Best bang for the buck brake upgrade?

wes1099 · Jan 31, 2020

What do you guys think is the best bang for the buck brake upgrade?

My stock brakes are looking pretty rough but I don’t want to spend a ton of money. Big brake kits are a bit expensive but the simple bolt on is appealing. I’ve considered EBC pads and rotors with stock calipers but I haven’t read anything about anyone with that setup. I recently heard you can fit brembo calipers from a few other cars but I don’t have the money for trial and error to find rotors that fit properly.

360glitch · Jan 31, 2020

Upgrading your brake pads is going to make the biggest bang for you buck difference. BBKs are nice (I've owned several) but they are more than what 99.99% of Civic drivers need. If you are having issues with overheating your factory calipers then you may look at a BBK as a solution.

Thusee · Jan 31, 2020

If you wish to stick to the oem brake setup you can upgrade to Stoptech front and rear rotors along with Yellow EBC pads and run Motul RBF600 DOT 4.

Brembo brake kits once all said and done can cost upwards of 1000$ depending where you source your parts from. That being said you will either need to use wheel spacers or get a set of wheels that fit with the right offset, so that is another added cost.

I know the DC5R Brembo and Genesis Coupe Brembo are direct bolt on's. With the DC5 you will be using S2000 Rotors and Nissan 350z brembo pads. With the Genesis you will be using Nissan Rogue with 3rd Row front rotors and can't remember which pads. But the @CanadiaegeanBlue made a write up on the Gensis setup if you want more information. For wheel choice it is a little difficult because the Caliper itself sits too close to the hats of the rotor so a lot of caved wheels won't fit, unlike a traditional BBK that sits further out using 330mm+ rotors which has plenty of space between hat and caliper.

I'll be making a write up on Brakes when i get to that portion on my build Thread, I'm slowly updating it and it should be coming up in the next week or two for the DC5R setup and 27WON setup.

fenix-silver · Jan 31, 2020

The other option is the Acura RL 4 piston calipers, which can be found stupid cheap. Requires 350z rotors and a mounting bracket. I assume similar wheel fitment issues as the DC5 and Genesis options.

wes1099 · Jan 31, 2020

360glitch said:
Upgrading your brake pads is going to make the biggest bang for you buck difference. BBKs are nice (I've owned several) but they are more than what 99.99% of Civic drivers need. If you are having issues with overheating your factory calipers then you may look at a BBK as a solution.

I think I would probably want better rotors. My stock rotors have rather deep grooves and brakes feel wobbly at speeds higher than 65mph. I assume that is from over heating.

Thusee said:
If you wish to stick to the oem brake setup you can upgrade to Stoptech front and rear rotors along with Yellow EBC pads and run Motul RBF600 DOT 4.

Brembo brake kits once all said and done can cost upwards of 1000$ depending where you source your parts from. That being said you will either need to use wheel spacers or get a set of wheels that fit with the right offset, so that is another added cost.

I know the DC5R Brembo and Genesis Coupe Brembo are direct bolt on's. With the DC5 you will be using S2000 Rotors and Nissan 350z brembo pads. With the Genesis you will be using Nissan Rogue with 3rd Row front rotors and can't remember which pads. But the @CanadiaegeanBlue made a write up on the Gensis setup if you want more information. For wheel choice it is a little difficult because the Caliper itself sits too close to the hats of the rotor so a lot of caved wheels won't fit, unlike a traditional BBK that sits further out using 330mm+ rotors which has plenty of space between hat and caliper.

I'll be making a write up on Brakes when i get to that portion on my build Thread, I'm slowly updating it and it should be coming up in the next week or two for the DC5R setup and 27WON setup.

After digging through some other threads I found that slickfab sells bolt on brembo kits for just under 1k including wheel spacers, brake lines, rotors, pads, and powder coating. Not sure where the calipers come from but they are rebuilt/refurbished. I like the idea of the DC5R calipers but I would want to find a set that didn’t look too beat up.

fenix-silver said:
The other option is the Acura RL 4 piston calipers, which can be found stupid cheap. Requires 350z rotors and a mounting bracket. I assume similar wheel fitment issues as the DC5 and Genesis options.

I saw this on another thread and my only issue with the RL brakes is that they say ACURA on them in raised letters and that would bother me.

fenix-silver · Jan 31, 2020

wes1099 said:
I saw this on another thread and my only issue with the RL brakes is that they say ACURA on them in raised letters and that would bother me.

Yeah, I'd grind the letters off and spray them if I went that route. There's a vendor that sells them already redone.

Thusee · Jan 31, 2020

Used dc5 or genesis brembos or any in that matter are going to be beat up. It doesnt take much to get the rebuilt. Here are some pictures of when I picked up the dc5r in rough shape, then got it powdercoated and rebuilt, and then ended up switching to the 27won bbk for comparison.

