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This guide will show you in detail how to install the Focus Rear callipers and discs to a mk3 fiesta.
Why upgrade, well why not, if you have the larger engine conversion, you will need a larger brake conversion.
Lets face it the fiesta braking system is not the best, the discs are small and the
callipers are smaller still up front and an outdated brake shoe system to the rear.
As stated above I have gone for the Focus MK1 rear disc conversion from a T Reg (1999) .
I decided on this size as my alloys just fit over them.
PLEASE NOTE YOU NEED A MINIMUM OF A 14" ALLOY TO GO OVER THE CALLIPERS
Tools Needed:
Socket set
Spanners
Jack
Axle stands
Drill
Drill bits
Round file
Allen key sockets
Copper slip grease
Tie wraps
Rags
Brake bleeder
Parts Needed:
Focus rear stub axles
Focus dirt guards
Focus rear callipers
Escort RS2000 1992 handbrake cable for discs
Custom made flexi pipes, 20 inch long with male / female m10x1 ends
New discs (optional)
Pads to suit
Dot 4 brake fluid
Cable spacers (read on for info)
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Stop Me Now
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Safe!
Applies to:
All MK3's
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First up please read this guide fully before you start and also take note about the 14" minimum wheel size.
Also remember to change your spare as it will be a 13" steelie and won't fit over the callipers.
This guide is not for the faint hearted and involves a lot of work.
Get a set of focus hubs, discs, dirt guards and callipers, I paid £50 for all this
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The back of the car will need to be elevated, then secured on stands.
Then the rear wheels removed, as you are working with the handbrake you need to
securely chock the front wheels so the car wont move. Then release the handbrake.
With the wheels off you now have to remove the rear hubs, this is done by removing the
4 retaining bolts behind it, you may have to remove the shock
retaining bolt to allow the shock to be rotated out of the way.
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With the bolts out the hub can be removed. Now that's off you can set about removing
the handbrake cable from the brake shoe, use a pair of grips here and prise it out of the guide.
Remove the rigid copper pipe union from the drum to the beam; a 14mm and 17mm spanner is needed.
Drill out the 2 pop rivets and withdraw the backing plate and shoes as one unit,
file the rivets flat if they protrude. This will leave you with the naked beam.
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The best template to use for the hub mountings is the dirt guard from the focus as its thin,
light and you can bolt it secure to mark out where you need to drill.
Looking at the dirt guard make sure the cut out for the calliper is at the back top of the hub.
Using a nut and bolt through the bottom hole closest to the front of the car tighten
it up making sure its sleight. You will notice that the hole diagonally
opposite is nearly in the correct place, file it out upwards,
once correct size put another nut and bolt in there and tighten up.
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They were the easy holes. Use something to mark out the holes onto the rear beam through the dirt guard.
Then remove the guard to see how much needs to be drilled out. It may look a lot but the bolts have a
large flared washer on the back so they will hold.
Either get jiggy with the 10mm drill bit or get a side cutting drill bit or if you have to,
a round file. Then proceed to elongate the holes, little tip is to do one and a
time making sure you don't go too far.
If you do it correctly you can stay within the thick metal plate on the beam.
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Place the dirt guard onto the beam followed by the hub tightening the
bolts in a diagonally fashion until tight. It should look like this:
Repeat this for the other side, using the method above.
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Now that's the hub on you need to look at the callipers now, give them a good clean and paint if you like.
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THIS IS A MUST. The callipers need to be reset. Using a set of grips turn the
piston clockwise until it is fully back into the calliper.
Make sure one of the notches is at right angle to the calliper to allow the pad to sit right.
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At this point you need to get hold of a custom pipe with a male m10x1 and on the
other end a female version of the same thread, 20 inch in total length.
Attach the flexi pipe to the bottom of the existing pipe connected to the rear beam,
making sure its tight then you need to screw it into the union on the calliper making sure its tight and not kinked
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Put the discs onto the rear hub and attach 2 opposite wheel nuts to stop the disc from moving.
Fit the calliper carrier to the hub then apply a smear of copper slip to the pad guide on the carrier and install the pads.
Notice the pads have a spring attached to the tops, apply copper slip here as well.
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Slide the calliper onto the carrier over the pads making sure the metal springs
sit flat in the calliper and the notch on the piston is inline with the raised part on the pad.
Using the 2 new locking bolts secure the calliper to the carrier.
Again repeat for other side
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That's the callipers fitted, now the tricky part fitting the handbrake cable.
For this you need a 1992 Escort RS2000 cable with the half moon yoke(Stabiliser)
and the cable adjuster on one side with both ends having the hook fitting.
Be careful that you order the right one as there are 3 listed;
you need to get the one with the continuous cable to be compatible with the fiesta handbrake.
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With the car still in the air you need to get under it and remove the cir-clip
from the existing yoke (stabiliser) and force the pin up to release the cable.
