IRP Fly-Off Number 1 - Universal Hydraulic Handbrake

Stock hand brakes are very limiting in their usefulness on the track. The standard cable system is faulty in a number of ways as well and when building a car for the track, you will almost always want to incorporate a Hydraulic Handbrake system in order to avoid these problems.

The first major issue is the drum-style braking system. Most stock handbrakes engage drum-style brakes that are located on the inside of the standard brake rotor's hat, and this system can only apply so much force and be so effective. Hydraulic operated handbrakes have the benefit of being connected to the stock rear calipers or separately in a closed system with an additional clamping style caliper, either way applying a significantly higher braking force than the rear drum emergency brake.

The second major issue is the E-brake cable. Over time with normal use or when put under a lot of tension at once, this cable can stretch significantly. This requires adjustment of the handbrake system to compensate for the stretched cable. In worst case scenarios this stretched and weakened cable can even snap, leading to accidents, injury, or even death. The hydraulic system won't weaken over time and once the system is bled of air and operating without leaks, it will continue to last many times longer than a cable system ever could. 

The third issue? No more button! It is easy to enter a turn and use the stock e-brake handle to engage a drift, only to not depress the button fully enough when letting off and lock up your brakes for too long.

Hydraulic handbrakes can be connected to the stock braking system or can be installed as part of a separate hydraulic braking system using additional calipers and mounting brackets. As mentioned before, this allows for much higher braking force, but it also makes for a much stronger fail safe, if the normal lines were to lose pressure. Also, the orientation of the handle and the hydraulic action allows you to easily control the amount of force applied, making it much more simple to precisely control the brakes when entering or in the middle of a drift.

The master cylinder used on this handbrake is a .625" Wilwood cylinder that has a single output port in the middle and a port for a fluid reservoir to be added at the far end. The handle and cage/frame are made of CNC machined aluminum and are black anodized for protection and looks.