Rear disc conversion on a 01' ST

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Terry Jackson 2

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Does anyone know of, or have any experience with a rear disc conversion on an 01' ST 4wd.

It is about time to replace the rear shoes and drums and i was wondering what it would take to put disc in the rear. I have an Eaton Limited slip i was planning to install this spring but i may just do an entire rear axel swap, with a unit that is already setup with disc. Which yeah ST or standard sport cam with rear disc. Maybe i can find a rear axel at a salvage yard and rebuild. Any and all input is greatly appreciated. :D:D
 
Click the wrench next to my name.



All the info you need to know. All you gotta do is click.





Tom
 
On a semi-related topic, why would I want to give up my rear drums for discs?
Click to expand...



Less maintenance, better stopping power.



Why did automakers go away from drum brakes? Because drum brakes are not as good as disk brakes are.





Tom
 
True and false. Initally drums offer better stopping power. They have a larger contact area therefore can disipate energy a whole lot better however, drums are not that good at getting rid of the heat that they produce hence they get extremely ineffective after a few hard stops (known as brake fade). Disc on the other hand cool relitive quickly, are less expensive to maintain, are "easier" to maintain, and easier to dianose a problem (too many spring and moving parts with drums). Now lets remember this only includes everyday brakes, it does not include some $1500 a rotor system made from composite used on Porsche (obviously far superior stoping power than any of the vehicle we have had the pleasure of driving). Think of 18 wheelers they are equiped with drums due their stopping capability. plus they are much larger and can disipate heat a little faster than you average auto can. :cool:
 
Like Caymen said, disk brakes are far superior. The front disks are used for 90% of the stops when rear drum brakes are used. That's why at a little over 60k I just recently installed new front brakes for the second time but the rear's are OEM and still not in need of changing out. If I were more mechanically inclined I would have done the conversion a long time ago.
 
Discs are superior, on the front, where 80% of your stopping power is.We converted my sons 01 to rear discs and the result was less than great.

If you can do it on the cheap go for it.
 
Why did ford go back to rear drums on the '08 escape?? After 4yrs of disc, duh. Did they find a warehouse full of drums.??:wacko:
 
maybe the discs would be too good and they went to drums ???



all i know is ford replaced 3 rear calipers on my ST for sticking pistons..... they don't move much either causing them to seize...



Todd Z

 
Answer is very simple, being that only 20% of the braking is done by the rears, drums work fine.

Thats why Roush, saleen etc use Huge frnts and regular GTs on the rear, the system has to be balanced.

Again if you can do the conversion on the cheap, might be a good hit, but it will not be earth shattering by any stretch.

 
The drums are cheaper. Disk brakes all around were seen as a sales advantage, more 'upscale', so most manufacturers went to them. Now, many are switching back because manufacturers have found that most people have no idea what brakes they have, and the drums brakes on the rear are cheaper and work just as well for most applications. Like others have already said, most of the braking is done on the front. Front drive cars barely use the rear brakes at all.



That being said, disk brakes do have a better "feel", since the disk pads are normally very close to the disk, and drum brakes have to move a little. Drivers that like to be able to make the car do as much as it possibly can like disk brakes all around. Most people in most driving situations will never notice the difference.
 
But with 4 disc brakes, the stock parking brake will never be as fun....is the integrated drum parking brake on the quad disc guys only on the side that the cable runs, or does it jump to both sides?



Isn't the ebrake the easy gateway to tail action in the car? Why would "drivers that like to be able to make the car do as much as it possibly can" want to reduce its capacity?



When I asked about this a while back it was determined that the sissy drum in the disc setup could under no circumstances stop the truck if it was already in motion, and I find that worthless in an emergency brake.



(Both of my vehicles have the Disc/Drum combination, so I've really looked at how the brake works on a quad disc)
 
Rodger,



We will be selling them soon....



Todd Z
 

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