is 380 brakes a good upgrade for AWD

[DSMAZDAGTR]

I was reading through another topic today and made me wonder since there is a larger pad area and thicker disks, are the 380 brakes (fronts at least) a worthwhile upgrade for the AWD.

And is it economical or is there a better option?

I searched for about 2 hours looking for this in the forums, and can't find it really covered anywhere.

[[TUFFTR]]

If its a larger pad area, get 380 brake pads, as the calipers are the same (correct me if i am wrong)
the thickness of the disk will be a bees dick in difference so there would not be a point in changing them

[Dave]

calipers are not the same, the pads will not fit between the two types.

Not worth it either. Yo are better off getting better parts, ie decent discs like 4000 series DBA's and good high performance pads. Also look at braided lines to reduce spongey pedal feel

[DSMAZDAGTR]

calipers are not the same, the pads will not fit between the two types.

Correct.. They are different, but I do not know the differences (only that the pads are about 25% larger).

Not worth it either. Yo are better off getting better parts, ie decent discs like 4000 series DBA's and good high performance pads. Also look at braided lines to reduce spongey pedal feel

But, if I'm replacing the disks with DBA 4000's, then why not replace them with 380 DBA 4000's and then fit 380 calipers too? Surely the cost would not be that great (feel free to correct me if I'm wrong).

I know the next option up is to go with the Evo 4 pot setup but I'm guessing that'll be a large step up in price.

[Oggy]

From the little bit I've read, the 380 brakes are the same as the AWD/Ralliart - maybe different caliper/pads, but disc diameters seemed the same.

After a very quick search from google, I found some potentially conflicting info.
Firstly about the 380 in general, and these 294/284mm are the same as the AWD/Ralliart brakes.

Taking care of deceleration are ("utilising Mitsubishi's extensive rally experience") front ventilated discs measuring 294mm diameter, with big twin-pot calipers, and at the rear are 284mm ventilated discs with single pot calipers. ABS is a standard feature on the 380, as is electronic brakeforce distribution (EBD), and Mitsubishi reckons the upgraded brake system improves stopping distance by 14%.

Second was about the 380 VRX:

and the brakes are quite capable, fitted with ventilated discs front and rear, measuring 294mm and 302mm respectively

maybe they did a typo from 284 to 302 ?? Or does the 380 VRX have bigger rear discs, unlike most other vehicles?

Going further, TMR have some interesting brakes on the TMR 380 and for Lancer EVOs:
TMR 380:

Front Brakes: TMR 6 piston callipers with a 370mm x 32mm ventilated and slotted 2 piece discs
Rear Brakes: TMR 4 piston callipers with a 340mm x 28mm ventilated 2 piece discs.
Front & Rear aircraft quality Steel braided brake lines.

Lancer Evolution:

Front 355mm ventilated disc brakes with 4-pot brake calipers
Rear ventilated disc brakes with 2-pot brake calipers

If either of those can fit an AWD Magna, then they would be an upgrade for sure! 370mm !! Holy big $ bat man!

[DSMAZDAGTR]

The discs are the same diameter according to the DBA catalogue, however the 380 disks have a thickness of 28mm where the AWD/Ralliart have 24mm.

In regards to the pads, the bendix catalogue lists:
380 2005 onwards: DB1778: 189 x 61 x 14
TJ ralliart, TL AWD, TW: DB1223: 150 x 59 x 16

So, my thinkning was that the extra pad area has to improve braking even if it's only a little bit and if the price was right, it would be worthwhile.
I saw a thread that mentioned that someone had fitted the 380 stuff to an AWD but no comments on how they performed in comparison.

[Blue Lightning]

The AWD front calipers are Japanese made while the 380 calipers are Australian made (different suppliers and can't remember their names) but tend to agree with cybermonkey better to put in a better rotor and pads, for a improvement or go to brembos.

[alscall]

Yeah, for the $$ you'll spend getting 380 calipers, new discs, pads etc, you'd be better off upgrading your fronts to brembo's - providing they'll fit behind your wheels. (one or 2 sets on Ebay at the moment - not too $$$ either)

[Alan J]

The advantage of 380 fronts is that the rotor is 4mm thicker so slightly better cooling potential.

However the 380 pad is an orphan size so there is very limited range of friction materials available. The AWD pad is used in lots of applications incl gravel spec EVO rally cars so there are many pad options, all the way up to track pads from Pagid, Ferodo, Endless etc.

Cheers,
Alan

[Dave TJ]

The PBR 380 caliper braket can be modded to suit Corvett pads which gives you a better selection.

Cheers Dave.