Alex_GT Posted June 11, 2016 Share Posted June 11, 2016 I've noticed on my car that I'm overshooting junctions and nearly running into cars ahead even in traffic. The brakes seem ok until i get below 10mph and it's as though they start to fade and I have to really press the pedal to get stopped. What is the best upgrade for the regular brakes? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamesmark Posted June 11, 2016 Share Posted June 11, 2016 Would help if you mention what set up you have right now? If it is J spec brakes, just go for Uk specs all round, but you may have to change your wheels. Or steel brake lines, change of fluid and contact Chris Wilson for some decent pads. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mwilkinson Posted June 11, 2016 Share Posted June 11, 2016 UK Spec brakes are hard to beat. Uprated brake lines, fluid and pads and if they still aren't good enough, then you need to adjust your terrible driving. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Budz86 Posted June 11, 2016 Share Posted June 11, 2016 Have you checked the brake fluid level? As said, UK setup with steel lines, oem disks and uprated pads and fluid will be more than sufficient for most. Just make sure you chose the right pads for the type of driving the car does most. Ie; race pads are great for a track, but rubbish on normal roads Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex_GT Posted June 11, 2016 Author Share Posted June 11, 2016 I'm presuming the brakes are just stock at the moment. I've not checked the fluid level, but I have looked at UK brakes but they are very expensive, are there any thrid party made ones that are cheaper? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Bullitt Posted June 11, 2016 Share Posted June 11, 2016 I'm presuming the brakes are just stock at the moment. I've not checked the fluid level, but I have looked at UK brakes but they are very expensive, are there any thrid party made ones that are cheaper? The 4 pot front and 2 pot rears are the cheaper option and still great for the guys running single turbos. I can't believe you would be looking for decent brakes then using the word cheaper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mwilkinson Posted June 11, 2016 Share Posted June 11, 2016 Based on the above comment I would say you have J-Spec brakes. They are quite poor and with age get worse. The slide pins stick in particular. If you look about you can get reasonable prices on a second hand set of UK spec brakes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j_jza80 Posted June 11, 2016 Share Posted June 11, 2016 You can fit Lexus LS400 front brakes as a budget option, not as good as the UK's, but a good, cheap upgrade from stock jspec. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ianhid Posted June 11, 2016 Share Posted June 11, 2016 Have you checked that all your brake pistons actually do something and that the slide pins move? Might be that you're down quite a bit on what they should be... I had no problems in normal use with my old jspecs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Homer Posted June 11, 2016 Share Posted June 11, 2016 When I got my first supra it had the smaller stock brakes and they were awful. A lot of people at the time suggested I change to UK brakes, but instead I replaced the discs with new OEM items, the pads for Chris Wilson 'fast road', swapped the OEM rubber lines to Goodrich braided ones and replaced the fluid (and flushed it) with a high quality DOT5.1. The difference was incredible, I took a couple of people out for a drive who owned UK cars (with the bigger OEM brakes as stock) and they were amazed how well it stopped. I kept with this brake setup even after the car was converted to single turbo. The only issues I had was when I went to track days, they did fade and were not up to the job of continuous heavy, high speed braking (which is almost impossible on the road, unless you drive silly speeds) What I'm saying is that unless you drive like an absolute loon a well serviced set of the smaller brakes are fine for road use even with smaller powered single turbo cars. If they are not performing then there is a wear issue or they need servicing. The UK's are even better and I have been using them on my current Supra for 5 years. They don't have as nice a 'feel' as the smaller ones, but the brake performance is brilliant. I honestly wouldn't even consider aftermarket unless you are going for track day use, in which case a proper set of brakes will cost well over a grand (or 2 or 3!) and need regular servicing. Edit to add: As others have said, the sliders on the small brakes have a habit of sticking which seriously impacts their performance. They are easily fixed with a simple service and it doesn't cost much at all (sometimes nothing except a few hours of time). The rears are particularly prone to this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dnk Posted June 12, 2016 Share Posted June 12, 2016 A close look at your j specs would be what I'd do first, are all the calipers working as