Replace the rear rotor onto the hub assembly. Again, align the screw holes and replace the screws. Another 7.2 lb-ft on these.

Reinstall everything else just as described above. The rear caliper mounting bracket gets torqued down to 41 lb-ft.

 

I hope I covered every step here. If I forgot something, please post it. I'll make updates to the posts above as errors are found.

Brakes take a little more know-how than oil changes. Most people that are fairly good with their hands should be able to accomplish this job without much problem. However, keep in mind that brakes are a safety feature of your car. If you're unsure about something, seek out the advice of a professional. Better to be safe than sorry when it comes to your brakes.

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask. I'll do my best to answer you. And, there are quite a bit more people on these threads that know a whole hell of a lot more than I do about cars. So if I can't answer you, I'm sure someone else here can.

 

It's not a good idea to push brake fluid back through the hydraulic lines and out of the reservoir. The correct procedure is to keep the reservoir capped and open the bleed valve at each caliper. This is because the dirtiest brake fluid is at the piston and you don't want it back in the hydraulic lines. So, when you push the piston(s) back into the cylinder(s), the dirty fluid escapes through the open bleed valve. Close the valve once the piston is fully reset and then open the reservoir to top-off the fluid. Alternatively, take the opportunity to do a complete fluid flush ...

 

Graham,

I'd never heard about opening the bleed screw when pushing the piston back (to accomodate new pad). As you say, it avoids moving dirt upstream. OTOH, I wonder how far upstream it goes, and how dirty it is, how much of an impact this will have. Maybe the next (tri-yearly) system flush will get rid of it? I'm always leary about opening brake fluid bleedscrews, it's lead to spongy brakes for me, on some occasions.

Kieth,

Not sure if you spec'd it anywhere, but the "grease" to use is Anti-Seize Compound. In a nutshell, you apply it at every point of contact, between pad and shim and caliper, sparingly.

Also, a decent sized C-Clamp will work for pushing the piston back in, in a pinch. Works similar to the dedicated tool you show, except you put the back of the clamp on the back of the cylinder housing portion of the caliper.

I've never bothered machining rotors at pad change. It seems a hassle for a DIY job, having to take the rotors off: if the dealer does it they have a lathe that can do the job without removing rotors. FWIW, I think this is an overdone procedure, rarely warranted. You might consider getting a micrometer and dial gauge, to check the rotor's thickness, parallelism and runout. Usually if there's a problem with the rotors you will feel it.

A pulsing brake pedal if it's uneven, warped etc. A cracked rotor is a really sick sound, no mistaking it

Anyways, thanks for the guide and all the pics, very good write up!

 

Here's a video on YouTube that shows the correct method:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEVMM...eature=channel

As the mechanic says, it's the ABS components that are at risk. And repairing those can cost $000s!

 

Graham, those wide-jaw pliers he uses are a good idea, making it easy to keep constant pressure for the duration of the bleed screw being open. I've seen oil filter vice-grip pliers that look similar as those.

Ok, I'm a convert

 

bar10dah - Really nicely done guide, thanks!

 

Last year when I was in Alabama for four months, I left my car parked for six weeks, during the hot/humid/rainy months of end of July through beginning of Sep. I forgot NOT to leave my emergency brake engaged, as per the owner's manual, for a lengthly parking period.

After the six weeks, I started my car and put it in drive. The first thing I heard when my car moved forward was a booming sound, like I hit something. Then, as the car rolled along, there was a bumping sound and vibration through the car. Apparently, part of the rear brake pad corroded/adhered onto the rotor. I wasn't able to get the rotor resurfaced at the time, so I just drove it around, with that annoying sound. Slowly, the sound and vibration went away, as the rotor smoothed down again. However, a year later, I could still feel a slight pulsing of the brakes if I have to brake really hard.

I finally had the time (yeah, I've been that busy over the past year) to fix the problem this past weekend. Rather than just resurfacing the rotors, since I did that last year, and the fronts were already at their limits, I went all the way and installed new rotors all around. I bought the Napa Premium rotors and Napa Adaptive One brake pads.

Right now, I'm still breaking in the linings (200 miles), so I haven't done any quick stops to see if they feel better or worse than the Raybestos. However, I really believe any quality brake is just as good as the next quality brake. Sort of like, toothpaste. They come in all varieties. There are slight differences, some just a tad better than others. But generally if you just stick with a name brand, you're good to go.

Yeah, I know. The previous set of brakes were only about a year old. I pretty much took a job that would have cost me about $10-12 (the cost to resurface the rear rotors) and spent $230 instead to redo the whole thing. But now I know the rotors are good (a year ago, I had the fronts resurfaced down to nearly their minimum tolerances) and the pads should be just a bit better than my previous set. I read up on the Adaptive One pads from Napa and they seem to be pretty good.

As far as the labor goes, I did just as I did a year ago, but this time it went a lot quicker. This time, I've got experience on my side. And, I didn't have to stop to take pictures along the way!