10 American Cars with Brembo Brakes for Non-Stop Driving Excitement

2016 Ford Focus RS ・ Photo by Ford

Backed by technology proven on auto-racing’s Formula 1 circuits, American cars with Brembo brakes are relying on a brand that first started building stoppers more than 50 years ago. 

It was in 1961, to be exact, that Italo Breda and Emilio Bombassei founded the company that would become “Brembo,” although it wasn’t until 1975 that that name became synonymous with high-performance braking. That year, after Brembo had been chosen as the new brake supplier for the Ferrari F1 team, the Italian automaker won the first of three consecutive Formula 1 constructors’ championships. 

Nowadays, Brembo still outfits Ferraris like the incredible all-new 488 GTB, and plenty of other imported sports and racing cars as well, but it also has a Michigan facility and can be seen at all three domestic automakers—usually peeking out from spokes of some fairly fancy wheels.

2015 Chevrolet Corvette

The seventh-generation Corvette has been a big-time hit for the Bowtie brand, and America’s favorite homegrown supercar naturally wears Brembo brakes as standard equipment. The tale of the tape here includes 12.6-inch rotors up front, 13.3-inch rotors for the rear wheels, and a 60-0 stopping distance of 107 feet. And remember, that’s after getting from 0-60 in fewer than 4 seconds.

Further, the ultimate current Corvette, the 2015 Z06, can upgrade to Brembo’s lightweight carbon-ceramic matrix rotors—measuring 15.5 inches in front and 15.3 inches at the back—to haul the car down from 60 in a mere 99.6 feet. With that mark, not only is the Corvette Z06 one of the fastest American sports cars with Brembo brakes, with a 0-60 time of fewer than 3 seconds, it also showcases the shortest 60-0 distance of any production car ever tested by GM.

2015 Chevrolet Camaro Z/28

The 2015 Chevrolet Camaro stays true to its muscle-car roots in many ways, but takes a wholly new-school approach to its braking systems. Thus, three Camaro models are among the top U.S. cars with Brembo brakes, highlighted by the carbon-ceramic matrix setup in the Z/28.

The car itself is positioned as the most track-capable Camaro ever released to the public, and its Brembo stoppers are a key to that performance, thanks to their ability to help generate up to 1.5 g’s of deceleration. On the race course, that translated into a Nurburgring lap time of 7:37.4 minutes that set a new muscle-car milestone and was four seconds faster than the more powerful Camaro ZL1.

In fact, so powerful are the Z/28’s Brembo brakes, Chevy had to develop a special finish for the wheels that would help prevent the tires rotating on them under the most extreme stopping scenarios.

2015 Buick Regal GS

The 2015 Buick Regal GS makes a surprising case as a credible sport sedan, checking off many of the boxes expected in the price range and some that aren’t. For example, in the mix here are a six-speed manual transmission, a potent 2.0-liter turbo engine that makes 259 hp and 295 lb.-ft. of torque, computer-controlled damping and, for its front wheels, Brembo brake calipers that put the squeeze on 13.6-inch rotors.

But like other, more premium cars with Brembo brakes, the Regal GS additionally features lux cues such as heated leather seating with a heated leather steering wheel, a mobile wi-fi hotspot backed by 4G LTE connectivity, and a full range of driver-assistance measures, including:

• Forward-collision alert
• Lane-departure warning and lane-change alert
• Side blind-zone alert
• Rear cross-traffic alert
• Collision-mitigation braking
• Full-speed adaptive cruise control

2015 Cadillac CTS

Continuing to raise its game with each passing generation, the Cadillac CTS serves up standard Brembo front brakes, with 12.6-inch rotors that have undergone a “Ferritic Nitro Carburized process” to increase corrosion resistance. But the brand further deploys dual enhancements for the V-Sport and V-Series editions, providing three of our favorite American cars with Brembo brakes.

The former, packing a twin-turbo 420-hp V6 engine, ups the ante with 13.6-inch front rotors, while the latter, debuting as a 2016 model, gets a comprehensive Brembo system with specific setups for front and rear braking performance: Two-piece, 15-inch front rotors and staggered six-piston calipers furnish front stopping power and the back wheels are braked by four-piston calipers that grab 14.3-inch rotors.

Of course, when it arrives this summer, the 2016 CTS-V also gets a supercharged, 6.2-liter V8 engine and a terminal velocity above 200 mph, so those brakes should come in handy.

2016 Cadillac ELR

Yes, there are even some electric cars with Brembo brakes, at least if you count the 2016 Cadillac ELR. Consider: The Wreath and Crest brand has significantly refreshed its extended-range electric vehicle for the new model year, putting a much sharper focus on performance, and Brembo four-piston front-brake calipers are now part of the package.

