DIY: Front Brake Pad and Brake Rotor Replacement

[F1point4]

DIY: Front Brake Pad and Brake Rotor Replacement


20130831-DBA4650_HawkHPPlus_FrontJob-001 by VictorN07, on Flickr

With my recent commitment to track and do HPDE events more, I decided I needed more upgrades in the braking department. Frankly it is one of the areas I have been neglecting.

What I have already
ATE Super Racing Blue DOT4 Brake Fluid
Stoptech stainless steel lines in the front and rear
SpeedBleeders

What we will install today
Hawk Performance HP Plus Brake Pads
DBA 4000 T3 Slotted Rotors

Turns out I have plenty of life left in the OEM pads and rotor. Dust boots look good still. I will hang on to the OEM pads and swap them in if the Hawk HP Plus pads don't work so well on the street. I hear they have to get up to temp to be effective. Also, fuck seized rotors.




Purpose

The purpose of upgrading pads and rotors in the stock braking system isn't to get more stopping power. It is to be able to stop consistently for longer. The Hawk HP Plus pads won't fade as fast as the OEM pads, and the slots in the rotors aid with cooling.

It is definitely not as good as BBK such as the AP Sprint Essex Kits, but every bit helps. The plus side is that this is much cheaper, and you can figure out if drop in parts is enough for you.

I've been told, good pads and fluids is great for the beginner. From there, stainless lines would be the next logical step, then getting better rotors. BBKs are required for the truly hardcore, such as endurance racers.






Fun Story
@firestormriot has purchased a Nikon J1 camera. He ended up taking all the photos using his J1 and the kit 10-30mm lens. I did my usual post processing magic.

It was fun showing him how to use his camera and tips to take interesting pictures. He picked it up very quickly! I love sharing my passions with people. Thanks man for taking the pics while I got dirty.

I also wanted to see if a inexpensive, small senor camera with non-pro glass can make good pictures. In my opinion @firestormriot and his J1 did admirably. You can see the results below.





Thanks!

Thank you @Chris@Phastek for securing the goods for me. Thanks to Dave Staba at DD Performance Research for the life saving tip that will be explained later on. Thanks to @firestormriot for the garage space and extra set of hands.

Wanted to acknowledge @PMok for writing the initial guide for pads. I hope to expand on this. You can find his guide here http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=24614

[F1point4]

Let's Go!!!

Pictures taken with a Nikon J1 with the kit 10-30mm and edited in lightrom!!!! Not my usual Olympus Pro gear here. I like the result!


Once again I do not take responsibility for any damage done to you or your vehicle. Note that this is work on a critical safety system on your car. Customize, maintain, and upgrade at your own risk. Be safe.




Loosen the wheel lugnuts while on the ground
Jack up the car (http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=10111)
Remove the wheels



20130831-DBA4650_HawkHPPlus_FrontJob-001 by VictorN07, on Flickr

Part Numbers

20130831-DBA4650_HawkHPPlus_FrontJob-002 by VictorN07, on Flickr

20130831-DBA4650_HawkHPPlus_FrontJob-003 by VictorN07, on Flickr

Service Manual Diagrams

20130831-DBA4650_HawkHPPlus_FrontJob-004 by VictorN07, on Flickr
[img]http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7390/9640126939_57c***44ce_c.jpg[/img]
20130831-DBA4650_HawkHPPlus_FrontJob-005 by VictorN07, on Flickr


20130831-DBA4650_HawkHPPlus_FrontJob-006 by VictorN07, on Flickr

Brakes are stock, mostly, heh

20130831-DBA4650_HawkHPPlus_FrontJob-007 by VictorN07, on Flickr


20130831-DBA4650_HawkHPPlus_FrontJob-008 by VictorN07, on Flickr


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20130831-DBA4650_HawkHPPlus_FrontJob-037 by VictorN07, on Flickr


20130831-DBA4650_HawkHPPlus_FrontJob-038 by VictorN07, on Flickr


20130831-DBA4650_HawkHPPlus_FrontJob-039 by VictorN07, on Flickr


20130831-DBA4650_HawkHPPlus_FrontJob-040 by VictorN07, on Flickr


20130831-DBA4650_HawkHPPlus_FrontJob-041 by VictorN07, on Flickr

You can go shimless. You may or may not get extra noise. Track days may also burn off all the grease

20130831-DBA4650_HawkHPPlus_FrontJob-042 by VictorN07, on Flickr


20130831-DBA4650_HawkHPPlus_FrontJob-043 by VictorN07, on Flickr


20130831-DBA4650_HawkHPPlus_FrontJob-044 by VictorN07, on Flickr


20130831-DBA4650_HawkHPPlus_FrontJob-045 by VictorN07, on Flickr


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20130831-DBA4650_HawkHPPlus_FrontJob-048 by VictorN07, on Flickr

[F1point4]

Here are example bed in instructions. If you don't bed in your brakes they may not work as well as they could. Here are the ones that come with the hawk pad.

Bed-In Instructions

After installing new brake pads, make 6 to 10 stops from approximately 30-35 mph applying moderate pressure.
Make an additional 2 to 3 hard stops from approximately 40 to 45 mph.
DO NOT DRAG BRAKES!
Allow 15 minutes for brake system to cool down.
After step 4 your new pads are ready for use.

Dragging brakes apparently means, don't ride the brakes. I think your brakes can glaze over from all the high heat. Instead, stop with purpose when doing this procedure.

[JimmyMac]

Nice write up! Did you happen to weigh the new rotors vs. stock?

[PMok]

great photos and writeup! a few alternative tools/tips:

- in place of the bungee cord, I have used a spare jackstand with a sufficiently wide top surface (or put a board/plate on top) to support a caliper so that it doesn't hang from the brake lines while changing disc rotors. Really you can put it on anything that reaches high enough so it can rest on it without stretching the line.

- if you don't have a brake piston compression tool, a basic c-clamp in combination with your old brake pad will work to compress the piston.

[Young_makaveli]

Very nice write up

Useful information here

Thank you

[F1point4]

Originally Posted by JimmyMac

Nice write up! Did you happen to weigh the new rotors vs. stock?

Unfortunately I did not weigh them. By feel both are heavy hahhaha

[RL_BRZ]

Thanks for sharing....

[jimmy4thenguyen]

This is amazing. Wow

[Fizz]

If I'm just replacing the rotors on a new-ish car (with appox 1500 easy driving miles), do u think I can skip sliding the calipers up? Can I just jump straight to removing the bracket bolts and move the whole brake assembly out of the way?

[F1point4]

Originally Posted by Fizz

If I'm just replacing the rotors on a new-ish car (with appox 1500 easy driving miles), do u think I can skip sliding the calipers up? Can I just jump straight to removing the bracket bolts and move the whole brake assembly out of the way?

You can do that, but you may still need to compress the caliper pistons to accommodate the extra thickness of the rotor.

[OrbitalEllipses]

Oh god HP+...

[F1point4]

Originally Posted by OrbitalEllipses

Oh god HP+...

What's wrong with HP+ pads?

[OrbitalEllipses]

Originally Posted by F1point4

What's wrong with HP+ pads?

One of the crappiest pads I've ever used. The dust, the noise, etc. weren't that good a trade off for the brakes I got in return. Ferodos and Carbotechs worked way better.