audi parts - Recommendation

[Brett Dikeman]

At 10:50 PM -0400 4/8/02, TM wrote:
>Bernie,
>I don't appreciate your sarcasm.

Same here.

...but anyway, back to the subject at hand.

>I don't know what you do, but for track use, the UFOs are not enough
>brake, IMHO.

Ok, I'm going to disagree there, or at least nitpick.  UFOs are about
4% smaller in diameter and 15% thinner.  309x25.5 versus 320x30...so
I don't buy "not enough brake"; I'd say a more accurate statement is
that they are not as suited for track use as big brakes.

What it boils down to is this: for those who can deal with the higher
cost(and also upgrading to larger wheels or already have suitable
wheels) and do a lot of track events, BIRAs make sense.  For those of
us who want to keep the ability to run 15" wheels for winter weather
and who don't do many track events, UFOs are plenty sufficient, more
practical, and more cost effective.  I didn't see Paul say this
directly, but my perception is that learning to drive well means
understanding the limits of the car and acting accordingly...even if
the UFOs aren't quite as powerful stoppers, well, so what?  Club
events are about --learning how to drive safely--, -not- "let's go
around the track as fast as we can."  When you remember that, and
take a look at the cars that show up for events(like A6 wagons, for
example) it helps remind you of the whole purpose of the event.
Anyway, enough ramblings from someone who has yet to put himself on
the track(me.)

Here's the breakdown on the plusses of each "system."

BIRA:
-thicker rotor has greater thermal mass
-easier(and cheaper) to get rotors+pads
-easier maintenance(bleeding, pad changes, rotor changes)
-better modulation
-excuse to get easier to clean wheels :-)
-they look really cool

All five benefit track users(gotta look cool at the track too, right?
:)  With more accessible and cheaper rotors, you can feel a little
freer to run more aggressive pads(and they'll be easier to swap out;
you can do it right after the event if your heart desires.)  The
monobloc also doesn't have all guide pins and such, so that helps in
terms of maintenance cost/effort too, right?


UFOs:

-darn near same size rotors as the BIRA kit
-15 inch rims still fit
-far more cost effective in short run(see below)
-instant conversation piece at tire shops, track events, social
gatherings, etc, and the used rotors make great looking(but heavy)
party hats/can be used to make fake UFO snapshots/dinghy
anchor/world's toughest paperweight/good Frisbee for Paul Bunyan's
Ox, etc.


Ah, what's that you say?  I forgot "reduces unsprung weight 'cause
the monobloc is lighter?"  Here's some food for thought.  Stock 15"
rims weigh about 15lb.  My Ronal R28's(17x8.5) weigh about 28lb I
think.  Unless you feel like dropping even more dough on lightweight
rims...well, you just lost a chunk of the benefit of the reduced
caliper/rotor weight.  However, I don't remember how much the UFO
caliper/rotor weigh and how much the typical bira rotor+monobloc
weigh, so I can't say how big the chunk is...wheel weight increase
might be insignificant, so I'll leave this one up in the air.

Now, about the whole cost issue which everyone loves to talk
about...here's a breakdown, showing # of rotors versus TOTAL cost to
the owner.

	BIRA	UFO
1	$1500	$500
2	$1700	$1000
3	$1900	$1500
4	$2100	$2000
5	$2300	$2500

It takes between 4 and 5 sets of rotors to beat the UFOs for total $
spent, roughly.  That's one heck of a long time from now, considering
I've squeezed about 75,000 miles out of the set that were -on the car
when I bought it-.

And -that- assumes you already have 17" wheels.  I won't bore you
with the chart above, but if you have to drop $1000 on wheels+tires,
it jumps to 7-8 sets of rotors before BIRA becomes more cost
effective.

B
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"They that give up essential liberty to obtain temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." - Ben Franklin
http://www.users.cloud9.net/~brett/