Project DLM Brembo Upgrade - Catchin' A Brake

Calipers Our calipers are machined from racing-specific billet alloy. Brembo says that this will increase stiffness and enhance pedal feel at elevated temperatures, which I can't personally wait to try out. Now, the calipers utilize high-temperature, severe-duty pistons and seals that are specifically designed for our application. The Mono Block Caliper Design features twin bleeders, four aluminum hard-coat pistons (30/36mm), which resist flexing and is one of the lightest designs out there. They are Radial Mount Calipers and must be torqued to 18 ft-lb. Brembo provides shim kits to space calipers 0.040-inch away from hub fingers. That's a nice plus about this kit, it's made for a Dirt Late Model from the inside out.

Pads Brembo's Hawk DTC 30 pads (front and rear) are extra-thick and feature high-torque race compounds designed to deliver high friction levels at a wide range of temperatures; high sensitivity to pressure modulation; and high-temperature, fade-free performance. The pads are actually a combination of special materials such as metallic compounds with blended carbon and graphite particles. The graphite provides a high-temperature lubricant base. Brembo says that the result is a smoother, predictable, and consistent brake engagement along with exceptional release characteristics not found in most racing friction materials. We'll be testing these brakes as part of our shakedown of the new Mastersbilt car in an upcoming issue, so keep your eyes peeled for that one.

Rotors The pre-assembled floating rotor/hat features curved vanes that aid in cooling. The rotors are factory balanced, and at 0.700-inch wide and 10.9 inches in diameter, they are slightly smaller than our cross-drilled set we had on the car last year.

Bottom Line Installing this system was a piece of cake. Brembo's kit is completely turnkey and everything bolted right up and fit perfectly. We'll use No. 3 brake line when it comes time to hook everything up. But the real exciting part of this install was the weight savings. Brembo says that racers should expect a 26- to 36-pound weight reduction over conventional Dirt Late Model brakes. Our 29-pound weight savings falls right in line with those claims.

Everything we've seen from this system points to a first-class package you'd expect from a company with the reputation of Brembo. We've heard that pedal feel consistency is predictable from the beginning of the race to the end, and you can therefore run conservative in the early going, saving the car until "go-time" at the end of the race. We'll have a full report on the performance on our new system in a future issue of Circle Track after we've had a chance to test and race this system. In the meantime, if you'd like to get a set of your own, it is available exclusively through CV Products for a price of $2,497.50. While you might say that's a bit pricey, it'll likely be the last brake system you ever buy, unless you stuff it in the wall and break something.