tezzer

hi all, my first post on this site, found it very interesting reading through the posts, can anyone help me out?, i want to upgrade the rear brakes on my escort cabby turbo to disc's, what calipers and disc's do i need, i can but the conversion plates and bolt etc, im sure i need a rs2000 escort hand brake cable aswell, any ideas welcome, thanks tezzer

liam-rst

iTrader: (1)

look in escort rs turbo forum an theres a guide there for front an back brake conversion at top of page

mattseries2

iTrader: (1)

You can use both 2wd and 4x4 rear calipers but must use the right discs, the only difference being one is vented and one is a solid disc and u have to space them differently (the 2wd is solid). You need the 2wd RS2000 handbrake cable also, + the brackets, bolts and washers. Hope this helps.

boothy

iTrader: (14)

Dont bother mate waste of time drums are good enough

Karlos G

iTrader: (4)

Yeah dont do it unless you've got BIG brakes on the front or you'll just find that the back end locks up first (like puling the handbrake) if you have to brake hard................. you can imagine the results of doing this at speed
If you want better braking upgrade the fronts

m4tt274

iTrader: (2)

its ruins the brake balance from experiance. just uprate the drums.

mattseries2

iTrader: (1)

Fit a bias valve mate if u want rear discs, thats what i did and back end fine, but like the others said, making the front bigger is advisable.

tezzer

thanks for all the advise, so are the front brakes on a turbo bigger than the original xr3i fronts? and what about the rears, i reckon i need to measure the drums and shoes first, as i did'nt do the engine conversion, i better see if they have changed the brakes aswell before i go any further.

makaveli96

I had my rear brake disc conversion done about 4 months ago I went for the cossie 4x4 set up everything was brand new and this is what you need mate.

Cosworth 4x4 callipers
Vented 4x4 brake discs
4x4 brake pads
Conversion Brackets, Bolts and spacers
Goodridge braided rear brake hoses
mk5 RS2000 hand brake cables

And this what I’ve got at the front.

Tarox G88 40 Grove ventilated standard size discs.
Standard size Cailpers & EBC Greenstuff Pads
Front Goodridge braided brake lines
ABS system removed

I've had a pair of brand new standard Ford compensators valves fitted a year ago before the conversion As I left JamSport I used the brakes gently and straight away I can feel the differents at the back feels a lot more stronger than the rear brake shoes that I had removed, I’ve even used the brakes to it’s fullest and do have to say it brakes perfect and well balanced with the fronts with no locking up or brake noise what so ever, so the new rear standard ford compensator valves that I had fitted last year do work well and no need for upgrading to the bias valves or even upgrading to much bigger brakes at the fronts but you will have to have your compensators valves set up properly and they have to be in top condition so I would say go for it mate.

tezzer

ok i've been out to the garage and measured the brakes, fronts-260mm disc's, rears- 9" drums, im sure the fronts are from a turbo, but are the 9" drums turbo or std xr3i.

makaveli96

the fronts are from the rs turbo but i'm not sure about the rear drums.

mentalasanything

Right, let's get a few things straight, the rear end will only lock up first if it is out of balance with the front. This can be seen if you have 260mm RST setup at the front with a 273mm solid disk Cossie 2wd setup at the rear.

One of the most common conversions is the one I wrote in the sticky at the top of the RS Turbo page, that is :

XR4x4 callipers
Solid 2wd brake discs
XR4x4 brake pads
Conversion Brackets, Bolts and spacers
Goodridge braided rear brake hoses
mk5a RS2000 hand brake cables

but the option makaveli96 offered is also commonplace.

Both of these though in my oppinion suit diferent front brake setups:

The option I offered is more suited to the front 4x4 cossie caliper and 2wd disk setup

makaveli96's offering on the other hand is more suited to the front 2wd 4pot and 4x4 disk setup, mainly as there is more bite at the front to match that of the vented disks at the rear.

Everyone has a diferent story to tell on locking up, never locking up, bias valves and load prop valves etc, but my advice is to talk to a tuner/MOT inspector you trust, ask their advice and ask whether they can set it up safely for you and go from there.

Lee

tezzer

been on ebay and looked for drums and it seems mine are from a turbo, so i could upgrade fronts by fitting drilled/grooved disc's and a decent set of pads. will this upgrade be ok with rear disc set up?. to be honest that would do me but i have 17" wheels and the drums look a bit lost behind the wheels. dont know what to do now, .

mentalasanything

It's your call really, I wouldn't upgrade the rears without uprating the fronts (not just disks and pads) but that's just me. If it's only for aesthetics that you want it, the use of bias valves in the rear lines will help you counteract any locking up, they'll just need to be set up correctly.

Lee

makaveli96

I think they should be fine as long as your rear compensators valves are in good working order here's a picture of my set up works perfect even with the greenstuff pads.

tezzer

many thanks for your input guy's, im going to have think about it over christmas and get some prices. if i fit rear disc's i think i'll run down to the mot station and have a word with them and see if they will put it on the rollers, rather than a road test just in case anything goes wrong, happy christmas to you all and thanks again, i will let you know when i start the conversion as i may need some more advice, terry

RSMK4TURBO

Would the rs turbo front discs and calipers be ok on back with cossie discs and calipers up front?

tezzer

i dont think so, you would'nt have a hand brake using front calipers.

RSMK4TURBO

Ok cheers mate, just an idea.