Back to FAQ. First published 2 November 1999

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The brake system

The Duetto’s braking system was one of its most impressive features. Four-wheel disc brakes were still the territory of racing cars and Ferraris in the mid-1960s but the Duetto, humble as it was in terms of pricing, boasted them as standard. The system was virtually identical to that of the Giulia Sprint GTA that had already gained such a strong reputation for its competition exploits.

Initially Dunlop manufactured the brake discs but Ate also manufactured identical discs under license. The discs measured a sizeable 10½ inches (267mm) across at the front and 9¾ inches across at the back (the rear discs were smaller than later Spiders). That equated to a friction area of 227 sq in up front and 139 sq in to the rear. The mechanical handbrake operated on the rear wheels via small shoes acting against a drum machined in the rear disc casing.

From mid-1967, a Lockheed-Bonaldi vacuum brake servo became a standard fitment.

The braking system was different in detail in right-hand drive cars.