The past month has been rather crazy with all the wildfires in California, plus we had a few weeks of > 105F temps so the garage was both smoky and hot! Now that things have cleared up a bit, the air isn’t as hazardous, and the temps are in the 60s at night! Whew! 2020 needs to be over already!
One item I’ve been holding off on was the parking brake setup. I know the classic style is to have a hand-pull emergency brake/parking brake. With all the new technology going into this car, I really wanted to upgrade to the electric power brakes to simplify the aesthetics, but also ensure that the parking brake will hold the car where it’s at. This will give a little bit of space back to the passenger since the handle will no longer be there!
Initially I was going to use the E-Stopp electric parking brake, it uses a motor to pull the cables and lock the brakes. It was better IMHO than just pulling the handbrake. But then came the Wilwood kit – no cables, no junctions, just electrical wiring as the motors are built into the calipers themselves!
The Wilwood Kit that I ordered that fits the .81″ rotors is 950-140-15978-BK
if you want Red it will be 950-140-15978-RD. When I first opened the kit, the motors on the calipers look pretty beefy. I initially test fit, and UGH they interfered with the springs! I was instantly defeated… check out the pics below…
But I hadn’t checked the directions yet! Fortunately, the sides are swappable! Mount the EPB calipers per the installation instructions included with your specific Wilwood brake kit. EPB calipers are left and right handed, however they can be used on either side of the vehicle to best suit your specific application.
I swapped sides, and voila! they fit!
Now the physical part is done, now I have to wire it all together! This was really exciting to ensure this part fits! The new calipers weigh about 1.6lbs more than the MC-4 models but that’s relatively small.
Update: My buddy Tony stopped by (he’s building one too!) and we test fit the wiring. I had to remove the caliper to slide the plug from the harness onto the motor – and there is still clearance! I’ll reach out to Wilwood to see if they could do a 90-degree plug that would add a lot more room. I’ll use a ziptie to ensure the wires are snug against the plug. The kit is excellent – great wiring, and the switch looks great! Pics are below!
