binhsterbinh

Thanks to Paul (NVA-AV6) and his awesome fabrication/machining skills on the aluminum brackets, I now officially have RL Calipers successfully retrofitted onto my '05 TL. I'm definitely not the first car to have done this, but I might be the first 3G TL to have it installed on. RL calipers are made by ADVICS and are 4-piston all alluminum radial mounted. They have a sweeping area that is greater than that of the TL-S/6 Speed Brembo. I was going to go with the TL Brembos but didn't want to go through the hassle of changing out my knuckles, bearings, sensors and whatnot. I found a good deal on the RL Calipers, so I pulled the trigger. Since all the parts in my setup are OEM type parts, maintaining them won't cost me an arm and a leg down the road. You can probably get the Wilwood kit for what I paid total, but I guess I just like to be different.

Specs:
'06 RL Calipers with G2 Caliper Epoxy Paint System
Racing Brake 320mm (12.6") 350z rotors (think 07-08)
EBC Yellowstuff Pads
Custom aluminum brackets

My car is super dirty but here are some pics of the operation:

princelybug

iTrader: (16)

Wow!

CUCU28

iTrader: (4)

Now thats wtf im talking about, thats hot.
Good job

erick3

Hey...you're still alive Bin!

blkaspec

very nice work, i second the

subinf

I really like how that looks. Good choice.

rockyfeller

iTrader: (6)

Nice!!!!

JOSER408

djbonsu

iTrader: (3)

AWESOME retro-fit! not really feeling the color but i defintely like the way they look behind your wheels!how is the stopping power? any SS brake lines?

Kennedy

iTrader: (2)

No rears?

binhsterbinh

Racing Brake Stainless Steel lines will be next. Did a second brake fluid flush yesterday on all 4 corners. Pedal is now firm and solid. Compared to stock (Honda/Acura OEM) calipers, pads and rotors, this new setup definitely has improved feel and braking performance. I'm sure a lot of it has to do with the fact that I'm using a larger Racing brake rotors and EBC Yellowstuff (High Performance) pads though. I can't exactly attribute it to being strictly the 4-pistons RL calipers though obviously, but so far, I'm satisfied and happy with my purchase.

The bed in process for EBC pads is slow and could take up to 1500 miles, so I won't be able to give more information until after they've fully bedded. Just testing them from 60-20mph right now, they stick like glue in comparison right off the bat vs having to push harder and harder on the OEM ceramics to get the same affect. One of the main reasons I went with OEM parts and not Wilwood (or any other setup in the $700-1000 price range) is because the RL calipers have the rubber weather seals on the pistons. As long as I keep it maintained, it should last a long long time. Seattle is a moist environment and the last thing I want to do is have to rebuild my calipers every few years.

As for a rear BBK kit, I'm going to pass. I'll be doing Racing Brake slotted rotors and Racing Brake ET500 pads in the back soon though which should be more than enough for my spirited driving.

I'd say if you can score a pair of RL Calipers for a good deal and have patience to wait for a custom bracket to be built, this is quite a worthy setup. The only major con I've noticed is that their aren't many aftermarket HP brake pad suppliers for the RL besides EBC. Also, if you want a bigger rotor, you can use the Nismo 350z rotors (330mm ~13") as well. Since RL Calipers are Radial mounted, you can use any sized rotor your want (> or = to 12.6") and add spacers to the bracket accordingly. From the specs I read, you can probably get away with using the 14" rotors from a G37/FX56 ; however, the drawback here is weight unless you buy expensive 2 piece rotors. This also won't clear smaller wheels.

12.6" Racing Brake 1 piece rotor = 17lbs
14" G37 stock 1 piece rotor = 28lbs

JnC

iTrader: (12)

Sweet, now I know what else I need as I already have a set of RL calipers, thanks for the post.

phee

iTrader: (5)

i think your wheels look better silver

TLin401

x2!!!!

Sinistr

Those look good. Although, I am not a fan of the caliper color. Nice retro.

Souljah

Me want

binhsterbinh

No problem JnC. You made headway in the headlight clearing department as well as first informing me about TL/ZKW lens swap. Thank you!

As for rotor options, I had to do a lot of reading/research to figure out what works and what doesn't. Spent quite a bit of time looking up rotor specs at RockAuto as well as scouring other forums. Marcus at Heeltoe ended up selling me on Racing Brake products that the decision to move forward was a no brainer. I just wish they made RB ET500 for the RL calipers. Talk to Marcus, he should be able to get both the EBC pads, Racing Brake SS lines and rotors for you at a very reasonable price. The lines are the same between RL and TL. The rotors are not though because RL is 5x120mm vs. TL's 5x114mm.

