Mk1 Brakes Question

[Stu]

Hi All,

I need to improve the braking on my Mk1 Polo. It's currently all standard and I don't want to alter it too much so I thought as a first step I'd change the discs/pads to good standard ones, have a look at the drums and renew the fluid/bleed the system.

I know Mk1 brakes are never great but mine need to be better as I want to teach my g/f to drive in the car (cue impending arguments! )

Any tips for decent disc/pads? Are they the same size & fitment as Mk2 or Mk3 Polo stuff, or maybe Mk1 Golf stuff? I use ATE 'power discs' and pagid Fast Road pads on my Golf and they seem very good.

Any help much appreciated, ideally I'd like to pick up some bits this weekend at VW Alltypes show.

Cheers

Stu

[86C]

I'm running a G40 set up on my Mk.1 using Black Diamond discs and Pagid pads(for now, 256mm brakes pending) I've also adapted the cross linkage from a Scirocco so I now have servo'd brakes. Works very well. I also have Power Discs on my Mk.1 Golf cabrio and these too are good but the Pagid Fast Road pads that I currently have with them are not worth the extra money at all as I can still get them to 'fade' after a good thrash round the country lanes where I live.

[Stu]

86C - cheers for the info! What size are G40 brakes then, are they 239mm like Mk1 Golf GTI ones? If I went for something like that would they fit under the standard Mk polo 13inch steelies I have on there?

Forgive my ignorance but what size are the standard Mk1 polo brakes I already have, I know they are solid disks but are they already 239mm?

I'd be very interested in any more details or pics on how you've adapted a Scirocco cross linkage so you can servo the Mk1 brakes as I feel that is the main weak point, having no servo I mean. I'd be very keen on doing a similar job on my Polo as apart from the brakes it's a great car.

What engine are you running in your Mk1... must be something powerful to need those brakes!

[86C]

The G40 brakes are no different in size to standard except they're vented. They should fit under your steelies(but may need minor mods depending on the offset) The thing with these is that upgraded discs are readily available. The servo conversion was done when I was bored one weekend. I honestly never expected it to work but it does! It's no drop in fit though. It has to be shortened and played about with to fit. I have a BRM brake servo conversion available if you want it(direct acting, no cross linkage! ) I would have used it but I'm running an injection engine and it fouls on the injector rail

[Stu]

The G40 brakes are no different in size to standard except they're vented. They should fit under your steelies(but may need minor mods depending on the offset) The thing with these is that upgraded discs are readily available.

Ah right, would I need different calipers then for G40 discs or will the standard ones fit as you can use thinner pads with them? Sorry for all the questions but this could be the answer to getting my Mk1 suitable for my g/f to learn to drive in.

The servo conversion was done when I was bored one weekend. I honestly never expected it to work but it does! It's no drop in fit though. It has to be shortened and played about with to fit. I have a BRM brake servo conversion available if you want it(direct acting, no cross linkage! ) I would have used it but I'm running an injection engine and it fouls on the injector rail

That sounds great, how much do you want for it? Was the BRM servo a direct fit for the RHD Mk1 Polo then? Didn't realise one was made but from old VW motoring mags etc I remember they made ones for the Mk1 Golf and beefier cross linkages etc.

How does the BRM servo fit then, do you need a different master cylinder to go with it? There isn't a lot of clearance between the end of the standard master cylinder and the cambelt cover on my car already by the looks of things?

Let me know what you want for it and if I'd need any other bits to fit it, sounds like exactly what I'm after. Much appreciated!