- Joined
- 30 November 2004
- Messages
- 3
Has anyone looked at fitting brakes from the new Acura 2005 RL to the NSX? They are supposed to be Brembo brakes with an Acura logo on the caliper.
'05 RL Brembo Brakes - Fit NSX?
- Thread starter John Farmer
- Start date
John Farmer said:
Hmmm... very interesting observance, John... I think i'll bookmark this thread and see what develops... Whats the first thing we need to do here?
The big brakes that come on the 6 speed Acura TL are also brembos
A friend ordered up a TL caliper to check and see if there is a 'bolt up' set up. Where as there is clearance to fit the caliper on the rotor, there is not a bolt up adaptor to fit them on an NSX.
Would not be that hard make the adaptor if you have a mill, or better, a friend with a machine shop/CNC shop. :wink:
Would not be that hard make the adaptor if you have a mill, or better, a friend with a machine shop/CNC shop. :wink:
- Joined
- 30 November 2004
- Messages
- 3
First thing is to confirm size of the RL rotors. I'll check with my dealer where we just got a new RL. If they don't know, I will pull off a wheel and measure the rotor and see if I can determine the dimensions and bolt placement on the caliper. The front is supposed to be a 4 piston caliper.NSXnBRLA said:
If somebody in Atlanta wants to look into this further, I can provide the machining.
The '05 RL is 5x120 and has rather huge lugs and studs. Me thinks you'd need to adapt it's hub as well.
mandrewz said:
I think you wouild want to use NSX rotors and just adapt the calipers if the width of the NSX rotor is close. You can get different thickness pads for some calipers. When I had Brembos on my last car, I found stock Viper pads with the same backing plates, but thicker pad material at my local brake supply house($32). I could mount them on the mill and skim them to NSX/Lotus dimension with a carbide end mill in a few minutes.
Just wanted to point out one way of making things work, Carbotech will make special thickness pads too.
winreboot said:
Ill be the guppy and buy a caliper... will I get some support to absorb the cost of it, if this doesn't work?
Although it'll be a nice keepsake, I really dont need any $400.00 paper weights 
OK I wrote something but then did some research to find I was wrong. The rotor is 12.6" front and 12.2" rear for the RL.
Anyway, if the rotor thickness is 28mm, then this might be a feasible upgrade since the caliper/rotor cost is pretty low.(About $1000 total for both right and left) Of course, with all the modifications that you have to do, it may cost as much as stoptech or whatever other front big brake upgrade kit. Also, this may change the balance of the front and rear brake. Oh well, let us know when you do it and how it works
For me, I'd stick with NA2 brakes. They are already awesome.
-ak
Anyway, if the rotor thickness is 28mm, then this might be a feasible upgrade since the caliper/rotor cost is pretty low.(About $1000 total for both right and left) Of course, with all the modifications that you have to do, it may cost as much as stoptech or whatever other front big brake upgrade kit. Also, this may change the balance of the front and rear brake. Oh well, let us know when you do it and how it works
For me, I'd stick with NA2 brakes. They are already awesome.-ak
Last edited:
winreboot said:
Fortunately I have a CNC...
- Joined
- 11 July 2004
- Messages
- 611
NSX: 298x28/303x21 (97+) or 282/282 (-96)
05 3.5RL: 320/310 Only fronts use Brembo Rotors
04+ 3.2TL: 300x28/282x9
04+ 3.2TL w/ Brembo Front: 310x25/282x9
Last I looked at this, I needed to know the width of the 3.5RL Caliper. Then you could play with different rotor combos.
http://www.nsxprime.com/forums/showthread.php?t=30881
Look at that thread. It made sense to pair up an Acura 3.2TL Brembo Caliper with the 310x28mm Rotors only (dont need their Calipers Brackets) and just have the calipers machined for the extra width.
The Rears could be exactly as shown on this kit. I think the kit retails for $1500. The cost of used 3.2TL Brembos go for about $400 a pair. The only cost left is to machine the caliper to accept a larger width, and the brackets for the front. @ a little over $2k, its worth it.
I bought a kit that did a very similar setup using larger Euro E46 M3 rotors for me E36 M3 and uses Brembo supplied Porsche Carrera/Boxster S calipers:
If anyone could get more info, please post back...
05 3.5RL: 320/310 Only fronts use Brembo Rotors
04+ 3.2TL: 300x28/282x9
04+ 3.2TL w/ Brembo Front: 310x25/282x9
Last I looked at this, I needed to know the width of the 3.5RL Caliper. Then you could play with different rotor combos.
http://www.nsxprime.com/forums/showthread.php?t=30881
Look at that thread. It made sense to pair up an Acura 3.2TL Brembo Caliper with the 310x28mm Rotors only (dont need their Calipers Brackets) and just have the calipers machined for the extra width.
The Rears could be exactly as shown on this kit. I think the kit retails for $1500. The cost of used 3.2TL Brembos go for about $400 a pair. The only cost left is to machine the caliper to accept a larger width, and the brackets for the front. @ a little over $2k, its worth it.
I bought a kit that did a very similar setup using larger Euro E46 M3 rotors for me E36 M3 and uses Brembo supplied Porsche Carrera/Boxster S calipers:
If anyone could get more info, please post back...
Adding custom calipers and/or rotors to an NSX (or any car really) is easy. All you need is to have someone that is has metal and engineering skill to take a few measurements, and to make the adapter. Look in this thread and see how my friend used some 300zx, Eclipse, and Baer aka alcon parts with custom brackets to add big brakes to his NSX. http://www.nsxprime.com/forums/showthread.php?t=23821
If the rotor thickness is different than the caliper you want to use, you can still make it work. If end rotor is a bit thinner, no biggie (pistons will clamp down till the pads meet anyway) If rotor is a bit thicker, you can find thinner pads (like mentioned above, or you can grind them down a bit your self) If the rotor is so thick, that the actual caliper housing will not clear, you can do a little grinding on the tabs as well.
