Are you happy with your stock brakes on your huge tundra, or do u want 2 upgrade?

So Are you happy with your stock brake system or are you looking to upgrade? I've been talking about possibilities of a new tundra brake kit, direct bolt on, it would be superior to what is on the market yet it will be at a competitive price. It would most likely fit on factory 18" wheels. 28 pistons of stopping power coming from the 10 stock, could even be managed to go up to 32 if you put 8 in the back. prices can be around 1300 for the front and 1100 for the back, again this is just some rough ideas to gauge interest. Company who is considering the production is SSBCUSA bit.ly/37xeiAZ. They're a high quality company that make a really good product, also American made!! They've had a great experience with the big 3 and wanted to check out the tundra market! What do you guys think?

 

Happy with my stock brakes om my 14. Was happy with my brakes om my 07. Can you add to your poll a response for those of us who are satisfied?

 

got you man

 

Unless it'll let me fit a 17" wheel, I'm not interested.

 

That's a more affordable option which I've looked into not only that but easier to do, many dont upgrade calipers and rotors together because it takes so much work, what I like about this company is that it would be a direct fit, making the install easier more universal is attractive, the stopping power would be crazy compared to stock, you'd be going from 10 piston total I believe to 28-32 total, I would be stopping on a dime lol. Honestly if they made the kit I could set up a step by step on the forums It's easy enough that I feel pretty comfortable doing that install

 

something to keep in mind, everything on here will be put into consideration, I actually thought about that because of the baja/offroad guys, I run 18" but I know alot who are running 17" methods and beadlocks. Good input thank you

 

More pistons specifically does not in any way mean better stopping power. Having appropriately sized pistons in a caliper designed for an application is what matters (also whether you're doing all pistons of the same size or some of the wilder, albeit usually form over function staggered piston sizes). Show cars have 12-16 piston calipers, true track cars run 4-6 piston calipers.

Coming from years of auto-x and track cars, and working in the automotive aftermarket catering to those vehicles for almost two decades, I've seen entirely too many people jump on board with "Big Brake Kit" upgrades and swear up and down that their cars are stopping in shorter distances or that their pedal feels better, and then 4-5 laps into a session wonder why the guy with stock rotors, stock calipers, stock lines, some RBF600 fluid and a pad upgrade is able to go deeper and deeper into the braking zones than they are.

This isn't to knock BBK's in any way; they have a place and a function (then again, all too many lack the function part). Likewise, an application specific pad upgrade alone will quite often achieve similar results. Sure, it won't have the heat dissipation of a larger or thicker rotor, or an upgrade to vented from solid rotor (vented, not slotted); but 98% of Tundra owners (and probably something in the neighborhood of 90% of modified vehicles in general) will never actually see the advantages of this increased heat dissipation and fade resistance.

Adding slots/grooves/holes to otherwise plain rotors (for those not in the know, "drilled" rotors will turn into cracked rotors when stressed; purpose built rotors with holes in them are cast that way, ask your "drilled" rotor reseller how they are made) doesn't appreciably make a difference, but pad compound can. Then again, there are only so many pad compounds that will make a legitimate difference in initial bite or modulation, but they have their trade offs in noise, dust, and longevity. Of course, if someone has some serious issues with pedal feel, it could possibly be improved with stainless lines to replace all the soft lines in the system, but ensuring that you're doing regular brake fluid flushes could also fix that.

There's something that not a single manufacturer of a pad/rotor/caliper upgrade for our trucks does (that I'm aware of), which is show a real world, independently tested, improvement in stopping distances, but plenty claim that you'll have "better" braking. I would imagine because in the end, our trucks are just like most other vehicles out there, in which you spend $2000+ on a BBK and realize that the gains aren't in single stop distances, but in repeated stops, or high heat/stress environments such as track use or very heavy towing with mountain passes/hills (and if you're towing that much with a Tundra, you should be spending the money on a bigger truck).

If you are directly tied to SSBCUSA (I'm guessing you're not, as they are in NY and you are in FL), this isn't a knock at the product directly, and definitely not a knock on you @yota.parts.distributor, but this post comes off sounding a bit sales-pitchy while trying to sound not-sales-pitchy, with no concrete information.

Also still waiting on the other option that @Black-wolf requested (happy with stock brakes) to be added to the poll. I'll join in on that answer. Having >1,100lbs added to the truck, and still driving it like a track car on twisty mountain roads, I can't say I've encountered any instance where I've felt a deficiency in the stock brake system. When they do inevitably wear out, assuming I still have the truck at that point, my vote for replacement will be a set of OE-spec rotors (by a big name, such as Brembo, ATE, Centric, Zimmerman, etc) and a mild pad upgrade (Carbotech 1521, Hawk LTS, etc).

