Front BMW brakes locking front wheels all the time, why...please guys can i have your advice? Options

[budman5201]

I recently bought new rear calipers, redid the front BMW brakes up front and installed HAWK race pads up front. The braking has significantly improved! YES! but now i have one dilema......The front brakes lock up EASILY and the rears never at all..........I wish i could make all them lock up in emergency situations or at least more Braking in the rear.


Did i just significantly make the front brakes better by installing new race pads and BMW brakes? Can i adjust anything with the stock rear system to get more pressure to the back so i dont lock up the front VERY EASILY???

thanks guys i appreciate your help.....

Stock 1.7 liter GOING SUBARU 2.5 200 hp N/A soon!! Trying to make everything else PERFECT before i get my third Subaru done.....The braking was lacking on my last conversion......

thanks!

[Eric_Shea]

Sorry Mike, the "remove the proportioning valve" thing is really bad advice that could cost someone their life. The rear brakes lock up on a mountain ridge in the rain and his car can go spinning off the edge like a top... real things can go real wrong, real fast.

The valve is a rear caliper saftey shut-off valve, made to disengage the rear calipers in a panic stop. I wish that brake "T" thing would go away.

Yes Budman, you significantly goofed up your brake bias. You now have 40% more pad material upfront "and" you have Hawk race pads up front (but not on the rear?).

Mike had it right in the first part. You'll want to adjust your shut-off valve but, not before you match the pads in the rear.

If you've yet to adjust your venting clearance your rears may not be working at all.

Sorry Budman... I see this as a problem all around. This is why I don't recommend the BMW calipers as an "upgrade".

The best upgrade for your situation would be to get M-Calipers and vented rotors. This will give you the same pad size you upgraded to now but the "MUCH NEEDED" venting to cool the rotor. Your new calipers will add heat to your solid rotors. You may be able to get by with an AJ Racing venting kit.

You won't want to hear it and, I've said it so many times that I'm a broken record but; my advice is to put the stock fronts back on and get the awesome Hawk pads all around. You will have a MUCH better matched and biased brake system and it will still stop like crazy.