Oh great... thanks for the superseded parts Subaru! ('05 vs '06 knuckles inside)

[sperry]

(As copied from my thread on NASIOC)

Perhaps I'm not up on the latest ins and outs of doing a knuckle swap these days... apparently things have changed a bit since I did the swap on my WRX a few years back.

Now, I'm doing an STi knuckle swap into my SVX, and had to wait a week for some knuckles to come in from Japan because apparently all the stock in the US was spoken for.

When I ordered them, there was some discussion at the parts counter about getting '05 knuckles or '06/'07 knuckles. As far as I knew, they were all the same... but the newer P/N superseded the older one. I figured, if there was some minor difference, it was no difference to me.

Well, I got the new knuckles today, and there's a real difference, at least if you're planning on running some 332 or 328 StopTech brakes (the 355's probably fit?).

Here's what I'm talking about:

New P/N on the left, older P/N on the right (sorry, I don't have the actual part numbers, I didn't write them down when I was at the dealer):



Notice the fatty chunk of metal added to the knuckle near the brake mounting holes. I have to guess this is to combat all the people whining about brake squeal... certainly better than gluing wheel weights to the calipers... but as you can see, it makes it impossible to mount up my StopTechs to these knuckles.



So now my questions:

Were the original '05 knuckles totally superseded by the new ones, thus making it impossible to get the old style, or can I return these knuckles and wait another 2 weeks for the next boat from Japan to arrive?

Has StopTech addressed their fitment issue meaning I can order a new set of brackets? Any chance they're kind enough to swap them out for free to those of us that have been racing on StopTechs for the last 5 years?

Is it safe just to clearance the bracket a little, or should I break out the grinder on the knuckle itself?

[Dean]

If you can't get the old part, do it, but otherwise, I'd ask Stoptech and then worst case grind the knuckle, not the bracket.

[100_Percent_Juice]

Get a cutoff wheel and zip that new piece off. The old knuckle didn't have it so I wouldn't think it would effect structural integrity.

[sperry]

Originally Posted by Dean

If you can't get the old part, do it, but otherwise, I'd ask Stoptech and then worst case grind the knuckle, not the bracket.

Last time I needed one of those brackets from StopTech, I believe it cost me in the $300 range.

Considering it's impossible to get reman'd axles for '05+ STi's, meaning I had to spend like $600 on new axles (list price is like $420 *each*... thank god for Gaynell helping me out) instead of the $200 I was planning... I'm all about not spending any more money on this swap project. If I can't get the old style knuckles... I'm breaking out the grinder and spray paint.

On a side note... I've got one of my STi axles that's missing a pair of circlips... which means if you yank on it, you can totally disengage both of the CV joints. That was a nice thing to find out, you know, that I've been racing on that axle for years like that. I'm just glad that it was the axle that *didn't* get yanked out of the tranny when my LCA went, or I'd have destroyed an axle as well as the LCA. Somehow that axle is fine.

I ordered the clips I need to rebuild the axle so the CVs aren't lose, but I'm not sure how to assemble that stuff... I hope special tools aren't necessary. I've never rebuilt an axle. I was just going to get a reman '04 to match, but even those aren't available yet.

[sperry]

Originally Posted by 100_Percent_Juice

Get a cutoff wheel and zip that new piece off. The old knuckle didn't have it so I wouldn't think it would effect structural integrity.

Actually, if it does help with brake noise, like I expect it's supposed to, I'm just going to put the new knuckles on the SVX and hope it's a little quieter.

Not that the noise of StopTechs has ever bothered me, or that it could possible be louder than the SVX's current brakes with the bad bearings flexing under them. But it might be just that tiny bit more streetable, so I'll just grind off the minimum necessary.

[sperry]

So, the brute force solution is in effect:



Note to self... next time wear ear protection... an hour with the grinder left my ears ringing. That's a lot more material to remove than I thought.

[05widesti]

Nice job. My breaks use to squeal loud. I didn't care though, well unless I was in a drive threw then it was ten times louder.

[cody]

It's never easy going the Sperry route.

[A1337STI]

I was going to say i know 2 people who could make you custom brake brackets, cheaper than $300 a set ...

but as usual too late doh! I know rally guys use custom brackets to fit their brakes on (stis) i would have tried modifying the brackets first but you did some nice work

[Kevin M]

Modifying the brackets would be a bad idea. Stoptech uses FEA to trim as much weight off their products as possible, which means that what's left is there for a reason. On the other hand, the extra meat on the knuckles is definitely not structural and won't be missed.

[A1337STI]

what i wrote was making new Custom brackets not modifying his.

but you point is still valid, and good to know.

[Kevin M]

Even with custom fabricated brackets, who is doing the R&D and engineering on them to ensure they won't fail? Stoptech successfully competes against companies like Brembo without any OEM supplier contracts solely because they engineer the crap out of their products, and do not ever release on size fits all solutions. Stoptech is sort of like the Cosworth of brake component manufacturers.

[A1337STI]

I dunno.. i should ask the rally guys if they had them pro made, had a diagram to follow, or just sorta guessed. I know that Kieth jackson had an off @ prescott, broke a break bracket and had no spares and couldn't do day two....

Mental note, custom parts in rally = bad , that or you need to bring your own spares

[cody]

I remember going to the junk yard with Alex. One of those and one of those and one of those...and throw that motor in the trunk.