car down just accelerating... The one thing I try to tell people is before upgrading to something SO much larger, why not try investing in a good set of rotors and a good set of pads. I'm using Centric Power Slot rotors, and Hawk HPS brake pads for a N-Body and I have no complaints about the stopping power, its actually quite significant over what my car came with stock. My car weighs in at 3180 on the scales with me in it too, so IIRC the Malibu isn't/shouldn't be that much heavier.

Granted yes the Camaro setup stops in about -5 seconds... but I just couldn't accept the additional 15-20lbs of rotating weight I had to add to the car to get that stopping power.

[danbettis]

I second the good pads idea. Other thing is good fresh fluid and getting all the air out it. Fluid is the heart of system, not set up is going is the fluid has air in it and it crap. You do not need SRF or other crazy stuff unless your really racing wheel to wheel. The fluid I have used on lots of cars for people is Ford Heavy Duty or the PFC fluid if can still find it. They are the same and have a great curve on them.

With pads you can do so much with assuming everything else is working correctly and to its full potential. Rotors have come a long way. We used to spend lots of money on good rotors and had to replace them a lot on our road race cars. These days the cheap rotors hold up better than the "good" rotors from 10 years ago. The real good rotors cost couple hundred each. Hawk as mentioned makes great pads, but avoid the black compound. HPS are nice, blues are great for autox and track days, but they makes lots of noise and dust and will eat your rotors as fast as they wear. Carbotech also has some great pads.

Finally make sure everything is working. Specifically the rear brakes. They may only do 20-40% of your braking, but even at 20% that is at least 30ft from 60mph. I have seen many people complain about crappy brakes. All I do was flush the fluid and make their rear brakes work and all the sudden its the best brakes ever.

[reborngarcia]

well i think i am on the right path. i already have dot 4 going there the whole car. and i know that that is going to help and i know that just a new set of rotors and a good set of pads will make the sert up on the car now better. but with the way my gf drives the car i would like it for her to have just a bit more stopping power. and that 1" does make a big difference in stopping power and even more so when the rotors are slotted and drilled. i am glad i was able to get the info on the year that does help a lot.

[danbettis]

You know slots and holes in your rotors do not reduce stopping distances. The slots are for cleaning. The holes only take weight out of the rotors. Curved vanes help with cooling, but that is not an issue unless your getting the rotors really hot and keeping them there, like you would road racing or on track days. Thier benefits are probaly not measureable on the street. Some of the cheap DOT4 fluids have a horriable curve, Valoline Syn is one of them. If the pedal started getting spungy switch a better brand.

For those who do not know what I am taking about with with the curve on the fluid is in referance to the temp curve. Quick example, we put DOT4 Val Syn in a Cobra Mustang. In ten laps the fluid boiled (no brakes) and calipers hit 425 degress. With the Ford HD DOT3 same car and track a few weeks later would last a whole race but the pedal got real soft calipers got to 375 degress. While the DOT4 had a higher temp it got there really fast, but the DOT3 resisted its temp change much better so it help up. We finally stated using, AP or Motul race fluid, calipers would bearly make it to 300 degress. BTW anything over 400 degress and calipers are usally toast, esp if they are alloy. While you will never get to these temps driving on the street, the better temp resistance will help your fluid stay fresher longer.