Stoptech ST40 Consensus?

[chocstraw]

Searched to little avail,

Buybrakes.com has the ST40 for $1327 out the door right now, I couldn't believe this price. I have pretty bad lipping on my current rotors, and at 600 to replace these and unknown, probably budget, pads from the previous owner, it makes a lot of sense to upgrade.

https://www.buybrakes.com/bmw-m3-bas...-big-brake-kit

plus 10% with "stoptech10"

Regardless of price, what is the general consensus of these brakes, from a more well-read forum member?

I have seen that some kits have knock-back issues, but supposedly not really on the E92.

Will I see marginally better initial stopping and slightly better thermal capacity? Or will performance be somewhat similar to stock?

I would figure that they are better at managing heat due to the 35mm wide rotor vs stock 30mm.

Anyways, thanks for the help, and maybe some other forum members will appreciate this sale.

[chocstraw]

My thinking is that at this price, the rotors themselves are a massive upgrade in terms of thermal capacity, and this kit can be brought to maybe 9/10ths of the performance of a 6 piston with upgraded pads, easily doable with over $1400 saved off of the usual list price. I have been considering riveting some sort of bung + ducting to the stock brake shield for additional cooling as well

[Montaver]

At $1400 they are a no brainer, although when I click that link thats not what I'm seeing. You can get ST-40's from Trinity for around $2.2k normally.

[pbonsalb]

I found them at the posted price on the linked site yesterday but did not buy them even at that great price because I replaced my rotors and pads a couple of years ago and have never faded my stock brakes. I definitely don’t need them. I do have StopTech ST40 front and rear on my turbo 99M3 and don’t need them on that car either. Stock brakes with brass guides, pads for the use (Street or track), braided lines and quality fluid are all that 99% of people need.

[dparm]

Great choice for mild track use, you won't really see any benefits on the street. I had it on my E90 up front (on street tires), very durable setup that never faded. I think the knock-back is blown way out of proportion.

The pads are affordable and use a common Porsche 911 shape, so you can get almost any compound imaginable.

[hungryhippo]

That price seems too good to be true. Anyone confirm if its a mistake? I'm on vacation so don't want them to sit in front of my house.

[dparm]

Originally Posted by hungryhippo

That price seems too good to be true. Anyone confirm if its a mistake? I'm on vacation so don't want them to sit in front of my house.

That's not far off some of the Black Friday prices. I snagged mine from Turner on one of those deals for a very similar amount.

[fsmtnbiker]

Track/AutoX for 4 years consistently on my ST40/355mm kit with no issues whatsoever. That's an amazing deal.

[Richbot]

I've had the STR40 front kit on my car for more than 60,000 miles. The front rotors are massive overkill and still haven't worn out; I expect them to get to around 100,000 miles before they're at minimum thickness. I can't say about knockback, I didn't notice it the couple times I've had it on track but I'm not crashing curbs either

[///Mobbin]

Incredible price, I concur you really can't go wrong at that price.

If you track a lot, say monthly, or have some particularly intense braking zones to deal with at the tracks you frequent I might say to hold off and go for the ST60 kit when you find it on sale. I was happy with my ST40 kit on my last m3 (had that setup ~2 years) and am looking forward to the ST60 kit on my current car.

To answer some of your questions, slightly better thermal capacity than stock because of the higher vane count rotors. Initial stopping power is probably more pad-selection related. It is easier to change pads w/ these Stoptech kits b/c of the pad windows, and I would definitely plan on swapping in track pads for the track and street for the street. Just swapping the fronts is good enough to start IMO (as you get more advanced you'll want to do the rears as well).

[chocstraw]

I called yesterday, and they said it's not wrong. I ordered the black caliper, slotted rotor setup which is 1474 before coupon, $1327 after. They're Nevada based, didn't charge for shipping, and I didn't have any sales tax.

They said some of the kits are just kind of pieced together. They have a 2-3 week build time, which I guess includes choosing the correct ST40 (piston size?), getting the correct brackets & rotors. Not scratch and dent, but just assembled from overstock. Could just be sales talk.

Either way, I can update you guys when it comes, I'll be checking parts numbers before I install everything, just so I don't get stuck mid-install with bad parts. They said that it goes through two checks to make sure the parts are vehicle correct though.

I'd order with a credit card with good charge resolution just in case something goes wrong.

Glad to hear that my thinking was right. This seems like a pretty good way to start for someone who is casual about some track use. I'll order some better pads before next time, and then I think I'll go to KW clubsports, then some apex 18x10s, then maybe ST60s or rear ST40s.

Thanks

[///Mobbin]

Another popular and economical option is to upgrade to PFC DD rotors (they have a high vane count just like the Stoptechs but work with the OE calipers). I would still recommend swapping pads before/after events and going for a high temp brake fluid like Castrol SRF or Motul.

[dparm]

If you need a bigger kit later on, you'll have no problem selling the ST40. I sold mine for about 75% of what I paid for it two years prior.

[chocstraw]

Just got a call and was told I was likely the last to get this deal. It’s apparently below cost of goods sold for them, it’s a deal from stop tech themselves

[hungryhippo]

I ordered a couple hours ago, couldn't pass it up. Hopefully i ordered in time.

[BayE30]

Originally Posted by chocstraw

I called yesterday, and they said it's not wrong. I ordered the black caliper, slotted rotor setup which is 1474 before coupon, $1327 after. They're Nevada based, didn't charge for shipping, and I didn't have any sales tax.

They said some of the kits are just kind of pieced together. They have a 2-3 week build time, which I guess includes choosing the correct ST40 (piston size?), getting the correct brackets & rotors. Not scratch and dent, but just assembled from overstock. Could just be sales talk.

Either way, I can update you guys when it comes, I'll be checking parts numbers before I install everything, just so I don't get stuck mid-install with bad parts. They said that it goes through two checks to make sure the parts are vehicle correct though.

I'd order with a credit card with good charge resolution just in case something goes wrong.

Glad to hear that my thinking was right. This seems like a pretty good way to start for someone who is casual about some track use. I'll order some better pads before next time, and then I think I'll go to KW clubsports, then some apex 18x10s, then maybe ST60s or rear ST40s.

Thanks

I have ordered multiple kits from BuyBrakes.com without issue, including clearance Stoptech kits. The Stoptech kits drop ship, so there should be no concerns.

Also, the st40 kits for e9x m3 have been on clearance since beginning of the year.

[derbo]

They pop up from time to time. They had a firesale a few months back.

[hungryhippo]

You did get the last one. Oh well, I didn't really need them since I have a dedicated track car

[Kelse92]

Wow! You got a steal!
I’m jealous haha

[///Mobbin]

For those that missed out I've heard Bimmerworld has a good black Friday sale on these kits, that's not too far away. I've also bought a few Stoptech kits from Joe @ Trinity, he's great to work with and had the best pricing I could find outside of these sales.

[dparm]

Originally Posted by ///Mobbin

For those that missed out I've heard Bimmerworld has a good black Friday sale on these kits, that's not too far away. I've also bought a few Stoptech kits from Joe @ Trinity, he's great to work with and had the best pricing I could find outside of these sales.

Turner/ECS typically have, as well. I think when I got mine the promo was a free Escort Passport MAX radar detector which I immediately sold on Craigslist for like $250, lol.

[6ixSpd]

Holy shit that was a steal. I don't see it online anymore