Why are M3 brakes so ugly?

[pooyab]

The calipers are just no. AMGs have those massive AMG lettering on them and even the new Ms have the M logo on the front at least. And aftermarket brakes are expensive so it's not a wise purchase unless you track frequently.

[modkrazy]

Yeah, it's one of the weak-points of the car. The brakes work fine on the street, and if you upgrade lines/fluids/pads, they do just fine for occasional track duty. They look like crap though, it's true.

[mjposner]

Simple solution:

http://www.carid.com/2012-bmw-3-seri...-17896298.html

[bimmerfrk]

Originally Posted by mjposner

Simple solution:

http://www.carid.com/2012-bmw-3-seri...-17896298.html

What is MGP? And how is this better?

[wildwestm3]

Caliper covers = NO!

[Raek]

my solution

U61A6517 small by raek6g6, on Flickr

[Jab555]

Wow those are damn sexy

[Wilsel]

ECS Tuning has a solution for you.
http://www.ecstuning.com/BMW-E92-M3-...011_2012_2013/

[V8FunNaturally]

Originally Posted by Raek

my solution

No, you didn't solve it. "aftermarket brakes are expensive". But yeah the BBB look good.

[V8FunNaturally]

Originally Posted by wildwestm3

Caliper covers = NO!

I had the same reaction, but if they reduce brake dust on the wheels as they claim, hey, i could definitively see a value in that even though i don't like the look of a caliper cover.

[radiofrequency]

My detailer provides an amenable solution to this problem. Through trial and error he has developed a ceramic coating for the hubs and calipers. I went through an initial iteration where the ceramic coating was the same color as the wheels, this helped with appearance but did not look acceptable. He decided that we should go for black and the calipers and hubs were repainted. Initially the coating had a glossy appearance, this did not have an acceptable appearance, and for the next trial we used a coating that would dry with a finish between matte and glossy, this was perfect. With the hubs and calipers painted black, they essentially almost disappear behind the rim, the rim then becomes more prominent to your vision as opposed to your eye being drawn to the rusty looking hubs and calipers. This, for me, was a great solution, and he has performed this service for me on all of my vehicles. For $300 per vehicle, it was well worth it because I don't track my cars and I wasn't prepared to splurge on a Brembo or aftermarket big brake kit. While $300 might seem expensive, it was worth it for me to have the job done in his shop where I wasn't messing with jacking the car up and removing the wheels etcetera. The finish is smooth and looks like it came that way from the factory. Hope this helps.

[Alex07M3]

Originally Posted by Wilsel

ECS Tuning has a solution for you.
http://www.ecstuning.com/BMW-E92-M3-...011_2012_2013/

+1

[Helmsman]

Originally Posted by radiofrequency

My detailer provides an amenable solution to this problem. Through trial and error he has developed a ceramic coating for the hubs and calipers. I went through an initial iteration where the ceramic coating was the same color as the wheels, this helped with appearance but did not look acceptable. He decided that we should go for black and the calipers and hubs were repainted. Initially the coating had a glossy appearance, this did not have an acceptable appearance, and for the next trial we used a coating that would dry with a finish between matte and glossy, this was perfect. With the hubs and calipers painted black, they essentially almost disappear behind the rim, the rim then becomes more prominent to your vision as opposed to your eye being drawn to the rusty looking hubs and calipers. This, for me, was a great solution, and he has performed this service for me on all of my vehicles. For $300 per vehicle, it was well worth it because I don't track my cars and I wasn't prepared to splurge on a Brembo or aftermarket big brake kit. While $300 might seem expensive, it was worth it for me to have the job done in his shop where I wasn't messing with jacking the car up and removing the wheels etcetera. The finish is smooth and looks like it came that way from the factory. Hope this helps.

Pic..?

[Amirsm3]

Originally Posted by Wilsel

ECS Tuning has a solution for you.
http://www.ecstuning.com/BMW-E92-M3-...011_2012_2013/

+2

[Amirsm3]

Originally Posted by Raek

my solution

U61A6517 small by raek6g6, on Flickr

Mine is nowhere near as fancy as yours

[euro*]

Originally Posted by Wilsel

ECS Tuning has a solution for you.
http://www.ecstuning.com/BMW-E92-M3-...011_2012_2013/

looks good, how is it in terms of comparison to like Brembo or Stoptech?

[Flying Ace]

b/c you simply care about how the brakes calipers look...there is simply 1 answer to why AMG car's brakes look so damn cool:

AMG = BECAUSE RACE CAR

[Flying Ace]

Originally Posted by euro*

looks good, how is it in terms of comparison to like Brembo or Stoptech?

it's a Brembo caliper with some custom locally sourced rotors and brackets.

[pooyab]

Originally Posted by Wilsel

ECS Tuning has a solution for you.
http://www.ecstuning.com/BMW-E92-M3-...011_2012_2013/

$2800 and it has the M color and logo. Those are nice.

[Amirsm3]

Originally Posted by euro*

looks good, how is it in terms of comparison to like Brembo or Stoptech?

Originally Posted by Flying Ace

it's a Brembo caliper with some custom locally sourced rotors and brackets.

^^^ That.

In the thread I made, ECS and another member compared piston sizes and the part number for the caliper. It's looking pretty good as far as maintaining the original brake bias and the OEM brake pedal feel.

[Rat3d ///M]

I wanted to post in here earlier today when there were no replies, but my phone won't log me in to this site, and for some reason it's blocked at work.


Anyways, my opinion? As has already been stated, our brakes are great for street use, and maybe even some light track use. They are ugly, sure, but BMW designed the car the way they did for a reason. German's don't care about adding some big ass 6 pot calipers and 26" drilled rotors because it "looks cool". A ton of R&D went into designing this car. I am sure they know what they are doing.

Originally Posted by mjposner

Simple solution:

http://www.carid.com/2012-bmw-3-seri...-17896298.html

I seriously hope you are joking.

[Beemdog]

Originally Posted by ||||||||||

German's don't care about adding some big ass 6 pot calipers and 26" drilled rotors because it "looks cool". A ton of R&D went into designing this car. I am sure they know what they are doing.

I seriously hope you are joking.

26-inch drilled rotors... yeah, bay-beee, that's what I want for Xmas. Maybe they will go with these new rims...