High Tech Train Wreck

Greg55_99

Well-Known Member
Joined
Apr 17, 2011
Messages
331
Reaction score
78
OK, so I got back to my First Gen Dodge Dakota (87-93) in an F-body front suspension project and after some good beer searched the internet and came up with a plan for slightly bigger brakes. Goes like this:

Cut down the stock Dakota 5" x 4.5" disk brake rotors to take 98-02 Ford Crown Vic rotors. Use 95-00 Lexus LS400 aluminum four piston calipers and fab a bracket to hold it all together. Easy, yes? Well, not so bad so far. The Crown Vic rotor is 12.43" and 28.1mm wide. Near identical to a Lexus rotor. The whole shootin' match fits inside a 17" Mustang Bullitt wheel. So far I've got:

$120 machine rotors to hubs
$40 Lexus calipers from a boneyard(they are good!)
$100 Ford Crown Vic rotors
$22 Lexus brake pads

Under $300. I've got to fab the bracket still. Probably need a 1" spacer for the wheels because the caliper overhangs the rotor. Not a deal breaker. Can this be done for other setups? Probably, I'm only doing this one for the Dak suspension.

The other part of this may be "can the 13" Mustang rotors also be used"? Answer is Yes... but. Yes, they will also work, but they have "less hat" than the Crown Vic rotors. That moves the caliper farther away from the steering knuckle and requires a thicker wheel spacer. So yeah, it can also work.

So, if you have enough places on your spindle to bolt "stuff", it might be an option for ANY A, B, C, E, F, M and J body Mopar.

I'm getting back to it...

Dakota_Lexus_brakes_13.jpg


Dakota_Lexus_brakes_12.jpg


Dakota_Lexus_brakes_9.jpg


Dakota_Lexus_brakes_8.jpg


Dakota_Lexus_brakes_3.jpg
 

Greg55_99

Well-Known Member
Joined
Apr 17, 2011
Messages
331
Reaction score
78
Since I'm on vacation for a while, I thought It'd throw this out there. I've had in my stash a set of cruddy 2002 Toyota Tundra four pot S13WE calipers. Out of curiosity, I tried them on my setup. They fit GREAT! That's a problem.. They fit excellent and are inexpensive. However, they weigh about 14 lbs and are made of cast iron. The Lexus and Dakota calipers both weigh in at 7 lbs. The Tundra calipers are a snap to fabricate a bracket for but the Lexus calipers will take some work.

Dakota_Lexus_brakes_15.jpg


Dakota_Lexus_brakes_16.jpg
 

Greg55_99

Well-Known Member
Joined
Apr 17, 2011
Messages
331
Reaction score
78
A quick update and maybe you'll see something you didn't know. I picked up a 12" X 24" X 1\2" thick steel plate ($36) to fabricate the caliper mounting brackets. Made a cardboard template, then drew the outline on the steel plate. Dropped off the plate, template and spindles at the machinist. He'll get back to me fairly soon. In the meantime, my curiosity got the best of me about how this setup would work in other sized wheels. I know it works in 17" and 18" wheels, but what about 15" wheels? It so happens I have a set of 15" Mopar Cop Steelies sitting in the rafters so I got one down to check for a fit. Guess what? It sorta fits. Sorta? Well, when the Dakota hub, Crown Vic rotor and Lexus caliper are placed in the Mopar 15" wheel, the tapered portion of the rim fouls the caliper. BUT, if you run a 1\2" or 3\4" spacer, you've got all the clearance you'd need. So, that's the answer to the question nobody asked.

Dakota_Lexus_brakes_19.jpg


Dakota_Lexus_brakes_20.jpg


Dakota_Lexus_brakes_21.jpg


Dakota_Lexus_brakes_22.jpg
 

Greg55_99

Well-Known Member
Joined
Apr 17, 2011
Messages
331
Reaction score
78
Oh yeah, I finally got my front Dakota crossmember mocked up and ready for some welding. I've finally realized that I'm not qualified to do this part of it myself with my Lincoln Weldpak 100. Got a buddy that's a pro to handle this portion.

Volare_Dak5.jpg
 

Greg55_99

Well-Known Member
Joined
Apr 17, 2011
Messages
331
Reaction score
78
Still no caliper brackets from my machinist, so I took a little time to fool around a little more. I have a complete 1977 Volare FMJ front k-member sitting under my car. It's in the way and I haven't gotten rid of it yet. So, I figured I'd try out my combo on that to see if it works. Looks like it will. I pulled off the F-body caliper and rotor and put on the Dakota hub. The Dakota "hub" is not a match for the FMJ spindle because the bearing sizes are not the same so they are not interchangeable. BUT, for mock up purposes, it's close enough. With the Dakota "hub" on and the Crown Vic rotor on that, there's sufficient clearance to mount the Lexus caliper. Once I put the whole shootin' match together, I cycled the steering lock to lock to verify there was no binding to fouling on the knuckles, pitman arms or drag link. Turns clean. It also looks like an easier mount than the Dakota. OK, now you know.

Lexus_dak22.jpg


Lexus_dak23.jpg


Lexus_dak24.jpg


Lexus_dak25.jpg
 

Greg55_99

Well-Known Member
Joined
Apr 17, 2011
Messages
331
Reaction score
78
So if somebody asks "Can you mount a Lexus 4 piston caliper onto a Mopar passenger car spindle?" The answer looks to me to be "Yes". Of course, the best part is it didn't cost you anything and maybe you learned something. Please don't ask me about master cylinder's and bore sizes. I haven't gotten that far yet. I do know the Lexus master cylinder has a 1" bore size.

Lexus_dak26.jpg


Lexus_dak27.jpg


Lexus_dak28.jpg


Lexus_dak29.jpg
 

BudW

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Mar 4, 2012
Messages
5,121
Reaction score
1,485
Location
Oklahoma City
I read and re-read post 68 and 69.
What are you "thinking" about doing, now?
 

Greg55_99

Well-Known Member
Joined
Apr 17, 2011
Messages
331
Reaction score
78
I'm sticking with the Dakota conversion Bud. I just put those pics and info up for anyone that might be interested in trying this out on a stock FMJ suspension. Won't be me though. I've burned my bridge on that.
 
Back
Top