Any boy know if we can change from Drum Brakes to Disk Brakes ?
Yes, you can do it. I did it on my 2002 Rav4 (US model). I got all parts from European 2003 model and did conversion. It was straighforward. The same is for GV. But why do you need it?
Thx Buddy, the New GV 2k9 was released on september on my country....but dealer don't say anything about thoses parts, but if you know some place to get it on US let me know
Rgds
AGBL_PTY
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For every human problem there is always an easy solution, clear, plausible and wrong.
By: Henry-Louis Mencken
GV 2k8 - 2.0L
the new 09 grand vitara is reinforced to deal with the new disk brakes. earlier models may be not capable to work well with those brakes
Do we know that for sure?
It seems agreed that the rear suspension was modified fpr '09. But I'm not so sure it was for the disc brakes. I think I've seen people speculate this, but I'd appreciate a link to Suzuki confirmation.
I can't think of why the disc brakes would require reworking the suspension. Maybe very minor tweaking due to a change in brake weight or attachment hardware, but the amount of brake force they exert should be the same. Indeed, the GV has brake force distribution to ensure this.
On the other hand, I can see the rear suspension being modified to correct the rear end alignment problems that were so evident, and/or to smooth out the "busy" ride. Or to raise the rear control arms to improve off-road clearance. Now, that would be worthwhile.
As for retrofitting drums to discs, this should be approached very carefully. There are implications for distribution of brake fluid, provision for the parking brake, and upsetting the brake force distribution system. Not to mention even the ABS and stability control.
I'll go farther out on a limb and say I think it's a backward move driven by marketing. Drum brakes are intrinsically suited to the rear wheels of off-road vehicles because they are well-sealed against dirt. Discs on the back wheels get dirty and need more frequent brake jobs to fix sticking calipers etc. Discs also require the extra complication of arranging for a parking brake, whereas drums do fine double duty as parking brakes.
Discs make plenty of sense on the back of sports cars, but drum brakes work fine on the back of vehicles like suv's that have lots of forward weight shift during braking. Since no one faulted the GV's actual braking performance with drums, the move had to be for marketing purposes. I'd rather have the drums. By now you probably can tell that I wouldn't consider changing to discs.
It seems agreed that the rear suspension was modified fpr '09. But I'm not so sure it was for the disc brakes. I think I've seen people speculate this, but I'd appreciate a link to Suzuki confirmation.
I can't think of why the disc brakes would require reworking the suspension. Maybe very minor tweaking due to a change in brake weight or attachment hardware, but the amount of brake force they exert should be the same. Indeed, the GV has brake force distribution to ensure this.
On the other hand, I can see the rear suspension being modified to correct the rear end alignment problems that were so evident, and/or to smooth out the "busy" ride. Or to raise the rear control arms to improve off-road clearance. Now, that would be worthwhile.
As for retrofitting drums to discs, this should be approached very carefully. There are implications for distribution of brake fluid, provision for the parking brake, and upsetting the brake force distribution system. Not to mention even the ABS and stability control.
I'll go farther out on a limb and say I think it's a backward move driven by marketing. Drum brakes are intrinsically suited to the rear wheels of off-road vehicles because they are well-sealed against dirt. Discs on the back wheels get dirty and need more frequent brake jobs to fix sticking calipers etc. Discs also require the extra complication of arranging for a parking brake, whereas drums do fine double duty as parking brakes.
Discs make plenty of sense on the back of sports cars, but drum brakes work fine on the back of vehicles like suv's that have lots of forward weight shift during braking. Since no one faulted the GV's actual braking performance with drums, the move had to be for marketing purposes. I'd rather have the drums. By now you probably can tell that I wouldn't consider changing to discs.
Sounds about right to me. That's the justification I got from the dealer in 2007.
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2007 2.0L Suzuki Grand Vitara Luxury
2008 2.0L Suzuki Grand Vitara XSport
2005 1.6L Mitsubishi Lancer GLX
Geevee gave a great explanation on why rear drum brakes are best suited for off-roading. Disc brakes on the rear really look cool, but if they are going to interfere with stopping power off-road, better to have drum rear system.
I don't want to seem like I'm "testing" a new participant here, Rorro, so take this as exploring the subject as opposed to a rude way to welcome you.
I would grant that disc brakes, at the moment the brakes engage, may do so more suddenly than drums. But I would have to see comparative brake distance tests to be convinced that the '09 rear discs give shorter stopping distances than the previous rear drums.
We had a '91 Pathfinder. The XE version of the first generation Pathfinders had rear drums, while the SE version had rear discs. It seemed to me that our SE had very responsive and powerful brakes. The only time I ever drove an XE, I couldn't tell any difference. But the SE required frequent costly brake jobs, and the calipers would seize up before the pads wore out. The use of discs on the back also required separate, small drum brakes on the back, that functioned as the parking brake. So how much good are brakes that may be very slightly better, if they're often dysfunctional?
In my earlier post on this, I also didn't mention panic brake assist. If you hit the GV's brakes with a certain level of urgency, it automatically boosts the braking effort to just short of using the ABS. The use of this system probably supersedes any possible practical benefit from rear discs.
But, if actual braking distance comparison tests show the rear discs are better, then I'll concede the point - to a point. There's still the maintenance issue.
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