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New 12" brakes on '96 850 R

Help, Advice and DIY Tutorials on Volvo's P80 platform cars -- Volvo's 1990s "bread and butter" cars -- powered by the ubiquitous and durable Volvo inline 5-cylinder engine.

1992 - 1997 850, including 850 R, 850 T-5R, 850 T-5, 850 GLT
1997 - 2000 S70, S70 AWD
1997 - 2000 V70, V70 AWD
1997 - 2000 V70-XC
1997 - 2004 C70
This topic is in the MVS Volvo Repair Database » 302mm Brake Upgrade DIY, Photos & Notes
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ojdorson
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Joined: 14 June 2010
Year and Model: 850R, 1996
Location: Chicago, IL
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Volvo Repair Database New 12" brakes on '96 850 R

Post by ojdorson »

I just finished doing all the front brakes from the flex lines out.
Here's the list of parts I went with; My thoughts on the parts;
  • The rotors look fantastic. They're really clean and the black e-coating is smooth and seems durable. They ship in shrink wrap inside a box. In my first shipment, I got one that was NOT e-coated and looked to have been "handled." Amazon's service is tops and they rushed me out a new one and gave me a return label for the bad one.
    The pads are nice with teflon backing and good tight springs on the inside pad.
    The calipers were so cheap that I felt it made sense to replace them. The new calipers are beautiful and clean and well put together with new hardware (the wonky spring).
    The stainless brake lines are fine - they do not have any rubber doughnut bumpers or anything so I ended up covering them with a piece of silicone hose I had leftover from my Stylin' Motors kit.
    The caliper brackets were perfect and are clear-coated.
I don't add another "front brakes how-to", but I will point out that the line nut on the metal brake lines required a 7/16" line wrench. I didn't have one and the driver's side of mine was well stuck. Also, when you flush the brakes, do all four corners! I didn't have time to do the rears for a couple days and was disappointed in the pedal feel. Now that I've flushed/bled all four corners, things feel really nice. Stopping power feels MUCH better.

Is the 302mm upgrade worth it? It only cost me $78 extra as I needed to do the rest of that stuff anyway. There's an improvement in the way the car stops and I think it's worth it - especially when I factor in the savings I "earned" by doing it myself!

Here are some pictures my daughter and I took during installation. Feel free to ask questions.
Attachments
New/rebuilt caliper on its box
New/rebuilt caliper on its box
The old and busted stuff
The old and busted stuff
New caliper getting ready for it's new, larger bracket
New caliper getting ready for it's new, larger bracket
A blue Volvo box... I don't know why I didn't take a picture of the caliper bracket in it
A blue Volvo box... I don't know why I didn't take a picture of the caliper bracket in it
Here's how to hold the rotor while you break loose the locator pin
Here's how to hold the rotor while you break loose the locator pin
Lubing up the new bracket
Lubing up the new bracket
Lube on the pad's springs and on the piston's top ring surface... this pad has been snapped into the piston and removed - I forget why.
Lube on the pad's springs and on the piston's top ring surface... this pad has been snapped into the piston and removed - I forget why.
New outside pad laid into the lubed caliper bracket
New outside pad laid into the lubed caliper bracket
Everything fit really nicely - the spring was a pain, of course, but it all came together nicely
Everything fit really nicely - the spring was a pain, of course, but it all came together nicely
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FCPEURO
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Post by FCPEURO »

The parts you used looks like they are very good quality. Also, nice little how to you put together.
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ojdorson
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Joined: 14 June 2010
Year and Model: 850R, 1996
Location: Chicago, IL
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Post by ojdorson »

I'm currently trying to sort out a shaking issue at highway speeds. I'm going to make a separate question post and report back here once I get it straightened out.
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ojdorson
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Year and Model: 850R, 1996
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Post by ojdorson »

Okay, the shaking was my fault. I got replacements and followed the bedding procedure recommended to my by Centric's tech support and they're smooth and quiet now after more than a week. The bedding procedure is basically NO bedding procedure. Just take the car for a spirited test drive and make sure the brakes are stopping right. So, after all this, I'm really pleased with the front brakes.

Next up... full suspension replacement and I'm hoping to sneak in an exhaust upgrade.
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matthew1  
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Post by matthew1 »

Great post and photos, ojdorson. This is going in the Performance & Horsepower section of the VRD. (Give it a day or two.)
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ojdorson
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Joined: 14 June 2010
Year and Model: 850R, 1996
Location: Chicago, IL
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Post by ojdorson »

Thanks a lot! I hope it's helpful to others - as all the other stuff here has been so helpful to me.
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Red-Arrow
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Post by Red-Arrow »

I can't be reading this right. It cost $33 for the caliper?

Centric Parts 141.39037 Semi Loaded Friction Caliper

is that an actual caliper? I just can't believe it is that cheap!

Have you mounted this caliper and big brake disc inside a 16 inch alloy wheel?

fingers crossed you say yes on both counts.
Life would be enjoyable if it wasn't so painful to live.
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RyanGLT
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Joined: 6 November 2010
Year and Model: '07 XC90 V8 AWD
Location: Topeka, KS

Post by RyanGLT »

Good stuff, Ojdorson. I used a Centric rebuilt caliper on my 850 when I did my brakes a few months ago. Very nice work they do with those parts. I wanna say I went through RockAuto and got the caliper for 27 dollars.
'07 XC90 V8 AWD
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ojdorson
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Joined: 14 June 2010
Year and Model: 850R, 1996
Location: Chicago, IL
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Post by ojdorson »

Red-Arrow wrote:I can't be reading this right. It cost $33 for the caliper?

Centric Parts 141.39037 Semi Loaded Friction Caliper

is that an actual caliper? I just can't believe it is that cheap!

Have you mounted this caliper and big brake disc inside a 16 inch alloy wheel?

fingers crossed you say yes on both counts.
You're reading right. The calipers were $33. They came complete with the smaller caliper brackets for the 850, so I just had to move them onto the larger brackets I got from Tasca.

I have a R with 17" Volans. This brake setup will work behind many 16" wheels, but not Columbas. Search here and VolvoSpeed - there's a write-up on VS where someone grinded down som of the extra material on the outside of the caliper to make them fit.
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FlyingVolvo
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Post by FlyingVolvo »

I can back it up to! I got rebuilt Centric calipers from Amazon for low $30s. Very high quality rebuilds!
2000 V70XC - 340,000 miles
Hilton Tune, 16T Turbo, Mototec 3" downpipe, Blue injectors, IPD Short Ram Filter, Snabb Intake Piping & RIP kit, do88 Intercooler, TME Dual Exhaust, HID Projectors, R Panels, do88 Silicone Hoses

2023 V60 T8 PE
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