hey guys,

I have recently noticed while driving my SC4 that i am having to really get on the brakes to slow the car down. I Just purchased my SC about a month ago and the private owner said the brake pads were changed recently (god knows when that was) but it seems to be getting to me. It could be the fact that i am spoiled by the breaks of my 00' ES300 which seem to stop on the dime, and that i am not used the SC's yet. I was wondering if there are any good braking systems out there that i can buy that would greatly enhance my braking without emptying my wallet. I've seen the ones on lexussc400.com are upwards $3500, is this what most performance kits go for? All advice is appreciated - thanks.

-Ryan

 

Dude, I can help you with this subject. This is my next item on my upgrade list.

It seems like a lot of people are upgrading to the MKIV Supra TT Brake systems and have positive feedback after they have upgraded the brake systems. They usually do the front brake systems and that's what I am looking right now. I've asked around and it sounds like Steve at Carson Toyota is the man to contact.

Below is PM I sent to Steve and the result:

Hi Peter,

This can be done but not with 17" rims unless you have the Supra fitment.......who makes these?

I can send you to Todd at T.M. Engineering down the street, our service does not do these mods which is fine.



quote:
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cupete wrote on 02-25-02 05:20:
Hi Steve,

Can you do this on '95 SC400 with 17" Rims? I don't know what the offset is but I can bring my car in for inspection.

"This is what I'm putting together for the GS brake upgrade:

(2) Supra TT 4-piston calipers
(2) RT cross-drilled rotors
(1) Factory Toyota TT brake pads (front set)
(1) Impulse SS brake lines (set of 4)

Total price is $889.00, all parts are brand new

These are the same parts I'm using on my own Supra, I'm just trying the Hawks HPS brake pads instead.

The rotors are by Race Technologies, a local Brembo distributor. They are cross-drilled, cad plated and dynamically balanced. Brembo DOES NOT make stock cross-drilled/slotted rotors for the GS, only for their upgraded brake kit. "

Above is quote I found from the GS forum.

Assuming that you can install the MKIV TT front brake systems on my car, how much for parts and installation?

I need to replace my brake system ASAP.

Thanks in advance,

Peter~



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__________________
-Steve
-TRD/Tom's Racing/L-Sportline
-TTE/L-Tuned
-gonzo4u@earthlink.net
-1-800-908-6968

 

LexDriver
Most will tell you that the SupraTT brake upgrade will give you the best bang for your buck. They will bolt right on to the SC and are a great alternative to the higher end braking systems out there. Also upgrading to Stainless Steel Brake Lines will give you better response.
You should find the price for the fronts at around $600-700 for the stock parts. Some people choose to different rotors than the stock TT rotors, but thats more of a personal pref.



gadgetSC

 

Regarding the front breaks:

I am in the midst of a front brake system upgrade. And here is what I have so far...

2 Rod Millen Calipers - These are in fact Supra Twin Turbo 4 piston calipers. These are being painted red with a few coats of Foliatec caliper paint.

2 big 12.5" Supra TT Stillen slotted front rotors - perhaps some of the nicest rotors out there and at a good price. You can get these direct from Stillen or from Millen or other places. These are top of the line stock replacement rotors. Millen makes a nice set of gas slotted rotors also if you do not want drilled rotors. Both of these companies use the TRW Autospecialty rotors to the best of my knowledge. They have both stopped offering the drilled version of this rotor.

Set of stainless steel lines - braided over teflon. These are the Rod Millen lines which run about $130 for a 4 line set for the SC400. They are very well made by a company called Goodridge (sp?).

The pads I will be using are the Green Supra TT pads which are carbon-kevlar and do not produce much dust at all. These were found at TireRack.

Having done the front brakes and rotors before, these will be easy. You have to remove the inner dust covers from the front wheel hub as it will be in the way (too small) of the big brake rotors.

The Millen/Supra TT calipers are very large and wide. As such you must have a wheel fitment that is equal to or larger than the Supra Twin Turbo Mk IV. This is perhaps the most crucial point in the whole matter. Changing the stock rotors out is a snap as long as they are not overly rusted on. Your stock SC400 16" wheels will be useless with the Supra TT calipers. Also many 17" SC400 wheels may not fit over the calipers either.

Changing the brake lines should be easy however I did find it to be less than easy. The stock SC400 firm break line end male coupling tends to bell out when compressed, thus making it nearly impossible to fit into the female part of the stainless lines. You have to slightly crimp it smaller (de-bell it) or some say to grind the bell lip off. Either way it is not for the faint of heart for if you bugger the job up you are high and dry without breaks. I will give this a go when the warm weather hits.

