Big Brake Kit
XYZ Racing Hollow Front Brake Kit — Mercedes Benz 300 SL (1989-1993)
SKU: XYZ-BRK-BKF-ME-A001-FRONT
- IncludesFront axle pair (2 discs + 2 calipers)
- PositionFront
- Disc Ø330–444 mm
- Caliper pots6 / 8 / 12-pot
- Lead time10–15 working days
Fits Mercedes Benz 300 SL (1989-1993)
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Caliper render for this kit:
The R129 300 SL is a different proposition to most GT cars of its era. Mercedes built this roadster to an exceptional torsional rigidity standard for a convertible, an ambition that translated directly into a kerb weight approaching 1,800 kg in standard trim. The M103 inline-six sits well ahead of the front axle, loading the nose with the kind of front bias that makes a front brake upgrade a considered engineering decision rather than an optional cosmetic one.
The standard front brake equipment was specified around the car’s GT brief: progressive, fade-tolerant, comfortable to live with across long motorway runs. That brief becomes a limitation the moment the 300 SL is driven with the urgency the M103 can sustain. The XYZ Racing front brake kit for the 1989-1993 Mercedes Benz 300 SL addresses exactly this gap, with a matched pair of forged front calipers and two-piece floating discs.
What this brake kit does for your 1989-1993 Mercedes Benz 300 SL
Under hard deceleration, the R129’s front-heavy weight distribution, a direct consequence of the M103’s placement ahead of the axle line, pushes a disproportionate fraction of braking load into the front corners. The standard system was not designed to absorb that load repeatedly at high intensity, and pedal feel deteriorates accordingly. The kit provides improved swept area and thermal capacity over the factory specification, with two-piece floating discs that let the friction ring expand on its alloy bell without coning, returning consistent bite across repeated, sustained stops. The choice of pad compound, Street for quiet low-dust daily use, Sport for spirited road driving where initial response and linear progression both matter, Racing for circuit sessions, means the same hardware can be configured to its actual duty cycle. Braided lines firm the pedal, and painted caliper colours, Red, Yellow, Gold, Black, or Anodized Black at no cost, provide the visual specification the R129’s open wheel arches fully justify. Discs are available drilled or slotted at the same price.
About the Hollow Front Brake Kit
This is a direct-replacement front brake upgrade for road and performance vehicles where the standard specification has reached its working limits. The caliper is a hollow-body forging as standard, and for sustained track work an optional Hollow Racing upgrade deletes the dust cover, is rated to 1000C, and carries a two-year warranty. The kit is assembled to fit the 300 SL’s front hub geometry without modification, supplied with calipers, two-piece floating discs, and braided lines as a matched front-axle pair. Pad compound is selected when you order across three options, from normal road use through to racing application, so the buyer arrives at a fully specified kit rather than sourcing consumables separately. Caliper colour, Red, Yellow, Gold, Black, and Anodized Black at no cost, with a custom Pantone match for £150, premium polished-forged finishes in Titanium, Polished Gold, and Polished Silver, and candy finishes in Teal, Blue, Red, and Orange, is a standard configuration choice rather than a post-delivery modification. Centre bells can be specified two-tone or titanium. XYZ Racing develops this range for vehicles used across a spectrum from road-registered daily drivers to dedicated track-day machines.
Fitment for the Mercedes Benz 300 SL (1989-1993)
This kit is specific to the Mercedes Benz 300 SL roadster on the R129 platform, covering the 1989-1993 production years, the M103-powered iteration before the subsequent 280 and 320 SL variants. Front axle fitment only. Verify model year and chassis designation against the fitment range above before ordering.
What buyers also search for
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- Mercedes 300 SL brake caliper in Red, Yellow, Gold, Black, or Anodized Black
Pad compound, disc style, and caliper colour are all configured when you order. Select your specification from the options above.
What’s in the kit
Front axle kit — supplied as a complete bolt-on assembly.
- 2×Two-piece floating discs — 330–444 mm: you pick the exact diameter with the "Disc size" option
- 2×Lightweight aluminium centre bells
- 2×Forged aluminium calipers — 6 / 8 / 12-pot
- 2×High-stiffness mounting brackets
- 2×Braided stainless steel brake lines
- 4×High-performance brake pads (1 set)
- 1×Fitting hardware & tools pack
Choosing your spec
Every kit is built to order around the choices you make above. Here is what each option actually changes, so you can spec yours with confidence.
Brake pads — Street, Sport or Racing
Every kit ships with a full set of high-performance pads; the compound is your call.
Street is the right default for fast-road driving — a strong, progressive cold bite with low noise, low dust and long disc life. Sport raises the working temperature and adds bite and fade resistance for hard road use and the occasional track day, while still behaving on a cold morning. Racing is a track compound built for sustained abuse: huge fade resistance and bite once heat is in it, at the cost of more noise and dust when cold. Match the pad to how hard you actually use the brakes — there is no benefit to a race pad that never gets up to temperature.
Caliper grade — Hollow vs Hollow Racing
Hollow is the standard caliper on every kit: a hollow-body forged caliper, lighter than a solid one, fitted with a dust cover and backed by a 5-year oil-leak warranty. For most fast-road and spirited track use it is all the caliper you need.
Hollow Racing is the track-grade upgrade. It runs the same hollow body but without a dust cover (so there is nothing to melt at sustained high temperature), uses a twin-metal piston that isolates heat travelling from the disc to the oil seal, and is rated to 1000°C. Available 286–380mm (front). Warranty is 2 years on oil leaks and 10 years on appearance. Built for professional racing and repeated track days.
Caliper colour & finish
Painted colours (Red, Yellow, Gold, Black, Anodized Black) are included at no cost. Want an exact match to your car? Custom Color (+£150) paints the calipers to any Pantone code you supply (15–20 day lead time).
Polished Forged finishes are the flagship: a forged caliper given a mirror-polished surface treatment that shifts colour with the viewing angle. Beyond the looks, the polished surface dissipates heat better, resists rust and stands up to the weather. Choose Titanium (neochrome, +£350), Polished Gold (+£300) or Polished Silver (+£250). They look their best paired with a titanium centre bell. Care: clean only with a dilute neutral cleaner or water.
Candy colours (+£200) use a deep candy-paint and polishing process for a mirror-reflection, boutique finish — pick Teal, Blue, Red or Orange (shown below right).
Centre bells
The centre bell is the CNC-machined aluminium hat that joins the disc to the hub. The standard anodized centre bell is included. The Two-tone bell (+£200) adds an anodized accent ring — choose Red, Yellow, Orange, Purple or Silver right here at checkout. The Titanium centre bell (+£500) is a forged titanium bell (bolts not included) that finishes off the polished-forged look.
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More XYZ products for the Mercedes Benz 300 SL appear here as the rest of the range publishes.