Vk Brake Upgrade

[VL-VP-VT]

I just wanted to know what is the best brake upgrade for a VK commodore,
would it be possible to fit VN - VP brake rotors and calipers to the VK and also brake booster and master cylinder.
or would I have to replace the entire strut tower and if so would it fit ?

also I wanted to know about a disc brake diff, I have been told a VN-VP diff is too wide, and was told to fit a VL unit to the vehicle. were the VL diff centres off set and if so does this affect fitting it to the VK.

[synoptica]

Okay - you have a couple of realistic options.

Option 1 - VT twin-spot uprgade. Expensive, but will pull up VERY well. Probably overkill for something sub-150kw.

Option 2 - VL Turbo (VN V8 and VS 6-cyl are also the same) upgrade. Quite cheap (I have drilled and slotted VLT/VN V8 etc spec rotors on the front, with calipers to match). Was around $190 for the upgrade - rotors were 2ndhand with about 5000km on them, calipers were $20 each from the wrecker (normally at least double that, wrecker obviously didn't realise their value - pays to shop around!). A very effective upgrade - only problem is you need minimum 15" rims to run them.

As for rear end - I'm soon upgrading to a stock VK disc rear end. You could go one step further and go the ventillated rear discs like vkberlina did - but I think he sunk a fair amount of money into that , and he's pushing a few kW so it's probably worthwhile for him.

VLT front spec and stock rear discs are the way to go I reckon, as far as bang for your buck goes, at least

edit: to directly answer your question - strut doesn't need changing, just the rotors. VN/VP S1 V6 brakes are the same spec as VK ones, get VN/VP V8's or VN S2 V6 brakes. VL Turbo and V8 brakes again are the same. Don't ask for VL Turbo brakes at your wrecker - he'll charge you twice as much for them! VN V8's the way to go, same shit, different label. You won't need a new master cyl or booster or anything - until you fit rear discs.

I know you can fit a VN diff - you just have to have the right offset wheels. I have VS rims on mine, thus it should be fine. Don't quote me on this though! If anyone knows better then feel free to correct me.

[VL-VP-VT]

just a question you say that the strut towers don't need changing, this means that the above mentioned calipers will bolt directly to the original VK strut tower, its just that if I am to fit a larger rotors won't the mounting holes haveto be higher on the strut tower

[synoptica]

Bolts straight on - if you fit larger rotors, you need larger calipers to clear them - but the strut itself remained the same from the VB-VP on all models

[VL-VP-VT]

Also would the VT rotors and calipers bolt directly on ?

[Owen]

im lucky i bought my vk calais and it has the vl turbo rotors on her and bl00dy hell they pull me up VERY quickly svaed my ass a few times

[gd81]

VT calipers bolt directly on to the struts, the only things required are conversion hubs, as the VT hubs are not integrated with the rotor. and long brake lines. VT flexi hose is to short. And recommended 1 inch master.
I'm running the VT front brakes on my VH with and EFI 202 pushing 108 rwkw and they work an absolute treat

[insan3]

.

I know you can fit a VN diff - you just have to have the right offset wheels. I have VS rims on mine, thus it should be fine. Don't quote me on this though! If anyone knows better then feel free to correct me.

my vk has vn v8 drilled an slotted discs front an rear,vn calipers all round...alll bolted straight on...as for the diff,thats in there too..but..i had to have it shortend 35mm each side.

just my 2 cents from sheep land
baa!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[tycho89]

Hi guys, I want a disc rear end for my VL, but the price of VL turbo and VL V8 diffs are ridiculous, will a VB-VK disc rear end fit in? and any info on the VN option wouldbe great, like if i put a decent sized wheel on will i smash my rear guards to hell.

cheers

[DANNY8]

VB-VK all use the Salisbury diff, with the exception of the VK which had a few come out with Borg Warners (which ur VL would have).

I think the best option would be to get a disc setup off a VN and put it onto ur VL diff, apparently that works. The VN diff is wider then the VL diff, so not the best idea chuckin the whole VN diff in.

[boogs86]

Hi guys, I want a disc rear end for my VL, but the price of VL turbo and VL V8 diffs are ridiculous, will a VB-VK disc rear end fit in? and any info on the VN option wouldbe great, like if i put a decent sized wheel on will i smash my rear guards to hell.

cheers

if you are only after a rear diff with rotors i have one in my shed off a vk calais, only thing is that it is non LSD

[twitch666]

hey man yeah you can fit a vl unit underneath it doesnt matter the it sits a lil bit offset i just done it to my vk put a full vl diff and brake setup in mine as well as motor and box. it lil bit tight but it will work as long as you got the right tools parts and know how or the mates with the know how.

