DIY: Porsche 996 Brembo BBK Conversion Install

[xpme46m3]

10/28/20 UPDATE:

ECS (Creations Motorsport) Front Brake Lines failed on me last night. The hose separated from the barb which caused the brake fluid to dump. I lost all braking capabilities and had to limp home with no brakes. Luckily the roads were empty because it was late at night. I just ordered front brake line kit from Rally Road and will be installing that when it arrives. I have put less than less than 15k miles of light daily driving since I installed the brakes. No Track or Mountain runs that would have pushed the brakes near its limits. I just want to put this out there for anyone attempting this swap.

This DIY will focus on the installation aspect of the Porsche 996 Brembo BBK conversion for the E46 M3. Tyler has another DIY which would have information on rebuilding the calipers and other details of putting together the kit. Much thanks to Tyler for answering my questions when I tackled this project. I hope this DIY helps you in some way. Learn from the mistakes I made along the way. Feel free to let me know if any of the content here is not accurate and I will correct any errors.


Please use this DIY as reference and note that YMMV. By using this DIY, you release me from any liability for any injuries and/or damage to your property as a result of using this guide to install your BBK conversion. If you are not comfortable with any of the steps listed here, pay a professional to do the installation.

Few things to keep in mind

1. Set aside a whole day or weekend to perform the conversion - be prepared to be without the car if you run into issues that may delay the install.
2. A helper is not needed but would be a welcome addition and would definitely make the job a lot easier. I did the whole brake conversion without help.
3. You will run into snags and sticking points - I will list the snags I went through so you wont have to.
4. I will not rewrite steps that are already on the interwebs, I will however link them for your convenience. It would be best if you watch/read the links i provided below to familiarize yourself with the process
5. Make sure you have all the tools needed to perform the conversion - majority of my downtime was spent going back and forth to harbor freight and home depot to buy things i needed for this conversion - I am listing the tools I used
6. Lift your car on jack stands
7. This guide assumes you already have all the parts and the necessary modifications done
8. My parts list is based on the actual parts I used for my conversion - Not everyone will have the same budget, or preference on parts. You do you and I do me.
9. I didn't do everything right and I'm ok with that. My install turned out just fine.
10. I have used pictures from both passenger and driver side - I identified it in the picture to avoid confusion.
11. I dont have as much pictures for the rear install as i thought I had - midway of installing removing the rotor i scraped my self pretty bad. Looking back i just wanted to get over with the install and didnt realize i didnt take enough pics. But the process after cutting the dust shield is pretty much the same.

Useful links / Information

• http://m3.madrussian.net/diy.shtml
• https://thebuildjournal.com/diy/e46-...-retrofit-diy/
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3_IERauEpIw
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WLe7R4t7WXI
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMuHKDI00rw
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WS1jBpWDuyk
• Attached collection of infomation courtesy of duracellttu

My Parts List (links included when available) - costs listed reflect the current price listed from the vendor

Calipers - Porsche 996 $500

• Front - 996.351.425 ; 996.351.426
• Rear - 996.352.421 ; 996.352.422
• Machine 5.5mm off the mounting boss $99 - https://rallyroad.net/collections/e4...chiningservice

Rotors

• Front Rotors ZCP/CSL 345x28mm $539.91 - https://www.ecstuning.com/b-ecs-part...000505ecs02kt/
• Rear Rotors 328x20mm $267.80 - https://www.ecstuning.com/b-ecs-part...29379xsgmtlra/

Brackets

• Front $224.95 - https://rallyroad.net/collections/e4...dapterbrackets
• Rear $194.95 - https://rallyroad.net/collections/e4...brembobrackets

Brake lines
Front $49.99 - https://www.ecstuning.com/b-creation...ines/bl12~cms/
Rear $64.95 - https://rallyroad.net/collections/e4...ekitfrontlines

Brake Pad (RockAuto)

• Front $54.79 - Akebono EUR 917 (Front pads of 3.2L H6) / PAGID 355009281
• Rear $64.79- Akebono EUR 737 (Front pads of 2.7L H6) / PAGID 355018471
• *Akebonos' because this is my daily driver and i don't like to clean my wheels every week. PAGID for when I take the car on runs

Miscellaneous Parts (RockAuto unless otherwise indicated)

• Front Caliper repair kit $18.15 - Centric 14337013 x2
• Rear Caliper repair kit $18.22 - Centric 14337009 x2
• Front Brake pad hardware $6.89 - Centric 11737004
• Rear Brake pad hardware $6.89 - Centric 11737008
• Brembo caliper sticker - Ebay
• Brake Fluid - Local Auto parts

