I will start by stating that at present this is to gauge the level of interest to see whether the project is worth pursuing. Titanium Brake Caliper Pistons Notes: 100% Precision made in the UK. Machined to the highest & consitent tolerances. Ultra light weight. Micro ground ultra smooth finish. Titanium Nitrided for the highest possible wear resistance & longevity. Sets of 6 for each Front Caliper. Sets of 4 for each Rear Caliper. As most of you are aware the Brake Caliper Pistons in our cars are known weak spot. due to their material and finish. Plated Aluminium is okay for a while, but it does not take long for the plating to either wear off, or start to deteriorate and flake. This results in the Pistons sticking or jamming and significantly reducing the braking performance, which lets be honest is not even remotely desirable in any car, let a lone high performance cars cable of near 200 mph speeds. So what is the solution ? Obviously service & overhaul. This takes the form of the Pistons being replaced, and of course the Seals too. But what options are there ? Currently the two most common are: 1) Direct replacement with the standard Brembo product. While keeping everything genuine is top of some owners priorities, ultimately the end result is more of the same. 2) Stainless Steel aftermarket. Obvious advantages over the stock items, but there is a weight penalty. But wait ! There is another solution to consider………. I'm currently working on a project to produce the best possible alternative. These will be made from Titanium ! Goes without saying the advantages of Ti outweigh the additional cost over SS, that mainly of course being weight. In fact my Pistons should lighter even than the genuine Brembo items, as these are solid. Also most people do not realise they are two piece. The body being solid Aluminium, with a steel cap. My one piece hollow Ti Pistons will therefore be lighter ! In addition they will be Titanium Nitrided. This gives them an ultra hard wear resistant coating. Essential fit and forget ! Pluses and minus: Genuine - Aluminium/Steel Advantages: Genuine item. Disadvantages: Poor longevity/susceptibility to corrosion & wear. Poor insulator of heat, so heat transfer to fluid is high. Stainless Steel Advantages: Non-susceptibility to corrosion/good wear rate. Excellent insulator, so heat transfer to fluid is much lower. Disadvantages: Weight Titanium Advantages: Very low weight. Non-susceptibility to corrosion/excellent wear rate when Nitrided. Excellent insulator, so heat transfer to fluid is much lower. Disadvantages: Cost Now this will represent a sizeable financial commitment, so as I said at this time I am gauging interest to see if it is worth pursuing. Cost wise it is reasonable to expect a set of these Ti Pistons to be more than the SS items, but not as much as you might imagine. Potentially around 30~50% more than equivalent SS versions. For the time being these are limited to the CCM Calipers. These sizes will fit the following Ferrari Models: F430 430 Scud 360 CS California 599 Also any other manufacturer that uses this Caliper type/piston size. In the future this should then lead to Pistons to suit not only the "Steel Brake” cars, but also any other Caliper on any car within the Ferrari range, and other manufactures too. If you’ve made it down this far, then great ! If you are interested please drop me a PM. If enough interest then I will proceed with the project, and release more details & pricing in due course. Thank you for your attention.
I am interested. The only reason I did not go ahead and rebuild the calipers on my CS now is because I did not like the idea of swapping aluminum for steel. Your option would address the issue I had with doing that. Adding un-sprung weight. Not in a rush right now either, as my calipers appear to be fine so far. I am curious about what cost will be as well, and weight. All the info will come eventually I know. Thanks.
Great idea for a project…. Pretty sure soon you won’t even be able to get OEM Brembo pistons since the EU has banned most hard chrome plating except for aviation applications. Was reading how this will affect bearings and other automotive applications since it’s not just manufacturing but importation of parts made with chrome. Sent from my iPad using FerrariChat.com mobile app
Pretty sure they are chrome plated and that causes pitting/corrosion because of how the seal works on the Brembo. Sent from my iPhone using FerrariChat.com mobile app
They are chrome on Aluminium alloy, the chrome just flakes off the alloy. All the corrosion on mine were in the area of the outer dust seals, yet the chrome in way of the inner oil seals was in as new condition. Must be the water from the road causing the corrosion
You cannot get oem pistons from either ferrari or brembo ( brembo italy just dont answer you and uk importers got nowhere either)
I'll try an answer all these questions etc in one post....... Taz - You are absolutely right sir. You can also add 430 Challenge, Enzo & Maserati Granturismo MC Stradale to the list. 066/8 - As stated at this stage I am asking interest in the product, so quoting figures like that is not a priority right now. However I had a chat with engineering shop and they came back with a figure of +/- 0.01mm across a run of 1000 units. CoreyNJ - Thank you kindly. You are correct - having spoken to someone in the know just now - as mike32 has conformed. GogglesPisano - Ti is approx 50% lighter than the equivalent SS. Would you actually notice it, probably not under normal driving, but by the same token even the smallest reduction of weight where it is not ideally located is never a bad thing. Plainview - It is chrome plating on the OEM. Nickel is just one less process down that road. Chrome is used for two reason, first it is a cost effective way of getting a nice smooth surface on a piston, and second it is harder wearing that the aluminium of the piston. mike32 - Correct, chrome plating aluminium has its limitations, and give the harsh environment and operating conditions - extreme heat, cold, expansion, contraction, wet, dry etc - it's not long before the plating says I've had enough. A note on my Ti Pistons: They will be machined to a 0.4R. Alone this is more than good enough for the application, however once the Ti Nitriding is applied the surface will be like glass, and extremely hard wearing.
Thank you for taking the time to provide that number! To be 100% honest and straightforward though: The actual tolerances are not my main concern here. What I was really interested in was to what extend GD&T was done during the design process. I suppose the number you gave answers both questions though. In terms of machining +/-0.01 is not bad
Update Please note, this thread will shortly be moved to the classified section to comply with forum rules. However for the short term this is for info only while it is here. Update to my original post including more details and projected pricing. Firstly other cars that use the same Caliper/Piston: 430 Challenge 575M HGTC 612 HGTC & OTO Enzo Other: Maserati Granturismo MC Stradale Tolerances: +/- 0.01mm across a run of 1000 units. Thermal Expansion: Titanium has a very low coefficient of linear expansion compared to other metals, like stainless steel and aluminium, so therefore it can be kept within the +/-0.01mm tolerance. Machining & Finish: The Pistons will be machined to a 0.4R. Alone this is more than good enough for the application, however once the Ti Nitriding is applied the surface will be like glass, and extremely hard wearing. Costing - Projected: Front Caliper - Set of 6 (one caliper) £320 Rear Caliper - Set of 4 (one caliper) £215
So I can confirm my calipers (which were a ccm upgrade) have the same sized pistons, could you state the piston diameters ?
If they are the CCM Caliper, then you have no problems. Caliper code numbers are: Front - FA-62 (30/34/38 x 33) Rear - FA-42 (38/42 x 33) Worth noting that for the future any piston of any size will be available.
Curious how this is coming along. Going to get my calipers repainted early next year so piston replacement is a must.
That you for your interest gents. Projected pricing is stated in post #15. Most likely it will be this or very close to. First batch will be ready in early 2025. I will update as things progress.
