Stupid question.......

[Pete Nice]

I have bigger tyres fitted, 235/75x15.

The engine is only a 1600TD.

If you put a bigger engine in any car then the brakes will suffer, it's not really fair to blame a car for having poor brakes if it goes faster than it should.

All the vans a getting on in age, so wear & lack of modern technology mean they are never going to be as good as a modern car.

If you are used to driving 40 year old air cooled stuff, & respect what it can & can't do then they can be good fun.

I don't harp on about how great my Syncro is, nor say that's it's crap. It is what it is & I just drive it. If I decide I don't like it for what ever reason then I would just sell it.

[andysimpson]

I have bigger tyres fitted, 235/75x15.

The engine is only a 1600TD.

If you put a bigger engine in any car then the brakes will suffer, it's not really fair to blame a car for having poor brakes if it goes faster than it should.

All the vans a getting on in age, so wear & lack of modern technology mean they are never going to be as good as a modern car.

If you are used to driving 40 year old air cooled stuff, & respect what it can & can't do then they can be good fun.

I don't harp on about how great my Syncro is, nor say that's it's crap. It is what it is & I just drive it. If I decide I don't like it for what ever reason then I would just sell it.

I agree brakes need up grading when other stuff is, almost everyone that uses there syncro off road has gone for bigger tyre dia, almost everyone has done nothing about brakes which as standard are JUST about ok. Alot of people are also up grading engines and don't bother with brake upgrades, add the 2 together and the brakes are dire.

[blurb55]

Must be just me then!
My Syncro running larger dia tyers and standard brakes, stops on a pin - better than many newer cars I have driven.
Had Baxter sort them when I got the van and the brakes seem up to the job of stopping the van, even when loaded with 7 adults.
And, it has a Scoob motor, which although a bit tired can be made to crack on.
Oh yes, this is not just my weekend toy, I drive it every day all over the country so it has been thoroughly tested.
Just my observations.

[syncroandy]

Completely refurbing the brakes at all four corners was one of the first jobs I did on the pickup, and it's pretty light as well. I've no complaints about the braking (unladen) and thats with 215/75 tyres.

[andysimpson]

Lets look at the brakes another way, a bottom of the range T5 panel van has a max weight of 200kg more than a syncro, it has a less powerful engine than any t25 syncro, it has smaller wheels. They have huge vented discs front and rear and work well, inspire confidence. Why VW decided in the late seventies through to early ninetes thta none of their vehicles needed brakes that worked properly is beyond me, mk2 polo's are dangerous if you try and stop quick at motorway speeds, felt like having an ejector seat when i had mine.

The T5 is no better because of technology, brake technology with a few exceptions has not altered in years apart from the emergency side of things, its just down to the size of the brakes.

Unfortunately the only good thing i can think of about the T5's is the brakes.

[Pete Nice]

the last T5 I drove did 120mph. that's why it has good brakes.

my t3 does 60 tops most of the time.

[andysimpson]

the last T5 I drove did 120mph. that's why it has good brakes.

my t3 does 60 tops most of the time.

Thats the 174, i am talking about the 85bhp, less than a syncro.

[Syncro G]

the last T5 I drove did 120mph. that's why it has good brakes.

my t3 does 60 tops most of the time.

Thats the 174, i am talking about the 85bhp, less than a syncro.

I wish!

Borrowing my dads 174 was fun though, strangely he only let me do that once, I thought it was rude leaving all those horses in the stable - I used them all when I wanted to accelerate .

Maybe its because my T3 has standard sized tyres? I'm quite happy with its brakes. If I wanted to lock the wheels and flatspot my tyres it'll do it! Bigger brakes will just make it do it easyer (though I must admit that can make things easyer to drive, especally with modern ABS). Same went for the old auto T3 my dad used to have - hit the brakes hard and you'd be smelling them once the ABS had finished doing its thing and your body mass went back to being constrained by the seat instead of the seatbelt.

Compaired to my landy the T3's brakes are really good, though we are talking drum brakes all round and no servo, larger dia tyres. You can still lock them up if you stand on the peddel though! The resion it has poor stopping distance is the drum brakes aren't as balanced as discs so hard brakeing is unpredicatable so you try to avoid it, high unsprung mass of the live axles probubly doesn't maximise road grip eather. MOST importantly though, its got MT tyres - the real significant traction limit of most off road vehicles used at speed on tarmac!