If anyone is running the DINAN BBK, I would like to know what there experience is...

thanks

 

The Dinan kit is just an overpriced, re-badged version of the Brembo kit. From those who have the Brembo kit I have not heard anything bad about this kit. You might as well get the Brembo kit IMHO.

 

Yeah, thats what I thought, but I think that DINAN has made some adjustments in rotor and pad selection at the very least, if not worked with Brembo to tweak for what they feel is best for the MINI right?

 

I can recommend the TCE street sport kit. Works great and is $1000 less than the Dinan kit. I would bet that replacement pads and rotors would be substantially less too. In fact, you can add the TCE rear kit and still save over $500. I'm sure that the Dinan kit is top of the line but unless you want a BBK for bling, check out the TCE before you buy. There are several of us here that track with the TCE kit.

 

The Dinan BBK is a straight out of the box 320mm Brembo GrandT. kit w/ Dinan decals on the calipers. Unlike Brembo's own BBK's, the Dinan's come only in red & black as caliper color options and w/ slotted rotors (Brembo gives slotted OR C.drilled options.) The "custom pads" are simply Ferodo's streets (again just like Brembo often use.) Dinan does NOT alter the kits in any way other than to add their logo! Keep in mind Brembo uses several different pads in their BBK kits and most Brembo vendors do not know or anticipate what pads will be shipped from the factory w/ the BBK's (very frustrating situation indeed.) Ask the vendor to un-box it & do a visual inspection. Get this verified in writting.
-I have Brembo BBK's on my current MCS and did on my former MCS. Also use them on several of my BMW's. Great brakes. Nothing but nice things to say. I personally prefer the weight & feel of BBK's w/ cast iron calipers (Brembo, Stoptech) as opposed to those using billit aluminum calipers (Wilwood etc. ) Pedal feel is somewhat better modulated & more linear and simply different. This may sound "heavy" but keep in mind this is NOT rotational mass. Also the Ferodo sport pads are an ideal choice for use w/ the Brembo (Dinan's ) BBK brake kits. Maybe "perfect" all-purpose street & part-time track pads. I can't see why anyone would order a Dinan BBK when a Brembo 320mm BBK can be had for a bit less mony. Be sure you get the dual-floating rotor design and do not get cross-drilled rotors as they have potential thermal cracking issues (hot rotors, fast cooling due to wet roads = tiny spider cracks at the drill points.)
PS Goodrich stainless lines come w/ Brembo's (Dinan too)

 

...TCE's 13" kit includes forged alloy calipers. FYI.

I have the full Wilwood race kit with a 12.2" dia directionally vaned rotor with pads that are very close to Hawk's HPS (this is also a daily driver). The calipers contain no rubber boots - all exposed components are stainless steel.

At LRP I can brake at point 3 instead of 6. This kit is very solid. You can get whatever pads you like...this kit also comes with SS lines made by Todd. They are DOT lines of course, but Todd uses a different mechanism to support the ends of the lines...much nicer than I've seen on other DOT approved lines.

 

I'd give Todd a call. I bought what is now the Detroit Tuned BBK used (at a price I couldn't say no to!). I did upgrade to Todds rear kit as well.

I haven't heard a single person say that the TCE kits are insuficient in any way, shape or form. And for the price, you have lots of money left over for other stuff, like rent and food!

Matt

 

Last week I took a stock '06 MCS for a test drive, just for the hellovit. I was surprised how subtle the differences were with my car, which is in the "heavily modified" category. The *biggest* difference was the brakes. There's no going back after a BBK, and the TCE/Wilwoods are superb.
And although the cast iron calipers on the Brembos are not rotating mass, they are unsprung mass.
I *can* notice the difference with my car being 200lbs lighter than stock...
cheers,

 

I don't mean to Hi-jack, but if you are looking for a brand new set of brembos. I'm selling mine, look here:

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ad.php?t=68121

 

Wow, excellent information guys. Really appreciate it... Ill let you know what I do...

 

I have to correct here;

"the weight and feel of the cast iron calipers of Brembo and Stoptech"

Oh, the ST guys are going to go ape on that one!
Neither of these calipers are cast iron guys. They are both aluminum.

Their mistaken material is due to their massive bodies and need for thinner brake pads and more wheel clearance than other options. Not all a bad thing mind you. Given the weight they can claim stiffer bodies. But truth is this car is not really that hard to get stopped needing such massive parts...

 

I had be told years ago that the Brembo GT calipers were made of high carbon content cast iron and hence the mass & weight. But as Todd has pointed out the calipers are made of aluminum. Wow, a surprise to me ( and 4 GT sets later.) These are big & heavy chuncks of aluminum? The shear mass of the Brembo design might explain unique pedal feedback.
Thanks for the information

PS. Are the Brembo calipers cast or machined?

 

I can't say cast, forged, or billet. But all are aluminum.

The benefits fo this massive body is caliper stiffness. This comes from both the mass as well as the body and bridge design of the caliper. Generally the more 'meaty' the part the stiffer the body. Lighter calipers such as the Wilwood DynaLite are a low end selection for street use as they tend to be too flexy for good pedal feedback.

It's similar to rubber vs ss hoses. Both do the same job. In the case of the lighter caliper it really does stop as well but may have wasted movement due to body flex rather than transferring all the energy directly to the pad. On some kit where "firmed up pedal feel" is all the rage (not to be confused with more clamping- it's just feel) it's often done with smaller bore sizes. This in turn requires the caliper operate at higher pressures to generate the same total rotor torque. Balancing the right amount of bore vs rotor OD vs pad compound is the key. "Larger rotor, less piston area, tune with pad"

The FSL for the 13" kits and the DynaPro of the smaller kit both offer a great balance of both stiffness to weight as well as good pedal feedback due to their designs. Untimately as stiff as some others on the market? Maybe not, but you reach a point of diminished returns with such a light vehicle. Witness even the lighter weight kits on the market perform well on the MINI.

 

The man knows what he is talking about.

And for more info on the ST calipers, go here.

And for more info on the flexing of calipers, go here.