drilling disc brakes

[Ryland]

I'm pretty sure that the front brakes are more or less the same as what the civic used up to 1995, even on their 4 door sedan, so they should have plenty of stopping power as the CRX 1.3 has a GVW that is around 900 pounds less then a 4 door civic dx .

[oil pan 4]

Any good quality ceramic would help this problem.

If your breaks aren't cutting it than up grade them, I have C5 (corvette gen 5) rotors and calipers to put on my camaro, it will go from having 10.5 inch diameter 1 inch thick rotors to 12 inch diameter 1-5/16 inch thick rotors.
It should be enough.

I absolutly do not believe in drilled/sloted rotors for street use. If you feel like you need to do this then your breaks aren't big enough.

[mikehallbackhoe]

thanks for the input, I will forget about drilling, and just keep an eye on the pads to see how they hold up. the crx almost coasts too well. it will go faster coasting ,than under power.

[jtbo]

Originally Posted by mikehallbackhoe

thanks for the input, I will forget about drilling, and just keep an eye on the pads to see how they hold up. the crx almost coasts too well. it will go faster coasting ,than under power.

That sound familiar

Is your CRX manual or auto? Either way, put lower gear in so that rpm is around 3000 when engine braking and it should help engine braking.

With one of my cars that I used on track, I got bad brake fading on 2nd to 3rd lap already, pads smoking, switched race pads in, still pads smoking, also I had to stand brakes to make them warm first and then when they warmed fading did start.

Old brake fluid, calibers not moving freely, brakes had not been serviced for long time, after doing full brake service brakes were holding up really well even design of hub was such that heat had to go trough bearing to escape, so I would say that even brake servicing is one of the annoying jobs, it is really worth it.

Even brake fluid should be replaced every two years which 'nobody' does really, contaminated brake fluid then causes corrosion which eventually causes need for new brake calipers etc.

Also everything that should move should be checked yearly and sliding caliber has sliding bolts( what is the correct word?) lubricated so that they are moving without effort, also it makes car coast better, so that one gets better mileage, but also makes car to stop lot better when needed.

Braking on hilly conditions should be made so that it is made just short time, not very comfy of course, but with extreme hills if you apply brakes more than 5 seconds it serves mostly just as adding heat to brakes, so braking should be made so that it lasts less. Not actually quite sure about that 5 seconds, might have been bit longer/shorter, but you get the idea.

One trick is to get aluminium flexible tube and run those from front of the car to brake discs, of course shield of brake shield should be removed, but that way you can get extra cooling for brakes, trick usually used in racing and it does cause some aerodynamic drag.

[Ryland]

while engine braking your car does cut fuel, so there is no reason not to take advantage of engine braking on long hills.

[SentraSE-R]

It's pretty doubtful an '84 has DFCO. Did they even have fuel injection?

[Vman455]

Originally Posted by mikehallbackhoe

I have read about doing it to some disc brakes. one of my concerns is coasting for 10 miles down twisty mountain roads. I tend to ride the brakes quite a bit, and am worried about excessive heat. the crx is pretty light. but the brakes are fairly light duty too.

If you're worried about overheating, start by changing your brake fluid to one with a higher boiling point. Valvoline Synthetic DOT3/4 is one of the best bang-for-the-buck fluids around, readily available and relatively cheap with a dry boiling point of 446*F and wet 311*F. Flush and replace every two years with fluid from a new, unopened container--brake fluid absorbs moisture over time and the boiling point steadily decreases, increasing the chances for experiencing brake fade.

[Ryland]

Originally Posted by SentraSE-R

It's pretty doubtful an '84 has DFCO. Did they even have fuel injection?

All of Honda's CVCC engines had deceleration fuel cut off (DFCO) starting in 1978 or whenever it was that they started making them, that is part of the reason for 57 vacuum lines controlling the carburetor, including 4 or 5 valves that are built in to the carburetor that can cut off fuel to all of the jets.

[mikehallbackhoe]

dfco is a nice feature, but if the engine is running , it is still burning fuel. the reason I bought this crx is that it has no power steering or power brakes, and a manuel transmission. I do eoc whenever the opportunity arises, which, up here in the mountains, is quiete often. on steep , twisty roads, that means using the brakes a lot. as long as the brakes are up to the task, that's all right with me. If I have to replace the pads more often, that's ok too, pads are cheap.

[Sven7]

Originally Posted by mikehallbackhoe

dfco is a nice feature, but if the engine is running , it is still burning fuel.

Engines idle to prevent stalling, ie not turning. When the car is in gear and rolling the engine cannot stop and therefore does not need fuel.