The generation 1 and 2 SHOs can be upgraded to the braking system the generation 3 SHO uses.  The '96 upgrade offers the closest to the 94/94 stock 11" front rotored cars in terms of front/rear bias, while sharply bumping up swept area, to a swept area nearly equivalent to the Baer 12.5" rotor upgrade.

Doug Louis at FPS Automotive offers the '96 upgrade installed or as a kit (with Ford parts and warranty) for both the '89-'93 and '94-'95 models, check there for latest pricing (his price for the whole kit is usually lower than what you'll pay if you try and buy the individual components new - also, he was the one who originally developed this upgrade, so if you're going to go with new parts, get them from him!).

Here is a parts listing of what is necessary to do the upgrade yourself.
Here is a procedure listing ('94, '95 SHOs - click here) to do the upgrade yourself.

The system is a single piston (65mm in diameter), steel floating caliper design.
The Ford OEM rotors are single-piece iron, 11.x" diameter, vented.  Aftermarket rotors are available.

PRO:

• Caliper and street pads widely available.
• Simple bolt on to later model Tauri.
• Floating outboard pad tolerates modest rotor warpage.
• Rotors are widely available, and cheap.

• Single piston does not support inboard pad well, allowing the outer unsupported part of the pad to warp under extreme heat and pressure.
• The rubber dust boot will burn off under extreme use, exposing the steel piston and caliper to elements and probable rust.
• System is heavier than the Wilwood's by around 8 lbs.
• High performance pads not available (Performance Friction may now make a carbon-fiber "street" pad, not yet confirmed.)
• The smallest of the big brake rotors.  Allegedly still subject to warpage even in street use.

(more info needed)

This system is a two piston (each being 40mm in diameter), aluminum floating caliper design.
The rotors are single-piece iron, 12.5" diameter vented (cut down from 13" rotor).

PRO:

• Caliper, street and track pads widely available.
• 2-piston design supports the inboard pads much better than single piston.
• Better pedal modulation (although Doug Lewis reports pedal feel as "heavy").
• System is fairly light (lighter than the Ford '96 upgrade), improving handling.
• Floating outboard pad tolerates modest rotor warpage.
• The largest of the big brake rotors.
• 13" rotors possible with 17" wheels.

• The rubber dust boot will burn off under extreme use, exposing the piston to elements and possible corrosion or rust.
• High performance pads are quite expensive.
• Requires modifed steering knuckle or Baer kit, which may still not fit Gen I & II SHOs without additional grinding.
• May not fit under some 16" rims.
• Rotors very expensive due to machine shop.  Otherwise its an expensive mail order piece.
• Scott Chan reports seeing several rotors crack or warp with this PBR setup on Mustang 5.0s, but hasen't seen any problems on SHOs.  Suspiscion is that the thermal expansion of the disc and hat is not well matched, leading to warpage.
• Due to larger rotors, system is heaviest of the three - usually around 10 lbs heavier than the Wilwood's.

This system is a four piston (each being 32mm in diameter), aluminum fixed caliper design.
The rotors are iron, with an aluminum hat, 12.2" diameter.

PRO:

• Street and high perf/track pads available, much cheaper than for PBR.
• 2 pistons inboard and outboard provides excellent support for the pads.
• Good pedal modulation.
• The system is lightest of the three, and extremely light and sturdy.
• Stainless steel pistons and aluminum caliper not subject to rust Bolt-on kit, no grinding required.
• Lightest setup of the three.
• Aluminum center hat dissipates heat better.
• Scott Chan reports no warpage under very severe usage (well over 1000 degree temps).
• Stock, of-the-shelf size.
• Curved vane directional rotors available for better cooling.
• Rotors are inexpensive; aluminum center hat is re-usable.

• Fixed calipers don't tolerate as much rotor warpage as floating calipers.
• No dust boots; pistons are exposed to elements (but they are stainless steel).
• Requires modified steering knuckle or SHO Stopper Kit.
• Available only at racing supply or by mail order.

I have had the Wilwoods on my 89 SHO for nearly a year now and my opinions are somewhat mixed. The stopping power and pedal feel is great. I have hammered these things on the track and the performance at the end of the day was the same as the beginning. This included more than 40 135 - 65 stops (we were running at Atlanta Motor Speedway using the infield - 3/4 of the banking road course).   At that time, I was running the 'tan' polymatrix pads that come standard with the kit.   I live in the south, and I thought that I would have no problems with the Wilwood calipers as we have no salty road grime here and I change or rotate my tires at least every three thousand miles. I clean the exposed part of the pistons with a toothbrush and water or break parts cleaner depending on where I am when the tires are off.

However, I did have a problem with a sticking caliper and had to have them rebuilt about five thousand miles ago. Keep in mind that this was a very inexpensive repair (less than $8 for the o-rings and $20 labor with my first rate front end guy) but I was surprised that it happened. There was some 'gummy' stuff inside the wheel well and on the inside of my wheel that I could not account for (maybe leakage from my greasable tie rod ends?) that may have contributed to the problem. This has been my only complaint though. Being fixed calipers, they are not tolerant of runout on the rotors, and I had to have mine turned right after install (I understand that Todd now turns the rotors before he ships the kits) and have had no problems with warpage. I have no squeaking issues either.

If the question is 'would I do it again' the answer is yes. If the question is 'is this the solution for everyone' the answer is probably not. I wanted the best track brakes for my car. I am willing to trade a little additional maintenance for stopping power, light weight and pad options.

Scott Chan says :
 

For extreme use, such as driving schools and open tracks, only the Baer/PBR and SHO Stopper/Wilwoodsare suitable, and the kits are comparably priced.

However, there are two major differences that I see.

1) The consumables for the PBR are way more expensive.  $300 for a pair of rotors and $160 for track pads, vs. $100/pr rotors and $110/pr track pads for the Wilwoods.  This is due to the volume/price curve of the Wilwoods, which are used extensively in the world of motorsports.

2) The cracked and warped Mustang PBR rotors come keep coming to mind.  The dust-boot thing is a non-issue, since any dust boot will vaporize in these extreme conditions.

For street-only use, the Ford 96+ upgrade is probably good enough,  provided you don't pay $1000 for it.  If you're willing to spend that much, you might as well go for the Baer or SHO Stopper kit.  But for a few hundred bucks and a trip to the junkyard, it's worthwhile.   The dust boots on PBR and Ford calipers will mean less attention paid to the calipers compared to the Wilwoods.

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