Big Brake Kit for the Octavia? (Fits GTI MK5/6 and others)

[Martin]

Octavian's, lend me your eyes, feature this really bad ass big brake kit!



I was rather shocked and very impressed when I opened the box!

So why a BBK for the Octavia?

I'm a little unhappy with the brakes, they are powerful and do work fine, for a production car
I just don't like the contrast between the slow round town over powered feel (but it saves effort and is comfortable)
and needing to apply very large force when pushing hard elsewhere (but that does give good granular control of the braking)
I intend to do track days - can't stand production brake fade, happens too soon!
(Yes, put a set of DS2500 pads in and it will probably hold up for quite a few laps)
As I've taken my Octavia to Stage II, it's getting to higher speeds rather quickly,
the stock braking capability is good but now does not really match the performance of the car
Ultimately this car will become a dedicated track car, getting the necessary gear now to spread cost over time

I've been researching big brake kits for some months now:

Didn't like the R32 brake option, can be fair bit of money if you're unlucky, unlikely to yield significant improvement over the VRS brakes, very heavy, rotors not much bigger

Looked into using Porsche calipers - they are a little hard to get and could be 10 years old (sometimes expensive)
At the end of the day I found out they would foul my wheels (unless I use spacers)
Again, rotors not that much bigger, ~330mm
I know rotor diameter is not the defining factor, but if you're going to pay these $ you may as well get really big and bad ones, right?

Started looking into more serious kits with two piece rotors for decent weight savings

Looked into various other BBK's options, all were ~330mm disks, all needed wheel spacers to clear the calipers - arggg!

Then I found the HPA big brake kit which fits numerous VAG vehicles
HPA Motorsports Inc. - Big Brake Kits
355mm rotors - hur hur hur - 6 pot calipers - hur hur hur
The rotors are 32mm thick, two piece hat, slotted rotor face
But they are designed to fit under stock 18" wheels without a spacer - we have a winner!
(You have to remove the factory rotor dust shield however - I'm fine with that)
Apparently these save 14.5kg of unsprung weight

So stay tuned for installation and road test reports!!!

[Tigger]

Nice!!!!

Well done mate!

Looks like the next time we all meet up, your car will "stop" all of us in our tracks!!

[tigger73]

Did you buy these off the site or is there an agent locally? And what was the landed cost to get these to your computer chair?

[Martin]

I think they are going to be a tight fit - hope I don't have to change my wheels again
(I put a small gutter rash on one this morning - first time in 20 years - boo hoo)

You have to pay GST when you land them and a $40 clearing fee
All the good (two piece hat and 4+ pots) cost $2K+
It's a commited purchase for sure

[Tigger]

I think they are going to be a tight fit - hope I don't have to change my wheels again
(I put a small gutter rash on one this morning - first time in 20 years - boo hoo)

You have to pay GST when you land them and a $40 clearing fee
All the good (two piece hat and 4+ pots) cost $2K+
It's a commited purchase for sure

eewwww! ouch...ok...worth it I guess??

[dArK5HaD0w]

ooo......that looks very nice.
can't wait to c pics of the beast on!!

[VWindahouse]

They're going to look badass for sure!

That's a lot of unsprung weight saving. So for people that might balk at the price tag it's money you won't need to spend for the feeling of extra power. Plus you'll be picking your front teeth out of the steering wheel the first time you really have to jump on them

Winning!

[Martin]

eewwww! ouch...ok...worth it I guess??

It's like a lot of things in life, the glad and sorry
Glad you have it, sorry you had to pay for it
And quality is remembered long after the price is forgotten

When I decided to buy them, I compared them to my 60" 3D LED TV which cost $3,400
I asked which was more important and rewarding, the brakes won hands down!

I'm sure once I get them fitted I will be a very happy camper

The real question is can I get them on before the Muralan track day...

[Diesel_vert]

Motorsport is a fun hobby, but it's not cheap - those are the going rates for (proper) big brakes, so the cost shouldn't really freak anyone out.

Obviously a total waste of money if buying just for appearance or road driving, but for modified cars and heavy track work, they're worth every penny.

EDIT - engineering components to be strong is cheap and easy, but to make them lightweight without sacrificing performance is expensive and difficult, and is often reflected in the price. Wheels are a good example - there is a reason why eBay wheels are cheap...

[Weekend-Warrior]

Do you know what size pistons they have?

You might find you end up with a longer brake pedal. It could also change the bias.

Will be interested to hear the results.