Proven lightweight rotor/caliper package for 16" wheels?

[Daner]

My 2017 VW Golf SportsCombi 1,4 TSI 150 GT R-Line will soon need new rotors and pads. I ordered it with the DCC package, so it has the same suspension and brakes as the non-PP GTI (310mm vented front and 272mm solid rear.) I don't track it, and the stock brakes have lasted well over 150 000 km, so I don't really need better braking performance, but rather than using stock rotors with untreated hats that will rust immediately (again), I'm looking for front brakes featuring 2-piece rotors and lighter calipers that will still fit under my 16" winter wheels. I live in Sweden, so skinny winter wheels with more sidewall are better for my needs.

I have found kits from Compbrake and Tarox that purport to fit under 16" wheels, but I have not yet found reviews or independent testimonials regarding their quality and usefulness for street use. Losing several kilos of unsprung and rotating weight would be nice, but not at the expense of noise and short service life.
The brakes I am looking for might also be suitable as BBKs for earlier Golfs using 16" wheels, so something should be available.

Any information that anybody can provide will be appreciated.

 

[DerHase]

As someone who actually tracks their car... 2pc rotors are absolutely not necessary even in that environment until you're at the point you're cracking rotors in 1-2 days on track. I run plain Zimmerman blanks.

Zimmerman rotors are coated and will be just fine at ~20% the cost.

 

[Daner]

I understand that it isn’t necessary from a performance perspective, but I’m still interested in doing it. Also switching to RPF1 wheels to lose unsprung and rotating weight.

 

[golfdave]

Its difficult....I've looked but come to the conclusion that the best stuff with lightest weight is the 4 pot aluminium calipers (ATE or Brembo) & two-piece rotors for the 340mm set-up.....but even that weights about the same as the standard GTI/GTD/DCC 312mm set-up...

Tarox are quite good.....I think Brembo do a set up for the MQB platform..but again it might be for 17inch rims...

 

[Dameon]

I have the prodigywerks calipers with 312 rotors. They were significantly lighter than stock. (I believe they are based on older boxster calipers?) There was one person here who had found a 16” wheel to fit over them but my stock 16s didn’t come close as they hit the barrel long before spoke clearance came into play.

 

[Daner]

Tarox offers 2-piece rotors for the Mk.5 with sizing that matches my stock rotors (312 x 25mm). They also offer them together with a caliper kit, but it is not packaged as such on their website. I'm just verifying whether their calipers are trim enough to fit under 16" OEM winter rims.

 

[golfdave]

Tarox offers 2-piece rotors for the Mk.5 with sizing that matches my stock rotors (312 x 25mm). They also offer them together with a caliper kit, but it is not packaged as such on their website. I'm just verifying whether their calipers are trim enough to fit under 16" OEM winter rims.

Ask for a dimensions sheet to figure out if you could fabricate a rough cardboard version to fit over you discs & then trial fit your wheels over???

 

[scrllock]

People run 312mm brakes off of a base golf to run 16" wheels on RS3s. No clue if anyone makes a decent 2 piece rotor in that size, I really don't think it's worthwhile just for the convenience of snow driving.

 

[Daner]

People run 312mm brakes off of a base golf to run 16" wheels on RS3s. No clue if anyone makes a decent 2 piece rotor in that size, I really don't think it's worthwhile just for the convenience of snow driving.

These are the 2-piece rotors that they offer. https://www.taroxbrakes.eu/product/...-mk5-inc-golf-plus-2-0-gti-1lj-1ll-1zd-1ld-2/

The dimensions suggest they should work either with the stock calipers or their aluminum 4-piston or 6-piston calipers. Whether their lowest-profile calipers will fit under my 16" wheels is the main question.

As for snow driving, I live in Sweden, so winter wheels are on my car from November through April, and they are often very necessary. I had forgotten what it is like driving on snow with summer tires, but we rented a car in California this past March and ended up caught in about 4 inches of snow. It was terrifying. The photo I posted was taken 2 years ago. This kind of driving, with good tires, is wonderfully enjoyable.

 

[Daner]

Ask for a dimensions sheet to figure out if you could fabricate a rough cardboard version to fit over you discs & then trial fit your wheels over???

Good suggestion. I'll do that.

 

[golfdave]

I've had another look at Tar.ox....

They do "bespoke" two piece designs for the 312mm OEM MQB...& in any of their "groove/drilled" surface treatments...

https://www.tarox.co.uk/product/front-tarox-brake-discs-volkswagen-golf-mk7-gti-non-performance-pack-bespoke


************************

This is the smallest complete kit for MK7 Golf...6 pot calipers & 320mm two piece discs...

https://www.tarox.co.uk/product/front-tarox-brake-kit-volkswagen-golf-mk7-kmvw1213/

There is an enquiry form to request a template for wheel fitment....... link at bottom of page...

17" might be the smallest....my winter alloys which are 17" & designed for big calipers would probably fit ok....

 

[Daner]

I've had another look at Tar.ox....

They do "bespoke" two piece designs for the 312mm OEM MQB...& in any of their "groove/drilled" surface treatments...

https://www.tarox.co.uk/product/front-tarox-brake-discs-volkswagen-golf-mk7-gti-non-performance-pack-bespoke


************************

This is the smallest complete kit for MK7 Golf...6 pot calipers & 320mm two piece discs...

https://www.tarox.co.uk/product/front-tarox-brake-kit-volkswagen-golf-mk7-kmvw1213/

There is an enquiry form to request a template for wheel fitment....... link at bottom of page...

