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Originally Posted by demonz
Full moon tonight  I'll try this again. Can anyone tell me if there is an actual difference between the CALIPERS of the base vs. S besides the paint. They look identical. |
1) 1 difference is the caliper will be wider to fit around a wider rotor
2) the brake pads, iirc, are larger on the S brakes.
So, with S brakes you get a) larger caliper b) larger rotor c) larger pads. Those three differences will allow slightly better braking performance when "cold" and likely much better performance when "hot" due to better heat management capabilities.
The penalty for the larger brakes, potentially, is greater unsprung mass (larger often = heavier, unless you go to PCCBs)
Lots of folks who track upgrade brakes because of the perceived benefits. Mostly what they acheive is greater "heat management" abilities. If your "stock" brakes can cause them to lock up, then you effectively have "enough brake". If you can't lock the brakes (imagine your abs was disabled) then you could benefit from larger brakes.
Porsche brakes are designed to handle REPEATED, high speed stops with no loss of performance. The S brakes are perhaps as much "marketing" as functional. You can say you have "911" brakes
and yes, at the track, they are an improvement over stock brakes.
You could also put your money into using high quality DOT4 brake fluid, changing more frequently than the Porsche recommended 2yr interval, and use more abrasive/better pads in your stock calipers. If you can find a way to increase airflow over your brakes, even better
If you track the car the boxster S big reds are better than the base brakes. If you are just driving it on the street the base brake are more than adequate. Nuff said.
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