Sport Edition Brakes vs. Tundra Brake (Upgrade)

[Flatulento]

I did the TBU 199 last year. I have the split 3 wheels and wanted to keep them and didn't want to use spacers. They work great, however if I had the 5 star wheels I would have gone with 231's. Price is very similar. Here is what I used and associated prices at the time.
2005 Tundra 4x4 V8

Rotors $44.39 x 2 Advance Auto (20% online discount) YH145291

Calipers $66.39 x 2 Advance Auto (20% online discount) SLC9688 & SLC9689 (S13WE)

Pads $21.99 Advance Auto MKD812

Brake Fluid Dot4 $7.99

Brake Cleaner $2.50

Bleeder Tool $1.71

Tax (7.96%) 20.36

Total = $276.12

 

[Unner]

Do remember to inspect the rear drums as well. The stock brakes work fantastic when all four corners have new parts.

That's what I'm thinking. I doubt Toyota would put out a car that would just eat through rotors like most people claim. My plan here sometime shortly is to replace my rear shoes with stock OEM ones because people seem to have a lot of fitment issues with aftermarket, and then get brembo rotors and akebono pads for the front to replace my warped rotors upfront. I should be able to do all of this for like $225 installed myself.

 

[skcolb]

I always read all these TBU threads but I don't really see anything talking about the way the brake pedal feel changes. (I describe it as having to push through a dead spot in the peddle till you get to any true braking force.) is this normal for others? Has anyone figure out how to fix this?

I'm also curious to hear from others about how the TBU brakes feel. What you describe sort of makes sense since the caliper is bigger and you'll have a longer "soft area" between where the pads make contact and you get any actual stopping force.

 

[CO_FlyFisher]

Did my 199mm TBU awhile back (link), and all I can say is that I wished I had done it several years sooner.

Pedal feel is a bit firmer overall, but it's not too touchy and the truck stops SO much better than it used to. Rear drums were/are fine, and properly adjusted. I tow a lot, and living here in CO, I travel up to the mountains quite frequently. The front end of the truck used to shake like a bucking bronco coming down I-70 out of the mountains with all of the idiots riding their brakes. It's butter smooth now with the TBU.

It has been awhile, but I'm 99% sure that the 231mm Tundra/Sequoia calipers require a bit of grinding to fit under the 16" 5-spoke star wheels like are on my 1999. My memory says only the 199mm calipers fit w/o modification, which is why I selected them.

Finally, while they ARE more expensive, I highly recommend the factory Tundra pads.

 

[Robb235]

I've had the 231mm TBU for about two and a half years now. Autozone calipers, with Duralast rotors and Duralast Gold pads. So far they're holding up just fine. I sure am glad I have them when I'm towing, and also just for driving around in general. Makes stopping so much more pleasant. I recommend against the Duralast CMAX Gold pads, and highly recommend the Duralast Gold pads.

 

[hawaiian05]

Do remember to inspect the rear drums as well. The stock brakes work fantastic when all four corners have new parts.

Very good and well overlooked point. I make a habit of doing a rear brake service every time I rotate the tires to assure I'm getting the most outta my vehicle's stock potential.

Aside front that, I'm glad to hear that the TBU results are as noticeable and great as they are mentioned. I wasn't aware how much people opt to do the 199 upgrade, but good to know that even that is a noticeable difference. Definitely moving this up the list on my priorities/ to do list.

BTW, 4TH GEN 4RUNNER V8 4WD FOR SALE- $17K

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/sale-...06-4runner-sport-v8-4wd-$17-500-boise-id.html

 

[DFW_shooter]

Do remember to inspect the rear drums as well. The stock brakes work fantastic when all four corners have new parts.

This is a great point. I bought my first 4runner in 2012. It's my wife's daily. After 4 sets of rotors, and her mentioning that her e-brake no workie, I FINALLY pulled the drums apart.

I rebuilt all 4 corners and it's been a world of difference.

