The purpose of this article is to give you a clear understanding of how to install disc brakes from a Datsun 280ZX onto a Datsun 510 for better overall braking. Many enthusiasts want more horsepower under the hood without considering how to stop all that horsepower. The best advice from most long-time 510 enthusiasts is to make the car stop as well as it goes. Doing it the other way around is dangerous and often leads to one more 510 headed for the crusher.

As with all modifications, patience is the major factor in making this conversion work. If you have it, you too can have a four-wheel-disc 510 with more braking power than you'll ever need. This system was designed for a much heavier car so you'll undoubtedly be pleased with your 510's stopping power. The ZX rotors are 10 inches in diameter whereas the 510 rotors are 9 inches. The ZX rotors are also ventilated for better cooling and the calipers and pads are much larger than their 510 counterparts.

The parts you'll need are found on the '79-'83 280ZX. There were some differences between the early and later calipers. The mounting holes on the ‘79-‘81 calipers have a different separation than the 82-’83. If the ‘79-81 calipers are used, a slightly different mounting bracket than the one detailed here must be fabricated. All of the components I used for this conversion were from a fuel-injected, two-seat ‘83 ZX.

You will also need a short length of steel tubing, access to a welder, a portable grinder, hacksaw, bench vise, and a drill press.

Get everything from the donor car that relates to the brakes: complete front struts, rotors, calipers, brake lines, (buy new flexible brake hoses), handbrake cables, handbrake assembly with cable from inside car, caliper mounting bolts, water shield, brake pads (buy new pads) and all the little bolts and clips. Get the master cylinder, the push rod, and the proportioning valve, too. This complete braking system, from the master cylinder to the four-wheel discs, is now on my 510. I didn’t use the brake booster in this conversion.

Mounting Rear Calipers

You will need to fabricate a bracket to mount the calipers to the existing backing-plate mounting holes. There may be some adjustment needed to the brackets to get the calipers centered over the rotors. I finally chose a 3/16” spacer in the bracket between the axle housing and the caliper just to get the right alignment. (See Photo 1 and Figure 1)

The calipers have to be swapped right to left to allow the parking brake bracket to clear the body above it. The calipers were simply swapped, not inverted. The parking brake mechanism and "fork" are still on the top.

Get the car up on jack stands front and rear, as high as you can. Remove the wheels, shocks, springs, parking brake cables, and halfshafts from the swing arms. Remove the swing arms, place them in bench vise, then remove the large nut from stub axle, taking care not to damage the threads. You'll need to buy new nuts (Part #08911-24010.) The old nuts are flattened on one side to keep them from backing off. Drive the stub axle out with a soft drift and remove the backing plates. (Removing the backing plate could be accomplished with an oxy/acetylene torch or a plasma cutter, if you have access to either, without removing all of the other parts.)

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