Honda Civic 10th gen Best bang for the buck brake upgrade? 20190628_173221

Honda Civic 10th gen Best bang for the buck brake upgrade? 20190711_082048

Honda Civic 10th gen Best bang for the buck brake upgrade? 20190809_164654

pinhead66 · Jan 31, 2020

Thusee said:
Used dc5 or genesis brembos or any in that matter are going to be beat up. It doesnt take much to get the rebuilt. Here are some pictures of when I picked up the dc5r in rough shape, then got it powdercoated and rebuilt, and then ended up switching to the 27won bbk for comparison.

How does the 27won compare to the brembos? How is the pedal feel with the 27 won? Is it much firmer over stock? Do the brakes grab right away with the initial travel?

Thusee · Jan 31, 2020

pinhead66 said:
How does the 27won compare to the brembos? How is the pedal feel with the 27 won? Is it much firmer over stock? Do the brakes grab right away with the initial travel?

Honestly both are great, the BIGGEST downfall to the Brembo is you are very limited with wheel choices because of how close the caliper sits to the rotor hat. When I had test fitted the brembo I had major clearance issues with the wheels I wanted which is why I went to the 27won route.

In terms of bite it all depends on the pad material and rotor you choose for the brembos, clamping force would probably be pretty similar.

Biggest benefit to an actual bbk is you dont have to worry about wheel fitment if the wheels are bbk friendly.

The main reason I went with the 27won setup is so that I dont have to stress about having to find the right wheel whenever I'm looking for another set.

Honda Civic 10th gen Best bang for the buck brake upgrade? 20190713_161916

Honda Civic 10th gen Best bang for the buck brake upgrade? 20190713_165836

Honda Civic 10th gen Best bang for the buck brake upgrade? 20190809_172121

Honda Civic 10th gen Best bang for the buck brake upgrade? 20190809_171600

wes1099 · Feb 2, 2020

fenix-silver said:
Yeah, I'd grind the letters off and spray them if I went that route. There's a vendor that sells them already redone.

I actually found a source for RL calipers with the Acura logo already removed. Do you know what specific mounting brackets I would need?

pinhead66 · Feb 2, 2020

360glitch said:
Upgrading your brake pads is going to make the biggest bang for you buck difference. BBKs are nice (I've owned several) but they are more than what 99.99% of Civic drivers need. If you are having issues with overheating your factory calipers then you may look at a BBK as a solution.

I agree 100% with this. BBKs are complete overkill for a daily. Better pads with higher coefficient of friction and stickier tires are really all is needed for the street. I just installed a set of Porterfield R4-S pads in front and am liking the better bite. I’ll end up installing the rear set too if I continue to like the results. With that said however, I do prerfer a firmer brake pedal feel that normally only a BBK with a fixed caliper can provide. I really liked that feeling and having instant bite in the initial pedal travel when I had a Stoptech kit on my track car. The pedal feel in the Si is a little soft for my taste.

fenix-silver · Feb 2, 2020

wes1099 said:
I actually found a source for RL calipers with the Acura logo already removed. Do you know what specific mounting brackets I would need?

https://www.fastbrakes.com/product_p/civicrl12.8.htm

wes1099 · Feb 2, 2020

pinhead66 said:
I agree 100% with this. BBKs are complete overkill for a daily. Better pads with higher coefficient of friction and stickier tires are really all is needed for the street. I just installed a set of Porterfield R4-S pads in front and am liking the better bite. I’ll end up installing the rear set too if I continue to like the results. With that said however, I do prerfer a firmer brake pedal feel that normally only a BBK with a fixed caliper can provide. I really liked that feeling and having instant bite in the initial pedal travel when I had a Stoptech kit on my track car. The pedal feel in the Si is a little soft for my taste.

Yeah depending on how much I can put together an RL brake kit for, I might just get upgraded pads/rotors. My factory rotors are in fairly poor condition after 32k miles so rotor/pad replacement is the least I will do.

fenix-silver said:
https://www.fastbrakes.com/product_p/civicrl12.8.htm

Oh cool. Thanks.

Sales@USR · Feb 4, 2020

I am putting together a "Race" BBK with Wilwood. It will be a Race spec but will also be fine for street. It is similar to the Honda Performance Development setup that is used on the World Challenge TCA class Civic Si race cars, that kit is exclusively available from HPD for actual race cars. The kit I am putting together uses a 6 piston radial mount hard anodized caliper for better heat dissipation, a different piston size set for better pedal feel, thermlock pistons to minimize pad heat from brake fluid, 327mm 2piece rotors, stainless lines, etc, and will fit within most 17" wheels. I will start testing this setup in a few weeks and will be releasing more info ASAP

Brakes88 · Jun 6, 2021

Thusee said:
Used dc5 or genesis brembos or any in that matter are going to be beat up. It doesnt take much to get the rebuilt. Here are some pictures of when I picked up the dc5r in rough shape, then got it powdercoated and rebuilt, and then ended up switching to the 27won bbk for comparison.

Damn that 27won has my wallet looking worried every time I seem them.

Best bang for the buck brake upgrade?

wes1099

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360glitch

Thusee

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fenix-silver

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wes1099

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Thusee

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pinhead66

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wes1099

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