Tundra Brake (199mm vs 231mm)

Merninater

Merninater

New member
It is time for a brake job and I am set on going with the Tundra brake upgrade. I am going to use napa premiums and make sure I get ceramic pads as I want this brake job to last.

I had read somewhere that it is better to do the 199mm over the 231mm upgrade if you live somewhere where it rains and snows a lot. This is in fact the case where I live so I wanted to check on here why people went with the 199mm over the 231mm?

I do not have an issue with trimming my dust shields I really just want to know why people go with the 199mm upgrade? I do have the 02' 5 star rims for the 199mm should fit without trimming if I decide to go that route.

Please give your OP on the 199mm vs. 231mm upgrade.
 
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Merninater said:
It is time for a brake job and I am set on going with the Tundra brake upgrade. I am going to use napa premiums and make sure I get ceramic pads as I want this brake job to last.

I had read somewhere that it is better to do the 199mm over the 231mm upgrade if you live somewhere where it rains and snows a lot. This is in fact the case where I live so I wanted to check on here why people went with the 199mm over the 231mm?

I do not have an issue with trimming my dust shields I really just want to know why people go with the 199mm upgrade? I do have the 02' 5 star rims for the 199mm should fit without trimming if I decide to go that route.

Please give your OP on the 199mm vs. 231mm upgrade.
Click to expand...

Issue is not many have ran both setups to comment. I will say I have somewhat noticed the ABS issues on my 231's but nothing that I would consider a major issue. But again I do remember a time the front locked, rear did the ABS thing and I almost rear ended someone. I drive in CO weather with just a few times I had issues.
 
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If you want the pads to last get OEM from the dealer. My original stock pads lasted 133,000 but YMMV if you have an auto trans. I have the 231's & they are amazing & I have to be careful not to slam on them too hard. I'm sure I would have been happy with the 199's too over stock. I never read about the snow & rain thing with the 231's. This upcoming winter will my first time using them in the snow so I guess I should be real careful when braking downhill when it's slippery out.
 
Sounds like the abs system really needs a software update to compensate for larger than designed brakes. ABS is great when the software is matched up to the hardware - has saved thousands upon thousands of lives. :cowboy:
 
ABS has sucked in snowy conditions in every vehicle I have ever owned including but not limited to:

1998 Bonneville
1995 Grand Cherokee
2001 Grand Prix
2004 Acura TL
2011 Camry SE V6 (currently own)
2011 Highlander limited (currently own)
1997 4Runner SR5 (currently own)

Some were worse than others but all suck IMO.
 
JayRolla said:
Im going to remove my fuse for the winter. Now that I think about it wife complained of this issue also and said she almost rear ended someone.
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Please update us on how both you feel about it. I'm curious to see if I should do this too.
 
Hmm

Is the 231 really that much better for the Runner vs the 199? I thought the reason they changed it on the Tundra was because it wasn't quite good enough for the large truck, but the Runner is quite a bit lighter. Wondering if the benefits outweigh the headache of not having ABS and the increased upgrade costs.
 
So I am going to go with the 199mms because I frequently am driving in the snow/rain and off road conditions on my jobsites. Is the 199mm from the same 2000-2006 tundra? I just want to know what part(s) to order when I go into NAPA and I don't want to end up getting the 231mm by accident.

EDIT 12/15/16: This is not valid. I just went 02 4runner oem rotors and napa ultra premium pads.
 
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Merninater said:
So I am going to go with the 199mms because I frequently am driving in the snow/rain and off road conditions on my jobsites. Is the 199mm from the same 2000-2006 tundra? I just want to know what part(s) to order when I go into NAPA and I don't want to end up getting the 231mm by accident.
Click to expand...

Order parts for a 2001 and you will be good to go. I just put 199mm Napa Eclipse calipers on mine. Here are the part numbers:

CAL SE3184
CAL SE3183
 
I have driven other autos where the ABS is good, the 3rd gen 4runner definitely isn't one of them. Pulled the fuse years ago, then the light on the dash after installing the 231s.
 
JayRolla said:
Issue is not many have ran both setups to comment. I will say I have somewhat noticed the ABS issues on my 231's but nothing that I would consider a major issue. But again I do remember a time the front locked, rear did the ABS thing and I almost rear ended someone. I drive in CO weather with just a few times I had issues.
Click to expand...

I've only had my 4runner since the end of January. I haven't actually had the ABS go off yet on purpose. I've driven in snow in February and felt it then with stock. I smashed the brakes in the snow just to see how it would react. It didn't seem "bad" or out of the ordinary compared to my other cars, but the brakes in this truck are pretty terrible even in good weather.

My rotors are on their last breath. Still drives fine but it'll be time to change them soon. I was planning to drop in the 231's also but this is the first I'm reading about any ABS issues. What's the deal with this? Is it as big of a deal as everyone's saying? I have a 2001 and from what I just read on the forums, it really is a 96-99 thing? I just want better stopping power and shorter braking distances. I thought the 231's would give me that since the pads are longer (more braking surface area), but now I'm not so sure.
 
My $.02 on the 231 swap -
I put in typical kit and removed the ABS fuse.
They were bled/bedded correctly. I still retain OEM master cylinder.
I can stand on the brakes pretty hard and can't really get it to skid on pavement.
My rear axle seal in leaking, so my rears aren't 100% for sure,
but I figured I could get this thing to stop like a boss...

something must be off somewhere, any ideas?
 
Funny that you asked the question because I stumbled on this same issue last week. I was looking at SS's brake upgrade kit and they have some pretty explicit wording saying they do not recommend 231's because it will cause your ABS to not function properly. From what I've read most everyone with 231's has ABS issues, but I couldn't find anyone with the 199's to confirm that they didn't have issues.
 
Wondering if using the chamfered aftermarket pads instead of the stock (full coverage) Toyota pads with the 231's is pretty much the same as going with the 199's. In this case you'd only need to swap pads to get full stopping power of the 231's.

Can anyone with the 231 calipers and aftermarket pads give any insight on the ABS with this setup?
 
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I've had the 231s for a couple thousand miles and not noticed anything but better braking and no throbbing. But I drive like an old person…wait…I am an old person….

I did a complete rear brake job right before I did the 231s. If you're not using your emergency brake regularly, your rear brakes are likely out of adjustment and the extra load on the front would be more likely to trigger the ABS.

Got me curious, now. You'll find me in a snow covered parking lot doing panic stops as soon as we have snow. :)
 
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