Has anyone done this, and possibly confirm a 1985 GM Corvette front rotor can be used as a Pantera replacement?
I have access to a machine shop…
PANTERA — AMERICAN BRAKES, THE REAR END:
(NOTE: This article came from a Ted Mitchell article in the POCA: Pantera Technical Information binder, revised 7/13/88…. There were references to JFZ calipers. I am mostly interested in the vented rotor portion of the article…)
….Adapters and calipers work on the Pantera original equipment rear rotors and with a much better rotor - one with a Corvette part number.
Because the G.M. Pantera rear rotors are so similar the G.M. rotor can be used to replace the Pantera rear rotor at any time, and the same calipers and adapters are all easily refitted. It's a better-than-stock balanced system - simply by adapting new calipers to the front side of the rear rotors and moving the rear hydraulic flex lines from the old calipers to the new. The flex lines removed from the original wheel cylinders easily reach the new calipers.
This G.M. part is a late model Corvette FRONT rotor. It is 11 and 1/2 inches in diameter by 13/16 thick, and has a cast-in hat - all very much like a Pantera
REAR rotor.
If you lay this Chevy (front) rotor beside the Pantera (rear) rotor you'll notice two things. The superior quality of G.M. rotor makes the Pantera part look like junk, but in overall size and shape, the two parts are almost identical.
FITTING AND REFITTING THESE PARTS. Like the original equipment rotor, the G.M. part mounts under the rear axle hub -not the best way to mount a brake rotor -it makes changing the rotor difficult -and it unnecessarily transfers unwanted heat from the brakes to the wheel bearings. Race car makers just slip the rear rotors over the outside of the wheel lugs, so that the rotors are as easily changed as tires.
Measurements of the G.M. and Pantera rotors will show some differences that must be considered. The Vette rotor-hat has a little over 1/8th inch MORE offset than the stock Pantera item. AND, the Pantera rotor actually has 1/16” larger circumference than the G.M. part. A 1/16th of an inch closer rotor edge-to-caliper clearance will usually require no change. If the edge of the rotor rubs the caliper any brake shop can quickly restore clearance by turning a few thousandths of an inch off of the edge of the rotor. The 1/8th inch offset difference is even more easily handled, and we'll deal with that in a minute.
First the center of the Chevy part must be redrilled to a Ford /Pantera bolt pattern, and the center hole needs to be enlarged slightly to register properly on the Pantera stub-axle. These are simple jobs for even the most rudimentary machine shop. And, considering that the result is a vented rotor that is superior to the stock item in every respect, it is well worth this small trouble.
After the rotor is assembled to the axle and inserted into the upright, check for interference between the rotor inner rim and the caliper boss on the upright. Casting differences may cause conflict between the Pantera & Chevy parts where the inside rim of the Chevy rotor passes closest to the Pantera caliper mounting boss. If this happens a little filing on the corner of the caliper boss will quickly restore necessary clearance. These reworked Corvette rotors have a number of advantages over both stock parts and other more extensive brake modifications. (1) With these rotors the original Pantera parking brakes may be used. Stock calipers mag be remounted in their usual place. Just insert 1/8th inch thick spacer-washers between the caliper and the mounting face on the Pantera upright. This spacer compensates for the extra offset of the Chevy part thereby reestablishing the proper caliper location.
Then, hook up the parking brake cables but not the hydraulic lines. (2) Adapters which fit JFZ calipers to the Pantera rotors will also mate them properly to the newly mounted Corvette rotors. Insert spacer washers under each adapter and mount the caliper on the front or unused boss on each rear up-right, and hook up the Pantera hydraulic line.
I repeat - the flex lines from the rear-of-the-rotor calipers reach the front-of-the-rotor ones perfectly. (3) One final benefit! These rotors are available at your local Chevy dealer, and they currently retail for around $65 each - and who pays retail?
Has anyone done this, and possibly confirm a 1985 GM Corvette front
rotor can be used as a Pantera replacement?
