Originally Posted by LS AzZkIkr

I just finished putting integra front brakes on my hatch and have a problem. I have to push the brake pedal farther to the floor to get it to stop. It feels like it doesnt have as much pressure. I was just wondering if anyone has had this problem. Thanks for the help!

Originally Posted by LS AzZkIkr

I was told that i the MC from the integra would not work because its abs. I cant find any info on this or on the brake booster.

Originally Posted by LS AzZkIkr

I thought i just needed to use the integra m/c not the booster too!?!? I would like to know before i finish the conversion. thanks again

Originally Posted by BrakeExpert

Brake Booster
Upgrading your brake booster to the Integra (or maybe other) sized one has the only drawback of pushing the MC forward, so the hardlines aren't going to be in the same place as they were. So bending hardlines may be in order. What a bigger booster does is the same thing as increasing the pedal length, it increases the force on the MC linearly. Like it may may push on it 40% harder or so at any given point. So this basically makes your foot do less work. This is for people who have a really soft foot and want to make their car brake 'harder'. This can be done, but given the weight of the civic chassis, if you use the right sized MC with its paired caliper, no upgrade to the booster is necessary. It gets to the point where its just personal preference.

Master Cylinder relative to the Caliper
When you go to bigger caliper than use a larger piston, you are pushing more fluid through the brake lines. Therefore, you should want a larger master cylinder to push this more fluid.

General rule is…with your stock Civic DX, with the stock front calipers, keep your 13/16” MC. Any bigger and your pedal will be too stiff.
With EX/Si calipers, use a 7/8” MC from a 96-00 EX or 99-00 Si because of the more fluid going to a larger piston.
With ITR/Legend/Vigor/Accord V6 or Integra DA or DC calipers, use a 15/16” MC from a 98-01 Integra LS to accommodate for the even more fluid. Any smaller of a MC will cause the pedal swing to be too long.
With NSX or Legend GS calipers that have two pistons, or an aftermarket caliper with multiple pistons, you’ll want a 1” MC because of even more fluid required to push all the pistons. Get the 1” MC from a 98-01 Integra GSR or ITR MC as it bolts onto the EK brake booster.

When changing out a master cylinder, be sure to 'bench bleed' it first. This involves having fluid in the resovoir and pumping it unconnected to allow fluid to fill the internals. If you don't do this, you can still bleed the car, but you may be at it all day, since air pockets may stick in there. Research bench bleeding before you attempt this on your own.


When you swap from drum to disc rear brakes, obviously its best that you use a prop. valve that was meant for it. Though I recommend that you install the 99-00 Si prop valve on your 96-00 Civic when you put rear discs on it, because of how it works, I do not have it on my rear disc equipped 1996 Civic. I do not track race, and have good tires, and on the streets, have not locked up the rear tires before the fronts because I can brake very hard and not lockup the tires. I do not have ABS.
Drum to Disc Conversion - Side notes on the conversion

The most common upgrade people want to do is put disc brakes on the back because they stop better, and have less nose dive than drums. Now drums do last longer, but if you want better stopping, go with discs. Also, please read about brake bias before you decide if you want to put discs on with the stock 9.5" front brakes if you have bad tires. Many will attest that discs with the stock DX front brakes causes the rear brakes to lockup first. This may be true with non-performance tires and on a track, but on the street under normal braking, you will be fine.

Thougts on Brake Pedal Feel
Some will attest to stainless lines and an oversized (relative to the front calipers) master cylinder giving a "rock hard" pedal feel. I can't say yes or no on every case but I will say this. If you have an OEM Honda, and you add stainless lines, this may improve response through a slightly less spongy pedal, but ceramic or metal brake pads change the brake pedal feel as much if not more. Pad selection is everything, it determines heat, fade, initial bite and dive, coeffecient of friction on that iron r otor, and yeah it affectts your 60-0 distance almost as much as tires, id say pad choice and tires are your two limiting factors fighting over each other. Remember that the rotor AND the pad are both heatsinks for brake heat, so if you have a ceramic pad which wont fade, this is gonna keep your brakes from feeling spongy later in the day when they get all hot (like on a track race or on a fast highway like 85 when its a hundred degrees out.) Open spoked wheels can help big time with brake fade.


REMEMBER......
Your car will only stop as fast as your tires will allow. All the braking in the world wont work if your tires are bald and on ice!!