Bump? Come on guys I know someone else has thought about this.


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Impatient on not getting a response on a project after only a half day posting on a weekend??

When the Gen-III vans were introduced, an intrepid member grafted those larger brakes onto his Gen-II van. A rotor/pads/caliper/carrier swap worked well if you also went with the larger wheels (17" vs 16" std). Keeping it in the 'family' increases your odds of it fitting without modification, and IIRC, it was a bolt-up affair.

As we don't have a new model to 'borrow' parts from, I'd still look for other 'platform' products in the current lineup that might offer some level of improvement.

Here's an example:

The current Gen-III Sienna has 12.9 inch vented disks, with a swept area of 70.99 inches

The current Gen-III Highlander lists the same size 12.9 inch vented disks, but has a swept area of 80.0 inches.

So likely the same hub and disk, but a different carrier, caliper and pad size. You might be lucky enough to find that the bolt hole spacing is identical even if the carrier is modestly larger. That buys you a 13% increase.

Another thing you can do is look for pads with a steeper chamfer angle on the ends. A new pad could be 5" long, but only have a contact area of less than 4" due to the leading and trailing edges. Look for a larger initial contact area.

Lastly is the issue of heat and brake fade. Are you aware of the recommendation from Toyota to ditch the little bolt-on air dams to increase brake cooling? T-SB-0045-14 Rev 1 (updated 8/2/2016). That will also buy you some stopping power on long descents or repetitive hard stops.

 

Ah ha! Thanks for the reply. So you're saying theoretically the Highlander's calipers will work with the 3rd Gen Sienna rotors using a more aggressive pad?


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Ah ha! Thanks for the reply. So you're saying theoretically the Highlander's calipers will work with the 3rd Gen Sienna rotors using a more aggressive pad?

Pure conjecture on my part, but Toyota tends to keep things 'parts bin' compatible for cost control. So if I were looking for a low cost alternative, I'd look at a platform mate for a possible solution. Interestingly the top equipped Sienna actually weighs more than the Highlander, but the Highlander has a higher max towing weight by 1,500 lbs. That probably justifies a modest brake sweep area upgrade. And that's with 18" wheels.

 

Here you go:
http://www.siennachat.com/forum/40-general-discussion/9411-6-pot-bbk-my-xle-awd.html

if you don't want to read it, the answer is that the stock 18" are too small.

 

If you contact Todd at TcE brakes , he does custom kits with Wilwood parts

 

Tire characteristics play a much bigger role in stopping distance than does increasing the size of the rotors and pads. Once the wheels stop turning, the only thing that matters with regard to stopping distance is the friction between the tires and the road . Since the stock brake setup can already lock up the tires, increasing brake size will provide little improvement in stopping distance. If you are really interested in shortening stopping distance, get tires that have better traction.

 

Since the stock brake setup can already lock up the tires, increasing brake size will provide little improvement in stopping distance.

Absolutely true up to the point of where brake fade and overheating kicks in. I found that to be the case during some spirited driving along Skyline Drive in VA, where I had greatly reduced braking ability due to severely overheated front rotors. (TSB-0045-14 rev1) Better airflow & better vented disks might help.

But as you said, in most cases better rubber is the best first approach.

 

I'm bumping this thread since I also am interested in improving brake performance.

Based on my part # research, the Sienna shares the same front calipers as the highlander and RX350. the brake feel on my previous RX350 Fsport was much better than on the Sienna, hence my desire to make a few changes.

The stock pedal feel on the Sienna is considerably softer. has anyone done a simple stainless steel brake line swap to see if that helps with the pedal feel?

The next step may be to swap the stock pads for pads out of the RX350 or Highlander (which ever has a greater surface area)

 

Coming from audi/vw I've seen way to many stainless steel lines break and have the people go back to rubber with 0 issues.

Maybe update your break fluid, pads, rotors but if it was me if leave the lines alone.

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Does anyone make stainless lines for the Sienna? If so provide a link please.


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i'm very interested in getting better brake performance. Its especially annoying on long descents - the lack of braking power is surprising

 

On long descents you're supposed to downshift and use engine braking to slow the car. Riding the brakes for a long period of time is always a bad idea. This is in the 2013 Sienna manual (cut and pasted from the electronic PDF copy):

●Use engine braking (downshift) to maintain a safe speed when driving
down a steep hill.
Using the brakes continuously may cause the brakes to overheat and lose
effectiveness.​

When going down Pike's Peak there are all sorts of signs warning you of this and a ranger station half way down so the rangers can check your brakes. I've seen cars there with super hot smoking brakes because the driver was riding the brakes all the way down the mountain. The ranger will tell them to park and wait for them to cool before going down the right way.

On the Sienna, on a long descent, move the shifter to the left (manual mode) to put you in 4th gear. That will give you a lot more engine braking than auto (6th gear). If that isn't giving you enough engine braking, and your RPMs aren't too high because you're not going very fast, you can downshift to an even lower gear.

We have a long, steep, hill to get to work and I always downshift when going down the thing. Riding the brakes down that hill every single day will wear our your brakes prematurely. Plus with brake fade, you'll be hard pressed to stop at the bottom of the hill which is not safe.

 

I think Russell makes a stainless steel kit for the 2008 Highlander because i upgraded my front brake lines on my 07' for better pedal feel. I bought a universal pair and so i had to buy fittings to fit the vehicle's hardlines. Here are some pics. I recommend that if you buy the universal kit, make sure its at least 20" long and remove the rubber clip from the old brake line (that mounts the line on the strut) and place it on the SS lines, that way it wont flop around when making turns.
Also i bought my pair from summitracing.com in the U.S.A. I have had them on my van for almost a year and currently dredging through the winter with it.
Some "minor problems is that when the vehicle is cold, it has a further pedal travel (Iv'e upgraded my front brakes to the 3rd gen. - (I guess its the ABS and brake booster warming up)


EDIT: It was Goodridge that makes the kit for a Highlander.

 

I think Russell makes a stainless steel kit for the 2008 Highlander because i upgraded my front brake lines on my 07' for better pedal feel. I bought a universal pair and so i had to buy fittings to fit the vehicle's hardlines. Here are some pics. I recommend that if you buy the universal kit, make sure its at least 20" long and remove the rubber clip from the old brake line (that mounts the line on the strut) and place it on the SS lines, that way it wont flop around when making turns.

Also i bought my pair from summitracing.com in the U.S.A. I have had them on my van for almost a year and currently dredging through the winter with it.

Some "minor problems is that when the vehicle is cold, it has a further pedal travel (Iv'e upgraded my front brakes to the 3rd gen. - (I guess its the ABS and brake booster warming up)





EDIT: It was Goodridge that makes the kit for a Highlander.

Can you provide a link to the fittings for the hard lines?


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Have you try any better performance brake pads? BBK isn't always the answer. It can be put together with cheap parts.

In general a lot of times people comment on good brakes just because the pads have good initial bites. I really like brakes stuff because they are simple to understand.

Here is some info for you: http://faculty.ccbcmd.edu/~smacadof/DOTPadCodes.htm

 

I did more aggressive pads and oem rotors on the last brake job. I wasn’t thrilled with the performance that’s why I’m considering a BBK. I travel through the smoky mountains and Kentucky often enough with a loaded van and knowing my wife doesn’t know about using the engine to assist with braking, this would provide a little extra security.


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What pads you tried?