I want this car to stop
At this stage of the build I wanted to focus on some particular components that while ok, were less than ideal if we add more power later. That and a few cosmetic updates too.
The 328i I purchased did not come with the OEM M Sport Brake Upgrade, so this was on my radar from Day 1 to rectify. For those that aren't full bottle of F30 braking packages, the 328i M Sport does not come with Brembo 4 piston front and 2 piston rear calipers with larger rotors as standard. In order to get this upgrade, the original owner needed to pay approx $600 when they ordered the car. Had we purchased it new this would have been a no-brainer as the OEM calipers are underwhelming.
As many other 328 or similar owners may be aware, if you want to add this braking system as an aftermarket upgrade, the cost jumps substantially to more than $2,500 for the kit. Even a used set of M Sport Brembo calipers runs at around $1,000.
Brembo's on a Budget
As luck would have it though the F30 335i in its base trim i.e. not with the Blue M Sport upgraded brakes, comes with a set of 4 piston front calipers designed to run a larger 340mm rotor, they still have a single piston rear caliper. Now this set of calipers is often ignored as its grey and unpainted, but its effectively the same front caliper that you get in the upgraded M Sport braking system just without the blue paint and M badge.
Having scoured all manner of online market places I happened upon a set of these grey Brembo's, for sale at a wrecking yard for a steal!! Thank you very much - I really think it was a mistake and they had priced them without realising they were Brembo's.
With those in hand, I ordered a set of Slotted 335i front rotors (340mm instead of 330mm) from DBA, then set about painting the yucky grey calipers into the shiny gloss blue, with some custom M decals thanks to Riot Vinyls to finish them off.
While I haven't yet gotten to doing the rear calipers. Overall with the larger Brembos up front on a set of quality DBA Slotted rotors the braking performance has improved significantly. The car was due a new set of pads anyway, so timing was ideal. The whole thing was a direct swap with no brackets or fabrication needed. Original dust guards were retained and the cost was extremely low when compared to going with the M Sport Kit or an M Performance kit.
Plus now they look a whole lot better sitting behind my Gold wheels.
