brakes

[jake2582]

just curious:
how does your brakes work on your fox?
i mean my car 1992 5.0 will not slide the tires. (not because of abs)
it gets to a point to where no matter how hard i press the brakes the car will not slow any faster.
the pedal does not go to the floor.
they work normaly when driving normaly
i tried to stop from 120mph to turn my driveway after a wot run and i was STANDING on the pedal and it did not try to slide the tires(not that i wanted to) but i think it should have. smoke was coming off both front rotors after i stoped so i know they were working.lol
i just want to know if this normal or should i look for a problem? maybe cheap pads or something?

 

[Shamus O'toole]

I can haul my car down from 125 in the 1/4 with no problems at all. Stock brakes cept for the slotted rotors. Manual conversion also.

 

[bloopbloob]

fox brakes aren't the greatest, but that should definitely not be happening. i'd be tearing into the brake system asap and see what the problem is.

 

[white99gt]

small rotors and drums do not make for good stopping distances..
Upgrading the pads to better material and doing the same for the rear will help.

Personally ,i just upgraded my brake pads,installed caliper sleeves(stops caliper/pads from wearing abnormal),braided lines (front and rear) and lastly converted the rear to disk..Stops freaking GREAT compaired to the stock stuff.BUt not as good as the 13" brakes on my 99 gt did..

 

[stang&2Birds]

i tried to stop from 120mph to turn my driveway after a wot run and i was STANDING on the pedal and it did not try to slide the tires(not that i wanted to) but i think it should have. smoke was coming off both front rotors after i stoped so i know they were working.lol

IMHO, the Fox Stangs should have been illegal to sell because of their POS dangerous brakes. For, the *brakes* to handle a 125 mph stop and have the tires be the limiting factor, you need to spend about $7K for brakes. The 2003 Cobra brake system is good up to ~85mph. Before that, the tires are mostly the limiting factor. After that, it's the brakes. That does NOT mean that the brakes won't be kick *ss brakes at that speed. It means that the brake system can *not* maintain the ~2% slip that is near optimal.

Even sn95 GT brakes should be able to *lock up* the brakes with 225 tires at high speeds. It's one thing to lock up the wheel at a particular speed, it's some very different to have the ability to maintain an ~2% slip at speed.

FWIW: At best, the POS 87-93 Fox brakes are good to about 30mph with 225 tires. After that, they either have to lock up the wheel (can't maintain an ~2% slip), or they don't have the force required to lock up the wheel at all.

Also, the Fox POS brakes are VERY VERY VERY bad with getting heat soaked and GREATLY reducing their near worthless effectiveness as it is.

If the above is confusing at first, try to go through it a few times. Also, look for brake/wheel slip and the explanation/theory on the web for more info.

 

[new46stang]

I had a very similar issue with a previous 91 Fox. I change the MC, front rotors, pads, rear drums + wheel cyls. Basically everything and I still had a very hard pedal that just wouldnt lock up the wheels. The last thing I did was change the proportioning valve. That seemed to fix it inmy case. Hope this helps you out.

 

[stang&2Birds]

Wow, with all of the ABS and TC stuff on th web, it's near impossible to find an article that intelligently talks about the basics of braking. Thankfully, I found one:
http://www.drivingfast.net/car_control/braking.htm

FWIW: This is the type of stuff that I do:
http://www.mathworks.com/products/demos/shipping/simulink/sldemo_absbrake.html?product=SL

 

[Shakerhood]

I converted mine with the M-2300-K Kit after a Deer jumped out in front of me down the road!

 

[bloopbloob]

FWIW: This is the type of stuff that I do:
http://www.mathworks.com/products/demos/shipping/simulink/sldemo_absbrake.html?product=SL

really? want to do my homework for me some time?

 

[jake2582]

i think the guy before me must have put some $2 pads on it or something?
if not it may be the proportioning valve.

 

[rcantu]

i have an 89 saleen w the svo discs all around and they do the same thing. i can imagine how yours is w the rear drums.

 

[stang&2Birds]

really? want to do my homework for me some time?

Do you do Matlab stuff for control systems? Fun isn't it - NOT!

 

[Mustang5L5]

Fox brakes suck.


Drive around with a Mustang with Sn95 13" disks up front and you'll see just how badly they are.


If you want to fix it short term, put on some decent pads, OEM rotors (none of that slotted or drilled junk) and bleed the brakes with good quaility fluid.

I'd bet brake bleeding would eliminate a ton of the bad feel as nobody ever does it. I bleed my brakes yearly, and always notice an improvement afterwards.

 

[88-378]

i have an 89 saleen w the svo discs all around and they do the same thing. i can imagine how yours is w the rear drums.

My 88 Saleens' brakes are great compared to stock fox brakes. i also upgraded the fron rotors and pads. Expensive, but it was well worth it.

 

[jrichker]

See http://www.svo73mm.cjb.net/ for the best and cheapest brake upgrades. The site doesn't sell anything but some fittings, but the tech notes are great. It tells you what junkyard or remanufactured parts to use to upgrade your brakes. It has almost everything you could want to know about Mustang brakes on it.

 

[squeak93]

I had a similar problem when I first bought my 92. Then while driving, the master cylinder let go----------Talk about a fun experience.

Replaced that and every pad/shoe. Even put new oem rotors on the front. Stops pretty good now but nothing like my 04 Gt did. My pedal is still a bit tough but it will lock up the tires (don't ask).

Good luck. Upgrade if your budget allows, if not buy the best stock replacments you can to make it at least drivable.