3 Series Brake Calipers

I was driving to a Phillies game last night and was along side a 128i coupe for about 4 miles in stop N' go traffic. It was black with black wheels and had orange painted and finished brake calipers similar to what is on my ZO6 or what Brembo has. The brake calipers had BMW on them.

I hate the unfinished/uncovered brake calipers on our 3 BMWs. Does anyone know anything about the brake calipers that I am describing that are made for or by BMW? And if so, are they available for the 3 Series?

Were they orange or yellow? The OEM performance brakes are yellow....

I've been thinking about painting mine next time I change pads/rotors. They look horrible (rusted)....

stock 135i brakes:
http://www.turnermotorsport.com/p-18...e91e92e93.aspx

bmw performance upgrade:
http://www.turnermotorsport.com/p-52...nvertible.aspx


i dont believe either will fit the 335i.

Originally Posted by Orient330iNYC

stock 135i brakes:
http://www.turnermotorsport.com/p-18...e91e92e93.aspx

bmw performance upgrade:
http://www.turnermotorsport.com/p-52...nvertible.aspx


i dont believe either will fit the 335i.

They won't fit without swapping a bunch of parts. If OP wants multi-pot calipers, Brembo make front and rear brake upgrades. FWIW, the stock single-pot brakes are quite up to the task of stopping the car. Even under race conditions.

Originally Posted by andrew b

Were they orange or yellow? The OEM performance brakes are yellow....

I've been thinking about painting mine next time I change pads/rotors. They look horrible (rusted)....

They were bright orange and actually looked great on the all black car.

Originally Posted by anE934fun

They won't fit without swapping a bunch of parts. If OP wants multi-pot calipers, Brembo make front and rear brake upgrades. FWIW, the stock single-pot brakes are quite up to the task of stopping the car. Even under race conditions.

Thanks for the link. It says that they won't fit my 335is or M3. Too bad as I really don't understand why BMW does not make finished brake calipers.

Originally Posted by beden1

Thanks for the link. It says that they won't fit my 335is or M3. Too bad as I really don't understand why BMW does not make finished brake calipers.

Just need a can of quality automotive spray paint. Any color you like. Even metallic. They could match your car.

I went the JC Whitney route & covered mine. The wheels are just too open to have rusty calipers hanging out.

Originally Posted by tturedraider

Just need a can of quality automotive spray paint. Any color you like. Even metallic. They could match your car.

No high temp requirement for the paint?

Originally Posted by anE934fun

No high temp requirement for the paint?

I would think you'd need high temp paint.

Originally Posted by bear-avhistory

I went the JC Whitney route & covered mine. The wheels are just too open to have rusty calipers hanging out.

That might be a good solution. I remember seeing those on a car recently and wondered if they may do the trick. I need to check the clearence on my 19" rims.

Mine are 19" 313s, no issue with the fit. One thing that might make them look better is to black out the silver paint.

Originally Posted by anE934fun

No high temp requirement for the paint?

Originally Posted by beden1

I would think you'd need high temp paint.

I started to recommend high temp paint, but I'm not sure it would be necessary and it would put a big damper on color choices. In everyday driving I think it's unlikely the calipers would get hot enough to require high temp paint. I would use it if I wanted a "standard" color. But, what if you wanted electric blue uber metallic? Or maybe just Black Sapphire?

I painted my brake calipers the first weekend after redelivery. I used the G2 Brake Caliper Paint System in Black which I got from Amazon. It's a two-part epoxy high temperature paint which you mix together before applying. You only have a few hours to apply the paint otherwise it will get hard.

The car has been autocrossed about 5-6 times since the paint was applied and also been on the track for a two-day HPDE. My wife also drove all events, so it got double duty, but there isn't any scorching of the paint. Even with swapping a set of race wheels and tires for each autocross and HPDE, there has been no chipping of the paint.

Putting the car up on jack stands, removing the wheels and tires, prepping and masking, and painting the calipers with three coats took most of the first day. After the final coat I let everything dry overnight, then it took a few hours to remove the masking tape, re-install the wheels, and let the car back down. I also bought an artist paint brush set at Home Depot which helped because the brush that comes with it gets all hard and sticky by the second or third coat. There were also some smaller brushes that helped with applying the epoxy paint in the smaller areas.