I hope this input helps. If you have any questions, please let me know.

 

Are the rear brakes from the Supra TT any better? I've been thinking about simply replacing the front and back brakes with Supra TT brakes since they're bolt on.

 

I still have 16" tires on my car. Can I do a brake upgrade? I am trying to keep my car as stock looking as possible but with some stereo upgrades and some minior performance upgrades.

Stephen

 

MadMax......I asked the same question on the rear brakes. One of the Turbo guy suggested the rear upgrade also. I have to agree. After putting the front TT brakes on, the difference is so noticable....When the fronts grab, you might wonder if the rears are doing there job. You will want a better balance in braking front and rear.


slowtan: 16's wont do it.....as mentioned before, not all 17's fit either


Another thing I never see mentioned is getting a larger spare tire. Is everyone buying that 5th 18" wheel? The SupraTT spare works well.



gadgetSC

 

Are the Supra TT rear calipers a simple bolt on replacement like the fronts are? The SC 400 has an internal parking brake hub inside of each of the rear OEM rotors. Does the rear Supra TT caliper require a totally different rear rotor? If it does, does this Supra TT rear rotor work with the SC400's parking brake shoes? This is a interesting question to which I have no answer.

As far as I know the 16' stock SC400 wheels will not work at all with the Supra TT rotors and calipers on the front end. They will not work even if you spacer them out and away. The diameter is just too small from what I can see. The TT caliper is huge and wide and makes the SC400 OEM caliper look like a toy in comparison.

I personally am not going to play with the idea of upgrading the rear SC calipers at all. I have however, upgraded the rear rotors and pads and will upgrade the rear lines. The fronts do most yoeman's work in the breaking process.

Yes, you will need a spare that will clear the front Supra TT calipers if you ever want to run on spare on the fronts. To some extent, you will then need at least 3 wheels with correct TT caliper clearance.

 

I disagree on ES300 brake system works better than SC400 brake. I don't care how new your ES300, its still a camry brake.
Some thing's wrong with your SC400 brake. Does it feel spongy (solf)when you step on the brake? If it is, check the sliding pins. It the thing behind the bolts that hold the caliper to the brake bracket together. The pins need to be clean and put back with high temp. grease.

 

Sounds like maybe you got some cheap brake pads when the old owner changed them.
Thanks for the tip on the spare tire;I hate realizing things like that at the wrong point in time.
You'll notice some body pitching with way better brakes and stock springs/shocks,the Supra's are (15-20%)stiffer.

 

The rear is as easy as the fronts i have the
full set up on my sc 300 , it stops on a dime
plus it looks great. You must remove the backing plate for the stock rotors .

 

Hello.. I'm currently driving a sc300 with the supra tt brake upgrade. Are you sure it's imposible to fit the 16 inch wheels? Have you actually tried it? I didn't actually put on the rims on my vehicle, but I measured the inside of my 16's and it seems like the tt rotors won't hit the inner side of the rims. I really need some more info on this.. I bet the car would stop even better with the factory 16 inch wheels.

 

I recommend upgrading the front brakes for sure. You don't need to upgrade the rear brakes since most of the braking is done by the front brakes. You will need the Supra TT fitment rims since that's what hte brakes were designed for (16"s could be playing with fire).

I did the front Supra TT upgrade for less than 700 bucks (with tax since I got it locally) brand new. You will need the following parts:

-front calipers (4 piston)
-front rotors (with CAD coating so it won't rust)
-brake pads (may want to consider aftermarket because of excessive brake dust that drives me mad)
-shim kit
-brake fluid

In addition you may want to get shields for the brakes. They're pretty cool and they have fins that re-direct the air at the brakes. They're cheap but most likely will have to wait for them since no dealers in US carry them.

I got my brakes from Elmhurst Toyota here in IL. The manager's name is Curt. He's a very helpful and cool guy. If you're from eastern US it may be cheaper to ship from Elmhurst Toyota.

 

For 1,000$, this can be yours. 2 tt cross/slotted rotors with cad plating, 2 sc300/400 rear rotors cross/slotted with cad plating, 2 front TT calipers, 4 front TT EBC pads, 4 rear sc300/400 performance pads, all shims, clips, anti-squeal, and even some premium dot 4 fluid.

 

rotors