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5 minute(s) of a 17 minute read
12-21-2011
Porsche 996 caliper project is under way
Compliments of Philo @ mye28.com
12-21-2011
For months I've been contemplating how to get readily available Porsche calipers to fit my M5 since we can no longer find the e31 4 pots. Geez.., are beemer heads hording these things or what ? I looked at 928 calipers, 911 Turbo calipers, Boxter calipers and couldn't find any supporting information online regarding bracket fitment, brake bias numbers, etc.. , and not to mention what rotor would even work with big radial mount aluminum calipers. I even looked at the Brembo and Stoptech after-market kits and nothing was available for 16" wheels. Not to mention the cost was way out of wack. There are a few lesser known BBK companies that have a kit for the e28/e24, etc, but not sure if anyone will want to put these on their car. I mean.., we do have our standards.. right ? 
Yes, Wilwood has parts that will work but that's not where I'm going with this project.
A few years ago I was given a pair of the e31 Brembo 4 piston calipers from my buddy who's in the brake business. I held onto them for a while with the intent of swapping them onto my daily driver. But at that time I was in the middle of building a custom S38 engine and the cost for parts was screaming out of control so I sold the 4 pots to Brooks R. Today, we can't find them at all.., and if you do find a pair you're gonna pay big!. So I decided to look into finding an alternative caliper that would bolt under the stock16" BBS wheel and would provide the same sexiness factor as the unattainable e31 Brembos. The goal was to build an enthusiast BBK using original equipment from Euro sport brands and engineered properly so the online know-it-alls wouldn't slam me for mixing and matching parts and confirming that I'm gonna kill myself.
So I started kicking this idea around with a friend that works at StopTech, he ran the numbers.., and decided that the Porsche 996 calipers off the 99-2008 model 911, 2000-2008 BoxterS and 2006-2008 CaymanS would be the perfect match *technically* along with the uprated rear e34 M5/540i calipers most of us run. My buddy engineer had been working on a Mazda Miata BBK utilizing the same 996 calipers so he had all the data on hand. Within an hour he confirmed that if I can make them fit under the 16" wheels using a 324mm e31 disc it would be the ultimate e24/e28 BBK for a stock wheel setup. Porsche 996 calipers can be purchased on Ebay for $500 to $700 depending on the seller.
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We are actually exploring two rotor possibilities., the e31 (324mm X 30mm) and the US e46 M3 (328mm X 28mm). This would allow enthusiasts to pretty much buy off the shelf stock rotors when the time comes for a brake job. We were also considering the Euro e46 M3 CSL (345mm X 28mm) but are pretty sure they wont fit under 16" wheels. We'll do a test fit but not holding our breath. Down the road I may consider building a bracket for the CSL rotors to fit under 17" wheels.., the CSL rotors are a really cool two piece floating design.
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So why am I doing this ?? Well..., I actually read an online post about how the e36 M3 crowd was adapting the same 996 caliper using custom brackets by the guys at ralleyroad.net. m http://www.rallyroad.net/content/bmw-e3 ... r-brackets m I quickly contacted them to see if they would be willing to adapt their bracket design to the e24/e28 models but didn't hear back. So decided to go at it alone. Moose also has plans for a bracket design but not sure where he's at with getting them made. So again, decided to be proactive and pay for the prototyping myself. Maybe I'm nuts.. well see...
A test set of brackets will probably be ready by late Jan if all goes well. The brackets will be CNC machined and then coated or painted just like other after-market brackets. The end result should be pretty sweet though. Down the road I'll let you guys know what the Philo super special uber enthusiast cost will be to get your own set of brackets 
