I've decided to switch up the front brakes to get a little more grab during time attack events. I want something that will allow me to do that but not be noisy on the street or freakishly expensive. I noticed that RockAuto, Summit, and Autozone all offered a kit from a company called Power Stop.

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/pw...6/applications

I haven't heard of them before but they seem decent and the price is nice. Any reviews and/or complaints? Should I just upgrade everything altogether and go Wilwood or Stoptech?

 

I'm going the route of R56 S brakes. Already have everything just need to clean and paint the calipers. Basically the JCW brake package on the R53.


You can't go wrong with either choice if you upgrade everything altogether though!

 

The r56 S front brakes are excellent for a stock upgrade. Stainless steel lines really help too.

 

Got Stainless steel lines too.. deciding what pads to use though. I got EBC reds in the current set up and was thinking of going the same when I swap out the brakes.

 

A reminder since many of you are new. Meaning second or third owners etc.

Weigh the costs of these "upgrades" (R56 brakes are standard a few years later) and include your needs for Rotors, Pads, SS flex lines, possibly Calipers (at least the carrier if I recall) and see what you spend.

For many you'll be but a few bucks shy of a base Wilwood 12.2 kit. Of which many were sold for R56 brake owners! You have the math here guys but know the we can perhaps package you a full kit, all four hoses...and get it to your door for under $800

 

+1 for Wilwood kit. If you are planning to keep the car for many miles and are going to do track days, go with a BBK such as Wilwood. Wilwood pros include:
- Lighter than R53 JCW (R56)
- Pads and Rotors will last longer
- Wearout parts such as Pads and Rotors are less expensive

 

Well for me I couldn't pass up the deal.. $150 for everything... couldn't walk away from that more money in my pocket for other mods.

 

But has anyone heard anything about these guys?

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/pw...4-26/overview/

 

It looks like a decent upgrade for a pad and rotor.


Just replacing the pads in my mini to EBC Reds made a huge improvement and held me over till I went with a overall upgrade on caliper, rotor, pad, and stainless lines.

 

I've been looking at brake upgrade options too - my mechanic suggested getting R56 calipers from a recycler (they are available cheap) and install new drilled Zimmerman rotors, SS lines, and my choice of pads.

 

The R56 calipers are the same as R53 JCW calipers, but not painted red like JCW.
That is an OK upgrade depending on what you are looking for in a brake upgrade and how you are using the car such as street driving only verse some track days.
I am not sure why the mechanic would suggest drilled rotors other than for looks, I prefer slotted. If you plan track days, I would not suggest drilled.
The R56 calipers and OEM type rotors are heavy compared to something like Wilwood calipers and two piece rotors (aluminum hat).

 

It's my DD, but I took it to a two-day DE at the new Palmer Motorsports Park in Mass and was floored by how well it did (with just 15% pulley & 19 mm rear bar mods) - except for hard braking, where it was clear the stock brakes were getting overwhelmed. So I want to do something to improve track braking performance. I know how slippery the slope down into the rabbit hole can be, and I have other high-performance cars into which I throw my money, so I want to limit whatever upgrades I do to the MCS to "relatively cheap & easy" - and retain daily-use livability - while improving braking for the 5-6 track days per year it may see

If you have other big-bang-for-the-buck suggestions, I'm all ears!

 

PS - my mech also mentioned Wilwood brakes but I'd prefer not to spend a lot more $$$ for new gear if I can get used calipers here or from recyclers on the cheap.

 

Here is a good write-up on R53 brake upgrade options:
http://www.c0op3r.com/MINI/FrontBrakes.html
Your plan is shown to be the best bang for the buck.

 

I love my r56s brakes, great upgrade.

 

Save your money. I have Wilwoods up fronts on my R53, not much has changed since the upgrade.

If I was to do this again, I would of gone with the R56 calipers and redstuff pads and SS lines all around.

 

Thank you all! I was directed to this thread, which had all the answers, so I just bumped it.

 

I was looking for BBK but dont want to be stuck getting pad from wilwood. So I'm Currently looking to see if there is any way to get the R56 JCW or F56 JCW brakes on an R53. Since i wouldn't have any problems getting Pads from who ever i want as well as finding TI shims ect.

 

FWIW the Wilwood kits, while coming with their pads and offering a host of alternate compounds, doesn't saddle one with "their pads". Just like most BBK offerings many other brands: Hawk, Raybestos, Carbotech, Porterfield, and others offer pads for the calipers.

If you're a devoted PFC fan even you may likely find some offerings there. Some of it depends a bit on which caliper is used as to what compounds if any are offered.

 

I have Wilwood BBK with 4-piston FSL calipers. I use Hawk HPS pads for the street and I use Wilwood B pads for the track. There are many non-Wilwood pads available that fit the caliper size. You can get the backing plate size from Wilwood (much info on their website) for the calipers you want to buy and look for pads that use the same backing plate.

 

Pads are ease to sell and buy a different brand if that's what you're concerned with the most. HAWK ceramic pads are great for street driving as they'll be the ones that have the least amount of dust/noise. Otherwise, there's always the option of going with the StopTech Big Brake Kit HERE as well.