Stopping a car is overrated, right? I mean, all we need to care about is making our cars go faster. From the factory, it seems ma Mopar used to have that same philosophy. They must have, why else would they place a V-8 between the fenderwells of a car and then give it a single-jug master cylinder and four-wheel drum brakes? When the average speed in the U.S. during the early- to mid-'60s was approximately 35 mph, it may have been sufficient. Now, however, the inadequacy of the early braking systems is downright scary during freeway jaunts in traffic or busy downtown areas.
Yes, we have done brake articles in the past, but we still get a lot of e-mails asking how people can upgrade their brake system economically. Sure, you can go to a salvage yard or swap meet and hope to find all the parts necessary, but that could cost $100 or more, and you will still need to replace the calipers and pads-or at least you should. Sometimes, all you really end up with is a pair of expensive spindles because everything else is only usable as a core.
The premise of an economical disc-brake setup for an early A-Body got us thinking-does anyone have such a kit? After some comparative research, we found out that for around $900, a complete kit is available from Stainless Steel Brakes Corporation. The kit comes with the master cylinder, four-piston calipers, 11.25-inch rotors available with both 4- and 4 1/2-inch bolt circles, and all necessary hardware to install on your 10-inch drum-brake spindles.
The owner of our test car is more than happy she no longer needs to plan to stop a mile in advance. She also knows the car will go straight when she hits the pedal instead of violently darting to the right. All-in-all, a good investment of money and a day's work.
Pre-'67 A-Bodies are often...
Pre-'67 A-Bodies are often overlooked when people are searching for their first car. These cars are lightweight, have available V-8 power, and are a blast to drive. Unfortunately, their stopping ability is akin to that of a rhinoceros on a sheet of ice. Several choices of brake upgrades are available for this little Mopar, and we're going to show you the most economical "kit" that actually works.
On this particular car, the...
On this particular car, the brake system consisted of a single-jug master cylinder and 9-inch drum brakes. According to the Stainless Steel Brakes Corporation (SSBC) kit, we needed 10-inch drum-brake spindles.
The biggest safety issue with...
The biggest safety issue with the factory master cylinder is if it goes bad, you have no brakes except for the E-brake. With a twin-master cylinder, if one side goes bad, you at least have some pedal left to get you whoa'd. That in itself is worth an upgrade.
Luckily, we had a friend give...
Luckily, we had a friend give us a pair of spindles. The difference is in the bearing surface. Ten-inch brakes use a larger bearing.
Though the spindles look entirely...
Though the spindles look entirely different, all the mounting locations are the same, so geometry is not affected. If you have 10-inch drum brakes, your spindles will be fine. If not, figure the cost of spindles into the equation.
If you need to change the...
If you need to change the spindle, this method may also require a ball-joint exchange. We weren't worried because we knew the car needed the ball joints changed anyway.
After removing the brake drum,...
After removing the brake drum, remove the four bolts that hold the brake assembly to the spindle and the brake line.
Be sure to remove the brake...
Be sure to remove the brake lines before removing the remainder of the drum.
It all comes off as a uni...
It all comes off as a unit.