I'm looking into upgrading/upsizing the brakes on my Lincoln LS. All LSes came with base S-type brake sizes, 300mm fronts and 288mm rears. Others have put S-type Sport 320mm rotors on the front and a few have put StR 355/330s all around. The Sport fronts just need a new caliper bracket and the appropriate rotor/pads. The 06-08 StR brakes are a direct swap with rotor, pads, caliper, bracket, and rear brake lines. Note: parts catalogs have ranges of rotor sizes, such as 355-365mm, 320-325, and 326-330.

I'd just like to straighten out a few things because the catalogs aren't very definitive. (1) Are the StR rotors all the same from 03-08 (differenrt fronts and backs, obviously)? I know the 03-05s have different Brembo calipers and a separate parking brake caliper. (2) There's nothing for the rears besides base 288s and StR 330s, correct?

Simply put, I may need to replace my rear brakes due to vibrating rotors. I just replaced them a few hundred miles ago, but they sat relatively unmoved for 4 months waiting for a new engine. I'm hoping it's just a rust spot or something similar and I can just rebed them this weekend. A full StR brake upgrade would require a new set of wheels, since my stock 17s won't clear the fronts (Sport 320s fit, though). I'm not buying wheels in the near future and just exploring my options if I do end up replacing the rear rotors. I do hope to replace the wheels before the current brakes need replacing. My concern with doing the StR rears now would be having larger rotors in the rear throwing off the brake balance.

 

I think there's a thread somewhere - by Cambo maybe.

Brembo are 365 but you'd need a separate EPB as they rely on it. Bigger wheels, too. Etc.

It seems to me you should keep what you have but fix what's wrong. Vibration may not even be the discs but instead suspension etc.

 

03-04 STR Brembos are a pain to put on other cars. First you need the STR hub carrier to be able to mount the e-brake caliper. They are rare and often too expensive. The STR Brembo version uses a solid real rotor. If I were to updrade I would go with a wider vented rotor, Camero rear Brembo calipers and add a spacer to the parking brake to make it wider.

Be aware that the front Brembo fitted STRs used the GenII front control arm spindle. It is a different design and has wider caliper mounting holes.

I believe that someone in the LS world has put on the newer STR Calipers onto their LS without issue. Search the LVC forum for this thread.

 

Thanks for the help.

7 month update: I left things alone until I could somewhat definitively figure out the problem. One rear caliper was sticking. If I hit the brakes hard, sat stopped for a minute, or applied and released the e-brake, the brake would vibrate and fade away over about 30 seconds of driving. I kept thinking I'd get flat spots on the tires after sitting all day at work. What made it obvious was I had the bright idea to go around the car and feel the wheels for heat. After a 20 minute mixed drive, the fronts were warm, one rear was cold, and one rear was hot. And there it was.

I had replaced the brakes lines (SS braided) and bled most of the system relatively recently, so the problem was pretty likely to be the caliper itself. I was right. I haven't touched the fronts yet (due to wheels), but the rears are now StR 326s in my stock 17s. I've had them installed for about 2.5 months now. They're very close to both the spokes and the webbing between the spokes and barrel, but I haven't had any problems. I considered spacers, longer studs, and even a home-designed "hub plug" to work as a hub extension with the spacers, but it seems like once I get in the car, all my worries are behind me



Stock 288s




StR 326s




The gap doubled once all the parts were tightened and the brakes applied

The parts list is straightforward: StR [rotors, pads, calipers, caliper brackets] and an E-brake clevis for a 1965 Corvette for each wheel to adapt the shorter LS bead-on-wire cables (don't know actual name) to the hook style the StR uses. You could easily fab something to save $20-30, but I didn't want any guesswork or delays.


Obviously I still plan to upgrade the wheels later. Anyone know if 18" Tritons clear the StR fronts? I like them and Zeus when it comes to OEM wheels. Zeus obviously fits, but it's not much of a difference style-wise from LS Sports. Of course, there are a few aftermarket wheels I like, but I'm in no rush and I'll stay OEM if I come across a deal