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Class 1600 Disc Brakes - Jan 18, 2008

Class 1600 Disc Brakes

Choosing disc brakes for your 1600 race car seems simple. Yet , it may be slightly more complicated than just calling your local shop and ordering. Things to consider are master cylinder sizing, rotor diameters, RVP's (residual pressure valves) and brake biasing. A 1-2 1600 car is easier to select brakes as the rules allow for dual master cylinders which generally offers bias adjustment (balancing front to rear). It is always important to put as much braking on a car that is possible while maintaining balance. It is also advisable to install a residual pressure valve at each master cylinder keeping a small pressure in the system to avoid having to pump the brakes for needed volume.

Generally, we advise a 3/4" front and 7/8" rear master cylinder size as well as 2lb. residual pressure valves for the 1600's. 5-1600's presents a different challenge in that you must maintain a stock pedal assembly. This creates a problem in finding a front to rear balance. It is common practice to put smaller brakes on the front (small caliper with small pads and smaller diameter rotor) creating rear braking that overpowers the front. This problem's most recent cure seems to have been addressed by putting a brake proportioning valve inline with the rear brakes in an attempt to find a balance. It becomes a complicated arrangement of brake lines, and reduces the rear brakes capability by lessening the overall braking. Chuck Neal at CNC offers an adapter to install an aftermarket master cylinder to a VW pedal assembly (CNC 1460). With this you can put the proper sized brake master cylinder on a 5-1600.                                                            5 1600_200x150

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