 

I get what you mean but that's the point of this post, to dip toes in the water, I'm not promising a magic solution by any means im just listing what SSBC offers, no i am not tied to them as they have no tundra products atleast not yet, if they did have tundra products I would like to have them on my truck, I don't know much about brakes had never felt comfortable working on them being that it is the only thing that is stopping you from flying into a traffic intersection. I know there is a market for the BBK but the ones on the market are way too expensive for the average guy. It's all down to personal opinion yes I am enthusiastic I don't think there's anything wrong with that lol I enjoy this talking on the forums it's fun for me, I don't mean to come off wrong. And I included the poll a while back.

 

If anything i'd be interesten in an OEM style rotor by these guys, I don't know much about calipers but I know they're popular in the USDM community especially for the price, it was the best for my budget atleast

 

How do I fix the spongy brake pedal problem? It feels really soft like I have to put alot of force into it before i feel pressure

 

Steel brake lines and bigger piston master

 

Spongy pedal is almost always fluid related; old fluid, soft (deteriorating) brake lines, or a leak. It could be a low pad level that you're feeling in the pedal (longer travel), but that can be visually checked in a few moments.

 

I think my pad level is fine, also I've always felt that the braking was spongy, it stops great I just hate the pedal feel and its always been confusing as to why it came like that.

 

I have no issue with stock.....

 

What do you think of EBC? I saw them when doing research but didn't look to see if they carried tundra products

 

Stock is great performance compared to the competition

 

They've been around forever, their big 3 compounds are GreenStuff, YellowStuff, and RedStuff... Oddly enough, YellowStuff is actually a more aggressive pad than the RedStuff. At least in the performance related car world the GreenStuffs were never even a consideration, and I think the last time I encountered a car with them installed was probably 15+ years ago, and that was driving it into the shop to switch to a different pad setup. RedStuff was a very modest (if any) upgrade over stock, and YellowStuff was the choice for a modest/mild upgrade in CF/temp rating over stock. From what I recall, the Yellows weren't aggressive enough to lose any cold stopping power, but also weren't aggressive enough to use for much more than Auto-X. In a truck application, between their compounds I think YellowStuff would be the only one I would consider

 

The brakes, as outfitted from the factory, meet my current needs, so this wouldn’t be a priority for me.

However, this is the kind of tech/improvement that I would follow and consider later based on the likelihood that circumstances change; I may tow or haul more down the road for instance.

Vote cast!

 

I think the oem braking is really leaving much to be desired.

I vote yes for upgrade

 

The OEM brake system already overcomes the traction value of my tires.

Until tire tech improves I cant justify upgrading the clamping force of my calipers.

 

I've owned or driven (not just for a day) every truck out there. The Tundra has probably the best factory brakes out there, for me anyway

 

Oddly, I feel the opposite. I think the stock brakes are more than capable for what this truck is designed for. If a load was big enough that I thought it would stress the brakes, I would have already gotten a larger truck.

Then again, I'm a big believer that the tow vehicle should outweigh the load too, so maybe I overkill things a bit.

 

A big brake kit, is more of a upgrade on paddle feel, even pad wear and faster cooling, so you have the confidence to step on the brake without brake fade, warping the disc, pads last longer, and have a firm paddle.

 

Stock brakes are mediocre, and I have upgraded cryo rotors and upgraded pads, which are far better. I also have a more performance oriented background as a comparison, so not really fair. I suppose for just a truck they are fine. They are better than my prior F150, so there is that.

Also, do not forget to change your brake fluid if your severe duty, or a higher mileage truck. That could make a huge improvement for a few.

 

My comparison is to my wife's 4runner. We put new calipers, rotors and pads at 75k miles. The stopping power was very noticeable. My feeling is that they are lacking in comparison. Just my opinion

 

I would love to see someone make a bolt on master cylinder that has a larger piston diameter. That would make a huge improvement in feel, far beyond what SS lines and good fluid/bleeding will do.

To piggyback off what @Mallcrl said. Bigger brakes only handle heat better, which only matters for repeated hard brake applications.

Braking distances are determined by your TIRES. If you can trigger ABS no amount of added pistons, bigger rotors, or fancy pads will make your truck stop in a shorter distance. It might feel like it will, but it won't.

 

If you increase the area of the master piston it will take moar effort but less stroke to achieve the same force.

 

It’s only a few thousand of an inch, maybe a pound on brake paddle, but you could feel the brakes more

 

Precisely why I want a larger master. I upgraded one of my other cars MC from 15/16" to 1". The improvement in brake feel was beyond night and day better. By far one the best mods I have ever done to any car. And yes initially, I only changed the master and nothing else to see just how much of a difference it would make.

 

Don't forget that larger rotors have more leverage on the rotational force of the wheels. So less pedal effort would be needed.