17" might be the smallest....my winter alloys which are 17" & designed for big calipers would probably fit ok....

Same part number and specs here, and I like the price better!

https://www.taroxbrakes.eu/product/...-mk5-inc-golf-plus-2-0-gti-1lj-1ll-1zd-1ld-2/

 

[golfdave]

Same part number and specs here, and I like the price better!

https://www.taroxbrakes.eu/product/...-mk5-inc-golf-plus-2-0-gti-1lj-1ll-1zd-1ld-2/

Or a full on 340mm 4pot (Brembo Audi TTRS & RS3) set up (or AP racing 2 piece 345mm discs) & which will fit under 17" rims...& cheaper than the Tarox full kit I linked to above....

https://www.vagbremtechnic.com/front-brake-kit-4-piston-brembo-calipers-options-for-discs-bk0012/

I know I will have to get mine rebuilt/painted in the next couple of years...or do I just swap out??.....decision will be made at the time...

 

[Daner]

Using the template from Tarox, I verified that their B32-6 calipers would require a thick spacer to clear the spokes on the VW OEM winter wheels (Aspen, 6J x 16, ET50.) That is perhaps to be expected, as those wheels are not intended for performance applications. I did not check my current summer wheels (VW Salvador 7J x 17, ET48), and I have not yet purchased the Enkei RPF1 7.5 x 17 wheels that I will be replacing them with, so I cannot report as to whether they will clear the B32-6 calipers.

Regarding front discs, several choices exist for one-piece, vented, 312 x 25mm discs that will work with the OEM (TRW) calipers. In his excellent DIY post on upgrading from 288mm to 312mm fronts, @golfdave listed weights ranging from 8.75kg for the OEM (TRW) plain discs down to 8.6kg for the Brembo Max grooved discs. Tarox claims 8.5kg for their one-piece discs, while their two-piece discs are 6.8kg.

My primary complaint regarding the OEM (TRW) discs, front and rear, is their apparent lack of anti-rust coating on the bells and edges. Brembo and Tarox address this, and other brands (ATE and Pagid) seem to as well.

I have also checked the pricing for parts and professional installation, as I have neither the tools nor the skills to do this. The dealer charges about €1031 to replace all discs and pads using OEM parts. A local shop will charge €778 for the same job using Brembo discs and pads. Using the Tarox one-piece discs instead of the Brembos would raise the cost to about €1028, and using the two-piece Tarox discs would make it about €1600. The prices seem exorbitant, but labor prices in Stockholm are very high, and the VAT in Sweden is 25%.

To make a long story short, dropping the last possible 3.6 kg of unsprung, rotating weight from my car would cost €822.

I will likely go with the Brembo discs and pads instead and put the savings toward something else.

 

[golfdave]

Using the template from Tarox, I verified that their B32-6 calipers would require a thick spacer to clear the spokes on the VW OEM winter wheels (Aspen, 6J x 16, ET50.) That is perhaps to be expected, as those wheels are not intended for performance applications. I did not check my current summer wheels (VW Salvador 7J x 17, ET48), and I have not yet purchased the Enkei RPF1 7.5 x 17 wheels that I will be replacing them with, so I cannot report as to whether they will clear the B32-6 calipers.

Regarding front discs, several choices exist for one-piece, vented, 312 x 25mm discs that will work with the OEM (TRW) calipers. In his excellent DIY post on upgrading from 288mm to 312mm fronts, @golfdave listed weights ranging from 8.75kg for the OEM (TRW) plain discs down to 8.6kg for the Brembo Max grooved discs. Tarox claims 8.5kg for their one-piece discs, while their two-piece discs are 6.8kg.

My primary complaint regarding the OEM (TRW) discs, front and rear, is their apparent lack of anti-rust coating on the bells and edges. Brembo and Tarox address this, and other brands (ATE and Pagid) seem to as well.

I have also checked the pricing for parts and professional installation, as I have neither the tools nor the skills to do this. The dealer charges about €1031 to replace all discs and pads using OEM parts. A local shop will charge €778 for the same job using Brembo discs and pads. Using the Tarox one-piece discs instead of the Brembos would raise the cost to about €1028, and using the two-piece Tarox discs would make it about €1600. The prices seem exorbitant, but labor prices in Stockholm are very high, and the VAT in Sweden is 25%.

To make a long story short, dropping the last possible 3.6 kg of unsprung, rotating weight from my car would cost €822.

I will likely go with the Brembo discs and pads instead and put the savings toward something else.

For "us" with the lower spec engines......even me & my Stage 1-B Revo tuned 1.4lt...going the extra cost to drop a few extra kgs on the brakes is a VERY difficult equation to square..as they say!!....


All my 17" alloy will clear the 340mm kits, OEM or Tarox, or Retro fit ATE/Brembo Audi/Porsche 4 pot calipers......its just that for the power output the 312mm discs size is good & going bigger to 340mm ADDs more weight even if using alu calipers.....

The downside to the Tarox 6pot caliper (320mm) is I don't think they have dust skirts on the piston like the OEM ATE/Brembo for the 340mm brakes.....so for me in the winter salt etc...a bit of a no-go...

Its something I'm still having problems with!....The Brembo (max type) discs have held up well with the surface that is not rubbed by the pads still fairly rust free...