does the bigger brake kit really make that big of a difference? and how much does the upgrade cost? if it's like real expensive i would go for gold.

 

Gold with red lettering. ala WRX Brembos. hmmm.

A BBK can make for a nice improvement for both street and track. While I think in this case it's as much show as go that's what makes customizing what it is.

The benefits here will come from a bit of a weight loss, improved pedal response and the obvious appearance gains. Those who buy for track use can move to other pads, larger rotors, bigger calipers etc for improved theremal capacity and durability.

 

Wetceal,

Orange is very cool with the blue. The WRX STI comes with gold/orange brembos and it looks very sharp. Also, in my opinion you don't need more orange on the car to match the calipers.

 

Stealth black. Speak softly and carry a big set of black brake calipers.

 

My significant other doesn't really like the idea of orange. He is *much* more conservative than I am though. He really thinks blue would look good. I like the idea of blue too. The blue doesn't have to match the Laser Blue exactly - I think a darker shade of blue would look cool. Also, I'm not sure how noticeable a different shade of blue would be since the calipers are going to be behind the wheel and there's all sorts of shadows in that area anyways..?


Those orange springs and adjustment ***** are AWESOME! I wish I was in the market for some coilovers but we actually just put a set of H&R springs on. Oh well


Thanks for the visual aide! I was wanting to keep the Mini bare with no decals or stripes but an orange stripe would be a good way to tie things in...


Thank you SO much for posting that photo!! That gives me a great idea of how the red will look! I was trying to find a photo of a blue Mini with red calipers. That picture is even better because it's a Laser Blue Mini with tinted windows and a black roof WITH red calipers!

 

Orange.

 

Big brake kits are kind of pricey. They are generally anywhere between $700 or $800 up to over $3,000 depending on how fancy you want to get and what brand you go with.

Hmmm...gold huh? I don't really know about that LOL...


I think the orange is very cool too but I can't seem to convince my husband of that. I just don't know. It's a lot of money and I don't want to pick a color I'm going to regret (that's his main concern). I wonder if there's a photo of the WRX STI with those gold/orange brembos. I know STI's came in that bright blue color...


LOL!

 

I'm not sure how much choice of color you are going to have with caliper paint. You might want to contact unixgal and ask her about what she used.



Photo stolen from this post in the "I can't believe it..." thread.

 

my old LGT with the STI wheels and Brembo's:





JDM LGT STI:


and the WRX STI S204 with OEM Diamond Black BBS RE:

 

It's not going to be right next to another painted part (though closer than on a normal MINI because of your painted arches), you'll at least have some black tire separating it, so a difference in shade won't be quite as noticeable. Plus they'll probably be a bit dirty at times.

I'd get a couple of chips of various colors you're thinking of so you can compare. Or maybe you could mock up a fake caliper out of a piece cardboard, and stick it behind the wheels so you can get a pretty good idea of what it'll look like on the car.

The only potential problem I can see if you go with orange is that people might think you're a Florida Gators fan.

 

So it's orange calipers you want to see?

 

That took longer than I expected.
Try it on this:http://s122.photobucket.com/albums/o...nt=MINI_14.jpg
(that's her wheel)

 

Here you go:

 

I wish I WAS a Gators fan! That would make the decision easier I think!


THANKS! I actually really like that! I'm really thinking ORANGE! It'll stand out like the red does but it's different than red and I do think orange and blue go together nicely - hence the Gators LOL.

I'll have to show Sean when he gets back and see what he thinks (he's currently at the car audio place working on that project...I'll post photos of that soon).

Anyways, now I'm thinking it might actually look better WITHOUT any other orange accessories, like if I could get rid of the orange reflectors.

And, I was thinking orange calipers with "Wilwood" in black if that's possible...

 

Well, I called and spoke with Todd yesterday and went ahead and ordered the brake kit. I ended up going with the Plus 3 front kit which has the bigger Wilwood FSL calipers and the 13" TCE rotors. Todd is going to send me a few paint chip samples to look at but he said there's an really cool metalic orange that's similar to the WRX STI Brembo gold colored calipers except this color is a little bit more orange. I really like the way this color sounds so we'll see if I like it when I see it. He's also sending me a few blues in case we decide to go that way.

I'll keep everyone posted on what we decide!

 

i used rustoleum high temperature bar-b-q black...just wash caliper with Dawn soap and water, sand a little and then brush on.....looks great and it's not expensive...comes in different colors, but limited....available in most hardware stores

 

The paint samples arrived today! Todd sent me a few different blues, a couple of oranges and a silver too, just for fun. One of the blues almost matches the Laser Blue exactly and of course I liked the metallic orange best. I took a few pictures of the blue and the orange up against the wheel.

I still really like the idea of how much contrast the orange will have with the Laser Blue/black color scheme but that one blue is really such a great match with the body color. Keep in mind, the fenders will be Laser Blue and I won't have the reflectors either. I'll probably have a body shop paint Laser Blue over them.

What do guys think?

 

I like the blue. Perhaps it is the photos, but the orange looks a bit dull. Also, it might be easier to judge if more of the car shows. The ratio of body blue to brake is important. So a closeup may throw it off.

 

Glad to see you got the chips.

I sent a few blues to pick from. Not sure any of them really match the car but then again; I didn't have the car...

I like the silver and I like the orange. The photos don't do the orange justice. It's a very mild metalic yellow/orange with a clear over it. Trust me it pops more than you see here.

Some of the others like the soda pop blue really look better in person than you can show on photos. As does the silver.

Lots of choices but it's not up to me. Figure on about 7 days to do this so plan ahead!

 

I'd go with the blue... it would look crazy good, especially since it's such a close match.

 

I still like the blue, especially since it seems like you've got such a close match. But I wouldn't complain about the orange either; it'd look pretty cool too.

Both colors would look great, so it's a matter of what's a higher priority - matching your color scheme you've put a lot of work into producing (blue/black), or making those big brakes really stand out and demand attention.

 

Shipped out today.

And...I have pictures.....

But I'll need approval before I show them. Might not be fair to not let the customer see them before you do! But I'm not thinking they'll make it before Wed next week. So it might be a long wait.

 

AWESOME Todd!! You're the best! Please post the photos. I would love to see some pictures before seeing them in person. Ooh, I can't wait to get them!!!

 

Here it is, love it or hate it
Included are two black Wilwood decals also. The image doesn't show well but the current ones are brushed aluminum finish. The whole finish 'pops' a bit more in person as it's hard to pick up the real color and speckle here.