Topic: 1991 Saleen Brakes

[GT500KR]

I'm waking my 91 Saleen convertible up from a 5 or 6 year nap. I've kept it in my climate controlled garage, with a full tank of fuel, and driving it around the block a couple times a year, sometimes less.
 I decided to put plates on it and run a few tanks of fuel through it. Everything looked good, so I took it for about a 20 mile ride. When I pulled back in the driveway, the Right front caliper was smoking badly, so I cooled it down with the garden hose. I disassembled both sides, lubed the pins up, and made sure they were sliding freely. I drove the car, but could not lock up the front brakes. It's an all original 30K mile car, so I'm thinking I'll go through the calipers and master cyl. The master looks like an aluminum SVO unit, but I'm not too sure what Saleen used for rotors and calipers. Anyone out there that can help me out with this?
Thanks, Charlie.

[BobV]

Common to have issues with the 87-93 Saleen front calipers, as they had large 73mm plastic pistons, which tend to seize up.
The good news is that for a few $$$ extra, you can specify metal pistons from most brake companies, even the parts store rebuilders.
I like using Rockauto.com - lots of choices and great prices. Just look up a 1989 Lincoln Mark VII.

MOST 87-93 Saleens used the same brakes... However Saleen was known to substitute based on what was available, so always best to check what you have before ordering up a bunch of parts. Plus, sometimes previous owners do some crazy/misinformed things (like my 91 had had a 60mm caliper on one side and a 73mm on the other).

The 87-93 Saleen front brakes are mostly SVO/Lincoln Mark VII pieces - 73mm front caliper with 11" 5-lug rotors.
Some of the common Part Numbers are:
Left Caliper -
CARDONE Part # 184151
CARDONE Part # 184151S (with steel piston)
CENTRIC Part # 14161024
RAYBESTOS Part # FRC5242
AUTOSPECIALTY / KELSEY-HAYES Part # 4181024
CENTRIC Part # 14261024 (Posi-Quiet Loaded with pads)
AUTOSPECIALTY / KELSEY-HAYES Part # 4081024 (Loaded with pads)

Right Caliper-
CARDONE Part # 184150
CARDONE Part # 184150S (with steel piston)
CENTRIC Part # 14161023
RAYBESTOS Part # FRC5241
AUTOSPECIALTY / KELSEY-HAYES Part # 4181023
CENTRIC Part # 14261023 (Posi-Quiet Loaded with pads)
AUTOSPECIALTY / KELSEY-HAYES Part # 4081023 (Loaded with pads)

87-most 91 Saleen rear brakes are also SVO/Mark VII pieces with a 54mm caliper and 11.25" 5-lug rotors.
Ford changed the Mark VII brakes in 1991, so some 91-93 Saleen rear brakes were 10.5" rotors with a 45mm caliper.
Always best to check the rotor diameter before ordering parts.

You are correct that Saleen used the SVO aluminum master cylinder for most cars. Although there are exceptions, including using a 1" aluminum master cylinder from a FRPP / Crown Vic application...

[GT500KR]

Thanks Bob,
 
 That clears up a lot of my questions. Since the calipers and master cyl are original, I want to put kits in rather than buy rebuilt units. I've used Rock Auto before. And they carry the 1 1/8 master cyl kit. The tricky part is the 73mm caliper pistons. I want to order them in steel. Apparently there are two different inside diameters. That is important in order for the pads to fit. I am recovering from back surgery, so I can't take them apart to measure the phenolic Pistons that it has now. But I'd like to order them so they're here when I'm well enough to install them. Do you know what I should be looking for?
 Also, do I use the 89 Lincoln MK 7 application for the rotors, and what would a good set of pads be?

Thanks, Charlie.

[BobV]

It's been a couple years since I did mine, but as I recall...

The steel pistons with the SMALLER ID are made to use the same pads (HB263 Hawk) as the phenolic piston. The standard (large ID) steel piston takes a pad (HB125) with a larger spring clip (which are supposedly difficult to find and still don't fit very well) OR you can get spring clips from Maximum Motorsports to use either pad LINKS HERE and HERE.

Front pads depend on intended use, but you can't go very wrong with the Hawk HPStreet pads (HB125F.650) ($80) or the Blue (@$160) for a track car. http://www.maximummotorsports.com/Hawk-Brake-Pads-1984-86-SVO-Mustang-front-P611.aspx

If you're doing rears also, you won't find much pad choice there. Rear calipers are a bit tricky to rebuild and must be adjusted by turning the piston when installing new pads.

Mark VII or SVO rotors are basically the same & interchange even though they have different part numbers from some companies. I've always just used 1989 Mark VII, since they seem to be easier to find, and less possibility of a parts book mixing up SVO & GT parts listings... I had good luck getting the basic part numbers from Rock & then Googling to find some deals - picked up Cryo-treated rotors from Tirerack a few years back on closeout, since they had them listed under Mark VII instead of Mustang SVO...

Oh, and the stainless caliper pin sleeves are well worth the $30 if you're after a little more performance.