Took the plunge and ordered the wilwood d52 calipers today...

Discussion in 'The whoa and the sway.' started by real82it, Mar 21, 2013.

  1. real82it

    real82it Silver Level contributor

    Re: And things were going so well......

    I find it really frustrating for a company to sell a "OEM replacement" caliper that has bigger dimensions than the original. The overall caliper is smaller on the piston side.....but on the outer edge....right where you would have issues with wheel interferance....they make them bigger?! C'mon..........
     
  2. knucklebusted

    knucklebusted Well-Known Member

    Re: And things were going so well......

    If it weren't a brand new, high dollar, powder coated aluminum item, the simple solution is to clearance it. However, I'd hate to scuff up those purty thangs.
     
  3. Ken Warner

    Ken Warner Stand-up Philosopher

    I put these Wilwood D52s on the front of my GS a couple years ago. I too had an interference issue and hopefully my experience will help you out. I run different size tires front and rear but when I popped the wheels back on I had 1 wheel that rubbed against the caliper. Actually that one wheel was bound up against the caliper and would not move when the lug nuts were tight. Looking inside the wheels it was easy to see that the problem child wheel had a big sloppy weld bead holding the rim together where the other wheel had a nice weld bead. Looking at my 2 rear wheels they were the same (1 pretty 1 ugly). I didn't feel like getting the tires re-mounted so about 15 min later with the help of my air grinder I smoothed down the bead and the problem was solved. If it's any consolation my 15in centerlines have no interference issues at all. Good luck, let us know what you find.
     
  4. real82it

    real82it Silver Level contributor

    I looked at the wheels and where they are hitting these calipers....not hitting at the weld, rather at the rounded edge of the wheel in front of the weld. Grinding the weld will not help and I don't want to grind on the calipers or the actual wheel. I have ordered in an array of wheel spacers to see if I can get away with the stock wheels. If not, gotta decide if I go back to the stocker d52s or go with new wheels. I really like the American racing ar500s. The problem if I go with new wheels.....a rear caliper replacement will have turned into a $2000.00+ swap.....kills me.
     
    Last edited: Apr 11, 2013
  5. real82it

    real82it Silver Level contributor

    Ok, tried the various wheel spacers. Could get the fronts to clear with 3/16 spacers. Couldn't get the rears to fit even with 1/2 inch spacers. More than that and my tires will not fit. So, spacers are out.

    My options are new wheels or scrap the whole thing and go back to stock d52s, which is the way I am leaning.

    Gotta think on it for a few days.

    PITA.
     
    Last edited: Apr 7, 2013
  6. knucklebusted

    knucklebusted Well-Known Member

    Sorry to hear that but good to know what isn't viable. I used the rotors from this kit to get a deeper hat that solved most of my problem. I also turned them down to 11.0" exactly, slotted the holes for the caliper mounting brackets so they would fit lower on the axle. That cleared it enough to work.

    http://www.tsmmfg.com/2181.html
     
  7. real82it

    real82it Silver Level contributor

    I think I am going to order in the American Racing AR500 wheels. Look close to stock but I think they will clear these calipers.

    [​IMG]


    In the mean time, I put a set of 17 inch wheels from another project on the car. In general, I tend to like a more stock appearing 15 inch wheel, but these are growing on me.

    [​IMG]

    ---------- Post added at 02:14 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:11 PM ----------

    I only had time to seat the new rotor/pads today.
    I will do some performance tests next week and post the comparison results.

    My first impressions:
    Pedal feel is much better!
    Front to rear bias is better. I am not running an adjustable proportioning valve. With old set up rears would lock up on hard stop, front would not. Now, no rear lock up.
     
  8. knucklebusted

    knucklebusted Well-Known Member

    Decided against the Foose wheels? I can't blame you. I really wanted to keep my Buick wheels so I made it work. I don't think the D52 would clear my arrangement.

    So, you are not running an adjustable prop valve? I was curious about that. I'm not either and it gives a hint of rear lock before the fronts. I attribute most of that to bigger rear tires. I suspect all tires being equal it would lock the rears in a heartbeat.

    Let us know how it turns out.
     
  9. real82it

    real82it Silver Level contributor

    Well I had pretty much talked myself into taking the new calipers off and going back to OEM D52s.

    I decided to do a performance test before I did.

    Calipers are staying on.

    My 30-0 braking distance decreased by 13 feet! It was interesting because based on the seat of the pants test I did not think there was any significant improvement. I did not believe the results at first...repeated 3 times.

    Wish I could have done a pre 60-0 test.....but the neighbors frown on 60mph anything and I couldn't drive the car very far before I fixed the sticky rear caliper.

    In summary:
    Pedal feel improved
    Rear bias improved - no more rear lock up
    Braking distance improved
    Stock buick rally wheels don't clear wilwood d52 calipers. Fronts would clear if 3/16 wheel spacers added. Could not space the rears out enough without causing tire clearance issues.

    Parts list: (all purchased through Summit)
    Wilwood D52 front calipers with 2 inch pistons 164.99 X 2 - 329.98
    WIllwood D52 rear calipers with 1.25 pistons 164.99 X2 - 329.98
    Front drilled and slotted rotors (right stuff rotors) - 116.99
    Rear drilled and slotted rotors 47.99 X 2 - 98.00
    Stainless steel flex brake lines - wilwood front kit for skylark 59.99, summit kit for camaro used for rear 49.95 - 110.00
    985.00 total + shipping.....call it a 1000.00 upgrade just for the brakes hardware.

    As I said previously, before the upgrade the brakes system was very marginal...so your results may vary :)

    I guess I will continue to shop for some new wheels I like that will accommodate the brakes. Wheels are probably gonna cost another 1200.00 by the time I have the tires mounted and balanced.

    Bottom line, 2200.00 total in the upgrade......and although I really like the performance upgrade......my jury is still out on if I would do it again. But, I am already neck deep, so they are staying on. If the performance had not improved as much I would be yanking them off this weekend.
     
  10. Ken Warner

    Ken Warner Stand-up Philosopher

    Did you use the Wilwood pads?
     
  11. real82it

    real82it Silver Level contributor

    No. Duralast Gold. I had just bought a full set before this upgrade. I figured I should use them. I would probably get better performance with the wilwood pads.
     
    Last edited: Apr 12, 2013

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