Here's some shots of the final results and some taken during the process:

Originally Posted by SD 335is

I painted my brake calipers the first weekend after redelivery. I used the G2 Brake Caliper Paint System in Black which I got from Amazon. It's a two-part epoxy high temperature paint which you mix together before applying. You only have a few hours to apply the paint otherwise it will get hard.

The car has been autocrossed about 5-6 times since the paint was applied and also been on the track for a two-day HPDE. My wife also drove all events, so it got double duty, but there isn't any scorching of the paint. Even with swapping a set of race wheels and tires for each autocross and HPDE, there has been no chipping of the paint.

Putting the car up on jack stands, removing the wheels and tires, prepping and masking, and painting the calipers with three coats took most of the first day. After the final coat I let everything dry overnight, then it took a few hours to remove the masking tape, re-install the wheels, and let the car back down. I also bought an artist paint brush set at Home Depot which helped because the brush that comes with it gets all hard and sticky by the second or third coat. There were also some smaller brushes that helped with applying the epoxy paint in the smaller areas.

Here's some shots of the final results and some taken during the process:

Looks great! Exactly what I want to do, but in red. I've seen the G2 kits, figured the brush-on method would be easier than masking and spraying.

Tom, did you find that the paint self-levels fairly well? Looks like it does, since with your photos I can't see any brush strokes.

Originally Posted by andrew b

Looks great! Exactly what I want to do, but in red. I've seen the G2 kits, figured the brush-on method would be easier than masking and spraying.

Tom, did you find that the paint self-levels fairly well? Looks like it does, since with your photos I can't see any brush strokes.

Yes, but you have to work fairly quickly because once mixed the paint continues to get thicker and thicker. You have to wait between applying coats but working around the car by the time you get around to the first caliper it's ready for the second and third coats.

I forgot to mention that I used silicone gloves and went through several pairs in the process. I used a big box that I bought at Costco. I also had to abandon the first brush about half-way through and it got too stiff and sticky. It's kind of a messy process because the paint will run down the brush onto the handle which then gets sticky and sticks to the gloves. Also make sure that none of the paint gets on anything you don't want it on because it's pretty permanent. I dripped some on the concrete floor of the garage and once it hardened it wasn't coming off. I may be able to use a metal paint scraper but I haven't bothered to try yet.

Also, if you order directly from G2 there are 11 color choices and they can custom mix any color you want, although this is more expensive.

Originally Posted by SD 335is

Yes, but you have to work fairly quickly because once mixed the paint continues to get thicker and thicker. You have to wait between applying coats but working around the car by the time you get around to the first caliper it's ready for the second and third coats.

I forgot to mention that I used silicone gloves and went through several pairs in the process. I used a big box that I bought at Costco. I also had to abandon the first brush about half-way through and it got too stiff and sticky. It's kind of a messy process because the paint will run down the brush onto the handle which then gets sticky and sticks to the gloves. Also make sure that none of the paint gets on anything you don't want it on because it's pretty permanent. I dripped some on the concrete floor of the garage and once it hardened it wasn't coming off. I may be able to use a metal paint scraper but I haven't bothered to try yet.

Also, if you order directly from G2 there are 11 color choices and they can custom mix any color you want, although this is more expensive.

Great info, thanks!

Originally Posted by SD 335is

Yes, but you have to work fairly quickly because once mixed the paint continues to get thicker and thicker. You have to wait between applying coats but working around the car by the time you get around to the first caliper it's ready for the second and third coats.

I forgot to mention that I used silicone gloves and went through several pairs in the process. I used a big box that I bought at Costco. I also had to abandon the first brush about half-way through and it got too stiff and sticky. It's kind of a messy process because the paint will run down the brush onto the handle which then gets sticky and sticks to the gloves. Also make sure that none of the paint gets on anything you don't want it on because it's pretty permanent. I dripped some on the concrete floor of the garage and once it hardened it wasn't coming off. I may be able to use a metal paint scraper but I haven't bothered to try yet.

Also, if you order directly from G2 there are 11 color choices and they can custom mix any color you want, although this is more expensive.

As you have observed, the epoxy paint is pretty tenacious in adhesion. A small spot may be able to be scrapped off. Larger coverage area will require sandpaper/power grinder.