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Baz2004

Mrk iv rear caliper upgrade

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I fit the mrk iv rear calipers on my early valver at the weekend since the old ones were sticky and the handbrake was dodge. I replaced the plates and put new disks/pads/bearings/lines on. I’ve yet to bleed the brakes as Im upgrading the fronts also so I don’t know how they are on the pedal, the handbrake feels a lot better tho even if the cable needs shortening.

 

I put mrk 3 rear pads on with the existing carriers (im not sure if mrk iv carriers will fit) they are less thick than the mrk 4 pads. I appreciate all the advice and help from the lads on here its a fairly straight forward job once you have all the bits, the only thing that held me up were the lines I finally got the kit from C+R.

 

 

 

 

oldplate.jpg

 

newplate.jpg

 

 

newrears.jpg

 

 

newlines.jpg

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Mmm shiney :)

 

Good work matey, the Mk3 GTI pads are supposed to give the best fit, so sounds like you went for the right option there 8)

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kool.. how much did that lot set you back??

 

Off the top of my head it worked out around £120 that’s getting the calipers second hand and the braded kit from C+R.

 

I considered xdrilled disks but at £35 each I left it, would have only been for aesthetic purposes anyhow as Im not pushing huge power.

 

The new plates are a must for any older pre 92 cars as most ones Ive seen tend to be on the brown side :)

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For a VR at least...

 

The rear calipers and hoses are £200 from C&R

Disks are £30ish (with discount) from VW

Pads (Pagid FR ones anyhoo) are about £20 from GSF

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Yeah the calipers can be pricy to buy new, I managed to get a pair off a chap who was upgrading his TDi Broa with Skoda RS brakes, I went to GSF for the disks & pads and I ordered the plates from VW which are around £25.

 

The hose kit is around £24 from C&R I still have a spare set of VW passat lines & banjo bolts that will do the job if anyone’s thinking of the upgrade.

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To do mine this time around I got the hoses from C&R (£24), calipers from Ebay (£85 8) ) pads, disks and bearings from GSF and haven't bothered with the plates as I'll probably end up taking 'em off anyway... :twisted: :lol: Oh, and a tub of brake calliper cleaner (£2.99) and brake calliper paint (£5.99) from Halfords too! :lol:

 

On J-Dub, I got the complete kit from C&R just before the prices went up after they stopped requiring old MKII calipers instead of a surcharge, and used the already fitted disks and pads that were only 6 months old anyway...

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I forgot to mention I got new wheel bearings (kit) while I was at it, its not vital on the newer cars - my valver is 16 yrs old.

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hope c&r have got there act together when i rang they had no idea about putting mk4 calipers on a rado i had to get my hoses from stealth cost £50!

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Mmm shiney :)

 

Good work matey, the Mk3 GTI pads are supposed to give the best fit, so sounds like you went for the right option there 8)

 

You need the 95 on GTI/16V/VR6 pads as they're 1mm thicker than MK2/Pre 95/Corrado pads. MK4 pads are 1mm thicker than the 95 on pads, in other words, the pads are 1mm thicker (longer service intervals) with each model....

 

If you put MK2/Corrado pads into MK4 calipers, you get a mushy pedal....

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hope c&r have got there act together when i rang they had no idea about putting mk4 calipers on a rado i had to get my hoses from stealth cost £50!

 

8)

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hope c&r have got there act together when i rang they had no idea about putting mk4 calipers on a rado i had to get my hoses from stealth cost £50!

 

Considering a entire Goodridge 6 line set is £70, that's poor value...but Goodridge don't like splitting packs and will charge you for it....

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Mmm shiney :)

 

Good work matey, the Mk3 GTI pads are supposed to give the best fit, so sounds like you went for the right option there 8)

 

You need the 95 on GTI/16V/VR6 pads as they're 1mm thicker than MK2/Pre 95/Corrado pads. MK4 pads are 1mm thicker than the 95 on pads, in other words, the pads are 1mm thicker (longer service intervals) with each model....

 

If you put MK2/Corrado pads into MK4 calipers, you get a mushy pedal....

 

I still don't agree with this... :?

 

What you're saying is that as the pad wears down your pedal will get mushier and mushier, which it doesn't... Starting off with Corrado pads in a MK4 caliper will only be the same as using a MK4 pad that's been used for a few miles and so won't make any difference to the brake feel... :|

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I know you don't, but I've actually tried both types of pad and it DOES make a difference.

 

It's got to be something to do with the way the caliper works, it's completely different to the way a front caliper works after all.... speak to Steve Creswell about it if you don't believe me, he says exactly the same.... the setup is important.

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Just checked there with GSf and the pads I got (mrk 3 rears) are the same GSF model no as the ones for the corrado (64601A) ?? :scratch:

 

I haven’t been able to test the pedal yet but I may have the wrong pads, As I mentioned I couldn’t get the mrk iv pads in the carriers.

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...but the shape of the pad and the material the pad is made of is IDENTICAL... :?

 

I know that the way they work is different to front calipers, I did hydraulics and pneumatics as part of my degree! The rear caliper pistons have a thread on 'em (hence needing a wind back tool) so that once you press the brake pedal the thread takes up the major slack caused by pad wear with the piston only actually moving a small amount to press the brakes on and return away from the disk...

 

I've now tried BOTH sets of pads too and it made feck all difference on H-YYU (MKIII) compared with J-DUB's MKII pads... :| As I said, it's exactly the same as using a set of pads which have already been used on the car for some time...

 

Can anyone explain to me why I am wrong, 'cos I'd love to know... :?

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Perhaps Mr Creswell can shed some light on the situation.

 

I did notice pulling up the handbrake a few times helped bring in the pistons. my handbrake is almost vertical at this stage tho.

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When you fit rear brakes, you screw in the piston on the caliper until the gap is just about a millimetre wider than the pads and disc itself.

 

Once the brakes are back together, the piston will automatically adjust outward with the pedal to compensate for pad and disc wear, hence why you have to screw the piston back in the first place.

 

I can't see the need for different pads, apart from to avoid the fitment issues Baz2004 had with the Mk4 ones...

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...but the shape of the pad and the material the pad is made of is IDENTICAL... :?

 

I know that the way they work is different to front calipers, I did hydraulics and pneumatics as part of my degree! The rear caliper pistons have a thread on 'em (hence needing a wind back tool) so that once you press the brake pedal the thread takes up the major slack caused by pad wear with the piston only actually moving a small amount to press the brakes on and return away from the disk...

 

I've now tried BOTH sets of pads too and it made feck all difference on H-YYU (MKIII) compared with J-DUB's MKII pads... :| As I said, it's exactly the same as using a set of pads which have already been used on the car for some time...

 

Can anyone explain to me why I am wrong, 'cos I'd love to know... :?

 

Sorry mate, you beat me to it! :)

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