Thinking of AP Racing Big Brake Kit. - anyone local to Hampshire on the forum?

[RedUn]

I'm based near Guildford, Surrey and have AP front and rears. I'm struggling a bit for spare time next few weekends but if you're not in a rush you're welcome to try mine.

Full disclosure - they are in my opinion a bit ott for the road. You can forget heel and toe until you're actually using the brakes pretty hard - the pedal travel is minimal before they really do bite. They are very impressive when being properly used, and for me it being a fun/weekend car I don't mind this at all, but it can make daily driving a bit clunky - they take some getting used to after my wife's M135i brakes!
It's also worth bearing in mind it's an expensive kit, both to buy (but I'm sure you've done your own research and know this!) and for replacement parts (performance friction discs are circa 850 a pair for the fronts for instance) and it just becomes a lot of money for ultimately more of a compromise most of the time (on the road) where ultimate performance is not the only requirement.

Horses for courses though - come try them and see what you think!

Thanks for all the feedback. Some good points made and I've taken it all onboard. I just like the idea of a very strong braking system with much better calipers than the standard sliding calipers, at least no terms of modulation.

Ed Doe - many thanks for offering the chance to see what they're like. Guildford s not too far for me and I'll PM you directly.

I noticed on a Youtunbe video by 'Sideways Sid' titled 'Should you buy a Z4M' that he drove a contributors modified Z4MC which as Imola Red like mine. This had AP Racing BBK with red calipers which looked great, and they were running EBC Yellowstuff pads.

I'm not looking to create a track weapon but do want and like very powerful brakes for both fast road a light track. I know it's overkill but then look at the Cayman GT4. That has massive brakes and most people will not track them as they are too scared of losing the inflated value etc.

So I think I should try them first and then decide if it's for me. If not I will definitely go for yellowstuff pads and stainless brake lines as the next step.

Cheers all..

Lots of good advice on here as always!

One of the main reasons I bought my bbk was because the standard setup looks awful

I've messed around in the past doing pads and fluid, different discs etc on other cars and in the end went bbk, I didn't fancy doing the same on the zed as it just means spending more cash upfront before buying a bbk anyway.

So my suggestion is, if you want it, buy it, if not you'll end up buying it anyway in the future after you've spent 500 quid on an intermediate step

[exdos]

OP,
I don't know if your car already has any other modifications, but if not, IMHO the first spend should be on uprating the suspension which will improve the balance of the car, thereby making the OEM brakes far more effective. Likewise, fitting solid brake bushings is a very cheap and effective way of giving better and consistent brake feel and pad wear. Brake cooling ducts also improve brake performance.

[Beedub]

These brakes are some of the best ive experienced.... But.... i ran my stockers on stage 1 supercharger and tracked it, and with all the bits uprated they were excellent..... Also the parts for the AP are actually insanely priced... braking performance if you need it however will quite literally blow your mind!