Today I am getting my front disc brakes from the pull a part. they have a blue 4 door 75 mav with nice clean front discs... Maybe have them on my car in about a week
make sure to grab the proportioning valve if its still on the car. that is the hardest part to find out of the whole assembly. Good luck
I have changed a 74 maverick and a 74 comet over to disc and in both cases did not switch the valve and both work great. Dean
Well I am going to try to bypass the whole proportioning valve thing by going from 4 drums to 4 discs. That way the brake proportioning should be the same. I picked up rear discs from the back of a 92 Crown Vic the other day (100 bux!). The car had just came in and the calipers, pads, and rotors all look top notch. I think it had a brake job recently. I have some front discs that need a major rework though... so I won't be able to do the swap for a while yet. When I do, I will post results. Dave
Your thoughts of getting around the proportion valve issue won't work as properly as you think because the application is altogather different for total car weight, weight transfer, wheel base, tires and other characteristics of a Maverick/Comet vs a larger car.. The brake systems are engineered around all these parameters.. You won't know what you have until it's all done and road testing is done to see what the performance of the rear wheels are on panic stops on various surfaces for wheel lock up or non lock vs front performance.. If they don't perform then the rear bias has to be dialed in using a manuel valve in place of the proportion valve..
That is excellent news! I strongly believe that front disc brakes should be one of the very first upgrades done to Mavericks & Comets that are not already equipped with them...
Well I got the brakes off the car today and the valve too, brake lines etc. this car just came in here couple weeks ago so they are clean and in good shape. Do I need to get new tie rod ends for the disc brake car to replace the ones on my 72??
It is likely that you will need to get later-model outter tie rod ends, but you really don't know until you get into it and see...
I believe the 72 has smaller spindle bolts, but I am not sure. I know that if you still have your stock 72 rims, they will not fit the later hubs. I tried to swap a pair of 72 rims onto my 75 and the rim hubs are too small. Dave
Just to chip in, I did my brake swap a few months back, and re-used my d-block from the 4-wheel-drum system instead of installing my prop. valve. I like the way the car stops, no softness to it. I don't have to pump my brakes (manual system) and it stops smooth and easy. Now, my rear brakes may wear faster, but I can live with that.
My 72 tie rod ends fit fine on mine. I've never use the disk brake distribution block but I always road test it on wet roads. This is a must!!! In a panic condition is the last place you want to find out you have too much rear braking. I'd install one of those manual proportioning valves from Ford Motorsports before I'd change all those brake lines.
xpsnake. with respect, if your rear brakes are doing the larger part of the stopping power as drum brakes or disc, you have negated the reason you put discs on the front. I know it tends to feel good but that kind of brake bias is only used in trailering and then not too much. A couple of things to think about. The rear linning will overheat on hard stops and cause fadeing. The rear linnig areas are not very large compaired to the fronts. Should lockup occurr on a hard stop the rear of the car may go out of control needlessly and your in trouble for something that should not happen. Four wheel sharing with a small bias to the front gives max stopping power and brake life. I would reconsider the bias situation you have.
Totally agree with you there. I always say you gotta stop before you can go. Personally I think a total brake upgrade is warranted if you are making the carfaster than stock. Rear discs, performance pads and rotors etc....Stainless lines are a good idea idea to replace the ld rubber lines.
The rear brakes are not going to wear out any faster at all. They will work the same way they did originally. The only concern should be the potential for the rear brakes to lock-up too soon during a panic stop. I originally used the disc proportioning valve with the upgrade, but later reinstalled the original-type distribution block. In most cases it should not be a problem, but the driver should be aware of it. Ford first offered front disc brakes on these cars in 1974, in which case the same distribution block was used as for the drum brake option. In '75, Ford began using the proportioning valve with disc brakes on Mavericks/Comets. As Mavaholic suggested, I reccomend the adjustable aftermarket proportioning valve if any...
