Rear brake caliper HELP

[Mister7]

So I finally got my rear calipers. While trying to install came up with an issue mounting them. See the picture. With the caliper centered over the rotor I would need to add 7 washers as spacers to mount the caliper. What am I doing wrong here?38805

[Mister7]

Here is another photo38806

[christenfreedman]

Looks like your caliper is not compatible with the axle offset...This offset is measured between the outside of the axle flange to the edge of the axle housing...Give us some more details about out axle and that will help...
Chris

[Mister7]

Thanks Chris for te quick reply. I came up wit 3 1/4". I have a 2 piece mount bracket so I was thinking about swapping the 2 pieces which would move the mount bracket out and reduce the amount of spacers required.38807

[christenfreedman]

Axle offset is currently 3.25 and you need it to be 2.50...sounds like fox length axles are needed.

[oldguy668]

I believe your mount bracket is assembled backwards.

[Jeff Kleiner]

The tone rings on your axles indicate that they are 1994-1998 vintage SN95 versions. Looks like your caliper mounts are for Fox width which requires 3/4" shorter axles (without the rings). In this case you'll need either Fox width axles or SN95 caliper mounts. If you opt for the SN95 width axles however your wheel/tire options become limited.

Jeff

[Mister7]

The tone rings on your axles indicate that they are 1994-1998 vintage SN95 versions. Looks like your caliper mounts are for Fox width which requires 3/4" shorter axles (without the rings). In this case you'll need either Fox width axles or SN95 caliper mounts. If you opt for the SN95 width axles however your wheel/tire options become limited.

Jeff

so simply replace the the axles with the older style axles?

[CraigS]

As oldguy said it 'might' work if you moved the red starred bracket to the red outlined area
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y91/craig-s/brake_zpsdufpytq7.jpg

[Jeff Kleiner]

As oldguy said it 'might' work if you moved the red starred bracket to the red outlined area
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y91/craig-s/brake_zpsdufpytq7.jpg

Craig,
He might be able to reconfigure it and make it align with less shimming but he'll still be left with an SN95 width rearend and the limitations it brings.


so simply replace the the axles with the older style axles?

You'll need Fox width 5 lug axles. New are available through Richard Oben at North Racecars or Mike Forte. Another option would be to search out junkyard shafts from a Ranger or Aerostar (2 lefts or 2 rights, I don't remember which). The problem with the boneyard axles, aside from bearing surface wear or possible damage, is that they were used with drum brakes and therefore the O.D. of the pilot stub is smaller than the I.D. of the center hole of the rotor which could result in runout issues.

Jeff

[Mister7]

If I do reposition the bracket outboard it will require removing the sensor ring which shouldn't be a problem. What issues are there with SN95 axels. Going to be using 17" wheels with 275 40 17 tires. BTW thanks for the help guys

Tom

[Jeff Kleiner]

Going to be using 17" wheels with 275 40 17 tires.

SN95 rears are 1.5" wider (.75" per side) than the Fox width that the car was designed around. This moves the wheel and tire outward and can cause tire to body clearance problems. If you choose not to convert your rear end to Fox width by using shorter axle shafts it can be compensated for by adjusting the wheel offset/backspacing (or implementing the Band Aid fix of a higher than usual rear ride height). Least expensive option is generally to change to the shorter axle shafts which allows you more selection with off the shelf wheels.

Jeff

[Mister7]

Jeff, you make a good argument for the fox axels. That's the way I'll go.. Thanks for your help, thanks to the rest of you guys also

[CraigS]

The fox axles are really worth it. Be sure to buy from the guys listed so your wheel and rotor pilots on a correct diameter pilot stub. It's really nice to be able to buy wheels like these for a great price.
http://www.americanmuscle.com/dedibuwh.html
They are cheap because there are a ton of Mustangs out there. There are quite a few other styles also. Just look at the specs for this wheel to use to check other wheels against.