A friend once said, “Why do classic musclecars need disc brake upgrades? They were perfectly fine in the 1960s with drum brakes.” And that was true, to an extent, and some purists actually believe in keeping everything as it was when it rolled off the assembly line.
But there’s a caveat to that comment: if everyone else around you on the roads and freeways has four drum brakes, then maybe you’ll be just fine. But since just about everyone else has a braking system far superior to yours, them maybe it’s time to give the guys at Master Power Brakes a call about upgrading your braking system.
Drum brakes usually work just fine for slow, casual driving. But once you start upgrading your car for better performance, better handling, and better driveability, then it’s also time to think about performance braking, too.
Two brake upgrade kits that Master Power Brakes offers include four-piston fixed aluminum calipers and big brake rotors that are cross-drilled for cooling, and slotted to swipe built up gasses on the pad surface.
For Most 15-Inch Factory Steel Wheels
For those who have kept the look of their classic with period-correct steel wheels, but desire an upgrade in braking performance, you owe it to yourself to check out the Rallye Series brake kits from Master Power.
These are compact, four-piston calipers with stainless steel pistons that will fit inside most standard 15-inch steel wheels. This allows you to keep your factory rally wheels but improve your braking power considerably. We’ve raced at Willow Springs with this same kit in one of our project cars, and can tell you first hand that the brakes didn’t let us down.
For 17-Inch Or Larger Aftermarket Wheels
If you’ve stepped up your wheels to 17-inch or larger wheels, then you know that the look behind the wheel is just as important as the wheel itself, and having a drum brake or single-piston sliding caliper isn’t exactly pretty to look at.
Master Power’s Pro Driver Series brake kits step up the game with a larger, staggered four-piston aluminum caliper, and larger 13-inch brake rotors, also drilled and gas-slotted. For those wondering about the performance of these bigger brake kits, we also made this upgrade when we went from 15-inch Rally wheels to 18-inch Weld Racing wheels, and our braking improved immensely.
Both the Rallye Series and Pro Driver Series brake kits include all components necessary for drum-to-disc brake upgrades, or single- to multi-piston upgrades at each corner. The caliper brackets are CNC machined from billet aluminum, designed to bolt directly to your spindle to mount the fixed caliper.
The hubs are anodized aluminum and come packed with bearings, greased up and ready to install. The aluminum calipers include four stainless steel pistons and are painted with the MP Brakes logo, and include braided brake lines to connect to your brake system. The rotors are zinc washed, meaning that you won’t have to worry about rust on the rotor hats or non-friction surfaces.
For those upgrading from four drums to front or front/rear disc brakes, Master Power Brakes can even provide you with a proper brake master cylinder and booster for better brake pedal feel and decreased effort.
Give the pros at Master Power Brakes a call and see what they have for your classic car or truck, each kit includes everything you need to make the conversion happen. Once you make the upgrade to disc brakes, you’ll wonder why it took you so long.