More specifically, they’re part of the new ELR Performance package that further features a new 20-inch tire-and-wheel combo, with summer-only rubber, along with a thicker-rimmed sport-style steering wheel and sport-calibrated continuous damping control and power steering.

Additionally, all 2016 ELR models will enjoy lower pricing and higher outputs when they go on sale this summer, as Cadillac has reduced MSRPs by about $9,000 despite raising power by 25 percent and now delivering 233 hp, 373 lb.-ft. of torque, a 0-60 time of 6.4 seconds, an all-electric driving range of 39 miles, and a total travel distance of 33 miles.

2015 Dodge Charger R/T Scat Pack

Okay, now that that’s out of the way, let’s turn our attention to the 2015 Dodge Charger R/T Scat Pack model, since it offers some hellaciously high horsepower numbers of its own—and wears its own set of Brembo brakes—yet is much more likely to be available from dealerships than its hard-to-find Hellcat sibling. 

The Scat Pack can scamper, too, thanks to an upgraded 6.4-liter HEMI V8 that can unleash 485 hp and 475 lb.-ft. of torque. True, that’s a far cry from the Hellcat’s 707 and 650, but R/T drivers nonetheless knock down 0-60 times in the mid 4-second range while running with the Pack, then reverse that achievement, going from 60-0, in 120 feet. 

Also, like other muscle cars with Brembo brakes, the R/T Scat Pack blends throwback design cues with exposed, bright-red calipers that grab attention just like they grab the rotors.

2015 Dodge Challenger Hellcat

Catching up with a 2015 Dodge Challenger Hellcat will be no easy task, whether you’re a customer or a competitor, but it can’t be ignored when it comes to muscle cars with Brembo brakes. After all, the car delivers both the most powerful V8 ever produced by the Chrysler Group and what Dodge declares is “the largest front-brake package ever offered in an SRT vehicle.”

In terms of outputs, that means the Challenger can churn out 707 hp and 650 lb.-ft., and it’s reined in with the help of six-piston calipers that clamp down on 15.4-inch, two-piece Brembo rotors.

On the other hand, as a Hellcat alternative, that same stopping setup also is standard on the “regular” Challenger SRT model, where it complements a naturally aspirated HEMI unit that has 485 hp and 475 lb.-ft. of torque on tap.

2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee

Even as more and more cars offer brand-name braking power, SUVs with Brembo brakes are relatively few and far between. But they’re also relatively impressive performers, especially in the shape of the 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT. It boasts higher levels of performance than any past SRT Jeep model, leveraging a 6.4-liter HEMI V8 and eight-speed automatic transmission to provide 475 hp, 470 lb.-ft. of towing, a top speed of 160 mph and a 0-60 sprint time of 4.8 seconds. 

Meanwhile, a Brembo braking package—with six-piston calipers/15-inch rotors in front and a four-piston setup with 13.8-inch rotors at the back—reduces 60-0 stopping distance to 116 feet. 

The 2015 Grand Cherokee SRT, however, also goes beyond those track-friendly traits with robust capabilities, highlighted by a max tow rating of 7,200 lbs. and multi-mode, full-time all-wheel drive.

2015 Ford Shelby GT350 Mustang

When Ford launches the latest Shelby GT350, it’s expected to be the most track-capable pony car ever manufactured, complete with the most powerful brakes ever mounted on a production Mustang. But while those stoppers benefit from Blue Oval engineering prowess for their massive two-piece rotors, it’s Brembo that contributes the calipers, supplying six-piston units for the front wheels and four-piston components at the rear.

Moreover, many other Mustangs also can be configured with advanced braking systems, including, for the 2016 model year, one of the hottest convertibles with Brembo brakes: As part of a range of upgrades for the new selling season, the Mustang GT drop-top will be available with a new Performance package, which will combine Brembo six-piston front calipers with go-fast goodies like a Torsen limited-slip differential, a revised front splitter and more performance-oriented suspension and chassis tuning.

Photo by Ford

2016 Ford Focus RS

The roster of compact hatchbacks with Brembo brakes—currently rather limited in this country—will expand by one important new member next spring, which is when the 2016 Ford Focus RS is scheduled to go on sale.

Already an icon among European enthusiasts, the Focus RS will feature a 315-hp EcoBoost engine, based on the same 2.3-liter unit offered in the Mustang, and a sophisticated all-wheel drive system with a dedicated drift mode, both marking important industry advances from the Blue Oval. Yet the car also puts as much focus on stopping performance as it does on dynamic driving, courtesy of the most powerful brakes ever deployed by a retail RS model.

And unsurprisingly, along with 13.78-inch discs, the setup includes standard four-piston Brembo front calipers, made from lightweight aluminum and available in an RS-specific blue paint, in a primary speed-reduction role.

Photo by Ford