Dealing with copious amounts of horsepower demands adequate braking capability. This usually entails large brake calipers that add to the vehicle’s unsprung mass. Brembo has just unveiled a new series of calipers whose patented design translates to lower weight without any compromise in rigidity.
Brembo introduced its new family of aluminum fixed calipers at the 66th Frankfurt Motor show.These are designed for high-end cars that require disks with large braking surfaces, something that inevitably translates to sizeable, heavy calipers.
The patented design is marked by five openings on the body of the caliper that create hollow areas in selected low-stress sections. Two openings on the front side of the caliper cover an area between 16 and 22 sq cm (2.5 to 3.4 sq in) and the three openings on the bridges measure between 7 and 11 sq cm (1.1 to 1.7 sq in). These cavities in the caliper body are calculated to save approximately 8 percent of weight in total.
According to Brembo, the caliper design is the result of more than 100,000 hours of development since 2011, whereby the exact areas where metal could be removed without compromising the overall performance of the calipers was determined.
The new calipers will be available in 17-inch (5.9 kg / 13 lb in weight), 18-inch (7.7 kg / 17 lb) and 19-inch (8 kg / 17.6 lb) versions. So far there is no information on whether there are plans for caliper types other than the four-piston in the two released images. Apparently Brembo is already planning to supply car manufacturers with brake kits specifically designed for individual high-end models.
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