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DIY: Front Brake Pad and Brake Rotor Replacement
DIY: Front Brake Pad and Brake Rotor Replacement
http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5521/9...9ee48ba6_c.jpg 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 |
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.
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Nice write up! Did you happen to weigh the new rotors vs. stock?
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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. :thumbsup: |
Very nice write up
Useful information here Thank you |
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Thanks for sharing....
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This is amazing. Wow
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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?
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Oh god HP+... :barf:
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Do we need to use thread-lock on the bracket bolts? If so, what type would you recommend?
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awesome write up!!
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Superbly detailed write-up. This is going to be very helpful. Thanks! :thumbsup:
Wondering how important the greasing of the slide pins (and slide bush also as per service manual) is when just changing out OEM street pads for a track day assuming you are going to change back the next day to street pads again...... |
Just wondering: I am going to replace a front hub assembly (yay wheel bearing!).
I really just want to remove the rotor - will I need the caliper piston tool? Will the pistons compress if I just slide the caliper/pads away from the rotor? Thanks! |
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1) For removal, you can actually use the same bolts that hold the aluminum under panel to the car. No need to buy any bolts. 2) These shims can actually come off, they are only stuck to the pad with grease and the way the shims clamp to it. Sorry for quoting pictures, just figured it would be easier for others coming into this. |
great write up
i vote for a sticky |
nice thanks for write up
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I installed DBA T3 today and I did not compress the pistons. the thickness of DBA and OEM is the same.
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@F1point4 is it crucial to bleed your brakes immediately (or at all) after this process? Is it fine to drive the car with the new brakes and rotors to a shop so they can bleed your brakes? That's the one thing I'd honestly like to not DIY.
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It is not necessary to bleed your brake fluid just because of rotor or pad replacement. |
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Whew good that's what i thought but his last picture was ambiguous as to whether or not it was necessary, wanted to be certain.
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Was replacing a broken rear wheel stud today and after banging on the disc to no avail and no good way to go buy a bolt, "borrowing" the bolt from front cover saved me from further profanities! :thanks: |
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Great write up! Thank you! Here is my addition. If you wonder where to get the M8 x 1.25 bolt to undo the seized rotors - you can borrow 12 mm bolt from the skid plate. Works like a charm. See attached.
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