BRAKE SYSTEMS

A while ago, somebody mentioned they were out shopping for the B13 kit and was able to find a Nissan dealer to beat prices. It was something like $400 for the works. Would that individual who got this deal tell me where he got it from? I was unable to get prices to go below $500.

Cary (c...@vnet.ibm.com)

I purchased my B13 Kit from Brown & Brown Nissan in Tempe, AZ. 1-800-237-0003. They charged me $400 for the kit (AD22VF Calipers, 26mm vented rotors, and OE brake pads) and $138 for the non-abs master cyclinder, that price is pretty cheap.

What is included with the NISMO brake upgrade kit?

Carson M. Hanrahan (s...@trader.com)

The B13 Brake Upgrade Kit, ordered from Nissan Motorsports in California, includes upgraded front calipers, rotors, metallic pads, and hardware kit for the calipers. Part #99996-B13BK. As far as I'm aware, Nismo does not sell an upgrade which includes the rear brakes.

Because of the larger calipers, a new Master Cylinder must also be fitted. Nismo has these for ABS and non-ABS cars. Get the one that's right for you. The difference is simply that the non-ABS MC has the proportioning valve built into the MC, while the ABS one has a seperate proportioning valve. Part #46010-69Y20 (non-ABS) and #46010-60Y21 (ABS).

The rotors, calipers, and Master Cylinder are off of Nissan NX2000's with ABS. I've been told they are also standard on Japanese-built SE-Rs.

The rotors are about 4mm wider in diameter than stock and almost 10mm thicker. The calipers are accordingly larger than stock and permit the use of pads with a larger surface area. The pads that come with the kit are also slotted to permit venting of gas and dust.

The kit *should* fit under the stock 14" wheels and requires the removal of the front backing plates.

What is involved in installing the NISMO brake upgrade kit?

Donald J. Dale (d...@phoenix.princeton.edu)

See my instructions on Jim Wright's Maintenance Page.

Carson M. Hanrahan (s...@trader.com)

The Nismo package is a bolt-on application. Simply remove the stock calipers, rotors and backing plates, then bolt on the new ones. The MC is much the same, except remember to have your MC bench-bled prior to installation to protect its delicate piston assembly and remove all traces of air bubbles - they will come back to haunt you if you're not careful.

However, I ran into a problem here. Once the parts were on, I tried to torque down the stock wheels. When I did, they mashed up against the now much wider calipers and the wheel wouldn't turn. Nismo assured me they WOULD fit with the stock aluminum alloy wheels on that car...

To make a long story nonexistant, a bottles of aspirin and phone calls to Nismo later, it turns out that some SE-Rs have 5.5" wide alloy wheels while others have 6" alloy wheels. It's a crap shoot as to what you have - the VIN won't tell you, nor will the manufacture date or location. It depends on Nissan's supplier and stock was at the time your car was made. If you've got the stock 14x6" alloy wheels, you're OK on clearance.

But, if you've got the stock 14x5.5" alloy wheels like I've got, you've got some grinding ahead of you. You'll have to grind about 1.5 to almost 2 mm off the outside of each caliper. No biggie, and it's safe to do so (yes, even Nismo said so), it just takes some time. The area of the caliper affected is non-functional in that it's not carrying brake fluid or anything in internal channels and the small amount to grind off doesn't adversely affect the structural integrity of the caliper at all. You can leave out the anti-rattle backing plates for the pads too if you want to minimize your grinding. Don't forget to paint the calipers with high-temp paint before re-installing. This will protect them from rust as well as show you where and if the wheel still rubs.

Once the grinding is done, everything bolts together nicely - and the newer, bigger calipers look pretty cool absolutely filling the wheel cavity.

What is the performance of the NISMO brake upgrade kit?

Carson M. Hanrahan (s...@trader.com)

Let me give you an example. I had the brakes finished VERY late on a Thursday night. Saturday and Sunday was spent on the track at Putnam Park Roadcourse, in 95+ degree weather both days, with only Friday's drive out to the track to bed in the pads and get used to the brakes. The brakes performed like champs the entire weekend - I would be on the track. driving hard, for 30 minutes or so at a time. It's tough circuit too, almost 2 miles and 10 turns with a quarter-mile straight. Very fast and, if you're driving it right, heavy on the brakes in some corners with a light trail-braking or left foot brakes through others. The brakes absolutely did not fade, get mushy, or in any way degrade the entire weekend. Fantastic!

