houstonvett

I see that it is possible to put the C6 Z-06 calipers onto a C3. The C6 Z-06 calipers have 6 pistons in the caliper, 3 on each side. The C6 alum. guys are supposed to have less flex in the caliper then the C3s cast iron models. Have any Forum members done this conversion yet? The C6 Z-06 calipers and the Hydroboost setup for a C3 would definatley bring the C3s brake system into the 21st century. You will have to use 17" rims once you do convert over to the C6 Z-06 caliper because the size of the rotor, no problem for myself because on plan on using 17" Hoopsters on my project. Those 17" rims sure do make the C3 handle a lot better, houstonvett

houstonvett

Finally after some persuasion I got my friend to tell me where he seen the Z-06 brake set up for the C3. He finally sent me this link. Looks like 2 brackets have to be made to make the C6 Z-06 calipers fit onto the C3s. It will work on the C2s for members that have one of those guys, houstonvett

http://speeddirect.com/index.aspx?nodeID=119

KevinK

I have what may be a bit of a stupid question...


Why pay the 2,000+ asking price for these calipers as listed by this vendor, when you can by used Z06 calipers for much less?

MotorHead

I have another stupid question, I have hydroboost and just how much further would you like your head to go thru the windshield by lightly pressing on the OEM 4 piston C3 brakes

PeteZO6

Depending on your intended use, you might want to hang out in the C6 ZO6 forum section for awhile and search on brake problems. The serious track guys say the stock calipers are pretty much junk. The calipers flex under extreme use - they are just unsatisfactory. The serious guys all seem to go to aftermarket brakes. If you decide to make the swap, you can probably pick up a used set of calipers reasonably.

However if you are just looking for nice modern, eye catching brake calipers, that work really well in most any situation, go for it. I eyeball my Z's calipers every time I pull the '69 into or out of the garage, thinking it would sure be sweet to put a set on the '69.

MotorHead

The '68 in this video coming around in first place broke the track record at Sebring for his class, stock brakes, nuff said, oh how we underestimate the performance of out lowly C3's I wonder what brand of exotic brakes those other track built race cars, newer Porches etc are using

"The suspension is stock with plastic bushings and Moog ball joints. The front springs are 550 lbs we have street Bilstein front shocks that came with the car (need replacement) and QA-1 rears.

It has stock steering, brakes, and rear suspension. We have not changed any of the stock ball joint locations or pick up points or the shock mounting positions. We do use Willwood master cylinders but a stock pedal assembly. We run a combination steel and fiberglass rear leaf spring with no rear sway bar."

houstonvett

KevinK "Why pay the 2,000+ asking price for these calipers as listed by this vendor, when you can by used Z06 calipers for much less? "

I would never buy the kit Kevin and have allready found all 4 calipers for a very reasonable price.

Motorhead "I have another stupid question, I have hydroboost and just how much further would you like your head to go thru the windshield by lightly pressing on the OEM 4 piston C3 brakes."

Nice video of the 68 making the corner. I would like to take my vette up to Texas World Speedway 1 day to run that 2.5 mile guy for a couple of laps. With 1 mile straight a ways @ TWP you can really open it up and find out what top end really is. I have the Hydroboost setup and will be adding the Z06 calipers would just be a little extra insurance in the braking department. I live in the Houston area. The sheer numbers of cell phone users/drivers, drivers with road rage, folks with poor driving skills and other daily particapants in the Houston 500 (traffic on Houston's freeways) make this a easy descision. This is just a preventative measure, as I know I would never have to use the extra stopping power of the Z06 calipers because of a mistake I made houstonvett

MN-Brent

This is a physics/geometry question:

Does the C6-Z06 caliper 6 pistons total surface area equal the total surface area of the C3 front caliper 4 pistons? It could be the clamping force of the C6Z calipers do not equal that of the C3.

It might be the big performance advantage is really the 1 inch larger rotor (for a longer lever arm), not the caliper clamping force.

Of course the C6Z aluminum caliper heat transfer rate and less unsprung weight would be advantageous to track cars, but probably negligable benefit for a street car.

With the hydroboost set-up, SS braided lines, and quality O-ring calipers, I'm more than good for street usage and keep it to a dull roar to keep my windshield from customizing my head.

HamadUP

Exactly! .. I, too have a stock brakes plus hydroboost, I cant be happier!

