holy moly! what a great list! i'm filing this one under "must check" as
i progress on my restoration. great stuff roger!
are you available weekends? colorado sure is pretty this time of
year........Tom
rgb@exact.com wrote:
>
> >update a TR4-TR6 to have 4 wheel disc brakes
>
> I am certain its possible, but I would have to question "why"? see below.
>
> >From my experience driving multiple TR6's, many of the TR6's are
> extremely un-street worthy, i.e. death traps. Is yours? If you
> cannot answer that you KNOW the condition of the following items,
> then you shouldn't be on the the roads - any road.
>
> >way many people drive now days, I would like the additional stopping
>
> I agree, the modern roads are high speed, fast paced, with no margin
> for driver error or mechanical malfunction...
>
> So, the goal is more stopping power on a TR6? Then, the rear brakes
> would be the last item to consider. Its a front heavy car with huge
> discs designed in already, these should be optimized. Oh, and do not
> forget the most important piece --- the tires.
> (new 3400lb Mustang V8's have 11" rotors, 2400lb TR6 has 10.75" rotors)
>
> I will attempt to itemize in order the items to apply
>
> 1. verify the front braking system is perfect, likely SS caliper pistons
> to rid yourself of those rusted pits and rebuilt hydraulics (I run
> DOT 5 to make certain the seals always work after sitting)
> 2. new brake hoses on the front
> 3. new front discs, these are 1/2" thick and work great when fresh, they
> loose the ability to disipate heat as they thin... just replace them
> 4. HP front disc pads, I use TRF's brand (HP pads and new discs will really
> fix the stopping)
> 5. Front end bushings, sway bar mountings, shocks, steering all perfect
> (I only use poly or nylon bushings)
>
> At this point, you've fixed the brake problems, up the ladder we go.
>
> 6a. OEM redlines, throw these as far as you can, these rubber donuts
> are not up to modern roads. I've spun several cars on these,
> even brand "new" ones, its a 60's design made of 60's materials
> (prior to putting a man on the moon, or microprocessors) OBSOLETE!
> These tires are useful for parades and Concours ONLY. In fact for
> concours the rule book states that an accepted replacement tire is
> acceptable (a very questionable area, but in theory they cannot deduct
> for 205/70 tires, I like the Michelin 205VR70-15, these have stiff
> sidewalls and work well on stock rims, the rims better be straight)
> 6b. Mag wheels, buy those 15x7 zero offset Panasports and some 215VR65-15
> tires, this provides a massive footprint, holds the tire patch level
> and "looks" vintage. Forget the 6" width, buy the 7" (confirm 5 above).
>
> NOW TO THE MOST important item
>
> 8. rear brake lights - all modern cars have 3 huge bright lights, I
> will contend that this places you at a disadvantage, 2 little faint
> bulbs just don't cut it, Bubba doesn't even hit the brake pedal, if
> you've done the above item, you can stop faster than Bubba's truck!
>
> Now to the rear (10 and 11 are racing mods)
>
> 8. rebuild all rear, shocks, bushings, etc to keep it in control
> 9. New shoes, all brake parts in excellent shape
> 10. Larger rear wheel cylinders, note the 76 cars went from .70 -> .75
> pistons for better stopping, also used a different emergency brake
> leverage to make this better. Racers fit 7/8" rear Datson pistons
> for even more rear brakes
> 11. Fit 240/260/280Z rear aluminum drums (slight machining) to increase
> the cooling back there.
>
> --
> Roger G. Bolick, rgb@exact.com 512-794-9567, FAX 512-345-2879
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