Big Ole' Brake Upgrade Thread for Third Gens

I may give it a try anyway, if I get a little free time.

 

I said that I'm not sure it would improve stopping distance but that wasn't my priority, the immediately apparent improved pedal feel was, and that's exactly what I got! More equal distribution of line pressure leading to less stress on the front brakes and more equally distributed system is a fact of the upgrade as well. Wouldn't call reliability, peace of mind, and improved feedback a waste of money personally but it's okay that we have different concepts of what constitutes a waste of money.

 

I never said my brakes were fading. What I said was the pedal was mushy because it didn't push quite enough fluid for the additional fluid requirements of my brake system. Now the disc/disc master I've installed is a better match to the upgraded brake system.

 

You're something of the exception, because you at least track your truck. @hiPSI and I were just talking about some other threads with people who want to "upgrade" their brakes without understanding essentially anything about what they're doing besides changing parts.

 

I'm curious how this effects all the off road features like crawl control, multi terrain and the auto lsd.

From what I understand all work through the abs

As does a trac for the manual guys.

 

The sensors will continue to work and receive outputs like wheel speed, etc. What will change is the duration of actuation. For example, let's say you go into a corner a bit too hot on a snowy road. Everything will still work as advertised, meaning VSC will brake the appropriate wheels and retard the throttle if needed, but, depending on how the brakes now react, the command signal and actual actuation of the brake might be more or less accordingly in order to bring the vehicle under control.

 

skimmed threw the pages quickly so sorry if i missed it but do you have a link to the upgraded front brakes? im fine with drum in the rear but after doing bigger tires im deff looking into bigger front brakes, only kit i saw was from stop tech

looked at your pics looks like it was the stoptechs

 

Yeah I have the 16" rim stoptech kit

 

I can personally attest to this, my rear brakes basically did not function before I performed my MC swap and now they are definitely doing their share of the work.

 

All systems and sensors work as originally intended, have not experienced any sensor issues but will definitely keep everyone informed if I do run into any!

This is correct^ i believe ATRAC, VSC, and ABS are all essentially working though the ABS pump because after swapping out MCs everything still works as intended.

The issue is, I couldnt brake hard enough to GET my abs to kick in before. With the stock brakes, steelies, and 33s, the stock system literally did not have the braking force to get ABS to kick in no matter how hard I hit the pedal it would always be the same gradual slowdown which often turned into panic at first seeing as I was expecting a bit more from the brakes. I have only been driving with my truck a few times now since the MC upgrade but I can definitely see that now the brakes are working a lot harder. Seems to stop a good bit shorter and specifically the modulation of the pedal and feedback I get from it is much more linear and accurate than before.

 

So I have some awesome info now after spending a day towing on my new brake setup complete with oe sequoia m/c. First of all, I hadn't noticed this while driving around after I had just installed both brake kits, but some of the factory brake gadgets had stopped working, such as the hill start brake assist and the 'deployable pedal stop' function (not sure what this is actually called, but its the thing where if you press the brakes hard to come to a stop, take your foot off the brake briefly, and then put it back on there will be a stop in the beginning of the pedals travel that prevents you from pushing the brake pedal very far into its travel while stopped). During city driving without any load in the truck I guess I barely noticed and just got used to driving around without them...

I am happy to report that post m/c install, BOTH of these functions were working properly today and it really helped a few times while towing my project car to school in High Point, NC where it will be sold soon. Here is a pic from today:
While it wasn't a deal breaker driving the truck without these features, I can appreciate the few times starting uphill when the hill start assist kicked in it helped with controlling the trailer's weight considerably. My clutch was happy about not having to try to start rolling backwards with a trailer as well

With the install being as straightforward as it was, and the fact that the master cylinder swap KIT is 280 bucks, I feel as though this upgrade is a no brainer if you already went so far as to disc convert and/or install a big brake kit. But I feel as though now might be a good time to mention that I do not take any liability for mods that others decide to do, and especially working on your brakes is important so if you are going to mod them then be 100% sure everything works right and you don't have any leaks before you drive after doing brake work!

 

Hey guys just a quick update, so I eventually found that there WAS a very small leak on the hardline extension for my MC swap. Last night with the help of my buddy we managed to find that leak and fix it by torquing the hardline down just a little harder, as well as install some Speed Bleeders on all the calipers and lube up the piston/pad contact surfaces, and slide brackets for the pads. Brakes are squeak free from the first stop, and after I fully bleed the brakes tonight the system will be completely air-free! Stopping power was incredible earlier today after fixing the pinhole leak, amazing how much that tiny leak affected everything else but glad that its taken care of.

 

Describing my exact problem with my stock brakes. Don't yet have the coin for the 16" BBK, and no plans for rear discs. What are your thoughts on the feasibility of the Sequoia MC swap helping some in this area? Only for rear discs, or you think it could help overall?
Fwiw, my mostly-empty weight is 6,200#

 

I can’t answer the question about the MC, but you say you cannot get abs to kick in at all? What size tires do you have? I have 34s and my abs goes nuts if I really slam the pedal down. You should try flushing your brake fluid if you have not done that already. And not just drain/refill the reservoir, bleed all the old fluid out of the lines. Granted my truck is just under 5000# with a full tank of gas, but worth checking out I guess.

 

Not air. I've bled this thing so much that ATE should consider sponsoring me. Even bled the ABS pump.
6,200# curb weight, 33s (255/85/16), stock brakes with Porterfield linings.
Had the same shit brakes for years, ever since my truck got fat.

 

So swapping the master in and of itself is not an 'upgrade' per se. The master cylinder is only there to determine the amount of brake fluid that gets moved from one pedal push. If your braking system has significantly more fluid (additional pistons in the calipers, swapping to calipers in the back from the drum actuator) then upgrading the master will put things back in the right proportions. With a stock system, your brake pedal would likely be so stiff that it becomes obnoxious in daily driving scenarios because the master would be pushing so much fluid into the normal brake system. Since you've been driving it as is for years, and bleed the brakes tons of times, I would say you could try a more aggressive pad compound, and you might try swapping brake lines out for SS ones as your lines could be swelling and bleeding off pressure that way... Outside of that it I would recommend waiting and coming up with a brake swap. I could help you do that a LOT cheaper than I did knowing what I know now, just PM me about it!

 

Not much more aggressive streetable compound than Porterfield R4S. Got SS lines. Guess it's just a matter of following around the armored trucks in the hopes something falls off the back......

Definitely let me know what the least expensive route is.

 

Nice, i was not aware you had already upgraded.. When was the last time you adjusted your rear brakes? As in letting a few turns out on the star wheel adjuster? Could be the drums are out of adjustment..

 

Literally three days ago.

 

So full run-down.

Brakes have been crap ever since my truck got fat. Porterfield R4S linings all around. SS lines all around. ATE Typ 200, about three months old, ABS pump cycled at the dealer, speed bleeders all around. Centric drums about 6 months old. Centric discs about a year old. Rebuilt stock calipers about a year old. Drum hardware, including adjusters, about 3 months old. Linings all even, >50% life. OE master cylinder, ABS pump, hard lines, parking brake cables. No weird noises, shakes, smells, anything at all. Everything operating 100% correctly, at stock levels (except linings and lines).
16x8 4.5bs wheels with 255/85/16.
The problem is too much weight and not enough brake. And not enough money for a BBK yet.