 4 Extension brackets are...  4 Extension brackets are provided in the kit to mount the new caliper over the 12-inch rear rotors. Two 18mm bolts with 19mm nuts secure it to the factory-mounting bracket; the nut is torqued to 65-70 ft-lb. As you can see, the extension bracket goes on the outside. A locking nut is also provided to make sure the caliper won't go anywhere under even the heaviest of loads. |
 5 After sliding the new rotor...  5 After sliding the new rotor through the studs, a lug nut is tightened on one of them to secure the rotor while centering the caliper. Grips are used to take off the emergency brake cable from the old caliper, which is transferred to the new caliper and clipped in place. The caliper bracket attaches to the mounting bracket via two 19mm bolts with the bleeder valve on top. The pads come preloaded in the caliper. |
For installation of the SSBC front and rear brake kits, we returned to our good friends at Valley Performance in Belleville, New Jersey, just a stone's throw from MM&FF World Headquarters. In between installing and tuning a few modular head and cam packages, as well as a few hush-hush 5-liter builds, Valley whipped the ailing Gangsta back into shape. It seems every time the 35th Anniversary Stang rolls into the shop, it's suffering from some ailment, and this would be no different. The stock rotors were nearly wasted from track duty, so unfortunately we couldn't get any baseline testing done to establish stopping distances. However, we did manage a full complement of post-install testing and an all-day road-course thrash as part of last issue's DOT-legal road-race tire test.
Using the Stalker ATS radar gun, six runs were recorded to quantify stopping distances. To establish the amount of fade, these runs were made back-to-back, using merely a brief cool-down lap on the way back to the starting line. With the benefit of cool rotors, the SSBC calipers halted the GT from 60 mph in just 128.59 feet, and 339.56 feet from 100 mph (on separate runs). By the third run from 60 to 0 mph, stopping distance increased to 144.17 feet, and from 100 mph the distance increased to 362.19 feet on the second run (with an equal increase also seen on the third).
SSBC includes a set of hi-po pads with all of the Force 10 Extreme brake kits, but these are nowhere near as hard or peaky as a race pad would be. The pad compound we used is considerably softer and more street friendly, so hard-core racers may want to step up to something a bit more durable.
Overall, though, you certainly can't complain about the performance of the SSBC brake system, as it boasts the lowest 100-0 mph stopping distance of any brake kit we have ever tested. After a full day of hot-lapping on the MM&FF handling course, Technical Editor Evan Smith said there was not even a hint of fade; the binders performed flawlessly all day long. Previous visits to this course with the stock brakes would allow only three or four laps before the brakes would noticeably fade, whereas the SSBC brakes hardly broke a sweat.
The increase in pedal feel and reaction time alone, in addition to the incredible power in the front calipers that literally plant your nose on the windshield at will, has the potential to allow late braking at every single corner on the track and effectively reduce lap times. With the help of the new SSBC brakes, this colt is definitely a contender. With a little more power, we'll be winning the Kentucky Derby in no time.