Zambesi0 1 Posted December 30, 2019 (edited) have recently acquired a 1989 205 gti 1,9 from "Carnell classic cars" near Harrogate and trusting the owner Dave (stupid of me) and not knowing any different I have now found out that the 1.9 was not fitted with drum brakes which this car has and on contacting dealer have been told to piss off and accept that I have been shafted.( do not know as yet if I have any legal recourse.) Any owners have any opinions as to whether it is worth trying to source and fit correct rear beam with discs or leave things be. Edited December 30, 2019 by Zambesi0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Leslie green 110 Posted December 30, 2019 (edited) Apparently from what I have read some export model 1.9's did have rear drum brakes , these were usually automatic cars though and destined for the Japanese market , they may not all have been auto;s though , does the logbook say first registered new in uk ? Axles are a known weak point and it would have been easier to find a drum brake axle in the past when these were cheap runarounds too . Edited December 30, 2019 by Leslie green Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jackherer 543 Posted December 30, 2019 I'd start by measuring the torsion bars to see if they are GTI spec or not. The easiest way is to try an open ended spanner on them, GTI bars should be just under 19mm. (18.6mm + paint/powder coat) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Leslie green 110 Posted December 30, 2019 Jap spec info thread : Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zambesi0 1 Posted December 30, 2019 First reg uk it would appear some previous owner fitted a beam from a 1.6 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jackherer 543 Posted December 30, 2019 1 minute ago, Zambesi0 said: it would appear some previous owner fitted a beam from a 1.6 Or even worse a non-GTI with thinner torsion bars and anti roll bar. Until you measure the bars you wont know for sure. There is also a difference between GTI and non-GTI crosstubes but start by checking the torsion bar diameter. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tom Fenton 1,542 Posted December 30, 2019 It’s not a huge job to convert back to discs, however in all honesty the drums certainly have a better handbrake, and you’ll almost certainly notice no real difference in braking performance in road use between the two. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SRDT 175 Posted December 30, 2019 With 1.9 brake compensators you may have too much pressure for drums, you also need to check if they are proper 1.6 40mm wide drums and not the regular 30mm ones. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
petert 586 Posted December 30, 2019 Early Australian delivered GTi's also had drum brakes. They were essentially a manual 1.6L GTi with 1.9L DFZ engine. If yours is a genuine D6B or DKZ car, then changing back to rear discs is something you can work towards, but certainly not essential. The compensators are an interesting point however. Drum brake cars have a single compensator mounted on the firewall. Where as discs have one each side, mounted in front of the rear beam, just before the flexible brake hose. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zambesi0 1 Posted December 30, 2019 Thanks to all so far , interesting things to check Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zambesi0 1 Posted December 31, 2019 hi again have checked drums and torsion bars as suggested and bars are 19mm drums are 40mm,other sources also say drums are possible better but am concerned that not being discs will affect resale in the future as car not original.Any thoughts? 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SRDT 175 Posted December 31, 2019 As long as it's a GTI rear beam you can use 306 arms to convert to disc brakes. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tom Fenton 1,542 Posted December 31, 2019 Or leave the trailing arms alone, just changing the stub axles and brake specific bits. I’d have to check but I may have all the bits required. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zambesi0 1 Posted December 31, 2019 tom have emailed you re parts req. thanks Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Adamstanford 3 Posted January 1, 2020 On 12/30/2019 at 6:25 PM, Tom Fenton said: It’s not a huge job to convert back to discs, however in all honesty the drums certainly have a better handbrake, and you’ll almost certainly notice no real difference in braking performance in road use between the two. This is true, I have recently refurbed my rear drums, new cylinders, liners, handbrake cables etc and the handbrake works fantastic and braking performance is brilliant. Even better than the brakes fitted to my mr2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zambesi0 1 Posted January 6, 2020 Thanks to all who responded,do not feel so shafted now as I can rectify the problem without to much trouble as the car is a 1.9 apart from rear beam. Still has reminded me about. “Buyer Beware” in the classic car world. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zambesi0 1 Posted January 9, 2020 hi various attempts to contact Tom Fenton ie message on here and emails to his new website have failed,can anybody help? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Batfink 201 Posted January 15, 2020 He may just be having a busy start to the year. He'll be in touch I'm sure. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
