Aircooled VW South Africa

HI I am currently buzy getting some std PCD wide 5 split bus Disc brake kits made

Who of you guys with Split busses would be interested in some kits it will use a Golf Disc and calipers and machined reversed spaced Spacers to wide 5
The kits will be around R5.5K with out Calipers and bearings

It will consist of
2 x FRont hubs
2 x Caliper brackets
2 x Spacers
2 x Reversed Machined Adapters


Yes it is expensive but specialized things like this does not come cheap

Bugger,

1) Is a new dual-circuit master cylinder needed?
2) What would cost be for a complete bolt-on kit including bearings and discs?

Stütz wrote:Bugger,

1) Is a new dual-circuit master cylinder needed?
it is not needed but it is sure as hell a huge Safety improvement

2) What would cost be for a complete bolt-on kit including bearings and discs?

I will do a aproxamate costing of bearings and discs with Calipers and will let you know

I am getting 2 sets made and are waiting on them to get final pricing on the hub kits

I had this done on Gill's bus. Cool. Works a treat.

Ron&Gill wrote:I had this done on Gill's bus. Cool. Works a treat.

What discs did you use and calipers

Ventilated dics and calipers off a Golf 2 GTi. Dave did it for me. And then I installed the brake booster, backwards at first, and then the right way. Works much better if it's not plumbed in backwards...

I am also using Golf 2 Vented discs and calipers

I took the Wilwood kit and another kit I had for a split bus and changed a thing or 2 to my own liking and got my first 2 sets of hubs tonight

also made a Reversed adapter out of a Solid piece of steel for strength and I can use the VR6 disc and spacer as well but the Golf 2 disc will be a big upgrade from the Split drum brakes

Very good price Pierre especially since this CSP kit costs $1500 and upwards...

I cannot stress enough though that without a brake booster, it really doesn't make too much of a difference over a correctly set up set of standard drums. Pedal action is no lighter and stopping distance, well, I don't know because I got the bus with late bay discs on, but it wasn't great by any stretch of the imagination. Gill's bus brakes like a modern car. Light on the pedal, stops on a dime and gives you 9c change.

I think you (Bugger) should think of developing a easy, cheap method of adding a mechanically actuated brake booster, with minimum vacuum hose length, using readily available parts. Or maybe a hydraulically operated one through two MC's or something. Useable with drums or discs. Once ACVWSA members get a taste of that, you'll be in for business big time. I would buy it and instal it on my buggy, and in the Ghia, and the Notch.

As far as I understand, the trick is in the fact that the booster has to be at the back, near the engine, so the vacuum hose is short. But you have lots of trucking experience you will know this better than me. Maybe it makes no difference, maybe a vacuum reservoir is the answer, don't know. Just bouncing ideas around.

Im with you on this one Ron!

Last year while installing my Westy R&R bed, we drilled through my bay bus's brake booster pipe. When I realised the mistake I took it for a spin, and just drove to the corner and could almost not stop. I had to stand on the brake pedal and no amount of pumping the pedal helped, it only made it worst.

Long story short, the bus idled funny for a while until I realised its due to the vacuum leak from the intake manifold. I repaired it all that night and the bus idled and more importantly stopped like before. I never ever realised how big a role the brake booster on my bus played. Chalk and cheese is an understatement.

Pierre, Ron, what about using bay bus brake boosters, and a twin master cylinder from the bay bus as well. Do you guys think this can be made to work for non bay bus applications as well?

Muds

Hey Ron

Where did you connect the booster to get air from. I see on a twin port where it goes, but how about a single port beetle motor.

Ron&Gill wrote:.....
As far as I understand, the trick is in the fact that the booster has to be at the back, near the engine, so the vacuum hose is short. .....

To reply to your question, long vacuum hoses fail because the hose is flexible, and collapses when working, the trick is on a long vacuum pipe, is to use a solid pipe, you must remember that a vacuum at the beginning of a 5m pipe is the same as the vacuum at the end of that same pipe.
It is just the speed that is needed to flow from one side to the other, and whether you have an effect from the vacuum, such as collapsing of the pipe, which has an outcome on the booster
Should you fit a solid steel pipe all the way, it will work perfect. (Keep it big ie. 30mm)
OMO
Herman

While on the subject of boosters why is it that circuit race cars very seldom use brake boosters? Maybe has something to do with the feel of the brake effort because a booster does nothing to improve brake performance, it only makes the pedal feel lighter or less effort is required to do the deed.

You correct, you get a much better "Foot Feel" with a small diameter MC, and it takes less effort to press it.

Most guys make the typical mistake by fitting a bigger diameter MC, this increases the effort needed to do the same amount of braking.

calooker wrote:While on the subject of boosters why is it that circuit race cars very seldom use brake boosters? Maybe has something to do with the feel of the brake effort because a booster does nothing to improve brake performance, it only makes the pedal feel lighter or less effort is required to do the deed.

I would hazard a guess that a race car is a lot lighter and has comparitively much bigger brakes than a split window bus.