Optional Parts - Rockauto, ECS

• Brake pad wear sensor
• Brake Pad Shims /Damper
• Bleeder screws
• Bleeder dust boot
• Caliper connecting line
• Parking brake

The Tools

• Jack and Jack stands
• Hex Socket set - 5mm, 6mm ,7mm and 12mm
• 12pt Deep socket - 13mm (front RR nut)
• Ratchet set
• Breaker Bar
• Metric Socket set - 16mm, 14mm
• Flat/Combination wrench - 16mm, 14mm, 11mm
• flare nut wrench - 11mm (proper tool for brake line)
• C-Clamp
• Rubber Mallet
• Rags
• Cutting tool - Angle grinder, dremel, tin snips
• Grinding tool - Dremel, angle grinder
• Wire brush
• brake cleaner
• Brake Bleeder kit (optional)
• Nuts and bolts - will provide home depot part numbers

My take on Calipers

1. I got my calipers locally through craigslist. Depending on how much time you spend shopping expect to pay anywhere from $500 - $1200 depending on condition.
2. Make sure you get the correct part numbers. These are cast into the calipers itself - double check and ask before you buy especially if sourcing online.

Calipers used for this conversion are listed below. All these calipers are made from the same Brembo casting.

• 1998-2005 Porsche 996 (C2/C4, non-turbo)
• 1999-2004 Porsche 986 Boxster S
• 2005-2012 Porsche 987 Cayman S

The Front Porsche caliper part numbers for this conversion are:

• 996.351.425 (driver side)
• 996.351.426 (passenger side)

The Rear Porsche caliper part numbers for this conversion are:

• 996.352.421 (driver side)
• 996.352.422 (passenger side)

3. The calipers itself need some modification. 5.5mm will need to be machined off the mounting boss. This can be done by your local machine shop. In my case, I did not want to take any risks and went with Rally Road for the service.
4. Unless you want to install calipers that says Porsche, refinish the calipers by either painting or powdercoating them. I opted to have mine powdercoated
5. Rebuild the calipers by replacing the seals and dust boot at a minimum. If you have some stuck pistons, you would want to replace these as well. Make note of the caliper sizes; Fronts are 36mm and 40mm while the rears are 28mm and 30mm. Rebuild kits are available through ECStuning and RockAuto. Mine were in pretty good condition so I opted to replace the seals and dust boot only (included with my powdercoating service)
This video shows how to do it step by step - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sh1QMKurU8g
6. I am running ZCP/CSL rear squared so I don't need to use any spacers for the front. If you are using a different set of wheels do your due diligence and research whether you will need to use spacers or not.

TLDR - Scroll to the top and read it


THE INSTALL

Jack the car up and rest it on Jack Stands!

I. Start on Front Driver Side

1. Remove wheel to access the brakes

2. Remove the Front Caliper

a. Follow steps 1-8 http://m3.madrussian.net/diy_front_brake_pads.shtml to remove the caliper

b. then Step 2 http://m3.madrussian.net/diy_front_brake_rotors.shtml to remove the carrier

c. Reference video from https://youtu.be/WS1jBpWDuyk?t=105 up to 5min mark

d. use a hook and hang the caliper off the springs or rest it over a box

Tip - Rotate your steering wheel all the way to the right to give you more working space if needed

• Compressing the Caliper Piston (Left Picture)
• Caliper removed (Right Picture)

3. Remove brake rotor screws - 5mm hex bolts




4. Remove the Rotor. This is where I hit my first snag. The rotor is stuck and will not come off no matter how much I pounded with a mallet.

a. Instead of wasting time with mallet, use a nut and bolt for leverage and push the rotor out - https://youtu.be/pMuHKDI00rw?t=34

Tip 1 - You will need to loosen the contraption to rotate the rotor a few times and push on a different spot
Tip 2 - you will hear a pop when the rotors are free

b. Clean hub / dust shield - wirebrush/brake cleaner worked for me

Rotors removed (Hub not yet cleaned in this picture)




5. Install the Front Adapter bracket to the knuckle

a. This is where i hit my second snag. Turns out the bolt was screwed in too far that its protruding. This causes the bracket to not line up properly with the hole. In my case, i used a dremel to grind off the protruding part of the bolt. I contacted Eric from Rally road after the install and he confirmed this to be by design. You need to grind off the knuckle until to make the adapters fit. Use Dremel or angle grinder to do the job.

Tip - Test fit your adapter before making any modifications. I have the RR brackets and it didnt line up correctly. Some members who also used RR brackets did not need any modifications to fit the adapter.

