Brake Swap Information thread

[TorqueEffect]

I figured since no one else has done one I would go ahead and do a small gathering of information for people wanting to do brake swaps. Please correct me if you find any of my information is incorrect, and add info if I failed to include it.


The only thing that any of these brake swaps require swapping out besides the brakes themselves, is the brake hoses, and outer tie-rod ends.




Front and Rear Brake Swap Donors

1994-1997 (aka all Aspires) Ford Aspire brakes will bolt right up to any year Festiva, rear brakes requiring the swap of the rear beam.
Automatic Transmission Ford Aspires having a bigger front brake setup over the Manual Transmission Ford Aspires, so ideally to get the most out of your swap, you will want to look for an Auto Ford Aspire.

The one negative about Ford Aspires is they are becoming a rare breed in junkyards, yet they are still required if you want to swap out the rear brakes, as no other model car has been found yet with a rear beam or setup that will bolt in place, but for front brake swaps Kia Rios are much easier to find.




Front Brake Swap Donors (Rear Brakes off a Rio WILL NOT WORK, so don't ask.)

2001-2005 Kia Rios Front brakes will all bolt right up. 2003-2005 having larger brake setups than the 2001-2002 models.

2001-2002 Kia Rios brakes will require at least 13" wheels. These brakes are identical to the one used on Automatic Ford Aspires (Even down to the part numbers), except for 2002 Rios built after 7/01/02, those Rios use bigger brake pads and different brake hardware, but keep the same calipers and rotors.

2003-2005 Kia Rios brakes will require at least 14" wheels
These are by far the biggest brake option you have for the Festiva.

[Bert]

Obtaining an Aspire/Avella beam is fast becoming the Achilles tendon for current aspirations of better and easier to maintain brakes on Festys! Two thirds of physical braking of a car takes place at the front so a Rio swap is definitely the way to go if you can't wait. The solid, captive and tiny front rotors of Festys are primitive and a curse to service. The primary reason you want Aspire fixins at the back (aside from wider wheel stance, conveniently larger drums, stiffer beam and sturdier brackets) is for the Aspire/Rio/'modern car' compatible 4 x 100 wheel bolt pattern. Advancedynamics (Charlie!) managed to retain a Festy beam and rear brakes on his trailblazer 'Tweak' via doctoring the hubs and drums over to 4 x100. It can be done!
Seeing as rolling Aspires are mostly extinct and boneyard donor cars have all but disappeared perhaps this is opportune to explore rear mods that are in keeping with universal 4 x 100 wheels and Rio brake swaps. Where I am in the 'salt belt' early Rios (pre-2005) have already disappeared from the roads, boneyards and U-Pulls so even this particular Festy mod proposition is finite!

[F3BZ]

isn't there some critical info missing? pretend this is the first time you ever even heard that aspire brakes can be put on a festiva. do you need the aspire knuckles or will the calipers bolt to the festiva knuckles? can you keep the festiva halfshafts or do you need the ones from an aspire? does it matter if it's ATX or MT? will the festiva brake hoses work on an aspire conversion? do you need to use an aspire parking brake cable or aspire beam brackets for a rear brake conversion? do you need the aspire struts, springs? will you need an alignment after the swap? can you keep the festiva brake booster? some, most, or all of the answers might be known by regular or long time readers but i know i still get cornfused cherry-picking bits of information from the 1000 aspire brake swap threads that have accumulated over the years. by now there's no reason this thread can't be THE last word for experts and novices alike by listing what parts are absolutely necessary. what parts might be a nice upgrade but not necessary, and any special considerations (if there are any) between ATX and MT applications.

[navdoc101]

Okay, here goes.
Aspire Knuckles - yes
Festy CVA's
ATX or MTX don't matter , MTX better, Rotors wider/thicker.
Festy brake hoses will work , Aspire's are longer, easier to use.
Festy parking brake cable will work, Aspire's is longer, easier to install.
Get the beam brackets with the beam, easier to install as one piece.
Struts - ? not sure.
Aspire springs are longer & heavier/stiffer, you will need to cut to maintain stock Festy ride hight.
Alignment= Yes.
Festy brake booser will work. Aspire or EGT master cyliner is better.

There is a good write up in Fourm Articals by Slyder.
Articals - Suspension & Brakes - Aspire Brake Swap How To.

Someone please correct or add to this.
Eurotiva did mine & I kindda helped.

[Team Lightning]

Aspire ATX rotors are wider as are the calipers not the MTX.

[navdoc101]

Yep, my mistake.
I did mean ATX rotors, not Manual Trans rotors.
Thanks for catching that Team Lightning.
Also I forgot you need Aspire tie rod ends.

[F3BZ]

actually the caliper body is the same. it's the outer removable bracket that determines which thickness rotor can be used. it will be stamped 18V for the MT rotor and 22V for the ATX. pretty sure you can use the bracket from 90's escort/tracer stamped 22V if you want to up size your MT caliper assembly to use aspire ATX rotors.

[Bert]

ATX Aspire rotors are slightly thicker (3/32"?) than MTX Aspire versions, just enough to mess up being able to freely interchange calipers of one type to the other, but not different enough to dispel the notion that any Aspire braking adaptation isn't a vast improvement over OEM Festy brakes.

[TorqueEffect]

See this is why the edit post time limit should be removed. I knew I would accidentally forget important info, and I did. But I can't fix it now because of that stupid little time limit.

[Chobobulous]

I'm pretty sure you can ask a mod to unlock it for you.

[Damkid]

See this is why the edit post time limit should be removed. I knew I would accidentally forget important info, and I did. But I can't fix it now because of that stupid little time limit.

That was put in place from people bickering causing crap then going back to edit what they said so they don't look like the bad guy

[TorqueEffect]

That was put in place from people bickering causing crap then going back to edit what they said so they don't look like the bad guy

Ahh, didn't really think about that. That would be a complete pain in the butt if someone were to do that.

I guess it is the lesser of two evils to just have a time limit on the edit button.

[Damkid]

^^yup exactly