A very aggressive brake setup...

Mike Kojima (m...@themall.net)

Some of the people on the list might be interested in my killer brake upgrade. It uses 12" forged, cross-drilled Coleman Racing rotors on alloy top hats, braided steel lines, motul fluid and 4-piston Willwood calipers. It uses an Altima master cylinder and weighs 6 lbs per side less than stock. These brake are unreal, impossible to fade with so much power it feels like you will get pitched through the windshield! The stock 15-inch 200SX SE-R wheels will fit over these brakes but not smaller wheels. This set up will cost around $1400 dollars and will be avalible through SMC products (818)335-3763.

About NX2000 brakes...

Lawrence Weeks (d...@deskmedia.com)

I ordered new rotors and pads for my NX2000 (VIN JN1GB36...005290), and hadn't gotten the parts. I called Brake Warehouse and it turns out they forgot to call me back. They cannot find my rotors anywhere. They say that the Japanese built NX2k have different, larger rotors, and are rather rare.

I called around, and it turns out that I, like all Japanese built NX2k, appear to already have the larger Nismo style brake package. The U.S. rotors are 250x18mm, and the Japanese rotors are 257x26mm, and the calipers/pads are accordingly larger. So, I presume that I also have the six inch rims. This is cool, as it saves me the money I was planning on spending to upgrade the brakes. However, it seems to make finding rotors more difficult. Brown & Brown wants $61.27 per rotor, which is not terribly more than the $48.00 Brake Warehouse wants.

Concerning cross-drilled rotors...

Frederick Braam (b...@mtu.edu)

I just read in the October 95 Road & Track that cross-drilled rotors are not necessary for street driving. They don't help ventalation that much and actually chew the pads quicker. Plus the rotors wear quicker. Pretty much, stick with the Nismo upgrade. If you need more than that, try the GRIP rotors.

Merlin Johnson (d...@connectnet.com)

Cross drilled rotors are good when your on the edge all the time, like racing, they might give you that little bit of extra cooling....after the rotors are really hot though. By cross drilling for the street you are removing some of the precious metal that can be used as the heat sink for lower temp braking. Cross drilling can produce stress cracks, chamfering reduces this a bit. They are mainly for looks on the street, but they do look pretty cool. If I had gotten the warm fuzzies from other brake manufacturers on cross drilled rotors I would have jumped all over them long ago.

Ioannis Nanakis (i...@intranet.GR)

Cross-drilled rotors are also supposed to remove better the debris and gases between pads and rotors that are produced during (hard) braking. So they help the pads to be in full contact with the rotors all the time. In theory they are supposed also to improve braking action because the holes deglaze the pads.

Carson M. Hanrahan (s...@trader.com)

I *had* cross-drilled rotors, but stock size, on my `91 SE-R. Not much difference at all in braking. But, upgrading to the Nismo brakes, eventhough they're not cross-drilled, WHOA! *Big* improvement. Even the reasonably heavy street driver won't need cross-drilled rotors with the Nismo upgrade.

What does slotting buy you over cross drilled or normal rotors?

Merlin Johnson (d...@connectnet.com)

Slotting is really the best way to try and add extra venting to the rotors. The slots are made in an arc that goes from center to outside, gas can escape easier because there is a tendancy to "throw" it out from centrifical force. It's a small difference, probably not noticable unless you are constantly on the edge (you get your rotors red hot).

What type of brake pads should I buy?

David Alexis Pertuz (g...@prism.gatech.edu)

Repco (now Axxis) Metalmasters. They are $45/front and $35/rear fron Strano's. If you're not that picky you could get the OE pads, but the Repcos are hardly more expensive (if at all), and I'd get them anyway.

What's the word on which stock rims will fit over the brake upgrade kit?

Donald J. Dale (d...@phoenix.princeton.edu)

The rims that came on the NX2K are 14x6. They'll fit the AD22VF calipers. The rims that came on the Sentra are 14x5.5 (except for a rumor or anomaly here & there). These rims will *not* fit over the bigger brakes. What you have to do is grind down the outer surface of the caliper by about 2 mm. Then paint the fresh surface to inhibit rust.

The SE-R FAQ
Maintained by Ronald S. Chong
(r...@umich.edu)