I have access to a machine shop…
PANTERA — AMERICAN BRAKES, THE REAR END:
(NOTE: This article came from a Ted Mitchell article in the
POCA: Pantera Technical Information binder, revised 7/13/88…. There
were references to JFZ calipers. I am mostly interested in the vented
rotor portion of the article…)
….Adapters and calipers work on the Pantera original equipment rear
rotors and with a much better rotor - one with a Corvette part number.
Because the G.M. Pantera rear rotors are so similar the G.M. rotor can
be used to replace the Pantera rear rotor at any time, and the same
calipers and adapters are all easily refitted. It's a better-than-stock
balanced system - simply by adapting new calipers to the front side of
the rear rotors and moving the rear hydraulic flex lines from the old
calipers to the new. The flex lines removed from the original wheel
cylinders easily reach the new calipers.
This G.M. part is a late model Corvette FRONT rotor. It is 11 and 1/2
inches in diameter by 13/16 thick, and has a cast-in hat - all very
much like a Pantera
REAR rotor.
If you lay this Chevy (front) rotor beside the Pantera (rear) rotor
you'll notice two things. The superior quality of G.M. rotor makes the
Pantera part look like junk, but in overall size and shape, the two
parts are almost identical.
FITTING AND REFITTING THESE PARTS. Like the original equipment rotor,
the G.M. part mounts under the rear axle hub -not the best way to mount
a brake rotor -it makes changing the rotor difficult -and it
unnecessarily transfers unwanted heat from the brakes to the wheel
bearings. Race car makers just slip the rear rotors over the outside of
the wheel lugs, so that the rotors are as easily changed as tires.
Measurements of the G.M. and Pantera rotors will show some differences
that must be considered. The Vette rotor-hat has a little over 1/8th
inch MORE offset than the stock Pantera item. AND, the Pantera rotor
actually has 1/16” larger circumference than the G.M. part. A 1/16th of
an inch closer rotor edge-to-caliper clearance will usually require no
change. If the edge of the rotor rubs the caliper any brake shop can
quickly restore clearance by turning a few thousandths of an inch off
of the edge of the rotor. The 1/8th inch offset difference is even more
easily handled, and we'll deal with that in a minute.
First the center of the Chevy part must be redrilled to a Ford /Pantera
bolt pattern, and the center hole needs to be enlarged slightly to
register properly on the Pantera stub-axle. These are simple jobs for
even the most rudimentary machine shop. And, considering that the
result is a vented rotor that is superior to the stock item in every
respect, it is well worth this small trouble.
After the rotor is assembled to the axle and inserted into the upright,
check for interference between the rotor inner rim and the caliper boss
on the upright. Casting differences may cause conflict between the
Pantera & Chevy parts where the inside rim of the Chevy rotor passes
closest to the Pantera caliper mounting boss. If this happens a little
filing on the corner of the caliper boss will quickly restore necessary
clearance. These reworked Corvette rotors have a number of advantages
over both stock parts and other more extensive brake modifications. (1)
With these rotors the original Pantera parking brakes may be used.
Stock calipers mag be remounted in their usual place. Just insert 1/8th
inch thick spacer-washers between the caliper and the mounting face on
the Pantera upright. This spacer compensates for the extra offset of
the Chevy part thereby reestablishing the proper caliper location.
Then, hook up the parking brake cables but not the hydraulic lines. (2)
Adapters which fit JFZ calipers to the Pantera rotors will also mate
them properly to the newly mounted Corvette rotors. Insert spacer
washers under each adapter and mount the caliper on the front or unused
boss on each rear up-right, and hook up the Pantera hydraulic line.
I repeat - the flex lines from the rear-of-the-rotor calipers reach the
front-of-the-rotor ones perfectly. (3) One final benefit! These rotors
are available at your local Chevy dealer, and they currently retail for
around $65 each - and who pays retail?
