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      09-23-2012, 08:05 PM   #1
mocohead
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Brake Cooling Scoops - DIY

In getting ready to take my car to the track, I decided to attempt to upgrade the cooling to my front brakes. My original plan was to build real brake ducts but I ran out of time. So following is my ghetto setup. Hopefully it helps.

I startd with a set of Porsche GT3 brake scoops (Part pkgt3frs $29.95 + shipping) and an extra set of OEM dust shields (part numbers 34-11-6-792-237 and 34-11-6-792-238 $49.56 +shopping). Here is a picture of the scoops...



The first step was to trim the rear portion of the OEM shields off using a cutting wheel on my cordless drill.

Here is the original dust shield on the car



And here the modified shields



Here are the two shields with the cut version over the original one



The Porsche scoops had to be cut down to fit the f30 front control arm as follows



To change the parts:

1. Safely jack the car up and secure with jack stands. Be smart and don't blame me if you get hurt securing the car wrong...

2. Remove the wheel. Now is a good time to clean the inside of the wheel since it is off...

3. Take the caliper off as follows:

Remove the plastic cap over the guide pins

Using a 5/16 hex wrench, loosen the upper and lower guide pins





Remove the anti-rattle clip using a blade screwdriver



Take the caliper off the carrier and support it on a jack stand



Remove the two 18mm bolts holding the caliper carrier to the hub





Remove the hex bolt holding the rotor in place



Take the rotor off carefully and place it aside. Be careful not to scratch it or to get grease on it.

Now remove the four 10mm bolts holding the dust shield in place

With the shields off, zip tie the modified GT3 scoops to the lower control arm as shown. Note that you should drill holes on the inboard portion of the plastic scoop to hold it to the control arm





Have a beer...

Bolt the modified heat shields back on using three of the four 10mm bolts.

Put the rotor back on the spindle, tightening the set bolt reasonably tight. Don't over-tighten or you will break the head off the bolt. Ask me how I know...

Bolt the caliper carrier back onto the spindle, tightening as much as possible

Put the outboard pad back into the carrier

Put the caliper back over the rotor, and secure the sliding pins. Again don't over tighten these or you will make a mess...ask me how I know...

Put the dust caps back onto the rubber around the guide pin.

Put the anti-rattle clip back onto the caliper.

Remount the wheel, remembering to torque the lug bolts in a star pattern.

Remove the jack stands and lower the car gently.

Have a beer...

So now the question is whether this will help or not. Time will tell but I can't see it making things worse. If nothing else it will get some cool air directed onto the rotor. My hope is this is better than nothing.

Please remember to try this at your own risk. I accept no responsibility if you break you and/or your car.

Last edited by mocohead; 09-23-2012 at 08:28 PM..
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      09-23-2012, 11:33 PM   #2
brian99997
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I'm really interested to see how these help. The entirely stock setup has some pretty bad fade until you hit a long straight so this is pretty exciting for cheap.

Nice write up
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      09-27-2012, 08:50 AM   #3
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Unfortunately my custom made CarboTech pads did not get shipped correctly so they won't arrive on time. So I guess I am just going to need to make-do with stock pads...ugh...
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      09-27-2012, 11:23 AM   #4
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looks like a lot of work. would it screw up the airflow and controls?
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      09-27-2012, 11:32 AM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mocohead View Post
Unfortunately my custom made CarboTech pads did not get shipped correctly so they won't arrive on time. So I guess I am just going to need to make-do with stock pads...ugh...
Good luck there... Time to rotate the car and scrub off some speed that way
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      09-27-2012, 12:40 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by lotuselise View Post
looks like a lot of work. would it screw up the airflow and controls?
So far it seems to be ok and not causing any issues. While there might be some disruption of airflow (intentionally), none of the control surfaces are effected.
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      10-04-2012, 08:39 AM   #7
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Post-Action Report

Well it was 108 degrees out at Auto Club Speedway on Monday. I did one session the entire day (a corded track tire took me out of the action) and can report that my brakes, stock pads and fluid, did NOT fade at all. They felt just as good at the end as they did at the start. Whether this is due to the ducts or not I can't tell but I was happy with the result.

I am also happy to report that my custom made CarboTech pads arrived AFTER the track day. Oh well at least they wont go bad sitting in the garage until the next event.
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