288mm Big Brake Upgrade front

tdiquattro

Active Member
I Posted in the "Today I" thread and so by request here is a quick write up...

The stock front brakes are fine, keeping mind the weights of the range, but if you push on a bit they can give some slight fade/overheating. As usual all that is needed is a bit more meat to take away that heat. This readily comes in the form of the Fabia VRS/TDi fronts. Now I know you can source all new and one user has done this in the past, but I cant stretch to that, so used parts are very cheap and bolt straight up. (as an asside if you have a failed wheel bearing this is a very cheap fix)

What needs changing..

- Caliper and fixing bolts
- Pads (new full set pagid £28)
- Caliper carrier and fixing bolts
- Hub with dust/splash back plate, (new hub nut £5)
- Disc (new pagid £31 each)

If you are lucky you can pick up the complete hubs with disc/caliper/carrier/pads for about £40 a side. I chose to replace discs and pads but i suppose you could use the old ones if they are known good.

That's it. Everything else just fits, existing drive shaft, tie rod, brake hose (needs new copper sealing washers x2 each side), and the abs connector plugs straight onto the salvaged hub.

So a few pics;

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First loosen the driveshaft nut, if you dont have a rattle gun then do this before you remove the wheel. The first test is that you can get the drive shaft out the back of the hub, so once the nut is off confirm you can tap the shaft backbards and it is loose/movable, this can be tricky. If you place a 17mm impact socket over the thread it rests on the shoulder of the shaft and then you can belt it to see if it will move.

If not then you can proceed, remove the entire hub with shaft attached and take it to be pressed out. Altenatively buy another second hand drive shaft for about £40 and fit this to the new hub.

So assuming all is loose, then unbolt the 7mm allen bolts x2 that hold the caliper on, and the 10mm bolt that holds the hosebracket on, release the abs cable from the bracket and unplug, unplug the brake ware sensor if this is the passenger side. Place the caliper on the ground towards the back of the car.

Undo the pinch bolt on the shock at the back of the hub (2x18mm sockets), and tap out can be tricky if you dont have a rattle gun. spray penetrating oil around the top of the hub/shock clamp. Undo the tie rod end nut, place an axle stand under the tie rod end and lower the weight of the car onto it if it spins.

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Tap the hub downwards on the cast top ribs with a gert big hammer, add more spray as you go and tap upwards to help the lube get in there. when it is off undo the 3 bolts/nuts (13mm) on the lower wishbone ball joint and remove the hub from the shaft.
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Clean and grease the end of the shock and shaft (yes I know audi say to put locktite on the shaft but I would like to be able to get it back off!! ) up to you. because of the arb you will need to angle the hub as it goes back up the shock, turn it toward the indside front as you push it on. Pull the wishbone down and push the ball joint fixing in.
Add a jack under the wishbone to tension the shock against the hub. Tap upwards with the hammer and watch the shock tab going into the slot in the hub clamp, try the clamp bolt until it goes right through, this is the indication the shock is at the right depth.

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cont...

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You will need to make a shorting plug for the brake ware line if the new pads dont have one, use an old one cut off a pad and twist, solder and sleeve the wires together.
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Fit the disc first, then the carrier (note the carriers are handed - the caliper slider with the rounded shoulders is at the top, square one at the bottom) Clean the mating faces.

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swap over the brake hose to the new caliper, use 2x new copper sealing washers. Bolt it up to the carrier at the top only. insert the new back pad but not the front, hinge it down and then you can use a lever to pull the caliper out towards you to compress the piston to get the new outer pad in if needs be. hinge the caliper up, add the outer pad, hinge down and bolt up. Bleed the brakes.

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Done repeat other side :) , they fit easily under 16s, so may take15s as well? Hope this helps, its a cheap upgrade and if the shaft and shock come out ok a quick win. As I said well worth doing if you have a failed bearing on a stock setup as well.

To add.. weights..

disc stock 5.1kg, vrs 7.1kg cal 3.7, 5.6 hub 7.2 (yes more as has carrier built in), 6.1kg
So old 16.2kg, new 18.8kg per side.

Oh and yes I dont run back plates as I prefer more cooling.
 
