A worthwhile and cost effective upgrade is to fit braided brake hoses. These give the pedal a much firmer feel and, when combined with decent pads and brake fluid, take the brakes from being adequate to pretty decent.
Braided hoses are available but don’t seem to be listed anywhere. I have used Goodridge hoses in the past and can recommend them. The kit of four hoses is part number 27004 and can be bought directly from Goodridge (call them and ask for retail sales). In 2011 I paid a little under £80 delivered to my door.
Note these will fit 360 and F430 cars with steel brakes. I do not know if they fit CCM equipped cars.
I cannot stress the importance of bleeding the brakes regularly. The maintenance schedule calls for annual changes but if cars are tracked then more frequent changes may be needed. Lack of fluid changes has been known to gum up the flexible brake hoses.
Changing the fluid is very easy and can be a one man job if a power bleeder is used. I have a Sealey VS820 – you fill it with fresh fluid, attach it to the reservoir and pump up the pressure. Then each of the bleed nipples on the calipers can be drained in turn until fresh fluid comes through.
Here’s a picture of the power bleeder in action:
Related posts:
Aldous Voice 
Hi Aldous – is changing the hoses an easy DIY jobs? Does it involve significantly more work on top of a brake fluid change?
Thanks!
Changing the hoses is fairly straightforward except they tend to be stuck in place – I recommend a good dousing with penetrating fluid (I use PlusGas) before trying to undo them. Bleeding is also a piece of cake with a pressurised bleeding tool.
I had an email from a friend with some useful information regarding brake fluid and hoses that is relevant to this post….
Many years ago I worked for AP, Automotive Products PLC as chief engineer of their Competition Dept and designed the brakes and clutches (Borg and Beck and Lockheed) for all of the F1 racing teams many of which are still in use today although employing advanced materials to accommodate the greater stress levels.
Glycol-ether Brake fluid is hygroscopic and absorbs moisture from the atmosphere as well as through rubber brake hoses which are permeable,they also suffer from their installation position which exacerbates water intolerance. As a consequence the boiling point of the fluid reduces in direct proportion to the level of contamination. Silicone brake fluid is not hygroscopic and the water stays in suspension and can boil as well as causing corrosion. Once a new system is filled with Silicone fluid Dot 5 it is not permissible to revert back to a glycol-ether based fluid eg DOT 4, and the reverse is also true. Another point worth mentioning is that in order to improve the temperature capacity of the fluid it’s lubricity reduces, the worst being Silicone and the best DOT 2.
Hi Aldous – any recommendations for which brake fluid to use?
Hello mate! For track use, Castrol SRF is best. For street use I recommend ATE Super Blue.
Cheers,
Aldous.
Hi Aldous! First of all, thanks for doing this blog. Big help to Fcar owners. May I ask if changing to stainless lines noticeably firmed up the pedal feel of your 430? Any other noticeable changes in the way the car behaves during heavy braking? Thanks.
I’ve not fitted these type of hoses to my F430, yet. However I can tell you that the pedal will be noticeably firmer with them fitted.
Regards,
Aldous.
Hi Aldous,
Do you need to remove any of the under-body panels (on an F430) to change out the brake hoses?
Thanks
No need to take the under trays off however you will struggle with the rear arch liners (although they can be swapped out with the liners in place).
Thanks, Aldous. I’m finally going to have time to fit braised hoses this week.
Do you know if crush washers are needed? I’ve been looking everywhere for answers with little luck.
No washers on the hoses. Good luck!