• Not so right way (Picture on the left) - I ground part of the bolt
• Grind these knuckles down to fit the RR Brackets instead (Picture on the right) - Eric from Rally Road recommends to grind the knuckle if needed to properly fit the bracket and have the holes align properly

b. Both brackets are the same - make note of the orientation of the bracket. There is only one way to install this for the caliper to fit properly.

Bolt >>> Knuckle >>> Adapter Bracket

c. Re-Use the original bolts to secure the bracket - Tighten 50 ft-lb

6. Prepare the caliper for install

a. Verify you have the proper orientation for calipers - bleeder screws should be on the top and the cross pipes in the bottom.

b. swap cross pipes and bleeder screws if you need to change orientation

c. tighten bleeder screws

d. Compress piston calipers if needed - use C-Clamp and brake pad - https://youtu.be/3RYG0ymWEFE?t=131

Tip - If pistons are not fully compressed, you will not have clearance to install the pad later - dont be like me - I was lucky I still had the old worn pads that fit so i was able to compress the pistons without removing the caliper.

e. Screw in the stainless steel brake line to the caliper (90 degree bend) but do not tighten. - You want to be able to adjust this later when routing the lines

f. Install brake shim/dampers if you are using it

7. Install the rotor - ECS came with new hex bolts



8. remove the stock caliper - waiting to remove the stock caliper after the new one is installed will increase the chance of scratching the new caliper - don't ask me how i know

a. unplug brake pad wear sensor

b. unscrew the brake hose from the brake line - expect some fluid to spill - place something under to catch the brake fluid spill

c. Remove caliper

9. Install Brembo caliper onto bracket

a. Tighten 35 ft-lb - 13mm 12pt deep socket

Caliper installed (Passenger side pic)

Testing for clearance
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1qy2...ew?usp=sharing

10. Install brake pads - https://youtu.be/UOkigCj9Gns?t=345

a. If you choose to install a brake pad wear sensor you will need to use a Porsche wear sensor and crimp the wire with the existing BMW sensor (i skipped this part, not using a brake pad wear sensor - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1fFJyYVQC_E)

11. Connect stainless steel brake hose to the brake line

a. route the hose and make sure lines is not rubbing onto anything


b. tighten hose on the caliper side

c. Connect hose to the brake line
d. Use brake cleaner and rag to clean the surface of the rotor

Pic of Passenger side installed



12. Front Driver Side is done


II. Front Passenger Side

• - Same steps as the front driver side with the exception of the brake pad wear sensor
• - Turn the wheel all the way to the left to give you more working space if needed

III. Rear Passenger Side

1. Remove wheel to access the brakes




2. Remove the rear caliper and carrier

a. Follow steps 1-6 http://m3.madrussian.net/diy_rear_brake_pads.shtml to remove the caliper

b. then Step 2 http://m3.madrussian.net/diy_rear_brake_rotors.shtml to remove the carrier

c. Reference video from https://youtu.be/WS1jBpWDuyk?t=865 up to 17:40 mark

d. Hang the caliper behind the rotor

Tip - follow the video - It'll save you time, and headache



3. Remove brake rotor screws - 6mm hex bolt



4. Remove the Rotor

a. As with the front brakes, rotors are most likely stuck - https://youtu.be/pMuHKDI00rw?t=34

Tip - alternate tightening both bolts until the rotor is free

5. Adjust parking brake if necessary

6. Cut approximate 1.5" from each side of the dust shield

a. Use any cutting tool at your disposal - Grinder, cutter, dremel, or tin snips - I used tin snips

b. Optional - smooth out the cut edges and paint to avoid rusting

c. Clean hub/dust shield - wire brush and brake cleaner worked for me

7. Install the Rear adapter bracket to the knuckle

a. Both brackets are the same - make note of the orientation of the bracket. There is only one way to install this for the caliper to fit properly.

Bolt >>> Knuckle >>> Adapter Bracket



**** I scraped myself while trying to remove the rotor. I just realized i dont have enough pictures for the rear install but the process is the same as the fronts after the dust shield is modified.