[twitch666]

soz bout the last one guys wen stright past the date on it

[VYMaloo]

My efi 5litre VK wagon has just undergone the VT brake conversion and am in the process of modifying and fitting a VY booster and master cylinder so the pedal won't be spongy. Not that hard to do and should keep the pedal the way I want it.

[darkmoon]

Bolts straight on - if you fit larger rotors, you need larger calipers to clear them - but the strut itself remained the same from the VB-VP on all models

I went to 290mm ventilated rotors and used the same calipers and pads. You just need VP-VS caliper brackets and they fit up good.

[immortality]

read this in regards to the diff questions diff, all you need to know

but to sumerise, the VL BW diff is 12mm wider then the salisbury diffs used in the earlier models. the VN diff is 40mm wider then the VL diff (or 52mm wider then the salisbury). although the diffs are wider, they are still central to the chassis and don't offset the wheels to one side. if the wheels are offset due to lowering then you need to use a adjustable panhard rod to center the diff under the chassis.

also note that only the VLT (3.45:1) and V8 (3.08:1) VL diffs had 4 spider centers, the 6 cyl VL's only had 2 spider centers with 25spline axles and these aren't that strong

[Tom_1569]

Can we confirm something, as a few different things have been mentioned.

Talking about only upgrading the front brakes for now.
Going from standard VK Brakes to VN V8 (290mm) brakes, you only need to change the rotor, caliper, and the pads, or do you need to change the caliper brackets aswell?

And you can use the standard VK Booster and master no worries?

[immortality]

Can we confirm something, as a few different things have been mentioned.

Talking about only upgrading the front brakes for now.
Going from standard VK Brakes to VN V8 (290mm) brakes, you only need to change the rotor, caliper, and the pads, or do you need to change the caliper brackets aswell?

And you can use the standard VK Booster and master no worries?

you would need to change the complete caliper(with bracket). it's the bracket that the correctly locates the caliper to suit the rotor width. they all run the same size pistons in the calipers (and pad size VB-VS) however the later model V8's (VL or VN onwards i think) got the bigger 1" master for better pedal feel.

just noticed that this is a thread dig. didn't notice when i first replied

[Tom_1569]

you would need to change the complete caliper(with bracket). it's the bracket that the correctly locates the caliper to suit the rotor width. they all run the same size pistons in the calipers (and pad size VB-VS) however the later model V8's (VL or VN onwards i think) got the bigger 1" master for better pedal feel.

just noticed that this is a thread dig. didn't notice when i first replied

So would running the 1inch master be the way to go? Im assuming it wouldnt work to good if still running drums on the back?

and yeah its a thread dig, but its now striked my interest lol.

[immortality]

yeah, 1" M/C will give a slightly better pedal feel. not sure on the drumbrake thing. only ever used disks on the rears with the bigger fronts. can only try it. i think you may have to change the wheel cylinder to a smaller size in the drums. alternatively fit disk rears, shouldn't be to difficult. what diff does your VK have? if it's a later model with a BW i think you can convert yours to disks using a donor diff (complete from disk to disk) from any other BW diff like VL/VN/VP etc

[markovr]

Heres the vx booster and master fitted to my vh...works a treat

[immortality]

Heres the vx booster and master fitted to my vh...works a treat

was it a direct bolt in? my VN booster is shagged and i'm intending to do the same upgrade.

[Tom_1569]

yeah, 1" M/C will give a slightly better pedal feel. not sure on the drumbrake thing. only ever used disks on the rears with the bigger fronts. can only try it. i think you may have to change the wheel cylinder to a smaller size in the drums. alternatively fit disk rears, shouldn't be to difficult. what diff does your VK have? if it's a later model with a BW i think you can convert yours to disks using a donor diff (complete from disk to disk) from any other BW diff like VL/VN/VP etc

Oh ok, thats alright, so using the V8 Master/booster, calipers and mounting brackets, rotors and pads and she should be all go?

Not sure what my diff is, what the easiest way to check?

[immortality]

Oh ok, thats alright, so using the V8 Master/booster, calipers and mounting brackets, rotors and pads and she should be all go?

Not sure what my diff is, what the easiest way to check?

yep. the easiest way to check is to see how the driveshaft is mounted to the diff. if it's using "U" bolts straight around the universal cups it's a salisbury, if it uses a flange arrangement it's a borgwarner. only the later model VK's got em

[markovr]

was it a direct bolt in? my VN booster is shagged and i'm intending to do the same upgrade.

Not quite...modified vr booster bracket...., redrilled pushrod hole, 3 line adapters ,vs resevoir .....but the rest is boltup....old master was shagged(using all fluid in resevoir in 3 weeks) and was a more economic way of fixing/upgrading ...took me about 2 hours .....remove and install all bled up but that nut on left stud of bracket under column is a bitch to do up.