they should be ? if so change the fluid, fit quality or oe discs, CW's pads and the j specs should be fine Check the Master Cylinder too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rajinder Posted June 12, 2016 Share Posted June 12, 2016 (edited) Check all the things Dnk mentioned. J spec brakes are fine on the road and even on track I have seen j spec perform just as good as UK setup. Edited June 12, 2016 by Rajinder (see edit history) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Wilson Posted June 12, 2016 Share Posted June 12, 2016 I have done many track days with my old MKIV TT auto (and autos are often much harder on brakes, on a track, than a manual), with no issues save pad and disc wear.A set of Jap spec brakes in good order should not, DEFINITELY NOT, cause you to overshoot junctions or cause alarm at 70 MPH +, let alone 10 MPH. Something is wrong with them! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex_GT Posted June 12, 2016 Author Share Posted June 12, 2016 I don't drive fast, typically when braking for a junction I will start braking at around 40-45mph, it seems fine at first but then I always seem to arrive too quickly and have to brake really hard to get stopped. In traffic it's the same scenario but at lower speeds (30mph at the most). Do brakes overheat more easily in traffic as there is no air getting to them? I will see if I can take it to Toyota for them to check everything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Homer Posted June 12, 2016 Share Posted June 12, 2016 I don't drive fast, typically when braking for a junction I will start braking at around 40-45mph, it seems fine at first but then I always seem to arrive too quickly and have to brake really hard to get stopped. In traffic it's the same scenario but at lower speeds (30mph at the most). Do brakes overheat more easily in traffic as there is no air getting to them? I will see if I can take it to Toyota for them to check everything. Then there is definitely something wrong with your brakes, as others have said, the brakes should never perform like you explain. It's difficult to say exactly what the issues is from what you've posted. First check would be to see the brake pad condition and what type they are. Abviously as well as the issue with sticking calipers. I tried a set of (free) 'Green stuff' pads once, the performance was so bad I'd say they're dangerous to use! After I used them for about 300 miles I chucked them away and bought some Chris Wilson fast road pads (along with new discs, etc) have never looked back. I wouldn't necessarily say Toyota is the best point of call, they are very expensive and unless you're lucky the mechanics are not all that useful on the older cars. It would be better to find a good specialist in your area (or even further afield). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Massey Posted June 12, 2016 Share Posted June 12, 2016 I'm big single, about 600 and I was using Jspecs all round with decent disks and Chris wilson fast road pads. People thought I was crazy but my car would stop when I wanted it too. Never had a problem, so there is definitely something wrong with yours. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monkey3 Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 I had the j-spec brakes on my old Supra and they were really good except for after a few high speed decelerations and then they would fade like a Mo fo. I went for uk-spec brakes with DBA discs and ebc yellow stuff pads. The difference was massive in that I never experienced fade again no matter how much I tried It also didn't seem to lock up as readily, less snatchy if you will. I just felt more confident that they'd work as I wanted them to when I wanted them to. All that said, as everyone else has suggested, unless you drive like a hooligan everywhere then I'd suggest there's something wrong with yours. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoostJunky86 Posted June 15, 2016 Share Posted June 15, 2016 Just reading this but are Pagid RS29's available for the UK brakes?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dnk Posted June 15, 2016 Share Posted June 15, 2016 Well the way I see it your stopping 1500kgs not 600 or 800 etc hp and the only thing governing how quick you can stop is the level of grip your tyres have with surface that they're on. The biggest bonus with bigger brakes is you can max out the braking performance and no longer suffer fade but you'll still be limited to what grip your tyres have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wez Posted June 15, 2016 Share Posted June 15, 2016 Well the way I see it your stopping 1500kgs not 600 or 800 etc hp and the only thing governing how quick you can stop is the level of grip your tyres have with surface that they're on. The biggest bonus with bigger brakes is you can max out the braking performance and no longer suffer fade but you'll still be limited to what grip your tyres have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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