Porsche-O-Phile

OK, here's my question:

I have an early 85 n/a and am planning on supercharging it in maybe 6-9 months. In preparation for this I want to bolster the brakes & transmission / rear end, and possibly the suspension BEFORE I go adding the extra power. What is the best way to upgrade the brakes? Can I change some stuff out to accomodate big reds or just go with drilled / slotted and keep the stock calipers in good condition?

I'm pretty sure I've read someplace that you can in fact upgrade an early 944 to big reds if you're willing to run larger rotors that would also require 17" rims (although if I'm adding a supercharger I don't foresee that being a problem - I just need to budget some extra $$$ for nice 17s then).

Any thoughts?

And yes, I know the old "just get a 951" argument. I'm doing it this way because (1) I actually like working with my hands, (2) I already have this car, (3) I can build it at my own pace spend a bit at a time and not have to cough up $10K up front for a new car. Plus I like being able to say "I built it".

ljd-924SE

when it's time to supercharge my 924S, i plan on upgrading to the '86 951 brakes, as they are pre-ABS.

ErichCS

You might want to try searching a little. I also considered this on my 924S, which has the same brakes are the 83-86 944's. You will basically need the entire front suspension off an 86 944 turbo. For the rear you will need the calipers and rotors. Tifo is an expert on this as he upgraded his 944 to 928 stuff IIRC. Now once you do this you will need atleast 16'' wheels to fit over the 951 brakes.

Then once the brakes are done i'd stiffen up the suspension and add some turbo sway bars and shocks and stiffer springs.

At the end of the day once the car is supercharged i would think about replacing the clutch and swapping for a turbo transaxle.

There would be a lot to do i guess...I hope this rambling list helps a little!

Good Luck and keep us updated!
Erich

CPTdooberhead

Why dont you just get a 944 Tu...oh...nevermind

Mike1982

Yea, many people upgrade the brakes on turbo cars to more powerful brakes, so you should keep your eyes open and see. If I was you I would also put in new brake lines, flush the system completely and just look for anything that needs replaced. Nice to see someone thinking ahead of getting that extra power.

Porsche-O-Phile

Yea, I'm almost definitely going to change out the trans / back differential to a turbo one; from what I've heard the extra power can destroy gears and all kinds of nasty stuff, so I pretty much consider that one a "must do" before I bolt on the goods. I'm looking at more than doubling the hp so I figure everything else needs to be built for it first. It'll be a lot of work but I figure I'll learn a lot and I'll end up with one hell of a conversation piece when it's all done!

Mike C.

Go for it! You know there are plenty of us out here who will be very interested in the progress.

Porsche-O-Phile

You bet - a few more less exotic / interesting things to do first though - a/c components, brakes (for now I'm going to go with the drilled / slotted rotors & stock calipers / pads) & stainless lines, a new paint job & then the fun starts

Actually it's all fun.

Lousailor

Phile,
I have the same brake upgrade in work. Picked up a used set of '86 951 calipers; and had them rebuilt ($500+); bought a used set of front 944S strut housings and did the Koni insert kit ($300+); bought the turbo spindle and hubs bead blasted, painted, and installed new bearings ($100+); bought crossdrilled zimmermans ($150+).
Although I'm not planning on an forced induction set-up, I do want to massage my motor towards the majic 200hp range. I was able to talk to a brembo tech at one of the local club events, and learned some really good info about braking systems. They also have some good info on their web site. The turbo brake package covers all the basic upgrade steps over the standard NA set-up. Larger rotor for brake torque, muliple piston for better pressure across the pads/rotor, and with the crossdrilled rotors superior cooling. They don't recommend combining crossdrilling and slots, as it could weaken the rotor as well as overly reduce the brake pad footprint on the rotor. They recommend cross drilling for street and mild performance driving, and slotted for serious track applications.

Fishey

Go with an S2 gearbox....(find a LSD can be long and hard but rewarding)

I would look for a turbo car brakes and get new rotors/pads... Should be good anuff for any application.

Porsche-O-Phile

Sounds like good advice - I'll start looking around for this stuff. . .

Do the 86 951 calipers directly bolt up or is there modification required? I have a virtually unlimited amount of time to do this project (I'm not in any great hurry) so I can spend the time, find the right parts and install at my leisure which is kind of nice in case money ever gets tight or something. . .

So the stock 951 calipers are 4-piston? I didn't even realize that - I thought they were all 2-piston setups until later on, but if that's the case, so much the better. . . I like stock anyway (although Brembo is an aftermarket name I'd actually trust).

tifosiman

No, the 951 calipers will not directly bolt up to your car in the front. You need to change out the spindles and some other stuff. The rears will with the proper spacer washers. Here is the list of parts you need.

1 pair front 951 calipers and pads
1 pair 951 rear calipers and pads
1 pair front 1986 951 rotors
1 pair rear 1986 951 rotors
4 factory washers and bolts for the rear calipers (necessary to space them to fit inline with the rotor)
4 factory bolts for the front calipers
1 pair (left and right)of front hubs and spindles from a 1986 951 (complete with bearings on each)
1 pair of 1986 951 front struts.
1 pair of front brake hoses from any year 951 and the metal noodles that go with them.

Things that are nice to have, but not necessary:

Bias valve from any year 951, this bolts inline on the master cylinder
Stainless brake lines front and rear
New alignment eccentric bolts for the front strut/spindle interface. Sometimes they are re-usable, sometimes they are so chewed up it is worth replacing them.

Hope that helps.

They are 4-piston calipers, front and rear. So you would go from 4 pistons TOTAL on your entire car, to 16 pistons.