Also, if you plan on painting, don't forget to wipe the brake fluid off the calipers when you're installing/flushing the system. That crap ate through the G2 Caliper Paint on the backside of my calipers where I missed with the rag. Glad it was just on the back side.

Another tidbit of information. Rockauto has remanufactured brembo TL 6-Speed / TL-S calipers for ~$150 each after $50 core charge. This includes the powdercoating for those who want to do the whole knuckle swap thing.

stillhere153

iTrader: (1)

mmmh paul should make these brackets for both the brembo and rl calipers

there are a ton of auto guys who'd be all over using oem parts to brake upgrade

TSX, AV6 AND AUTO TL

binhsterbinh

Agreed. I believe the main differences between Base Auto TL knuckle and the TL-S/ 6 speed knuckle is that one sits more forward than the other. I can't remember which one was sitting more forward towards the rotor, but I think a search would provide more queues on this. Someone on this forum had created a bracket and then scrapped the idea because he was concerned about the safety of using hybrid brackets. Remanufactured Powder coated Type-S calipers for $200 after returning the cores is a pretty slick deal. Someone should do this!

2Morrow

Looks real good !

stillhere153

iTrader: (1)

concerned over brackets

what he think rotora, wilwood, stoptech, etc.. make more than 1 4pot caliper depending on the car... pfff they make 1 and each kit comes with adapter brackets

binhsterbinh

The TL-S/ 6sp brembos use knuckles that sit a little further back (more recessed) than the normal base TL. It looks like the only way to make a bracket for brembos would really to use different knuckles since they'll be in the way of where the brembo calipers want to mount to.

Option B would be to fabricate a bracket that extends the brembo mounting points radially outwards away from the hub center. Even in this case, we're assuming the brembos will clear the 5AT knuckles even with the bracket. Option B also would require an upgrade to a larger rotor than the 12.2" rotor. Perhaps more along the lines of 13" rotors at minimum.

https://acurazine.com/forums/showthr...bo+swap&page=2

binhsterbinh

Update: I got factory 04-06 Acura TL (17x8) wheels fit with this setup; however, the wheel weights were incredibly close to the calipers. Since I just use factory wheels for 4 wheel alignments, I went ahead and scraped off the weights. Also the custom bracket studs which are radially mounted had to get shaved down slightly to clear the inside of the wheel as well. I'd imagine a 13" rotor may not fit on 17's since the caliper would sit 1/4" further out towards the inside of the rim, especially with wheel weights.

bmwproboi05

man should of posted pics of the hole process llol

gatrhumpy

iTrader: (1)

Would these calipers work on an 04 V6 Accord with the HFP Silver Star wheels? Would I just need the caliper mounting bracket?

stillhere153

iTrader: (1)

^ on the av6, on the wheels (those wheels offer no big brake clearance)

gatrhumpy

iTrader: (1)

So I would need at least 18" wheels?

binhsterbinh

Not necessarily, but it's be a heck of a lot easier to clear assuming the offset and spokes of the wheels can clear. Here are pictures of my car after I fitted the stock 04-06 TL wheels:

DWL TL 06

how much for the brackets?? where can i get them???

binhsterbinh

Aluminum Brackets were about ~$120. Member NVA-AV6 made mine. It's not just a simple rectangle bracket like most would think. Paul provided everything I needed to install (i.e. high quality bolts, washers, fit check process to accommodate my rotor choice).

Anarchy919

iTrader: (4)

So is he making them and selling them or was it a one off thing for you?

Souljah

I'm sure it isn't a mass production thing but Paul is the man and does top notch work.
Just PM him and I'm sure he'll help you out.

I hate cars

Now if only Paul would do a bracket for a 2 piston rear setup on a larger rotor. I don't care what anyone says, if you have the bias setup for minimum stopping distances, the rears are not adequate if you track it hard.

Under track conditions, my rears are not adequate. I have Rotora slotted stock size in the rear and Cobalt pads which are being swapped to EBC Yellows due to their very high friction coefficient (.6) to help with rear bias even more.

