Every year at about this time we put together a sale on the best front brake system available, anywhere, for the Maxima, I30 and I35 - The Brembo Gran Turismo Big Brake set.

I can't publish the the actual price, but I can say that the regular price is $2600 and you'll save $400!!! You do the math.

If you're going to go fast, you've got to be able to stop fast, and the 12.9" rotors and enormous piston area combine for unequalled fade-free stopping ability. Imagine, never having to think about warped rotors again!

The Brembo system is exceptionally well engineered, specifically for the Maxima, and it matches up perfectly with the stock master cylinder and rear brakes. No mushy pedal, no front/rear proportioning issues, no guesswork about installation or concerns about quality. The kit has everything you need, including s/s brake lines.

These are available for all 1995-2003 Maximas and 1995-2004 I30s and I35s. Slotted or drilled rotors, red, black or silver calipers.

Why are these the best? Brembo Gran Turismo features include:

1. Most brands use a fixed system, Brembo rotors are floating. This matters because when aluminum and steel expand with different rations, there is no tension
2. Brembo kits are fully engineered by Brembo (for example, AP is only caliper and rotor with Stillen designed hats and brackets)
3. Brembo 4 piston F50 caliper has 9.8% advantage in braking torque over most 6 piston calipers. For example, the Brembo has 55.5cm2 of piston area VS the AP 6 pistons with 50.1cm2)
4. Highest quality rotor material available
5. Designed to fit specific vehicle VS one fits all
6. Parts availability is great: Brembo has been around for 35 years, it's $500 million company.
7. Warranty: will not void factory warranty, has lifetime warranty against defects
8. All parts are made at Brembo's facilities in Italy.

Call us at 520.730.9309 (9-6 MST, M-F) if you'd like to get in on this fantastic deal! Sale ends 31 December.

Brian C Catts
Cattman Performance

 

Man would I like to have a set of these.....

 

merry x mas to me

 

damn man, if only i had the cash. droooooool

 

They probably cannot fit with my stock 16 inch SE rims, my 16 inch 300zx rims, or my 16 inch rx7 rims?

 

hehe if they fit my rx7 rims - 16 x 8 i'd be all over them.

 

Sorry, the Brembo Gran Turismos require at least 17" rims.

Brian C Catts
Cattman Performance

 

mmm? 17" rimms OEM or aftermarket???

 

That is a very good question. The Blemco BBK will NOT fit OEM 17 wheels, but does fit every 17 inch aftermarket set.

 

I don't think they will fit the 17" OEM wheels, but I've got a diagram that illustrates how to measure any wheels for caliper and rotor clearance. Send me an email or PM with your email address and I'll flick it to you as an attachment.

A basic description would be to put the wheel face down on a flat surface. Put a straight edge across the inside hub and take measurements from the centre of the hole. There has to be at least 7.6" from the centre to the edge of the wheel for the rotor (15.2" edge to edge, measured across the inside rim face that bolts to the wheel).

Measuring out to the area between 4.3" (distance of the bottom of the calipre from the centre) to 7.0" (distance of the top of the calipre from the centre) on the straight edge, there has to be a depth of at least 1.45" between the straight edge and the inside face of the wheel spokes (or anything else) to provide calipre clearance. If my description is not clear, just ask for the diagram.

Brian C Catts
Cattman Performance

Brian C Catts
Cattman Performance

 

oh what about 18" OEM? The only problem to put 18" OEM they are too heavy

 

Its possible they would fit - diameter for the rotor will be fine, its an issue of calipre depth - but the only way to know for sure is to take a wheel off and measure it.

Brian C Catts
Cattman Performance

 

Can i get the brake profile that your talking about. The AP/stillen kit won't work with my 19's so i was looking at the brembo's.

 

Just send me an email that includes your email address, and I'll send it back as an attachment.

Brian C Catts
Cattman Performance

 

Its not a matter of "trying" to make the Brembos look better than the AP brakes, because they are.

Brembo owns AP and the AP calipers and rotors are a second tier brand. The most significant differences between the AP and Brembo kits include:

1. The Brembo kits are completely engineered and manufactured for the specific application by Brembo. The AP kits include Brembo's generic AP calipers and rotors, but Stillen assembles all the other kit pieces (I'm referring to the AP kits sold by Stillen, but whomever is putting them together, they're only getting the calipers and rotors from AP) - hats and brackets are made by a Stillen subcontractor, i.e. an unknown third party - so the kitcomponents have not been integrated by the same party (Brembo) and I think that matters. The kit lacks Brembo's comprehensive design capabilities, and I would not have the same faith in a third-party's quality control process that I would in a kit totally designed and fabricated by Brembo. These are brakes after all, your life depends on them, why take any chances? I would note that Stillen didn't design the braking system you refer to on the Ferrari - if they use the 6-piston AP caliper, there would still be some very sophisticated design/engineering talent applied to that system that is not involved with the Maxima AP kit sold by Stillen.

This matters, and the difference is made evident by the feedback I get from customers who buy them. Great pedal feel and balanced front/rear proportioning seems to be the universal response from Brembo GT owners. This is not the reaction I hear from owners of many other brands. They are plagued by vague pedal feel, and proportioning issues between the new front big brakes and the stock rears - no one mentions these issues with the Brembo kits.