MotorHead

houstonvett, I have nothing against someone putting something on his Vette because he likes the way they look, not like I haven't done anything like that

Point is what is the gain ? If there even is any. If it is weight saving then you have to make sure you don't lose any benefit from that with heavy wheels or other components on the corners.

I wouldn't doubt they are better brakes but I don't have any data that tells me this. Going to the C6 forum and asking them if their brakes are better isn't going to help You need hard scientific data of braking distances, fade, heating, etc etc on the same car

houstonvett

MN-Brent & Motorhead I just got off the phone with a engineer thats STILL working for the Chevy group in Detroit. The C6 Z06 calipers are a bigger size wise then the stock C3 guys. The engineer wouldn't get specific except to say it's close to 15% to 20%, to his way of thinking. If you look at the Z06 front pads, it consists of 4 seperate pods on each side of the caliper. This equals more brake pad surface being applied to the rotor. Again the engineer wouldn't get specific but said it was a sizeable increase in the amount of pad surface for the Z06 over the stock C3 units. The clamping force is greater in the C6 guys because of the 6 pistons in each caliper instead of the 4 in the C3 guys. Also less flex in the Z06 alum. calipers then compared to the C3 cast iron ones. Less flex in the caliper housing the better clamping force it will have. The larger size of the C6 rotor also makes a diffence in heat disapation of the rotor, equaling faster stops. I don't usually care about doing modifications that bring about very small improvements in preformance in most cases, such as using roller rockers in a street motor. But even if a 10% improvement in braking ability is gained in using the Z06 brake setup, it might be worth looking into, houstonvett

Scootin_Z

I'm sure I can search this, and I will but whats hydroboost? Is that for a non power brake C3? Have a nice bone stock 69, but would not mind better brakes on it without modding anything on the car??? Is this a direct bolt on?

Thanks,
Scootin_z

MN-Brent

Its a brake assist mod and a pseudo direct bolt on. Durango Boy can help you if you contact him on the Guru site or you can get ahold of VPB or another Hydratech distributor to find out about the full kit.

I got a unit from DB and built my own Aeroquip lines. I probably have $300 into the whole deal and its fantastic.

Their are alot of modern vehicles out there now, Tahoe, Mustang, etc... that are using power steering hydraulic fluid to assist the power brakes, instead of vacuum. The difference in boost and feel is phenomenal.

houstonvett

The Hydroboost system uses PS fluid to aid in pushing the rod into the brake's system master cylinder instead of a vacuum assist type of arrangement. This system was used in GM's diesel vans and light trucks as the diesel motors don't produce enough vacuum that is needed to run a vacuum assisted type of PB setup. Do a search in the Forum here and you should find everything you need to do the conversion, houstonvett

spedaleden

C6 ZO6 what is the weak link of that car?

The brakes, don't know why GM went cheap there but they did. The calipers come from China. They should of put Brembo's on it like the CTS V and the ZR1

The guys at the track hate those calipers, that's why you'll find them cheap on ebay

houstonvett

Thanks for the information on the calipers Spedaleden. If the calipers are made in China I will not even consider the conversion. IMHO the products that are made from China are inferior to the same products made here in America. I will only buy American made rotors (products) for any of my cars. The rotors made in the US are more exspensive but better quality. US rotors don't warp as easy, you can resurface them with no problem also. I have seen some China rotors actually flake off their metal surface when resurfacing them. Hard to believe GM would actually stoop to putting China made calipers into a Z06 Corvette. After hearing that information about the Z06 calipers maybe it is time for GM to head into bankruptcy and gets some new thinking at the top of the corporate structure, houstonvett

Stroker-427

Basically that's the reason because they put Italian brakes (from Ferrari) in the new ZR1 !!!!!!

gkull

Yes, before I put my money into Wilwood 13 inch rotors I looked at these guys So called stock c-3 J-56 modded with titanium piston heat shield brakes and you end up spending way over $2500 for a set of 4 to meet the intent of the rule books for having period correct brakes.

They have their act together on this car and a great driver. It is probably at least a $100K to recreate another copy

Scootin_Z

Thanks for the reply you guys. Sounds like a cool system. I miss this place. I'm a huge snowmobiler so I was buried in the board I visit there. So anyhow...maybe thats my next project after replacing the ride control shocks on the 95 (Ouch)

NassyVette

Sorry to drag this thread up from the dead...but can you find one US foundry that still produces brake rotors? They don't exist!