S40 V40 Cars: EVO 3 Brake Upgrade

[mick8468]

Hi All,

First time posting on the forum which i find to a real wealth of knowledge. Please bear with me.

I know there are plenty of topics dealing with the the EVO 3 front brake upgrade, but my questions are simple ones (I hope!)

1. Is it possible to simply fit the front twin pot EVO 3 calipers, but retain my standard Volvo carriers with standard 281mm Volvo discs? If so, do I then simply fit EVO 3 pads?

2. If I fit the EVO 3 discs as well, will my standard Volvo carriers still be OK?

I know the EVO discs are slightly smaller at 276mm, but I have a brand new pair of 281mm discs and wouldn't want to leave them sitting around if they'll do the job.

Thanks for any advice.

[Scoobymolly]

Citroen c crosser, peugeot 4007, mitsubishi Outlander twin pot calipers are the same as evo3's.Not sure about the carriers as the Citroen,peugeot, mitsubishi discs are 294mm diameter.
If the volvo discs are too big,lathe them down to the correct diameter.

[mick8468]

Cheers ScoobyMolly,

Yep, I've read a few topics on the other cars that the EVO calipers are fitted to and would be suitable for my S40. Getting my discs lathed to fit might prove to be a bit of a hassle, and I was hoping someone could confirm that the standard Volvo 281mm discs and carriers would be OK and I'd just need the EVO calipers.

Thanks for your reply.

[flyingtech55]

Could I ask why you want to go to the trouble of fitting Evo brake components to your car?

TimR

[NG2DP]

Hi

I know this thread is a few weeks old now, but having recently undertaken this very upgrade on my T4, it spurred me on to write it up and join the forum. Hopefully it will answer a few of your questions and apologies if it is a little detailed.

My V40 failed it’s MOT for corroded brake lines over the fuel tank, so I took the opportunity to check my brake calipers over at the same time (I like to do all my own maintenance and repairs). I found that one of my front calipers was seized so I looked at alternative options as I was going to have to take it all apart anyway

Luckily I found a complete set of Mitsubishi FTO GPX calipers with brackets. I managed to get them £75. The caliper bracket bolt spacing needed to be 130mm in order to fit the S/V40 hub. Whilst I believe the caliper itself is the same on other Mitsubishi models, it is the caliper mounting bracket which is quite specific to the FTO (GPX model) and EVO 1,2 &3. For other Mitsubishi models I think the bolt hole spacing is something like 140mm or greater.

The seller also provided me with all the bolts, anti vibration shims a set of virtually new pads and also the brake pipe banjo bolts, so I was really lucky. A quick search of the internet provided some useful diagrams. The caliper slider bolt arrangement is quite different between the Mitsubishi and Volvo and also the spacing for Mitsubishi caliper slider at 180mm compared to 160mm for the Volvo, so it is not just a straight swap of the calipers unfortunately.

Even though the calipers were in quite good condition I opted to overhaul them with all new pistons and seals.

Initially I tried to fit the calipers over my exist Volvo 281mm diameter discs. These fitted fine on the passenger side, without any issues at all. The drivers side however the disc rubbed very slightly inside the caliper. After a small amount of surface grinding (of the Caliper) I managed to get the disc to rotate freely. It probably wasn’t helped by a build up of rust on the outside edge of the Volvo disc. The calipers fitted fine though, including the existing brake lines and they tested fine.

After a bit of spirited driving one evening, I noticed a rubbing noise when I braked hard. It then subsided after the brakes cooled. On stripping the brakes down I found that the oversized Volvo disc was expanding (in diameter) and rubbing on the inside of the caliper bracket.

I fitted the smaller 276mm diameter discs for the Mitsubishi’s. This in itself proved a little challenging as, without a Registration Number I was having difficulty getting the correct part number for discs that are now about 25 years old and seemed to be limited in supply. As it happens I found a drawing for discs, that appeared to be correct and using that I identified what I thought were the right discs, with 4 holes (many actually seem correct but have a 5 stud arrangement). Despite saying they were for Mitsubishi Galant/EVO, and all the measurements seemed correct (in particular the hub bore at 69mm and the stud PCD at 114.3mm and diameter at 276mm) , as it turned out I had made a slight error in that the EVO 1,2 &3 discs are 24mm thick and the Galant discs are 26mm. I didn’t realise my school boy error until I came to fit them. Incidentally I now believe the correct discs are Mitsubishi part No. MR389725. The incorrect ones I ordered (Galant) were MR510741.

After a little thinking (and not wanting to spend an extra £30 for EVO Discs) I worked out that by placing a 2mm washer between the caliper bracket and hub, it would position the disc in the middle of the caliper bracket without any rubbing and sufficient clearance all round. I figured the slightly thicker disc might also give me slight better cooling as well.

I fitted a new set of pads and finally the job was done.

As for the verdict? On the basis I had one partially seized caliper beforehand, it is probably unfair to claim they are much better than the Volvo Calipers, as I don’t have a direct comparison, however as an engineer by trade I applied a few numbers and calculations to help decide.

1) I measured the pad surface area of the Volvo pads versus the Mitsubishi pads (EBC Part No DP954 if you’re searching) and found the EVO pads to be about 4.7% larger
2) I measured the piston diameter (area) for each caliper type (2 x43mm vs 1 x 54mm) and calculated that based on Force = Pressure x Area, the twin piston calipers should apply approximately 26.8% more force to grip the discs under braking (assuming the oil pressure from the master/slave cylinder to the caliper remains the same as before).
3) If pads with the same friction coefficient were compared, then despite the smaller diameter discs, the twin piston Akebono calipers with slightly bigger pads and greater gripping force should certainly be an improvement.
4) I have noticed that I get a little more ABS activity if I stamp on the brake peddle, than before I changed the calipers, so I guess this is the extra force trying to lock up the wheels.

In reality I guess that a standard Volvo Caliper in good working order with higher friction pad material (typically 20% higher friction coefficient than standard) will probably provide similar benefits to an EVO caliper with standard pad material. I guess this is why probably, whilst it is indeed possible to fit the early EVO calipers to an S/V40, most people will just opt for a change in pad friction material rather than the effort of tracking down used calipers, overhauling them, changing discs and pads, advising Insurance company (mine charged me £10 more on my premium as a result) etc etc.

Having done mine though, I’m going to stick with them, if nothing else they are a useful talking point when I meet other S/V40 owners and probably stopped me, with inches to spare, from running into the back of a delivery van which had no working brake lights!!

Cheers

D

[mick8468]

Over a year since I first asked the question but due to circumstances only now can I say thanks for the replies, especially to NG2DP for the informative response.
I'm now back on with sorting out my S40 (2.0T) and the brakes are number one on the list with new calipers, discs and pads all round, and fluid change. The car is mint with only 49000 on the clock but has been barely used in the last two years and as a consequence the brake components have degraded beyond resurrection. It's just simpler, quicker and probably cheaper in the long run to replace all.
From the responses to my post, I have decided to stick with standard volvo items and upgrade to quality pads with more bite. I believe EBC 'yellow stuff' would be a good option? but any advice is welcome.
Thanks again.

[DAN AT ADRIAN FLUX]

Hi and welcome.
If you have any issues with insurance at all for a break upgrade then please feel free to drop me a line.
Regards,
Dan.