por cpl em 21/05/12, atualizado em 21/08/11

Freios: Melhorando os freios - Freio Hibrido Civic/Integra/Legend

(Brakes: Civic/Integra/Legend Hybrid Brake Swap)

Civic/Legend/Integra Hybrid Brake Swap
(June, 2005) You already know Honda engines can swap all over the chassis lines. But the modularity doesn't end there. Several Honda brake applications also swap over to other models, like this Civic/Legend/Integra hybrid we put together.

Most of the mods we do in HT are intended to make cars faster and handle better. It's in our blood. One of the most important mods for your ride is also one of the most overlooked: brakes. We're as guilty of it as you are. We spend more time thinking about the parts that make power and contribute to acceleration.

And it doesn't help that stopping upgrades can be expensive. It takes only one experience when good brakes could have kept you on the line instead of in the wall (or, more likely, off of someone's bumper) to make you appreciate the importance of good binders.

There's a middle ground between simply adding some performance brake pads and installing a full-blown big brake kit. For Honda enthusiasts, that middle ground is easy to find. In this tech piece, we've sourced dual-piston calipers from a '93-to-'95 Acura Legend (from North Carolina's Import Auto Salvage) and 11-inch rotors from a fourth-generation Prelude VTEC for use on our project EJ Civic.

Along with rear trailing arms and brake assemblies from a '98 JDM Integra GS-R, we should have all the brake power necessary for our daily driver/ weekend tarmac terror.

To fortify these OEM improvements, we're also using NSX-spec Project B-Force pads and ProFlo Performance Products stainless-steel braided brake hoses. These brakes should fill our Falken wheels very nicely.

Finally, we're also using Zenki forged aluminum lug nuts (courtesy of Camp1320 Motorsports) and Skunk2 extended wheel studs (thanks, Green Rabbit Garage). Deadlines prevented us from installing the wheel studs in time for the photos here.


Honda Tuning groupie A.J. "Inventory" Villalobos firsts removes the hand brake cables from the equalizer, which are found underneath the Civic's center console. A.J. loosens the tensioner to put some slack in the lines before removal.


An exhaust heat shield covers the brake cable's mounting brackets under the car. Once we remove the shield, we can easily access the cables through the cable holes in the underbody.


These grommets allow the brake cables to go through the car floor. Pulling them out from the bottom eliminates the need to tear out the interior carpet around the holes. We then unbolt the parking brake cables from the cable housing clamps along the Civic's underside.


Villalobos removes the rear brake hoses from the hard lines mounted inside each wheel well. When the flare nut on the hard line is loose, he removes the retaining clip that holds the brake hose onto the mounting tab.


To keep the area clean, Villalobos stuffs a rag between the mounting tab and the hard line. Brake fluid is very corrosive. Make effort to keep it contained.


With the brake hoses removed, we start pulling off the trailing arm assemblies. Villalobos begins by removing the upper control arm bolts.


Next to come off are the compensator arms. These are located at the rear of the trailing arm assemblies.


Villalobos continues by separating the rear lower control arm from the trailing arm. The lower control arms don't need to come off. We're going to re-use them with the new trailing arms.


HT contributor Dane Sloan supports the trailing arm assembly while Villalobos removes the bolts from the trailing arm bushing pin. With these last two fasteners removed, the assembly can come out.


Out with the old, in with the new. Before the new arms go on though, we remove the attached stock brake lines. We'll be replacing them with stainless steel braided lines provided by ProFlo Performance Products.


Glen Kim from ProFlow connects the new braided hose to the hard line.


Kim then uses new crush washers supplied with the kit on the stock banjo bolt to connect the ProFlo hose to the rear caliper.


The stock mounting bolt holds the mounting tab on the brake line to the bracket on the trailing arm.


We finish up the rears by running the GS-R parking brake cables from the cabin to the brakes using the existing mounting points and clamps. Now to the fronts.


Sloan removes the caliper brackets' mounting bolts from the front knuckles.


The stock rubber brake line is detached from its mounting bracket.


Sloan then removes the stock caliper from the rotor. It's a good idea to have something to catch the excess brake fluid that will drain from the lines. Sloan uses half of an old water bottle while removing the banjo bolt from the caliper.


Using a 10mm open-end wrench, Sloan unbolts the stock brake hose from the hard line (not pictured), then uses a side clamp to pull the retaining clip from the mounting tab.


The two-piston Legend brakes (right) don't appear much larger than the stock offerings. They do, however, allow for a larger brake pad. And did we mention two pistons?


Sloan removes the retaining screws from the stock rotors in order to separate them from the hubs. These screws tend to get rusty, so if a normal Phillips head screwdriver doesn't do the job, an impact driver should. We can then say goodbye to the 10.2-inch rotors.


In stock form, the Legend mounting brackets are too thick to fit between the knuckles and rotors, so we took 4mm from the back (knuckle) side of the bracket. Be patient when attempting this part of the project because the mounting points need to be as flush as possible.


This is what the caliper bracket should look like when it's ready to bolt to the car.


The replacement rotor on the right is 0.7 inch larger than the stock EX rotor. More surface area = more stopping power.


Sloan uses the old rotor as a stencil to drill the Prelude rotor to accept the Civic's 4x100 bolt pattern.


Sloan then installs the rotor on the hub. Since the rotors have both the 4x114.3 and 4x100 bolt pattern there is no room for the retaining screws that hold them to the hubs. Hence the Zenki forged aluminum lug nuts to hold them on during the installation. During use, the wheels will secure the rotor to the hub.


After being ground down, the mounting brackets fit in like stock.


We use nuts to space out the brake line bracket. This gives us a little more room to work with and allows for some slack in the line.


Anti-seize is applied generously to the Project B-Force brake pads before placing them in the calipers.


Sloan then installs the pads and tightens the caliper bolts.


Almost done. Kim connects the brake hoses to the calipers using stock banjo bolts and new crush washers.


Next, Kim mounts the brake hoses to the knuckles using factory hardware.


New ProFlo hoses are connected to the hard lines inside each wheel well. In a follow up installment, we'll get to those Skunk2 extended lug nuts, and add a one-inch master cylinder from an ITR, as well as a 40/40 proportioning valve from an Integra RS (or something similar: rear disk with no ABS).

keywords: CIVIC INTEGRA LEGEND BRAKE SWAP ROTOR DISCO FREIO MAIOR