My rears are starting to see 1,000 degrees while the front 13" Rotoras are seeing 590-ish degrees. I would really like a cheap rear rotor upgrade but if I have to wait till tax return time, I guess I can always do a 13" Rotora set in the rear too.

tenzingsherpa

^^ im pretty sure he does?? i think i remeber somewhere on v6net that he made a 2 piston rear caliper conversion. im trying to think cause it was either nsx rear calipers or something else?? the cool thing about paul is if u got the $$ for fabrication he will basically fab ANYTHING FOR YOU, heck he is making me a custom intake manifold from scratch.

now someones gotta pay the dough so we can see some individual throttle bodies on our cars

binhsterbinh

Paul can definitely fabricate a bracket for a 2 piston caliper(ie rotora/wilwood) no problem, but the issue is the sourcing of the rotors. The TL/TSX have an integrated drum parking brake inside the rear rotor. I think only Rotora has a larger than stock rear rotor that will be applicable on a TL/TSX rear brakes. They are oversized 2-piece 330mm x 30mm (~13"). Those rotors alone would cost in ballpark of $350-400 per pair. Add the calipers of your choice at $300-$500 and the $120-$150 custom bracket and you're looking at about $1000. At that price point, the full 13" Rotora Rear BBK seems like a reasonable price and a whole lot less effort. One thing to remember is that Paul will need an actual rotor and caliper shipped to his address in order for him to mock it up and fab the bracket.

Fastbrakes has a TSX 12" rear brake kit upgrade including the rotors and adapter kit for $275. I'm not sure if that will fit the 3G TL though. Stock rotors are 289mm x 9mm non-vented.

Fastbrakes also carry a 3G TL Rear 4-piston Wilwood Caliper kit for $685 without rotors or $755 with rotors. These are designed for use with stock sized rotors though. I'm pretty sure using the stock non-vented rotors with 4-pistons only equates to heat related issues.

24no7

iTrader: (2)

where can i get these:

Specs:
Racing Brake 320mm (12.6")
EBC Yellowstuff Pads
Custom aluminum brackets

binhsterbinh

Marcus at Healtoe Auto can get you the rotors and EBC yellow 2006 RL pads. He works closely with RacingBrake and can have the 07+ Base 350Z rotors or the 13" 350Z (for brembo calipers) rotors shipped to you. He can also have the EBC pads drop shipped to you. Give him a call.

As for the brackets, contact member NVA-AV6. He'll be able to custom fabricate your aluminum brackets. He might already have a rotor and set of calipers to do the mockup.

brint

I have an 3G 06 tl A.T. What parts to I need to upgrade to the OEM M.T. Brembo set up? Calipers,rotors, and knuckles (all oem) Anything else i need? I'm planning on using green stuff pads.

handsom-hustla

iTrader: (3)

on top of the cailpers,

45018-SEP-A60 CALIPER SUB-ASSY., R. FR. -calipers with pins and spring
45019-SEP-A51 CALIPER SUB-ASSY., L. FR. -calipers with pins and spring

45022-SEP-A60 PAD SET, FR.- Brembo OEM pads

51210-SEP-A01 KNUCKLE, R. FR.
51215-SEP-A01 KNUCKLE, L. FR.

57450-SEP-A01 SENSOR ASSY., R. FR. -wheel speed sensor (if req'd)
57455-SEP-A01 SENSOR ASSY., L. FR. -wheel speed sensor (if req'd)

45251-SEP-A51 DISK, FR. BRAKE (17 in.) x2 -rotors,Brembo blanks

45255-SEP-A50 SPLASH GUARD, R. FR. -backing plate
45256-SEP-A50 SPLASH GUARD, L. FR. -backing plate

90651-SEP-A50 CLIP, R. CALIPER x2 -shim between bolt,knuckle and caliper
90656-SEP-A50 CLIP, L. CALIPER x2 -shim between bolt,knuckle and caliper

90107-SEP-A50 BOLT, CALIPER MOUNT x4-caliper to knuckle bolts

01464-SEP-A50 HOSE SET, R. FR. BRAKE- flex hose with brakets and clips
01465-SEP-A50 HOSE SET, L. FR. BRAKE- flex hose with brackets and clips

46335-SEP-A50 PIPE G, R. BRAKE - flex hose to caliper steel line
PIPE G, L. BRAKE - flex hose to caliper steel line

got this from a member here selling his calipers..

https://acurazine.com/forums/car-parts-sale-361/3g-tl-bbk-ss-brake-lines-rotors-810466/

make friends with the search option.!!GL

VELASTL1210

looks really good great jpb