Brake upgrade

[Ehjack]

Has anyone ever put BMW M brakes on a mini F5X? I've done some research and it seems like they should fit. I found some really cheap calipers and rotors for sale and wondered if it was worth trying?

Or would I be better just to change the rotors, pads and brake lines?

[Track Ali]

If you're going for better performance on a budget then uprated brake lines (and fluid) along with better pads and discs will work wonders. The pads and discs will be what enhances your stopping power - the lines and fluid will simply improve the consistency and feel of your braking set up.

If however you simply fancy sticking on some M-performance brakes then why not - just bear in mind that you may need different wheels in order to clear the bigger brakes and that you might run into issues with certain wheels fitting inside the arches and clearing the OEM suspension struts.

[Ehjack]

Yeah I don't really fancy paying £1,000+ for the JCW brembos. But the brakes need an upgrade because I can't stop [emoji85][emoji85]

I'll probably just get some new rotors and pads then. Any recommendations? I was leaning towards EBC or Ferodo.

Then at some point in the future get uprated brake lines and dot 4 fluid.

[Track Ali]

I can't comment on pads and discs unfortunately - I've always found the OEM discs and pads perfectly capable but I do have a JCW with the bigger brakes from the factory.

[Ehjack]

I can't comment on pads and discs unfortunately - I've always found the OEM discs and pads perfectly capable but I do have a JCW with the bigger brakes from the factory.Yeah the brakes on a cooper s are basically useless lol.

[CiderFex]

I will always swear by M-Tec drilled and grooved disks, EBC Yellow Stuff pads, HEL braided lines and Castrol React fluid.
No MINI will ever need more stopping power than what the above will give you.
It’s the set up I’ve had on GP1499 for over 6 years now and as soon as the R59 JCW needs new pads I’ll be upgrading the whole braking system to the above as well.

That’s just my opinion though...


Sent from Yorkshire wi an hint o’ sarcasm.

[Ehjack]

I will always swear by M-Tec drilled and grooved disks, EBC Yellow Stuff pads, HEL braided lines and Castrol React fluid.
No MINI will ever need more stopping power than what the above will give you.
It’s the set up I’ve had on GP1499 for over 6 years now and as soon as the R59 JCW needs new pads I’ll be upgrading the whole braking system to the above as well.

That’s just my opinion though...


Sent from Yorkshire wi an hint o’ sarcasm.Cheers!

Going to get that ordered pronto. My mini is actually scary at the moment because of the power it has... [emoji23]

[CiderFex]

Cheers!

Going to get that ordered pronto. My mini is actually scary at the moment because of the power it has... [emoji23]

lol
No probs.
[emoji1303]
I forgot to say that the M-Tec disks are unbelievably cheap as well, which is a huge bonus.
[emoji4]


Sent from Yorkshire wi an hint o’ sarcasm.

[Mon the fish]

I've tried a few different pads over the years, but I can't recommend Ferodo DS2500 enough - great stopping power when they're cold, and fantastic on track as well.

I made them smoke after 10 laps of Knockhill but they were still working brilliantly

Sent from my SM-G973F using Tapatalk

[Big Gordy]

I run M-Tec dilled and grooved all round on our Mini and never had any issues. i run them all round on my A4 Avant as well :thumbs up:

[Ehjack]

Cool, is there any benefit of going for drilled and grooved instead of just grooved?

I heard that drilled weakens the disc (more chance of cracking) and doesn't add much benefit anyway.

[CiderFex]

Cool, is there any benefit of going for drilled and grooved instead of just grooved?

I heard that drilled weakens the disc (more chance of cracking) and doesn't add much benefit anyway.

The holes aid with cooling and the dissipation of gas but I notice the difference more with the holes when driving in the rain.
I’ve had the same disks on GP1499 for 6.5 years (over 30K miles of driving) and I would trust them on a track day today.
Plus the look a lot sexier than normal disks.
[emoji12]
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190422/afab2362968069e81464610f9066f8c4.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190422/4e7c5b63d5451eef2b36a40e44ecf2c8.jpg


Sent from Yorkshire wi an hint o’ sarcasm.

[Ehjack]

The holes aid with cooling and the dissipation of gas but I notice the difference more with the holes when driving in the rain.
I’ve had the same disks on GP1499 for 6.5 years (over 30K miles of driving) and I would trust them on a track day today.
Plus the look a lot sexier than normal disks.
[emoji12]
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190422/afab2362968069e81464610f9066f8c4.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190422/4e7c5b63d5451eef2b36a40e44ecf2c8.jpg


Sent from Yorkshire wi an hint o’ sarcasm.I do think they look nice yes [emoji106]

I will go for the drilled and grooved. If they do crack then they are cheap enough and easy enough to replace in the future anyway [emoji3]

[CiderFex]

I do think they look nice yes [emoji106]

I will go for the drilled and grooved. If they do crack then they are cheap enough and easy enough to replace in the future anyway [emoji3]

I’ll be amazed if you can abuse them enough to crack them.
[emoji15]


Sent from Yorkshire wi an hint o’ sarcasm.

[Mon the fish]

I've got drilled discs, and I've had smoke coming off my pads (oops) and the discs aren't cracked.

Buy a decent make and they'll be fine

[Ehjack]

Would it better to spend a bit more money for a big brake kit on the front only?

Such as tarox etc?

[stoney]

Would it better to spend a bit more money for a big brake kit on the front only?

Such as tarox etc?Imo no a good set of pads and disks are more than adequate.

I run the R53jcw/R56 calipers on my r53 and its more than good enuf don't get me wrong i love the look of BBK's
But its a lot of dollar!!

Sent from my SM-G955F using Tapatalk

[Ehjack]

Haha yeah it's a crazy amount of money for a BBK.

I think I will go new discs and pads route since it's only a few hundred and will make a huge difference.

[MINI William]

We where going to put the JCW brakes on Megan’s 210 just before we traded it in. A better pad and disk will make a difference

[Big Gordy]

Seems a common conversion on the older R50 is to fit the front calipers off of the R56. Anybody on here done that..?? I missed out on elfmans R56 calipers a while back and have toyed with the idea ever since :argh:

[Mon the fish]

IMO the R56S calipers are an essential upgrade to the R53, and they're the same as the R53 JCW upgrade. And they really are all you need with some decent pads in them.

I wouldn't bother upgrading the rears

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[CiderFex]

Agreed.


Sent from Yorkshire wi an hint o’ sarcasm.

[stoney]

Seems a common conversion on the older R50 is to fit the front calipers off of the R56. Anybody on here done that..?? I missed out on elfmans R56 calipers a while back and have toyed with the idea ever since :argh:Not essential on a R50 but all the same worth doing [emoji106]

Sent from my SM-G955F using Tapatalk

[Big Gordy]

Not essential on a R50

:laugh:lets be honest here........nothing we do to our cars is essential, they're perfectly okay as we get them from the dealer :Whistle::thumbs up:

[Mon the fish]

The R53 is definitely under-braked as standard, for the power it has. Selling 210bhp JCWs with the same brakes as 90bhp Ones wasn't the cleverest of ideas in my book.

But yes, basically if you like your car standard don't get involved on here :hand:

[Ehjack]

Yep the brakes on my F55 S is awful. My old 1.0 ecoboost had better brakes [emoji23].

My F55 is running just shy of 300bhp and when I was braking from about 140mph it was just squirreling all over the place and actually gave up. It was rather quite freightening. Needless to say I've never had the car up to that speed since lol.