Date: Wed, 14 Apr 2021 04:22:37 -0700
Reply-To: Ben T <syncro@GMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Ben T <syncro@GMAIL.COM>
Subject: Re: Brakes
In-Reply-To: <CAFdLW6msFBaq_ZuwGrEWL=0eLJuDhKczQnWX25vupXACcB87WA@mail.gmail.com>
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The Syncro 16” front discs are solid which are 277mm in diameter. Syncro 14” are 258mm.
Now the early big brake kits from South Africa use 280mm vented discs. They accommodates the larger discs by designing a caliper carrier which mounts the caliper approximately 13mm away from the axle centerline.
Those of us who with Syncro 16” were initially left in the cold. You see the 16” upright has the same 13mm spacing in order to be able to accommodate those 277mm disc while still using the standard caliper carriers from the regular 14” Syncros. If you install an SA big brake caliper or the Audi dual piston G60 calipers, you will find the brake pads sit 1/2” or 13” past the 280mm big brake discs. Well, after many a sleepless nights, I figure you just needed a bigger disc. At the time, I decided on the Mercedes ML320 discs which were conveniently sized at 303mm and was positioned in the correct offset. It also fit two hubs perfectly. The bonus was they were less expensive than any big brake discs by 50%. Back in those days, VAG didn’t have the 312mm discs common today. This was well documented in the Syncro 16” Registry and List in Yahoogroups. Unfortunately, with the demise of YG, only those of us who needed this information kept them in our own drives.
As for the rear brakes, the 16” used rate backing plates and drums from the larger, heavier LT series. These would be the predecessor of the Crafter/Sprinter line. The main difference is they are drilled for 5x112 vs. LT’s came in two other bolt patterns which are not material in this discussion.
If you are concerned about buying a rear disc brake kit from any of the vendors making them for 14” Syncros and Vanagons, you need not worry. The mounts are usually bolted to the backing plate mounting points. These happen to match those on the Syncro 16”. Small Car and Burley used relatively think plate mounts for the calipers. A fellow called Econo on Samba came up with his own discs but used Burley’s mounts. I have some of those. IIRC the new machine mounts which Burley offers now appear to be Epitec mounts. Holman Engineering in the UK offers something equally robust. This is assuming you want to roll your own rear disc system. I made mine way back in 2001.
If you decide to remove the rear drums, there’s guys like me who would love to have them as spares. If you are running a heavy camper, you might want to consider keeping your drums as the small calipers these popular kits do not seem to hold a heavy van as well on steep hills when used as parking brakes. Econo relocated the caliper forward to improve holding power. But he not only stopped making kits, he left Samba a number of years ago.
BenT
> On Apr 13, 2021, at 10:58 AM, Dan N <dn92610@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> on the brake topic...
>
> Does anyone know if a Syncro 16 has bigger brakes than a regular Syncro/2WD
> 14?
>
> thanks
>
>> On Tue, Apr 13, 2021 at 10:33 AM Chris S <szpejankowski@gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> I will be doing the same GoWesty upgrade within a couple of weeks on my
>> Syncro Westy. I will report my experience as well.
>>
>> Chris.
