MK1 rear brakes

Hello guys, First off hello I'm new to the forum.

My girlfriend has a 1988 mk1 golf cabriolet that I've just bought down south to have a new mohair roof fitted to replace the old knackered vinyl one, It now looks lovely. Anyway on the way down I noticed just how shocking the brakes are, To be fair it has been stood for 8 years she has owned it for 25 years and has covered 59k.

I'm about to convert the rear brakes from drums to discs and I've got the mk4 calipers already and am on the hunt for a set of mk2 stub axles, I've seen a set advertised (seat Ibiza 1.8 20v turbo stub axles mk2 golf) are these suitable is my question guys, I'm not a VW person so don't really know much about what fits and what doesn't. I know I used mk4 brakes to convert my Datsun 260Z to discs at the back though lol.

Many thanks



Rob

To improve the brakes your better off speding the money on the front brakes, rear disc are no better brakes for the rear than drums. You want notice any improvement with the disc.
Make sure the rear brakes are adjusted properly as the auto adjuster some times stick.

mark1gls said

To improve the brakes your better off speding the money on the front brakes, rear disc are no better brakes for the rear than drums. You want notice any improvement with the disc.
Make sure the rear brakes are adjusted properly as the auto adjuster some times stick.

Hi thanks for your reply, But I do find that hard to believe, the MK4 rear calipers made a hell of a difference to the rear braking on my 260Z, it was like night and day in comparison, I've ordered the calipers now so I just need stub axles/backing plates and a few other bits and bobs, In the mean time I am going to improve the front brakes with new calipers/discs and pads plus some braided lines.

Hello and welcome!  You might want to think about upgrading your servo and master cylinder as per the guides on the right of the home page before going for rear discs as it makes a big difference even with standard discs on the front.

I'd agree with the above about upgrading the fronts first too. There's loads of discussion if you do a forum search on rear discs vs drums and their major benefit seems to be that they need less adjustment to keep your pedal travel short, and they look nicer.

I've got upgraded m/c and servo with 256mm fronts and drums on the rear of my tintop and the braking feels spot on, even with a bit of extra power

sorry not sure on the answer to your stub axle question