The New And Improved Unofficial R65 Forum V2
Technical Discussion => BMW Technical Q&A, Primarily R65 => Topic started by: Bob_Roller on April 18, 2026, 02:55:07 PM
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I've got an '81 standard R65 with ATE calipers .
In early 2007 I decided the bike needed some work done to it .
Had about 87,000 miles on it without much done other than routine maintenance performed .
Front rotors for replacement as well as pads .
I went to the EBC website and found rotors and pads effective for '81-84 R65's .
When I got the parts they weren't the correct parts .
The rotors were for composite wheels not snowflake wheels.
The pads were for Brembo calipers not ATE caliper.
You can alter pads for Brembo's to work on ATE calipers .
BMW used ATE calipers into the '82 model year until they used all of remaining stock of parts .
Sometimes even the parts catalog gets it wrong !!
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I've got an '81 standard R65 with ATE calipers .
In early 2007 I decided the bike needed some work done to it .
Had about 87,000 miles on it without much done other than routine maintenance performed .
Front rotors for replacement as well as pads .
I went to the EBC website and found rotors and pads effective for '81-84 R65's .
When I gothe parts they weren't the correct parts .
The rotors were for composite wheels not snowflake wheels.
The pads were for Brembo calipers not ATE caliper.
You can alter pads for Brembo's to work on ATE calipers .
BMW used ATE calipers into the '82 model year until they used all of remaining stock of parts .
Sometimes even the parts catalog gets it wrong !!
Did you just get the parts of have you had them awhile? If you just got them then return as wrong items delivered, I wouldn't alter or modify breaks for any reason it is your life and saftey as well as others.
Just that Big Truck driver in me speaking.
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I altered the steel back plate on the pads .
Trimmed some metal off .
The pads for the Brembos go straight across with one small groove for a pin .
The ATE pads have two ears where the pins go through so I removed about 6 - 7mm .3 inches from the back plate.
There is still .25 inches, 6 mm of back plate before you get to the friction material .
I did this work 19 years ago .
I returned the rotors and got the correct EBC steel rotors .