69 Imperial Budd photo -- revised

["Peter Engel" <peter.engel@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

First of all, I think that the straight-on shot of the Budd brake setup
may have faked viewers out.  Here's a different shot that clearly shows
that the rotor and hub are separate parts:

http://www.bos-engel.com/Imperial/rotor.jpg

Secondly, I guess I should have said merely that the Budd system is a
problem area for many owners.  When you have problems with it,
especially rotors, the repair job will be expensive.

I don't think that Chrysler released a brake system that was defective
or worked poorly, especially on their flagship models.  The problem
seems to be that the systems don't age well, especially on cars that
have sat for a long time or are driven infrequently.  In short, 8
pistons provide 4X as many leak/moisture entry points as 2 pistons.
Also working against the system is the fact that the rotors are quite
thin even when new and they shouldn't be "cut."

Mercedes Benz uses/used a nearly identical caliper on their high end
models, and MBZ cars have stunning braking ability.  I recently worked
on a beautiful 1988 560SL and it had the 4-piston, fixed-caliper brake
system.  On that car, one of the pistons in the right caliper had seized
and created a real mess.  The brake rotor was quite discolored and
caliper parts got hot enough to melt the piston dust boots.  Repair
parts, while easily available from a MBZ dealer were probably more
expensive than Budd parts!

So I'm not a Budd hater!  I still believe, however, that it is the
Achilles heel of the 69s.

Pete in PA
Rebuilding the Kelsey Hayes 4-piston disc brake setup for his 72 Duster
Twister