Hot rodding is all about going fast, though it’d be foolish to increase performance without increasing braking capacity. If you’ve experienced brake fade or simply not been able to bring a car to a stop once you’ve made performance upgrades, you’ll appreciate the importance of improving the “whoa” as well as the “go”.
Of course, in recent years, braking and handling have become much hotter topics, as performance has become measured not just in straight line quarter-mile times but on autocross circuits and with the popularity of Pro Touring–style cars. You wanna drive your car? Well, that’s what they’re for in our opinion, so it makes sense to upgrade the braking system as well as the engine.
There’s not much that can beat four-wheel disc brakes, and there’s not much that can beat a bolt-in upgrade kit, which is exactly what Classic Performance Products can provide for a number of classic cars, as well as trucks. So after we lowered the ’55 Chevy wagon last month, we set about installing just such a kit, prior to owner Paul Gauvry upgrading the motor and trans. Note the emphasis on prior! There’s not much point doing it afterward is there?
You’ll likely remember this shot from last month’s suspension install. The CPP 2-inch drop spindles came fully assembled with rotors, calipers, and hoses. These are CPP’s newer drop spindles, which don’t feature integral caliper brackets, though the earlier modular versions do. The newer style doesn’t limit the size of rotors that can be used.
You already saw the disc brakes going on the front, as CPP supplied their drop spindles and brakes pre-assembled. It saves you work and time, and saves them answering technical queries on the phone! So with the front brakes already installed during the suspension swap, we’ll concentrate on showing how you can add rear discs to a stock ’55 Chevy rearend. It’s a true bolt-in swap, as was the suspension, and is easily accomplished in a few hours. The new master cylinder and booster even attaches to the stock brake pedal.
