
The Brembo Gran Turismo High Performance
Braking System offers significant advantages over
the OE manufacturer's system — advantages
far beyond what's simply known as "big brakes".
As the braking system's primary
function is to dissipate heat, larger, more sophisticated
discs are used in order to increase the fade resistance
of the system. These discs are directionally vented
for enhanced cooling, as well as drilled or slotted
for improved consistency, continuously cleaning
and refreshing the pad surface.
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In most applications, a two-piece "floating"
disc assembly is used, with a cast—iron
disc specially mounted to a billet aluminum hat.
One of the advantages of this type of construction
is reduced weight.
By making the center-section of the disc out
of aluminum, a great deal of weight can be saved
in a key location, as it is both unsprung and
rotating. The greatest advantage, however, lies
in the float itself. The brake discs must cope
with extreme temperature levels. In the case of
a non-floating disc, thermal stresses develop
which lead to warping of the disc and cupping
of the braking surface. With the full floating
system, the disc is free to grow relative to the
bell, and can remain straight and true.
On nearly all the vehicles for which there is
a Gran Turismo system available, the OEM caliper
is of a sliding design, with the piston or pistons
on only the inboard side of the disc. While this
type of caliper is inexpensive to manufacture,
it is generally extremely heavy, and inherently
flexible, both of which are to be avoided on a
performance braking system. Conversely, Brembo's
calipers are fixed mount, opposed piston calipers
cast from aluminum alloy. Despite being much larger
and many times stiffer than the original caliper,
they are also much lighter. The calipers are equipped
with differential piston bores in order to eliminate
pad taper. Without this feature, the leading edge
of the pad will wear more quickly. This can cause
problems such as cocking the pistons in their
bores, which can damage or seize them.
Each Gran Turismo system comes with high performance
brake pads, aircraft quality hardware, DOT and
TÜV— approved Goodridge stainless steel
braided brake lines, instruction manual and dye
cut stickers for your car.
The net result is a braking system, developed
specifically for each vehicle application by Brembo's
immense technical resources, that insures high
quality as well as high performance.
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