If you think that custom caliper combos are rare, just go to a BMW HPDE or something similar. You will see all kinds of custom set-ups, with P-car brakes the most common used.
If the rotor thickness is different than the caliper you want to use, you can still make it work. If end rotor is a bit thinner, no biggie (pistons will clamp down till the pads meet anyway) If rotor is a bit thicker, you can find thinner pads (like mentioned above, or you can grind them down a bit your self) If the rotor is so thick, that the actual caliper housing will not clear, you can do a little grinding on the tabs as well.
If you think that custom caliper combos are rare, just go to a BMW HPDE or something similar. You will see all kinds of custom set-ups, with P-car brakes the most common used.
- Joined
- 28 February 2005
- Messages
- 37
I agree. Many times brackets are used to adapt caliper that were not meant for the car. A high quality bracket can be as cheap as $80 if you find the right shop.
kaiser-nsx said:
EH? wha? so i could use wilwoods meant for say an S2000 on my nsx, an probably all i need is an adapter to fit? there's more to it than that right?
Im tempted on adding a set of Brembo GT but if this set up works I may go this route 
.
I'll bookmark this thread.
. I'll bookmark this thread.
- Joined
- 11 July 2004
- Messages
- 611
It can or can't be. The biggest things to remember are:
1) The rotor should be bolt pattern specific, and hub-centric...
64.1mm is pretty common on an Acura. The problem is our NSXs are 64.1mm only on the rear. The front is 70.1mm which is found only on the Legend IIRC.
2) The Caliper should match the offset of the rotor, mount to its thickness and height.
3) Do your research.
Like I said... I would most likely keep the stock calipers out back anyways due to the parking brake setup. Them on larger 2-peice rotors anyways would be about the same wieght. Up front, I would run the stiffer Aluminum Brembo Supplied Acura Calipers because if its thickness, thats 1.5mm on each side of the caliper to shave if it doesn't match up. Besides that, get the rotors in hand, and take measurements and have the machine shop do them.
I know my Insurance company looks at any OEM part number and will insure it as Dealer installed accesories (i.e. Like an Acura A-Spec kit) so it benefits me to use OEM parts to begin with
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=33563&item=7957836484
There is a set now on ebay, but it looks like this guy bought them new...
1) The rotor should be bolt pattern specific, and hub-centric...
64.1mm is pretty common on an Acura. The problem is our NSXs are 64.1mm only on the rear. The front is 70.1mm which is found only on the Legend IIRC.
2) The Caliper should match the offset of the rotor, mount to its thickness and height.
3) Do your research.
Like I said... I would most likely keep the stock calipers out back anyways due to the parking brake setup. Them on larger 2-peice rotors anyways would be about the same wieght. Up front, I would run the stiffer Aluminum Brembo Supplied Acura Calipers because if its thickness, thats 1.5mm on each side of the caliper to shave if it doesn't match up. Besides that, get the rotors in hand, and take measurements and have the machine shop do them.
I know my Insurance company looks at any OEM part number and will insure it as Dealer installed accesories (i.e. Like an Acura A-Spec kit) so it benefits me to use OEM parts to begin with
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=33563&item=7957836484
There is a set now on ebay, but it looks like this guy bought them new...
Hmm, according to this thread on S2ki.com the S2k shares the exact same hub sizes as the NSX.
http://forums.s2ki.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=43123
The only thing is that it doesn't buy you anything from a 97+ NSX perspective if you want to stick with Honda OEM parts.
Otto
That caliper looks a lot like the Brembo F40. Take it from someone who's done it, it's not that easy (I'm referring to the fronts). Assuming the rotor has the same bolt spacing and center hole dia you'll need to fit check it to the NSX hub to make sure it doesn't hit the upright. It'll need to come VERY close, however. That's because you want the rotor as far inboard as possible to give you as much room as possible between the outer caliper and your inner wheel spokes. That being the case, it's still VERY difficult to maintain the standard wheel offset and clear the caliper. That's why most BBK require a specific type of wheel. Many people add spacers to clear, but that just messes up your offsets and scrub radius and leads to rubbing. Most non-performance people go with a two or three piece wheel designed to clear the brakes while maintaining close to stock geometry. This is $$$$s and weight. If you want a lightweight forged single piece wheel, be prepared for a very limited set of choices. Once you've located the caliper the bracket isn't particularly difficult to machine, but done conventionally or CNC (inc programming) your talking a good 8 hours of labor. Have you looked at the labor rates for custom machine shops lately? If you want some ideas on how to do it yourself, check out my website at mscperformance.com
I agree with Mark. It seem simple until you take the plunge and actually do it yourself. We did the Porsche brake for my car and it wasn't easy. Not to mention to try to find the balance front to rear to make it track worthy. The first time at the track was a nightmare.
If you do NOT want to use the stock rotor, use any 2pc, and make a custom center section for the NSX fitment (hub dia., offset, thickness, bolt pattern). Any engineer, or metals tech school grad can do this, including making the brackets.
Once again scroll down in this thread, and see that Kevin did this with an Eagle Talon Baer BBK and customized it to fit the NSX.
http://www.nsxprime.com/forums/showthread.php?t=23821
Once again scroll down in this thread, and see that Kevin did this with an Eagle Talon Baer BBK and customized it to fit the NSX.
http://www.nsxprime.com/forums/showthread.php?t=23821
what about bigger calipers(4 or 6pot) on stock or stock sized aftermarket rotors?(not for track use)
