Thread: Brake upgrades on TD5

my my03 has the same issue. its not fade,just a soft squishy but unresponsive pedal. Its not supposed to be like that, mine was not when new. Its only really apparent when driving another vehicle, for me i am comparing to a new defender. I think on mine there are two causes.
hoses need replacement they are ten years old
servo booster seems to be worn, but more alarmingly you can see it move when you push the pedal.
so two issues that i think combine to make poor brakes.

Originally Posted by Blade74

Not sure what my 90 has. I guess I just notice it more as I came out of a discovery 4 that had unbelievable brakes.
I know other things do effect it like tyre grip on the road but I reckon I can get it to brake better.
It feels like the vacuum assist isn't working as we'll as it should.
If I pump the brakes as I'm braking by the time I pump it the 3rd stroke it feels a lot stronger.
I feel like I would have to push my foot through the floor to get the ABS to kick in.

There is a possibility you could have a vacuum leak or a booster on the way out.

Assuming all is in good condition, the best upgrade would be to fit the largest OEM calipers you can (pretty sure 110/130 are larger), plus slotted rotors, plus braided hoses if needed.

[QUOTE="Blade74;1919516"]...guess I just notice it more as I came out of a discovery 4 that had unbelievable brakes...
/QUOTE]

And I think that's the problem - quite understandably we are comparing apples and oranges.

I've been driving Defenders for 23years and have never thought the brakes were rubbish until I jumped in the 110 on Sunday after driving the wife's car for the weekend.

Nothing has changed on the Defender, they still work 100%, its just that the benchmark has changed.

We need to realize what we are driving and drive accordingly, driven properly they are perfectly adequate. That said, I'd love some AP racing stoppability, but there really is no need.

Jon

Sent using Forum Runner

Originally Posted by Blade74

Not sure what my 90 has. I guess I just notice it more as I came out of a discovery 4 that had unbelievable brakes.
I know other things do effect it like tyre grip on the road but I reckon I can get it to brake better.
It feels like the vacuum assist isn't working as we'll as it should.
If I pump the brakes as I'm braking by the time I pump it the 3rd stroke it feels a lot stronger.
I feel like I would have to push my foot through the floor to get the ABS to kick in.

Sounds like you have an air leak in the braking system somewhere.. I have a LR Series 3 I recently upgraded the drum brakes to Defender 90 Discs front and rear. I had the same problem, where I had to pump the brakes 2-3 times before I have a hard pedal. It turns out that my master cylinder had a leak in the bottom of the plastic reservoir bottle. I replaced the whole master cylinder with a new one. Brakes work on the first press.. No more pumping the brakes..

Wolf

I'll have to look into any possible issues and see if something is causing it to not brake as well as it should.
I totally agree that the defender is nothing like a disco 4 for braking and I'm sure it could never be the same even with mods.
But just like the fact that my car went very average before and since re mapping it and putting a bigger inter cooler on it has made it go so much better I'm sure some upgrades on the brakes can make them brake better.
The re map has turned it into a whole different car.
I don't drive it like a race car but you can accelerate a lot quicker in a shorter distance. Hence I would like to see if I can get it to brake in a shorter distance.
I consider brakes to be very very important so some mods to make them work better is something I am very interested in.

Originally Posted by Blade74

...
I totally agree that the defender is nothing like a disco 4 for braking and I'm sure it could never be the same even with mods....

A 90 is about half the weight of a D4, so it should actually be quite easy to get it to stop better than a D4.

Very true just not sure if the Tyre grip would keep up with the brakes though.. Bf Goodrich all terrains vs disco atr/semi road tyre.

Originally Posted by Blade74

Not sure what my 90 has. I guess I just notice it more as I came out of a discovery 4 that had unbelievable brakes.
I know other things do effect it like tyre grip on the road but I reckon I can get it to brake better.
It feels like the vacuum assist isn't working as we'll as it should.
If I pump the brakes as I'm braking by the time I pump it the 3rd stroke it feels a lot stronger.
I feel like I would have to push my foot through the floor to get the ABS to kick in.

i would also check that you are not getting brake pad knock back with loose wheel bearings. not all that common with td5 era defenders, but worth checking. pad choice is paramount, and as isuzurover has said the 90 is very light, and all the 90's i have driven stop well.


jc