Here at Ford Muscle, you’re most likely used to reading all about the hottest functionality parts in the industry and the applications they are intended for. It’s not every day that we are invited to see behind the scenes of the progress a particular product, but recently, we all spoke with drag racer Paul Jovanis about Baer’s   Mustang SS4+ Drag Braking system Systems . Jovanis was a fundamental element of the development and evolution procedure, and he was able to give us several insight on the brakes which are constructed for Fox-body Mustangs and several various other applications.

If you’re unfamiliar with Jovanis, you should be. He wields the flawless Deep Shadow Metallic Azure Mustang in NMRA’s True Road category, ripping down the track in an average of seven seconds – that’s after a 30-mile street cruise, with no breaks in between (and simply no popping the hood in the workplace set ups lanes). It’s a far weep from the NMRA Street Outlaw plus Renegade competition, even if it is within the same power range. And truthfully, it’s super impressive to watch. Due to the way Jovanis operates his several, 400-pound Fox, his brakes not just have to stop him at higher speeds in the shutdown area right after trapping somewhere in the ballpark associated with 180 miles per hour (sometimes with no help of a parachute), but they also have to stop on the street, especially while dragging a trailer during Drag 7 days. Reliability is of the utmost importance.

Jovanis tells us that this specific kit was designed for fast, full-weight street cars like his own, plus they were built specifically with many goals in mind. They had to perform nicely on heavy cars, they had in order to last long on street-driven cars, and they also had to offer as much braking strength as possible in “a package that will fits a 15-inch wheel plus double beadlocks in the rear” whilst also looking good. Of utmost importance was that the machine could stand up to the torture that will comes along with events like Drag 7 days. This made for a completely different style than those built to be lightweight using the purpose of slowing down lighter weight drag vehicles, usually with the help of a parachute.

Previously, Jovanis had been making use of Baer’s SN95 Front Spindle Kit with the Dual Caliper Rear Kit for over three years, when he made the switch early in 2015.

That he did so after a series of upgrades including a new Haltech ECU, a brand new DiSomma Racing Engines engine, and a new turbocharger from Forced Inductions . That he says that at the time, he was consistently trapping over 180 miles per hour.

“As the automobile continued to progress from a performance perspective, we were consistently seeing trap speeds over 180 mph, ” he explained. “This made me think more about suspension and alignment and I set out to make some changes to get more positive caster for high speed stability. ”

The SN95 spindles that Jovanis’ Fox-body sported limited his car to about repayments 5 degrees. His wheels were pushed out just slightly because of caliper placement and spindle width. While he admits this wasn’t causing any issues for him, fixing this was on his to-do list when time would allow. Some winter downtime finally brought the project to a start, and he got in touch with Baer to obtain rolling.

Kit Advantages

Jovanis broke down the entire list of advantages that come with the SS4 + Pull Brake System. Installation does not result in extra track width which DOES derive from installation of an SN95 spindle, as well as the caliper is moved in-board, making use of the dust shield bolt openings. This reduces the need for a steering wheel spacer. The kit ships within two boxes, and includes disc brake calipers, brake pads, rotor and hat devices, and -3AN fittings w/ water piping crush washers. It should be noted the kit does not include spindles/hubs or even brake hoses, and while this kit is made to be used with stock Fox-body spindles and hubs, Baer also offers the kit for those utilizing 94-04 Mustang SN95 spindles and hubs.

The included disc brake calipes are of the S4 variety and have four 10mm cross bolts meant for maximum stiffness, as well as stainless steel abutments and noise suppression springs. The particular calipers were designed with an internal all terain design and feature dust and climate seals, as well as hard anodized aluminum pistons. A common 4-piston pad is used for easy replacement. Correct banjo style fittings are used in place of tube thread. Baer offers custom colours, though clear or Fire Reddish are standard, and the machined Baer logo is hand painted. Perhaps on top of that, the calipers are 100% produced in the USA from US-sourced materials.

