I prefer solid rotors, drilled and or slotted look nice but that's about it.

 

Yeah that was my question really. They do look awesome but am I loosing braking power or is it just a trade off.

Also what is the difference between the R56 S and justa claipers? And what is the caliper/carrier vs just the caliper??

 

I used the slotted and drilled on the front of my car. I do not track it nor do I plan on it. If it is street driven I would get what you like the looks of. Here is my price list for the hard parts I bought. 2011 R56S front calipers and carriers $130 Just Japenese Imports(?), JCW stickers $16 Supergraphics.com, Red Stuff front brake pads $70 eBay (open package), SS front and rear brake lines $106 Way Motor Works ( you need to specify R56 front and R53 rear), slotted and drilled rotors $145 Autoanything.com (I don't recall the name brand but they were a prominent brand on the web site).

 

This is a good little guide. I'd like to add that while replacing old brake lines is always a good idea, stainless lines are not needed, and using a high quality and heat stable brake fluid like ATE Super Blue will have more of an impact on braking quality than stainless lines will.

Regarding drilled / dimpled / slotted rotors; it's a contentious topic, but I find that cross-drilled or even slotted rotors have better "bite" in the wet weather. Think of it as tires with special center siping for water dispersion. Some say slots keep the pads even and un-glazed too, but my experience is that there's little benefit other than looks.

 

Thanks for the help I appreciate the break down, I will use this as a guide. Do you happen to remember where you got the calipers from?

 

Just Japenese Imports off of eBay. I thought it was funny seeing that the MINI is not Japanese.

 

Yeah that is why I was thrown for a loop haha crazy!

 

Also I just ordered the Motul 600 off Amazon. I ended up picking up 2 500ML bottles. Does anyone know if this will be enough to bleed and refill the master after doing the front and rear brakes?

 

Also does anyone know if all r56 calipers and carriers are the same? I talked to eurotech today looking for parts and he said the justa, and the S calipers are the same size?

 

Yeah the calipers are the same, but the bit that hold the caliper on the car is a different size.

Edit: Here you go.
http://www.minitorque.com/forum/f25/r53-front-brakes-r53-jcw-r56-cooper-s-specification-%96-definitive-guide-19858/

James

 

O ok so the calipers are the same but the carrier is different. So when requesting parts from a junk yard or finder ask for r56S carriers and calipers?

 

Yes, you will want to ask for R56S calipers and carriers.

 

Is there an exact year because I called Euroline today and again they keep telling me the calipers are the same on the r56 and r56S the only difference is the "JCW brakes" ..

 

I apologize for coming in super late to the party, but I am in the process of pricing out this conversion myself now, and have a couple questions. Pretty much just the Level 4 from c0op3r.
http://www.c0op3r.com/MINI/FrontBrakes.html

1- Are the brass slider kits that we get for the R53 brakes not needed for the R56 brakes? I don't see them listed anywhere. I assume the brakes were a better design that doesn't need them?

2- The brake carrier that is needed for the R56S caliper & the 294mm rotors, is that just the other "half" of the caliper that bolts to the hub? It's tough to tell what exactly comes in the box at times.

3- The 2nd pic is from the Rockauto page for the Centric 14134084 caliper. Am I understanding right that I do NOT want a R56 JCW caliper? Sounds like they had 310mm rotors, but is that caliper still interchangable?




Thanks guys. I'm trying to read & keep up, but I want to make sure I get what I need the first time to avoid being without the car.

 

No you only need the brass for the R53/52 brakes and or the rear.

If you get a used set of R56 Cooper Brakes you need to change to the 294mm carriers, if you get the set off a r56 Cooper S you will be getting the 294mm units already. The only reason you should buy the Cooper (non S) brakes is if you get them super cheap. Like under 50 for all the parts.

No - the 310 are the ones made by brembo no parts interchange not even the pads.

 

Brass sliders aren't available for the R56 S/R53 JCW kits. I'm not sure why, but that's what I've found. The carrier should be correct if you have complete calipers for an R56 S, and is the part highlighted in red.

R56 JCW Brembos had 310mm rotors. I don't think R56 JCW's ever came with red painted JCW brakes like the pic above. Those look like standard R56 S brakes painted red and logo'd like a poor mans JCW conversion. The JCW logo is a first gen logo, and the carrier is a 2nd gen design.

For question #3, you want a caliper that looks like that, even without the red paint. Just make sure you get calipers for an S so they have the correct carriers for the 294mm rotors.

 

Matt, make sure you get the correct brake lines. The R56 and R53 mount differently at the brake end. You probably already know that but just a good reminder in case you did not. Good luck. It is a really easy swap to do.

 

I know you have done extensive research and I used your documentation when doing my brake upgrade (Thanks!! ), but can you give some more detail on this? Are brass sliders just not available for these calipers, or is there a design difference that makes them not necessary. I could never find an answer for this, and thought it was strange that brass sliders weren't available, but the calipers seemed to use the same type of rubber sleeves on the pins that would benefit from an upgrade.

 

Correct there are no Brass Sliders for the JCW / R56 brake units.

This was something that was done for the old 320 and 325 BMWs from which the 1st gen MINI shares brakes with.

The R56/JCW brakes are a completely different style, they use a steel guide pin that inserts directly into the carrier. So basically they already have the solid pin design.

The R53 stock brake has a Steel guide pin that rides in a Plastic/rubber fitting, the plastic is replaced with Brass Guides. It makes it a little more positive but requires maintenance, so MINI did not do it factory for maintenance and cost reasons.

 

Thanks for all the replies, guys. I appreciate it.

I did notice the brake lines were different, and found Detroit Tuned to be the cheapest so far for the R56S brake lines ($47.50). And it's kinda handy to see the sliders aren't needed, as I can sell the NIB kit I have to help with conversion costs.

It makes sense about the R56 JCW, but I wanted to ask to make sure.

OK, so about the rest of it.... if I get the Centric 14134091 & 14134092 calipers, those appear to & should come with the R56S bracket I need, according to the RockAuto page. I know some people don't like the reman stuff, but almost everyone I know has had good luck with Centric remans. I think I will call them to see what my core rate would be since I'm not following their page 100% on the part number swaps.
I will just get the proper R56S pads & rotors from wherever. Kinda sucks to see that EBC is changing from gold to black on their Sport rotors... the gold ones I just put on my car won't be easy to match to the new fronts. lol

And I did get your PM, co0p3r... I just wanted to respond to everyone here quick, but I will definitely email you if I get stuck & need more detailed help. It's a simple enough job, but I figured to ask & pay for parts only once.

Thanks again, all!

 

I still need to do this mod to mine I have been lazy lately but I need it. My brakes a squeeky lately and the dust from the pads is crazy bad!

 

Did my new ones today - Still got to complete bed the pads

 

That looks awesome! What did the whole process run you price wise?

 

Lets See:

Stickers $20 (thats front and rear)
Red Paint & Clear Coat $16
Brakes Complete with factory Lines $150 (got a deal in trade from a friend)
Rotors and Pads $220 Shipped (eBay) Thats Front and Rear Rotors and Pads.
New Motul 600 Fluid $9

A little bit of labor

So thats $415 If my math is right

 

Not bad at all, thanks for breaking it down for me. I will be attacking this and roof racks this summer! What pads did you go with? I am having ALOT of breakdust lately and want to get rid of that if possible