Big Brake Kit installation questions

[JJorda]

Has anyone on here installed the big brake kits that are available for the Spider? I'm looking to purchase one for my 124 Coupe - since the suspension is the same, the brakes should bolt on the same, correct?

How is wheel/tire clearance affected? I have 13's on there now (with bias plies now! Old stuff!), but will upgrade to 15's for a better tire selection later on.

When installing the big brake kit, does the master cylinder need to be changed? It doesn't look like the kits come with one, so I guess I would assume the stock one can remain. I did run into trouble on a previous project where I installed larger wagon brakes on to a hatchback, and the increased volume of the larger calipers required me to put in a larger bore master cylinder - so I wanted to do my due diligence before getting into the upgrade.

[Martin124]

I've just done Mark's Big Brake upgrade on my Spider. Although I've owned a couple of Coupes, I can't say categorically if there is any difference between the front end of Spiders and Coupes. I think it's a pretty safe bet that there isn't. Someone here can confirm that I'm sure.
You will need at least 14" rims to provide clearance for the larger rotors and calipers. So, it seems your first step needs to be to change those wheels.

[ClarkTheShark]

I opted to stay with the stock brakes and just rebuild them immaculately. The sliding caliper design isn't the best, and the new brake kits fix any issues you may have had. just depends on how much you want to spend.

When the stock brakes are properly maintained, they work fine. but... bigger is always better. A rebuild kit will cost you $12 for all 4 calipers and will take all day to clean and properly fit/lubricate everything. The rear brake seals are probably the most painful job to do on a Fiat. You'll be thankful when its over though.

Stock master cylinder is used with the big brake kits.

[toplessexpat]

We recently fitted the Whoa brakes to the front of a friend's Coupe. Went on smoothly (apart from removing 40+ year old components) and easily. He tells me they work fantastically well.

Stock Master Cylinder, Wilwood 4 pot Calipers, larger discs.

A

[Ptoneill]

I installed Marks kit for putting modern Fiat 500 rotors and calipers on my 124. I put detailed pictures in the Custom area under "Big brake first pics". I also included pictures of the 15 inch wheels and tires I put on the a car vs the 13 inch OEM, there was only a .5 in difference in diameter and about 2 inches in width, there were no clearance issues on my 124. You can also click on the photobucket link in my signature block to see additional photo's

[tartan18]

I have also installed Mark's big brake kit and love the improved stopping power. This is one of the best upgrades I've done for my car.

One thing to keep in mind ... you will not be able to use the stock 13" wheel as a spare. Just after installing the kit I had a flat. Thankfully it was a rear tire but it spooked me into getting a used 15" steel Fiat 500 wheel for a spare. I have Mark's 15x7.5 Competizone wheels and 205/50/15 tires.

[Ptoneill]

I had the same issue with the spare, I got lucky, Mark had a scratched up wheel that I was able to buy as a spare! Or you can do like BMW does and install run flat tires, costs a bit more but it is one less tire and rim to buy plus opens a bunch of trunk space!

[JJorda]

Thanks for the info on the wheels. I'm going to do a stock brake rebuild first to get everything sorted out on the car at low speeds, and if all goes well (no engine or transmission failure) I'm going to upgrade the brakes, wheels, tires and do a suspension rebuild all at the same time.

I'll post pictures when it happens!