Now on one side you will see a toothed adjuster, simply pull it to the back of the car and release the cable from the mount.
The other cable will have a fixed end with another cir-clip, pull it off and remove the cable.
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Unclip both cables and remove it from the car but you need to retain the original
fiesta YOKE and swap it with the one from the escort cable.
This is because its too large to fit under the fiesta floor pan.
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Refit the new cable in the reverse of what the old cable was removed, making sure you
refit the pin and cir-clip to the yoke and the further cir-clip to the fixed side of the cable.
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Route the cable in the same way the fiesta one was but when you get to the rear
beam you need to go on the inside of the beam, not the outside like the original was.
Push the cable through the hole in the calliper and you will now notice the cable is about 2cm too short.
Not a big problem. You need to either spend a lot of money getting spacers made up or do what
I did and used my head and found theses little things.
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They are the metal spacers from between the chassis and the seatbelt from the rear of the fiesta.
They do need to be filed out by about 2mm to make them clear the hook end of the cable.
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Push the spacer onto the cable and it should allow the stepped
end to fit into the guide on the calliper, if not, get the file out again to make it snug.
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Before you attach the cable to the calliper, pull the actuator arm a few times until
the calliper and pads grip the disc (this is the self adjusting mechanism)
Clip the hook end onto the actuator arm on the calliper.
Tie wrap the cable and the flexi pipes to the rear beam then repeat for the other side
then get in the car and pull the handbrake lever a few times,
if it has more than 4 clicks you need to get under the car and use the adjuster
on the cable to make it tighter. Keep repeating this till its right.
Also at this point fit new return springs to the callipers, because if you are like me,
mine were too stretched. I got the new springs from a motorbike shop as Ford
don't feel the need to sell an item that wears out separate from the calliper.
They are about an inch long and used to hold the exhaust in place on a motorbike,
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The braking system now needs to be bled of all the air bubbles that will have been ingresses from removing the pipes.
The best way to do this and probably the cheapest is to use a bleed kit,
these can be bought for about £7 but if your like me I begrudged paying that price
so I made a kit out of a 1 pint plastic milk bottle and a length of rubber tube.
Drill a hole in the milk bottle lid and push the pipe in, job done.
Fill the milk bottle with about an inch of brake fluid.
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Fill the brake reservoir to above the max line with dot 4 brake fluid then depress the pedal a few times then check the level.
Make sure its safe and start the car and keep it running to allow the pressure to build up in the master cylinder.
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Start off with the driver's side front wheel. Clean off the bleed nipple,
remove the dirt cap attach the tube from the bleed kit and using an appropriate
size spanner loosen the nipple half a turn then get an assistant to slowly depress
the brake pedal until the fluid runs free of air bubbles into the bottle.
Quickly tighten the nipple. Check the fluid level in the tank and top it up as needed,
Move onto the passenger side rear wheel now and repeat the same procedure here as above.
Check the fluid level in the tank and top it up as needed,
You may have noticed you have worked in a diagonal pattern ,
this is because this is the first circuit on the master cylinder. And the next part the other circuit.
Using the same method as above start on the passenger side front then the drivers side rear.
Check the fluid level in the tank and top it up as needed after each brake,
Again the diagonal pattern.
The brake pedal should now feel stiff with the bite being near the top.
And with the engine turned off the pedal should get rock hard as you press it.
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Replace the wheels and lower the car to the ground. Take it steady for a bit and keep checking the fluid level,
if it lowers you may have a leek and you will need to check all the unions again.
From what I have worked out if you have still got standard front callipers fitted the
pedal should feel about the same as what it was but with increased stopping power
If you have fitted up rated callipers up front like I have (Escort RS2000) you will
have a very spongy pedal which means that you need to upgrade the master
cylinder and servo to either a Escort one or one better and larger the Mk1 Mondeo one,
there is a guide before you ask. Here
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A note about brake bias systems.
The fiesta mk3 base models do not have the bias that restricts the amount of fluid to the rear of the car.
Ideally you should fit some from higher spec car to reduce the chance of the back of the car locking up.
The mk3 fiesta high ends like XR2i have a bias system fitted the inner wing,
two big canisters with the pipes going in and out, under normal driving they seem adequate to cope with this upgrade.
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The mk3.5 fiesta comes with a small bias fitted to the rear circuits on the side of the master cylinder,
they don't look big enough in my opinion so an aftermarket bias may need to be installed.
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Here it is the final result, and i must say i'm really pleased with it.
Looks good and works well.
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One final note is that the focus hub steps out the wheel by about 1CM thus making
my alloys which are offset 40 rub the lip so it had to be trimmed back to allow clearance.
Hope this guide is of some use to some one and feel free to discuss this in the forum.
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Guide Written and © On 17 Apr 2010 by Andrew Whiteman (AW3K)
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