gmdh555 Posted February 15, 2004 Share Posted February 15, 2004 Hi, Me and my new 7 went for our first blat up into the peaks this afternoon (Cat & Fiddle etc) and very enjoyable it was too - Sunday drivers were a pain obviously, but it's great how many people see a 7 in their mirror and slow down/wave you through . Anyway, as I haven't driven many Sevens I am not sure what to expect of the brakes. My gut feeling is they're not as good as they could be. I guess I was thinking "stop on a postage stamp" would be about right. Actually, the car can stop pretty quickly, but an almighty shove on the pedal is required to do so. Is that what they call "feel"? One thing that's totally absent is bite, which is fine by me as long as "they all do that". Not something that's easy to discuss in abstract I know, but if I was supposed to be knocked out by the 7's ability to stop then something's not quite right. By the way, it's a 1.8 VX Classic with the standard front discs/rear drums. Cheers, Gareth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe 90 Posted February 15, 2004 Share Posted February 15, 2004 It's worth doing a search, as there are plenty of complaints of a "dead" pedal feel. A change of pads may be beneficial, and the low mileage many cars do doesn't help. Can you lock the wheels up? Back on the road and now at 100,290 miles. Photos here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colincagain Posted February 15, 2004 Share Posted February 15, 2004 that is exactly what i felt when i got into mine for the first time - but the story changed when i got onto a track and they really warmed up - no fade, lots of bite and good feel - but on the road after power assisted everything in a road car - they do feel as though there is nothing there. Pad material is important (i have not found such good pads since my first set)...but you are not alone on your initial reaction. enjoy it colin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gmdh555 Posted February 15, 2004 Author Share Posted February 15, 2004 Thanks for the thoughts. As for locking the wheels - not succeeded yet but I reckon it's possible. Colin - your comments are reassuring. I meant to say that there is some improvement once they're warmed through. I have a trackday booked at the end of the month so lets see if they come to life. If not, I should see off enough of the pads to warrant trying something else . Cheers, Gareth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony C Posted February 15, 2004 Share Posted February 15, 2004 Have a look at the braking blurb in 7FAQ here 😬 BRG Summertime Brooklands SV 😬 It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye. (Antoine de Saint-Exupery) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caterhamnut Posted February 15, 2004 Share Posted February 15, 2004 If one is used to 'modern' servoed brakes, the 7's will feel 'different' certainly. We actually found that changing to sticky tires (stickier than the very old Pilots we did have) made a huge difference to how hard you could stamp on the brakes and just stop. NEW Nurburgring Pictures posted here 55,000miles in 2.5 years Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irrelevant Posted February 15, 2004 Share Posted February 15, 2004 My brakes were rubbish when I first got the car, even though it had very good hardware - vented discs, AP 4 pots, etc. When I got better tyres, the braking massively improved, transformed actually. Brakes are excellent now, feel, bite, progression, all the nice brake associated words..... What tyres do you have? J351 TPE . . . battered old X/Flow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xflow7 Posted February 16, 2004 Share Posted February 16, 2004 Congrats on the new 7. The first blat is a very exciting time. My experience is that my brakes ('99 live axle) took some time to bed in before I started to become confident in them, but they did improve markedly. I have 3000 miles on the car now and they're worlds better than when it was new. Also, if you have the Ital live axle, it pays to keep on top of the rear drum adjustment. Keeping the drums adjusted properly does wonders for pedal travel and feel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xflow7 Posted February 16, 2004 Share Posted February 16, 2004 Oh. One other thing I forgot to mention. My own experience in my Caterham is that it does not respond well at all to sharp "stabbing" of the brake pedal. Smooth brake application is beneficial in all cars, but I have found it particularly so in the Caterham. You can apply the brakes quickly, but it is important that it is an "application" (ie smoothly building to maximum braking effort) rather than just jamming your foot home. Being concious of how I applied the brakes also made an enormous difference for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandy Posted February 16, 2004 Share Posted February 16, 2004 Hey, excellent timing on this thread! I picked up my first seven yesterday afternoon. My initial reaction on the brakes was exactly the same. After driving for a while I was getting more used to them and my confidence was building. Good to hear the brake 'feel' is all normal. Made my drive into work this morning in a sloppy 8 year old Astra estate feel twice as long 2L Zetec home at last Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pierre Gillet Posted February 16, 2004 Share Posted February 16, 2004 Slightly off topic, can anyone recall me the origin of the standard callipers ? Pierre Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anthony Posted February 16, 2004 Share Posted February 16, 2004 Hi, happy to be corrected, by suspect original calipers for Triumph uprights are Spitfire type units along with discs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fanch Posted February 16, 2004 Share Posted February 16, 2004 brakes parts : here Fanch Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheds Moderator Posted February 16, 2004 Share Posted February 16, 2004 They are spitfire bits at the front and yes, the pedal is heavy as there is no assistance. Once you overcome this however and get used to pressing the pedal firmly, the rate of slowing is dramatic and your ability to tell when it is about to lock is enormous. Try some emergency stops on an empty road to prove it. If you still need convincing, slacken your harness an inch or so then try again - you will leave your seat. This once happened to me in the passenger seat of Angus & Tessa's 7, it was quite alarming to be dangling around on the entrance to a roundabout. So yes, they all do it and you will adjust. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caterhamnut Posted February 16, 2004 Share Posted February 16, 2004 😬 O/T I was equally alarmed by the fact that my tires were not quite as warm as I had expected at he rear ISTR Battered! File on its way RIGHT NOW!!! NEW Nurburgring Pictures posted here 55,000miles in 2.5 years Edited by - angus&tessa on 16 Feb 2004 11:46:48 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
puremalt Posted February 16, 2004 Share Posted February 16, 2004 Agree with this. New yokos helped. New fluid has helped even more, I hadn't even thought of that (too many tin tops). They take a shove, but hey, no servo, it's a man's car (sorry girls, you know what I mean) 😳 Excellent! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jwyatt Posted February 16, 2004 Share Posted February 16, 2004 I was shocked by the lack of feel and weight of pressure needed on my Academy car, and a change for the Caterham carbon pads made them better from cold and absolutely miles better hot. The first time I hit the pedal, with the new, unbedded pads, I felt the improvement! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gmdh555 Posted February 16, 2004 Author Share Posted February 16, 2004 Just to let you know I'm knocked out by all the helpful contributions on this thread . From your various comments I'm now sure it's just a case of adjusting my senses to the 7 way of things... Cheers, Gareth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bedazzled Posted February 16, 2004 Share Posted February 16, 2004 I had a VX1.8 (Beaulieu) and the brakes were dreadful, even when I'd got used to the lack of a servo etc. I changed the tyres for some Yoko 21s and it made very little difference. You could try upgrading the pads or going for really sticky tyres (e.g. Yoko 32s) but these will put a strain on the diff and half shafts if you take it on track. You should make sure the rear drums are adjusted so that the fronts just lock up first. It is possible to get an upgrade for the brakes (e.g. upgrade fronts to 4-pot and convert rear to disc brakes) but it's very expensive and a bit over-the-top for a classic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
millsn Posted February 16, 2004 Share Posted February 16, 2004 Common problem can be not having bled the system properly as it takes ages to get all the air out of the rears. When the rears aren't working too well the whole thing feels a bit wooden. Try bleeding the brakes. Nigel Mills - 2.0 Zetec carbs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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