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Not bad at all. Why stop at 288mm though when you can go for 312mm by using Mk1 TT parts (or Mk4 Golf) - all very cheap now and very accessible. This is what I did back in 2009 (?) albeit with new parts, and the difference is like night and day. Another bonus is that braking is so light with the more efficient area that the discs and pads last absolutely ages.
 
I think 288 is enough, and i think may fit under 15s - need to check. I know you can never have big enough brakes!! but they seem amazing as is and theres the old unsprung weight thing to consider. Obviously just diferent carriers and discs can be added later to get to the 312mm easily. Thanks for your early work!! I can remember reading that with interest and thinking one day i will get around to it. This work was caused by my other A2 needing a hub (wheel bearing) so I will use the one i took off.
 
Hi Steve, yes definitely, a big change, progresive, just more power there, not pushed them repeatedly yet, but will report back. Worth doing for the £200 it costs and about 2hrs per side to change if all goes well. This is with cheap Pagid pads as well, I had green stuff before, so £26 vs £70 a set, I mean the capacity reduces the need to try better pads that I needed to do with the old size.
 
How are you finding the 288mm brake set up?
Like I said in earlier post I’ve got same ready to fit shortly. Can I ask what make discs and pads you went for?

Cheers
Ross
 
I like the idea of this upgrade, seems straight forward enough and my TDi90 front brakes and possibly bearings may need an overhaul anyway. Just to clarify, the hub and calliper set up is from Fabia VRS or TDi of a similar age, 2002 - 2008 Fabia models?

Thanks for putting this up with pictures ?? very helpful.

Kennedy.
 
Well, why I didn't discover this thread earlier? I was slightly worried about different geometry of the hubs si last month I bought new 256 mm pads and rotors... Well I still didn't put it on the car. Hmmm...
 
I like the idea of this upgrade, seems straight forward enough and my TDi90 front brakes and possibly bearings may need an overhaul anyway. Just to clarify, the hub and calliper set up is from Fabia VRS or TDi of a similar age, 2002 - 2008 Fabia models?

Thanks for putting this up with pictures ?? very helpful.

Kennedy.
@Kennedy yes hub and carrier/callipers from fabia vrs diesel 2004 to 2007. mine were from 2004... very cheap to buy but would recommend renewing bearings and obviously discs and pads.
 
For anyone working on front brake hub or strut replacement, a pry socket to open up the split clamp on the hub is a great investment
Just one example of the many on sale on the bay and Amazon -

Another bit of kit I found useful for removing the 3 strut top mount nuts is a 1" extension bar for my 1/4" drive socket set. It just provides enough clearance over the domed cover to swing the ratchet or T bar handle without running out of headroom.
They seem scarce on the ground but I was lucky to find a UK supply one like this -

Cheers Spike
 
A quick one does anyone know which hubs are used with the tt or Cabo knuckles?

Are the tt / fabia ones used or an a2 hub in the knuckle?
 
I think 288 is enough, and i think may fit under 15s - need to check. I know you can never have big enough brakes!! but they seem amazing as is and theres the old unsprung weight thing to consider. Obviously just diferent carriers and discs can be added later to get to the 312mm easily. Thanks for your early work!! I can remember reading that with interest and thinking one day i will get around to it. This work was caused by my other A2 needing a hub (wheel bearing) so I will use the one i took off.
@tdiquattro did you ever check whether 15" wheels fit over the vrs brakes? considering this upgrade on my project car. cheers nod.
 
I have these both on my ATL and AUA . Original 15” rims will fit, no exceptions.
In order to upgrade from 288 to 312, you will need the brackets, calipers and brakediscs along with the corresponding brakepads. The 288 setup can not be combined with 312 brakediscs.
As for the knuckles, use POLO 9N(3), Fabia 6Y or Ibiza 6L versions. Audi TT uses the same knuckles as the golf mkIV and they will fit but use a different abs system. Abs ring vs Abs magnetic ring incorporated in the wheelbearing .

As said it is a very cost effective brake upgrade and best combined with rear calipers with the 41mm pistons instead of the original a2 34mm pistons.
 

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