2. I don't know if this has changed, but AP has traditionally used a fixed system, but the Brembo rotors are floating to prevent internal tensions from the differential heat expansion between steel/iron and aluminum, which is a significant advantage.

3. As far as pad size goes, the key factor is the torque available to press them against the rotor, and that's a function of piston area. Brembo's 4 piston F50 caliper has a 10% torque advantage over the AP 6 piston caliper (55.5 cm2 VS 50.1 cm2).

4. The rotor material on the Brembo GTs is superior (more durable and better heat dissipation) to the AP rotors, obviously a key factor.

5. Parts availability (and backup in case a liability issue arises) - Brembo has been around for 35 years and is a $500M/year company.

6. I don't know if if this is a difference between the two brand names or not, but Brembo also mentions that their brakes will not affect the factory warranty, and they have a lifetime warranty against defects (and they don't get claims).

Brembos are more expensive, but they remain a good value for anyone who demands the best, particularly at this sale price. In this case, you really do get what you pay for.

Brian C Catts
Cattman Performance

 

Brian, can you explain a few things? I will assume that the combination of a multipiston caliper + a larger rotor(12.9") = more clamping force onto the front end of the car. Now, the master cylinder and rear brakes have not been touched. Since the porportioning valves are inside the master cylinder, we will assume that has not been touched either. Then how can the front / rear bias NOT be changed??

 

I realized that I should make clear that I don't have any axe to grind regarding the AP brakes, the only reason I used them in the comparison is because my Brembo distributor saw the Stillen-prepared AP big brake systems as a major competitor, and prepared the information that I've drawn from to show the differences. The APs not bad brakes, but there are significant features that the Brembos have and the APs do not.

Its times like this that I wish I was an engineer myself... I think there is some ability (in the course of designing the front brake set) to control the flow and pressure of hydraulic fluid to the front pistons - its not limited to the master cylinder mechanisms because I've seen supplemental proportioning valves built into Wilwood-based systems for the Maxima.

Beyond that speculation - and that's all it is - I can best rely on the feedback we get from customers who have purchased and installed the systems - they back up exactly what Brembo claims about their systems, which is (more or less) a well-engineered, integrated braking system = proper pedal feel/response and balanced proportioning. I've never received a single negative comment from a Brembo GT customer, they have been - without exception in my experience - absolute satisfied, if not thrilled, with the results.

Brian C Catts
Cattman Performance

 

No problem Brian. That is 10x better than anything TET has come up with. At least you are candid about it. I run my own 13" rotor and 300z calipers. Along with 1" larger rear rotors. Very nice

 

Sorry to unearth this thread, but is there anyway the Brembo GT BBK could be made to fit a 3rd gen? I am just getting I35 6spoke 17" wheels for my car and really want a BBK to compliment them. I also need a rear drum to large-disk conversion kit. Let me know what can be done. Thanks.

-Mrkanda Fitch

 

I'm sorry, but to my knowledge there is no Brembo Gran Turismo Big Brake kit for the 89-94 Maxima. I'm not sure what can be done about converting the rear to discs, but I assume it would be possible since some gen3s have those brakes.

Brian C Catts
Cattman Performance

 

Just to chime in here a sec, Brian... but I can only ASSume that you could possibly use the Brembo Gran Turismo BBK in some form for the 3rd gen. And trust me - this is ONLY an assumption, as I neither have the familiarity or the expertise as you do in this regard (so please feel free to correct me, anyone...). I'm basing my assumption on the fact that successful conversions have been done using a 13" rotor and 300z calipers. And don't they make a BBK for the 300z??

Note: According to their catalog, it shows the following:

P/N Model Yr. Disk Size & Type

1A1.6002A Maxima 1989-1999 328x28 2-Piece
1B1.7011A 300ZX 1990 -1996 332x32 2-Piece

 

This kit uses a 4 piston caliper. Probably won't clear the oem I35 wheels

 

This kit "should" fit the 3-gen.

 

i always though that stillen also dealt these brakes? i think kevin chin used to run these and got em' thru stillen.. i could be wrong tho.. but those brakes sure did look purdy when i saw them in person. i never knew that brembo owned AP. i thot lockheed did (sp?) the aero space company.

 

how long is this deal going on?

 

still available?

 

Sorry, lost track of this thread for a while. I can still do a good deal on these, though the price may be $2300 rather than $2200. Let me know what color of caliper you'd like (red, silver, black - or any color on earth for an extra fee) and I'll check inventory and give you a current price.

Brian C Catts
Cattman Performance

 

is there any sort of bbk for the rear of a 2001 max?? is it possible to convert this front kit to fit on the rear as well?

 

I have not seen any rear BBK from the major brands, check Matt Blehm's site for something along these lines (http://mattblehm.com/rear_kit.htm).

Brian C Catts
Cattman Performance

 

How long will this special be going on for?

 

I saw on the site it was 21 something

 

This Brembo special has been over for a long time, but give us a call - we can usually talk our distributor into a price that allows us to pass along a pretty good deal. Call the Cattman office (rather than our ordering service 800 line) about this, 520.730.9309.

Brian C Catts
Cattman Performance