Riviera Disc Brakes??

Discussion in 'A boatload of fun' started by dre, Jun 27, 2009.

  1. Phil Racicot

    Phil Racicot Well-Known Member



    Well, my '67 has front disc brakes (factory setup) and I have driven quite a few Buicks with aluminium brake drums and I have to say the disc brakes are a bit better but still marginally better. My '65 Wildcat had new cast iron replacement finned drums at the front which faded quickly when I got it but I replaced them with used aluminium drums I had and the improvement was major! The worst braking cars I had were not my Buicks with aluminium drum brakes,they were a 1984 Corolla and a 1989 Jeep XJ both equipped with front disc brakes.
    Im not saying that drums are better than discs but I'd certainly not spend time and money to replace the aluminium drums with disc brakes on an old Buick!
     
  2. RivyRob

    RivyRob Member




    HI

    What you are missing is the fact that you wont be able to use your mags with the 71-6 rotors. and if you get mags from the 71-6 to use, then you wont be able to use the original center caps from the 66-70 wheels.
    Also, whatever spindles you use, MAKE SURE TO USE YOUR ORIGINAL STEERING ARMS FROM YOUR RIVIERA.
    So, try to get some 1970 rotors(they are more plentiful) and allow you to use your original mags.(and you won't have to get any bearings either....BONUS):grin:
     
  3. CTX-SLPR

    CTX-SLPR Modern Technology User

    You sure about that? The 71-76 rotors are also shared by 73-87 C/K1500 trucks and are extremely comon pieces. They all use the BR5/BR3 bearing sets whether drum or disc 63-76. Difference might be that the 71-76 discs have an integral hub while I think the 67-70's have replaceable rotors with fixed hubs.
     
  4. RAMKAT2

    RAMKAT2 Randy

    Phil, are you saying that you have never driven your 67 Riviera hard enough to find out where the "Pucker" factor comes into play, where you have too sharp of a curve in front of you and not enough brakes left to get that heavy beast slowed down to make it? Maybe I just played to hard in my youth or something. I know my seat belts sure took a beating while I was sliding all over that bench seat trying to keep it between the ditches!
    Oh well, everyone has their opinions and experiences regarding this subject. From my earlier posts here you guys know mine. One thing is certain. Every new performance vehicle made today has oversize 4 wheel disc brakes for a reason. The engineers and technicians working for those manufacturers have spent millions of dollars developing those brake systems to be the best in the world, and not one of the OEM's are developing high-performance drum brake systems for new cars. That speaks volumes in itself.
    Later, Randy
     
  5. CTX-SLPR

    CTX-SLPR Modern Technology User

    Any suck designed or maintained system is going to be bad. A well designed drum system is going to trounce a high dollar but poorly done disc system. Honest opinion, stock brakes work for stock cars. Up the go and you need to do something about the stop. Some cars can do better with a shoe upgrade but this just means they have more heat capacity in reserve. Drums have a single side for contact and are unvented. They also fill the wheels which limits thier air flow. A disc brake will never completely fill the wheel as your caliper bridge will dictate atl east some clearance between the rotor and the wheel. Most front disc are vented and if propperly designed will pump air through the rotors to cool them off.

    I don't think Phil is saying that drums are supperior, just that the Buick drums aren't, in his opinion, significantly worse at stopping than stock discs. I think a lot of these cars suffer from collasping brake hoses, water in the fluid, and just plain old components that really limit the stopping power of the drums while the discs are a bit more labor intensive and I think are just kept up better.

    All my own opinions here, I am no expert.
     
  6. DaWildcat

    DaWildcat Platinum Level Contributor

    I love the drum setup on my Wildcat, but I do get teased about having to use the very last turnoff at the track because of having to pump the pedal to minimize fade coming down from 110+. For all other driving I'm quite satisfied.

    Devon
     
  7. 71skylark3504v

    71skylark3504v Goin' Fast In Luxury!

    Although I don't have a Riviera, the drum brakes work great in my Skylark. I've even outstopped a late model Camaro once and ended up getting rearended, and that was on wet pavement.

    I'm never wasting my effort on a disc swap.
     
  8. Phil Racicot

    Phil Racicot Well-Known Member

    I never had a performance car or a car that had very powerful brakes... My newest vehicle is a 16 years old Toyota SR5 truck with a brake setup that is very similar to the one of my '67 Riviera (the front discs and calipers on the Toyota are very similar to those of my 25 years older Riviera and the Toyota's rear drums benifit from a primitive rear anti lock system but they aren't even vented like those of the Riviera).
    I don't like when a car has no brakes at all or when brakes pull hard on one side during a panic stop because they are poorly adjusted or because suspension/direction components are loose but well maintained aluminium brakes on a '65 Buick are fine for me. I think my Wildcat and Riviera are fun to drive and they even incite to drive a bit agressively sometimes but neither are sports cars with sports car characteristics! I still drive my Buicks faster than most people do with their newer vehicles (including myself!) and considering that these Buicks are now over 40 years old, that OK for me!

    I have driven cars with old bias ply tires that had huge cracks in their treads and that was much more annoying to me than a 40 a years old drum brake setup that has been well maintained!



    That's exactly what I think!
     
  9. RAMKAT2

    RAMKAT2 Randy

    Phil, I know you get alot more seat time in your Riviera than I do mine at the moment, so I can agree with you that when you don't abuse the brakes, they will work fine. I pushed mine pretty hard back in my youth, and found out where the limits are.
    I hope my earlier comments didn't offend anyone here. Sometimes I can be a little hardheaded. Later, Randy
     
    Lucy Fair likes this.
  10. Phil Racicot

    Phil Racicot Well-Known Member

    I tested the limit of the brakes, tires, and my reflexes in many cars I had... I had quite a few accidents with my '68 Wildcat, my '67 Riviera (two front end collisions with this one!), my 1989 Cherokee (with a snow removal tractor!) and with my former 1993 Toyota truck (with a 42" semi-trailer). I never had an accident with my '65 Wildcat or my '75 Electra (which I both use more than my Riv).

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    I learned how to drive with my '68 Wildcat at age 15. So the first car I have owned and driven (before I got my driver's license!) had 4 wheel drum brakes. Maybe that's why I don't care much about brake performance!

    I remember the original aluminium drums on my '68 went bad after some years of abuse and they were badly warped. I replaced them with other used aluminium brakes that were good and I didn't abuse of these as much...

    I was still happy to replace the cast iron front drums on my '65 Wildcat with original aluminium drums as the iron ones were fading even in normal driving!
     
  11. Scarebird

    Scarebird Disc brake guy

    Not true. Buicks have very roomy rims compared to some (I'm looking at you Cadillac...); with some very minor non-structural grinding the original rims will fit (all the way back to 1955!). Where are you finding these 1970 rotors? :confused:
     
  12. CTX-SLPR

    CTX-SLPR Modern Technology User

    I think he's confusing the original 4 piston calipers which do have revised wheels to clear the "outside" pistons for the single piston calipers your kit is using.

    Side question, can you supply the brackets ya'll make in raw finish for someone to build thier own kit off of or is that riksing liability concerns?

    Thanks,
     

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