Going back to that track size point, the track width is almost factory. We say “nearly” due to the intentional. 1-inch built into the disc hat for wheel clearance. Jovanis explains that this is significant since most brake systems change the monitor width without notifying the customer.

The resulting geometry is much better for drag racing in both the particular bump steer and caster sections and is available starting at around $1, 095. 00 depending on choices like caliper color, rotor complete, and more. Baer offers two designs for this kit: one for 1987-1993 Mustang spindles, and the other for your Racecraft 2-inch drop spindle. The particular caliper placement is optimized for every configuration. In the following pictures, you will see the Fox spindle bracket, that is different from the Racecraft 2-inch fall spindle bracket in that it revolves the caliper upward.

Used in the kit really are an one-inch thick directionally vaned 11-inch, 2-piece, slotted, drilled, and zinc-plated rotor with a black anodized aluminum middle. Jovanis says that this type of disc may weigh a bit more than less heavy systems, but it is made to survive the particular abuse associated with high powered true road cars. He notes that the 11-inch outside diameter will fit in many 15-inch wheels (including double beadlock rear applications like his own).

Moving the caliper in-board for wheel clearance implies that A-arm clearance must be verified when the car is back on all fours. Jovanis’ Fox was equipped with an old Flaming River manual steering stand which had no limiters, permitting a broad range of motion. Jovanis added restrictions to keep the caliper and group away from the A-arm, and observed that because the Fox has a spool and manual steering, this did not really make a practical difference.

While the system on Jovanis’ Fox fits 1979-1993 Mustangs pre-loaded with 1987-1993 Fox spindles in four-lug and five-lug configurations, there is also a package offered for SN95 Mustangs. In case your Fox is already equipped with SN95 spindles and you’re not wanting to associated with conversion back to Fox spindles such as Jovanis did, Baer’s SN95 kit will fit on Fox-bodies too.

Installation

First, Jovanis declared that the Fox spindle had to be altered. The factory caliper mounting ear were marked and removed. Jovanis utilized a porta-band saw with this part. A grinder was utilized to clean up the raw cuts, producing the spindle look neat plus clean. The dust shield bolt holes needed to be tapped after becoming drilled to a larger diameter.

Then, Jovanis could get started on assembling the particular brake system onto the spindle. Started by laying out the small parts. The particular mild steel bracket was set up by mounting to the bolt openings that were tapped. Next, the dark anodized billet intermediate bracket has been mounted to the mild steel group.

“This two-piece style allows shimming the caliper when needed since there are sometimes variances within spindles, ” Jovanis explained.

The Fox spindle has been converted to use a hub that allows the slip-on rotor. The hub involved is anodized billet aluminum plus comes assembled with pre-packed bearings for an easy installation. The disc was then test fit.

“Not only did we get rid of the additional track width from the SN95 spindles, ” Jovanis said, “but we also eliminated the 3/8-inch spacers we were using, effectively using the wheels in over. 5 of the inch. ”

Post-installation, Jovanis took the car in for an extensive alignment session. Jovanis also used parts from UPR , including a K-member, A-Arms, and fixed-mount race caster/camber plates. The installation of the Fox spindles in addition to the caster/camber plates allowed the particular achievement of 5. 5 examples of caster, compared to the SN95 spindle plus street caster/camber plate combination’s second . 5 degrees.

Following the set up, Jovanis headed to NMRA’s Spring Split Shootout in Bradenton, Florida plus made a personal best pass associated with 8. 19 seconds, winning the particular race with an 8. 31 2nd average of three consecutive operates. He followed this successful competition up with eleven more True Road wins and a successful completion of Pull Week (while towing a trailer).

“Since the set up, the car has been a best of 7. fifty five at 181. 35 and is certainly one of only two cars to have attained a 7-second average twice within NMRA True Street, with a greatest average of 7. 83 secs, ” Jovanis told us. Their success confirms what he currently knew. “These are the best brakes they even make a true street car. ”

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