8. Prepare Caliper for install

a. Verify you have the proper orientation for calipers - bleeder scews should be on the top and the cross pipes in the bottom.

b. swap cross pipes between left and right rear calipers

c. tighten bleeder screws

d. Compress piston calipers if needed - use C-Clamp and brake pad - https://youtu.be/3RYG0ymWEFE?t=131

Tip - If pistons are not fully compressed, you will not have clearance to install the pad later

e. Screw in the stainless steel brake line to the caliper (90 degree bend) but do not tighten all the way. - You want to be able to adjust later when routing the lines

f. Install brake shim/dampers if you are using it

9. Install the rotor - I had to reuse the old hex bolts since this rotor didn't come with new ones


10. Remove the stock caliper

a. unplug brake pad wear sensor

b. unscrew the brake hose from the brake line - expect some fluid to spill - place something under to catch the brake fluid spill

c. Remove caliper

11. Install the Brembo caliper onto the bracket

a. Tighten to 45ft-lb

12. Install brake pads - same as fronts - https://youtu.be/UOkigCj9Gns?t=345

a. If you choose to install a brake pad wear sensor you will need to use a Porsche wear sensor and crimp the wire with the existing BMW sensor (i skipped this part, not using a brake pad wear sensor - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1fFJyYVQC_E)

13. Connect stainless steel brake hose to the brake line

a. route the hose and make sure lines is not rubbing onto anything

b. tighten hose on the caliper side

c. Connect hose to the brake line
d. Use brake cleaner and rag to clean the surface of the rotor

14. Rear Passenger Side is done



IV. Rear Driver Side

• Same Steps as the rear driver side with the exception of the brake pad wear sensor

V. Bleed the Brakes

• http://m3.madrussian.net/diy_brake_bleed.shtml

VI. Check for Leaks


VII. Install Wheels


VIII. Bed in your new brakes

• Lots of how to online
• https://ebcbrakes.com/articles/bedding-in/
• https://brakeperformance.com/bedding-in-rotors.php

You're Done - Enjoy your new Porsche Brembo BBK

[WOLFN8TR]

Good write up...

[Tbonem3]

Nice job! Rr bracket nut is 13mm 12pt deepwell

[duracellttu]

Awesome write up , thanks for the contribution!

Do you happen to have any pictures of the rear caliper orientation? I just want to make sure I understand which piston is supposed to go where.

[xpme46m3]

Its a busy day at work. Still working on uploading the pictures. I didnt have help and have been trying to take as many pictures as I can with my phone. Unfortunately a lot of the pics dont really show what I needed to convey so Im using pics from both sides. Will try to get the rest done after work.

[xpme46m3]

Awesome write up , thanks for the contribution!

Do you happen to have any pictures of the rear caliper orientation? I just want to make sure I understand which piston is supposed to go where.

Sorry I didnt take a picture. But its quite simple - The rear is installed as a trailing caliper - meaning the smaller piston will be at the top/front and the bigger piston at the bottom/rear. If that makes sense. Bleeders will always be on top. Its easy to figure out from that point. If you are still confused I can probably help with facetime or something at some time.

[Tbonem3]

It's the other way 'round. You want the smaller pistons making contact "first," leading, so bottom.

Smaller pistons, front and rear, should be closest to crosspipes.

The way the rear calipers mount on the porsche is 180 from ours, so we have to swap the pipes. You don't swap calipers from side to side, because you want to keep the smaller pistons as leading.

[COVID-19]

^^+1

[xpme46m3]

It's the other way 'round. You want the smaller pistons making contact "first," leading, so bottom.

Smaller pistons, front and rear, should be closest to crosspipes.

The way the rear calipers mount on the porsche is 180 from ours, so we have to swap the pipes. You don't swap calipers from side to side, because you want to keep the smaller pistons as leading.

ok i'll check my rear calipers when the weather breaks. I didnt swap my calipers from side to side but i will definitely check the orientation. Thanks.

[Tbonem3]

Ya left is still left. You just taking the cross pipe from right caliper and putting into bleeder holes of lefty and then put bleeders into where the original left crosspipe vacated. Smaller pistons and crosspipe on the bottom when you're all done and mounted.

[duracellttu]

Found a few pieces of information to support the smaller piston leading orientation.

[duracellttu]

Can you post recommended spacer sizes for commons wheels? I have OEM ZCPs and head heard minimum of 15mm front spacers and none required for rear.

[sdmcoupe]

The caliper part numbers you noted above were used on later year cars as well. Important thing is to get the right part number which you listed. Mine came of a 2005/2008 model year.

I used the rally road brake lines on mine and they fit perfect.

Awesome write up..thanks

[xpme46m3]

Can you post recommended spacer sizes for commons wheels? I have OEM ZCPs and head heard minimum of 15mm front spacers and none required for rear.

I dont have that information because I have ZCP squared and the wheels clear the brakes with no issues. Maybe someone else who has the traditional setup can comment and I will note that on this thread.

[xpme46m3]

The caliper part numbers you noted above were used on later year cars as well. Important thing is to get the right part number which you listed. Mine came of a 2005/2008 model year.

I used the rally road brake lines on mine and they fit perfect.

Awesome write up..thanks

Thanks. Edited to reflect this information.