RPI Wilwood brake upgrade up and running on CGT turbo!

[J. Lyons]

Hello all,

Well I finally got the brakes on (with a little drama). For those who
remember my last post I bought the RPI kit which includes 11" Brembo
slotted/cross drilled rotors and Wilwood 4 piston calipers. I also
bought the 8.9" rear rotors (since I have the VW GTI rear discs) w/EBC
Green Stuff pads. After weighing both my brake options, as well as
opinions on my choices from several sources, I am pleased to report that
this was a exceptionally good upgrade!

My car really stops with authority now. While I have no performance #'s
per se, seat of the pants tell me that it feels like about as much of a
difference from what I had as the turbo motor swap did by replacing the
NA 5 banger!

Pricing came out to around $950 or so (not including new rear wheel
bearings, 8mm spacers, or the CV boots I had replaced after noticing
some stress cracks while on the lift). While this is sold as a bolt on
kit through RPI, my particular 16" rims did not clear the calipers
initially (those of you who know my car are familiar with the deep dish
spokes on my rims). Also while the adapter bracket does in fact bolt up
to the strut housing, it required minor clearancing as it was pushing
the inner pad into the rear of the front rotor.

All in all, it came out fantastic. Car brakes straight & true. I'll have
to upgrade the seatbelts next to keep from flying out the windshield
when I power brake!

Regards,
J. Lyons
84 CGT turbo (running out of things to do to it, time for a new project
- maybe)
86 4KCSQ (next project?)
79 5KS (out to pasture)

P.S. I also ascertained the reason behind my accident in the CGT several
months ago with the brake upgrade. It seems that the guide pins on my
right rear caliper were bent. It caused the rear wheel to lock up under
heavy braking, and is the likeliest cause of my meeting with the center
divider back in February.