 

[T4R2014]

That's what I'm thinking. I doubt Toyota would put out a car that would just eat through rotors like most people claim. My plan here sometime shortly is to replace my rear shoes with stock OEM ones because people seem to have a lot of fitment issues with aftermarket, and then get brembo rotors and akebono pads for the front to replace my warped rotors upfront. I should be able to do all of this for like $225 installed myself.

Very good and well overlooked point. I make a habit of doing a rear brake service every time I rotate the tires to assure I'm getting the most outta my vehicle's stock potential.

Aside front that, I'm glad to hear that the TBU results are as noticeable and great as they are mentioned. I wasn't aware how much people opt to do the 199 upgrade, but good to know that even that is a noticeable difference. Definitely moving this up the list on my priorities/ to do list.

This is a great point. I bought my first 4runner in 2012. It's my wife's daily. After 4 sets of rotors, and her mentioning that her e-brake no workie, I FINALLY pulled the drums apart.

I rebuilt all 4 corners and it's been a world of difference.

Yup. OEM shoes are the best. Nobody really makes brake drum components for these trucks(or any drum setup for that matter) that are really "performance" oriented in their advertising and because of this, the rear drums go forgotten. All the TBU comparisons involve the Tundra parts against worn front brakes and unknown condition rear brakes. I have only warped one set of rotors and from what I recall they were the originals after 17 years. This is with lots of stop and go driving as well as an occasional load.

 

[CO_FlyFisher]

I wasn't aware how much people opt to do the 199 upgrade, but good to know that even that is a noticeable difference. Definitely moving this up the list on my priorities/ to do list.

The 199mm/231mm TBU use the exact same brake rotors, FYI. I don't recall exactly, but I seem to remember that the pads between both the 199mm/231mm were the same too, but I could be wrong on that. If memory serves, the only real difference was in the caliper, where the larger 231mm could dissipate more heat, faster.

Either way, except for maybe the most extreme cases, the 199mm TBU is sufficient for the 3rd Gen 4Runner. No cutting or grinding involved either, and usually the calipers are a fair bit less expensive than the 231mm.

 

[Mgyver1]

It has been awhile, but I'm 99% sure that the 231mm Tundra/Sequoia calipers require a bit of grinding to fit under the 16" 5-spoke star wheels like are on my 1999. My memory says only the 199mm calipers fit w/o modification, which is why I selected them.

Finally, while they ARE more expensive, I highly recommend the factory Tundra pads.

Nope, they fit under the 5 stars just fine. You have to trim a small amount of the dust shield but it is very easy. It's the 16" split spokes that don't fit without grinding or spacers.

 

[hawaiian05]

The 199mm/231mm TBU use the exact same brake rotors, FYI. I don't recall exactly, but I seem to remember that the pads between both the 199mm/231mm were the same too, but I could be wrong on that. If memory serves, the only real difference was in the caliper, where the larger 231mm could dissipate more heat, faster.

Either way, except for maybe the most extreme cases, the 199mm TBU is sufficient for the 3rd Gen 4Runner. No cutting or grinding involved either, and usually the calipers are a fair bit less expensive than the 231mm.

The 231's have the same rotor but bigger calipers and bigger pads. The bigger caliper accommodates a bigger pad which equals more surface area and heat dissipation as you mentioned.

But as you stated, no cutting and from what I hear, more than adequate for a 3rd gen. I guess my thought is the simple bigger is better (at least for brakes). Decisions decisions...

 

[ElGuapo315]

2x these rotors
Duralast/Brake Rotor - Front 31267 at AutoZone.com

Reman'd calipers
Duralast Reman/Brake Caliper - Front C9951 at AutoZone.com
Duralast Reman/Brake Caliper - Front C9950 at AutoZone.com - 1 reviews

Pads. I used the gold ones. They're probably not much better than the cheapest Duralast pads that they offer, but I chose them anyways.
Duralast Gold/Brake Pads - Front DG976 at AutoZone.com

Thanks so much for this. Used this exactly as my shopping list. Base 2002 with 270K went from 15 inch brakes to these 231s. What a huge difference. Only had to grind the corners off the dust shield and bend it away from the rotor. One of the easiest upgrades I've done. Oh, and I'm running 4th gen Sport 17s. Obviously no clearance issues.