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[minifreek]

Im wondering if there are available any bolt on bigger brakes available for the Omega's....

I only ask as I find the brakes to be not so powerful on the Omega, coming from a Vectra...

I had on my Vectra the bigger 308mm discs on the front and it would stop no problem at all, with a lot of confidence from me if I ever went for a 'spirited' drive..... knowing the car would stop...

Is there any available that I could buy/find in a scrappy maybe from a MV6... I dont know a great deal about the Omega's and don't know if the MV6's have bigger brakes with them being the sporty version of the Omega's....

[Ever Ready]

Would the Vectra brakes fit? Wheel clearance, offset etc

You could spend a lot of money and fit something like an AP setup but only you would know if the expense was worth it

I have known people spend way more than the actual value of a car on mods, it depends entirely on the owner

[Nick W]

With a 28mm thick, 296mm diameter disc, the Omega isn't underendowed. Like the rest of the mechanical spec, it's pretty well judged. Cheap pads in a heavy car don't help, and they do need a firm push on the pedal. Perhaps these are what you're experiencing?

[Ever Ready]

I agree with Nick, it's not as if the Vectra discs are massively bigger so not a lot to be gained by upgrading to them, if possible

Have you had the car long? do the brakes get better when they get really warm?  reason I ask is  that a previous owner could have fitted very hard pads aka racing pads which are great for track use etc but are not fabulous from cold

Does the car pull up straight if you do a hard stop?  sticking caliper etc

[05omegav6]

Im wondering if there are available any bolt on bigger brakes available for the Omega's....

I only ask as I find the brakes to be not so powerful on the Omega, coming from a Vectra...

I had on my Vectra the bigger 308mm discs on the front and it would stop no problem at all, with a lot of confidence from me if I ever went for a 'spirited' drive..... knowing the car would stop...

Is there any available that I could buy/find in a scrappy maybe from a MV6... I dont know a great deal about the Omega's and don't know if the MV6's have bigger brakes with them being the sporty version of the Omega's....

I shall make a couple of assumptions at this point...
1. It was a Vectra C.
2. The Omega weighs at least 350kgs more than any Vectra.

There are options, but the cheapest so far is looking about a grand using new discs/pads with second hand calipers... there is an AP set which almost bolt straight on, but you need at least 18" wheels, and someone to custom make the rear discs... that is somewhere between £2200 and £3k

Fresh Dot5.1 brake fluid, braided hoses, poly bushed suspension, decent tyres, and genuine discs and pads (not the Trade Club ones) all add up to helping the car stop better... but a hard driven Omega will suffer from brake fade

[05omegav6]

I agree with Nick, it's not as if the Vectra discs are massively bigger so not a lot to be gained by upgrading to them, if possible

Have you had the car long? do the brakes get better when they get really warm?  reason I ask is  that a previous owner could have fitted very hard pads aka racing pads which are great for track use etc but are not fabulous from cold

Does the car pull up straight if you do a hard stop?  sticking caliper etc

Vectra discs are totally unsuitable due to the hub/disc dimensions

[GastronomicKleptomaniac]

Fresh brake fluid is the place to start

[Kevin Wood]

As said, the first thing to do is to ensure the standard brakes are in perfect condition. The back sides of brake disks can corrode, reducing the pad contact area, and the sliding pins on the front calipers can also sieze. Brake fluid needs changing every 2 years.

Unless you are quite heavy on the brakes, the standard system shouldn't give you any problems. There have been various discussions about possible upgrades here - do a search. Nothing is available as a cheap or easy bolt-on solution, though.

"Performance" pads might be worth a try, but there's a fine line between pads that will take a bit more heat and reduce the tendency to fade, and pads that don't work adequately at low temperatures. You don't want the latter! Check any replacement pad is ECE R90 approved or it will be illegal for road use on an Omega.

[minifreek]

It could be that Iv gone from a '96 2.0 litre Vectra B with 308mm discs that where taken from a more powerful car and I got used to the way it stopped, and Iv gone to an Omega which is a heavier motor and takes more effort to stop it..

the fella I bought it off wouldn't have put racing pads on it as he just wasn't 'into' doing things like that, he's just not that type of bloke. I however am and would like the Omega to have a bit more stopping power. It could be that it needs new discs - maybe - or even new pads - maybe - but with the way they look at the moment they seem to have quite a bit of meat on the pads and the disca look almost new....

Thanks for the replies

[Ever Ready]

Fluid change is next if not done already, as advised by Al, Kevin & Gastro 

[Kevin Wood]

OK - when you say it takes more "effort" to stop it and you'd like more stopping power what do you actually mean?

Are you finding that the brakes are fading when you're heavy on them, that the pedal feel changes unacceptably as they get hot, or are you saying that you don't like the "feel" of them, but they aren't overheating?

At the end of the day, if the brakes can provide enough stopping power to invoke the ABS, then you aren't going to benefit from any more. If you're cooking to the point that they fade, that's when an upgrade might be worthwhile. If you just don't like the feel, then that's a different problem.

[2woody]

Omega brakes are amongst the very worst that I've tried on any car. They maybe suffer from three faults.

1. just not big enough to sink the energy of a fast-moving Omega

2. poor front caliper design, leading to brake disc distortion

3. too much front bias as standard ( but I can kinda see why they did this )

As a first stop, try adjusting the brake pedal to take some of the slack off the top.

Then, get new front discs. Irrespective of the mileage on yours.

that's probably all you can do with the standard set-up.

as a bit of an aside, in the days when I ran standard-sized brakes on the Omega track-day car, I would need to change to new brake discs maybe every three hours of track-time.

[minifreek]

I don't drive hard enough for the ABS to start to work, they also aren't overheating either... It could just be that Im used to a car stopping a bit quicker than the Omega does, it could just be the feel of them.... as Iv already said I could stand on the brakes of the Vectra and still not get the ABS to cut it.... it could just be me that Im used to brakes that basically work immediately over the Omega brakes that do work but dont have the bite that the Vectra brakes had....

On the Vectra I was running 308mm MTec grooved drilled and vented discs all round with Mintex brake pads, OK the rears where 286mm solids but still used Mintex brake pads and handbrake shoes.... It might just be that I was used to the Vectra brakes working better then the Omega brakes do... Im not used to such a heavy car TBH and it might just be that Im having to push the brake pedal a bit more than I did whilst I had the Vectra....

The brake fluid BTW is a lovely red colour and looks to have been changed recently...

[05omegav6]

Fresh Brake fluid should be a clear, very pale yellow... anything else is wrong

[Phil]

I shall make a couple of assumptions at this point...


2. The Omega weighs at least 350kgs more than any Vectra.

That is a massive assumption that is incorrect!

The Vectra 3ltr V6 diesel with auto box, sunroof and towing pack weighs over 1800kg, so actually more than an Omega!

The non VXR 2.8V6 with auto box, sunroof and towpack is around 1750kg, this has 314mm vented fronts and 292 vented rears, suggesting the Omega, with only 20bhp less is 'under braked'

 And yes the 2.8 came in 230, 255 and 280bhp but the 280 has bigger brakes, the 230 has same set up as the older 3.2 V6 petrol which weighs about the same and has less power than the Omega 3.2