I was curious if any one had and tips or tricks. its an 89 c1500 silverado.
I own the same year, a 1500 series. Correct with the C-clamp but something you need to know is open the bleeder valve to compress the caliber. Forcing the fluid back through the master cyclinder will damage it. It's fairly easy to do.
You should also pull the rotors and have them miked
hi im trying to figure out which pads are better semi-metallic or ceramic pads. they will be going on a 1994 honda accord lx coupe. the car has 140,000 miles on it. i dont really drive it to much and i dont race at all. im a pretty slow driver. i dont go on highways that much mostly just streets. im thinking to just get semi-metallica pads . can you give me some of your opinions? thanks for your time
ALSO I LIVE IN GLENDALE,ARIZONA AND IT GETS VERY HOTT!! HERE OVER 100 DEGREES THANKS
No more than you drive, I would go for the cheaper ones. They will stop you just fine.
I just did my front Brake Pads for my 2001 Audi S4. I haven't looked at the rear pads yet — is there anything I need to know, or is it similar to the front ones?
You might need a special piston tool. Some cars have to have their rear calipur piston rotated as they are pressed back into the cylinder. Not rotating them can cause damage. Auto Zone sells a 12 piece disc brake calipur tool set that fits almost any brake system for about $30.
I want to know if there is anything to be careful of before my partner changes the Brake Pads on our car.
Well first off don't use just a jack also use jack stands ive seen many people
just jack up a car with a floor jack then get under it and get crushed and or killed
seen them both make sure your partner uses jack stands which are pretty cheap
compared to your life, as for the brakes themselves simple to replace first off
you will need to open master cylinder if the fluid is low don't fill it generally low fluid means worn brakes unbolt calipers which is the housing that holds the pads in the housing is a piston with a rubber gasket you will be to get a piston
compressor tool or large pair of channel locks and compress the piston all the way back in other wise your going to be hard pressed to get new pads in as you compress the piston the fluid level should rise back to full mark brakes are a sealed system if there was a leak brakes won't work well brake pedal will just slowly hit the floor boards when compressing pistons use rags
on the channel locks teeth so you don't poke a hole in the gaskets around the pistons put the new pads in re bolt caliper do the same on the other side
when your doing the brakes you want to look at the rotor make sure its smooth also you can look at the old pads them selves if one pad is more worn
the the other the calipers may need replacing make sure you buy a can of brake cleaner that way you can wipe any grease off the rotors grease and brakes don't mix nor will you stop, also if your rotors have lots of grooves
they will need to be replaced its not totally critical but brakes will last half the time than normally, also check fluid level once both brakes are replaced top off if needed its not totally critical to replace worn calipers or rotors but the new pad won't last long if you don't as far as brakes its always best to replace worn out calipers ie uneven wear or bad rotors with lots of grooves
you can take your rotors in to be turned meaning that a shop or machine shop puts on a lath and cuts the grooves out the problem with this is heating and cooling also any hair line cracks replace the rotors they will fail you looking for discoloration etc make sure you use cleaner specific to brakes
otherwise it will leave a chemical film and you may not stop and also wear eye protection
hope this helps
Lr
Ceramic pads dissipate heat much quicker than regular Brake Pads do. They are rather pricey and not recommended unless you race the vehicle or it came factory equipped with them. The cost is the big issue as they are not cheap to upgrade.
I’m changing the Brake Pads on my car, but I need to release the brake pressure to get them off. How do I do this?
As soon as the car is turned off there is no pressure in the brake system. The easiest way to compress the caliper pistons back to their full seated position is with a carpenters sliding C-clamp. They’re avalable at wood working, hardware stores and Sears.
Some rear calipers have indents or notches in two places around the faces of the piston. In that case you’ll need a hardened inexpensive 3/8 square tool from an auto parts store. It fits a short socket extension and slides inside the notches. Slowely screw clockwide the piston back inside the rear calipers.
If your rear caliper pistons have no notches simply squeeze them back using the sliding bar C- clamp.
im stuck in new york right now, and need to get to ohio. my brakes make a horrible grinding sound when i brake, but its only been doing it about 5 days. i bought Brake Pads for 20 bucks, but it would take 60 to change them, which i just cant afford. i need all of my money for gas. i need to get down to kentucky which is 700 miles away. i wont be making to much stops though, not anymore than i would in town. would i be okay if i just went ahead and left? i have people that can do it for free once i get there.
the car drives fine. it doesnt need to be towed, when i brake, it stops like always, just grinds really loud. i have no money to spend, and i dont have AAA.
i dont even care if i have to get the rotor replaced, because i get paid tomorrow, i just need to get back now so i will not lose my job
If you drive any further you will need to replace the rotors as well as the pads. A LOT MORE EXPENSIVE.
I've been doing a little research about Brake Pads since I have to have mines changed and found that I could purchase them myself at possibly discounted prices. I called a few mechanics and it seems that even if I brought my own pads in, it would still cost almost the same to have them installed then if I just leave everything up to them. But one mechanic said his price was $139 for ceramic brake pads, installation, and rotor resurfacing. Another mechanic said that Ceramic Brake pads are better but some have come back complaining that it still makes a noise. He's charging around $150-160 for "premium brake pads" - close to the ones that the car comes standard with. Obviously it seems I should go for the other guy but the I've gone to the second guy before so I'm familiar with him.
Here's the scoop about brake pads. OEM pads on American cars are usually semi-metallic. They tend to be dirty and do a great job of grinding stock off the brake rotors.
Fero-Carbon based pads such as Performance Friction and Hawk makes the same pad in one particular type as well as ceramic pads do not grind stock off the rotors. They are also cleaner. The pad that'll never wear out a rotor are oragnic pads, however they tend to wear out faster than any other type.
The secret of quiet pads are the anti-vibration shims that come with most premium brake pads. AC-Delco, Bendix CQ.3 and EBC Red pads are all great ceramic brands. There are other brands of premium ceramic pads that are as good.
If you happen to pick up a set of pads with no shims don't dispair. CRC makes a high temperature flexable silicone silastic compound that can be spread on the clean steel side of each pad side. A .090 thickness sufficiently dampens the vibratation harmonics better known as brake squeal. NAPA and Carquest makes this product.
A word about brake rotors. If you have an old trap of a car you probably don't want to spend the money on good brake rotors, everybody and their brother gets cought up in the dollar game so they elect to go with junk off-shore low dollar rotors that are shipped from China and Taiwan. The cast iron in these rotors is very porous and open grained. They rust easily and warp.
If you care about your car premium OEM, Wagner, AC-Delco and Britich cast EBC rotors can't be beat. tirerack.com has a bunch of fancy high dollar rotors and brake pads also. You as a costumer should know exactly which brand and type of brake pad is going on your car. Slider pin inspection, lubrication with synthetic brake grease must be done also. Don't get cought up in box parts store slider pins either. The bright silver color of these pins is a dead giveaway that they're not as hard as the heat treated dark colored OEM slider pins.
If you decide to select your own parts any new car dealer will install them for you.
After replacing the rear pads and rotors, the wheel won't turn. The parkig brake is too tight.
One answer came close, the brakes are self adjusting. However, during my installation, I failed to screw in the caliper piston and position it correctly. It is supposed to be orientated in a manner that allows the pin on the pad to be in the allotted recess on the piston face. I found this in a chiltons manual.
if you did it right you should have noting to adjust it is self adjusting. As son as you pump the brake pedal a few times the brakes should be ready to go.
learn how to change your rear