Did my brake pads today

Fr0dders · 31 Aug 2009 at 00:18

Last time i was at the dealer they warned me that the front pads were running a bit on the low side.

What did they want ? £212 fited of which £143 + vat was the pads themselves.

Did a bit of digging, and the EBC yellowstuff pads were £100 delivered so i decided to change them over myself.

Heres the before

and after.

Extremely chuffed with myself as im a bit scared of the mechanics of cars. Ive always just paid other people to do it for me. But at £110 saving to be had, i thought id give it a stab. Especially as it only involved removing 2 bolts and a clip !

Brakes seem very spongey now though. But i guess thats because the pads are bedding in. The surface had a red "bedding in coating" on them and the instructions said not to do any emergency stops for the first 200-300km so i hope they get a bit better.

Howard · 31 Aug 2009 at 00:24

Well done

Pads are a nice easy start

Yeah don't hammer them for the first hundred miles or so and they'll bed in micely

Slightly OT but I have never understood the reasoning why some manufacturers use stud bolts to hold wheels on instead of wheel nuts. Looking at your picture has just made me wonder

Vigoro · 31 Aug 2009 at 00:24

How can they say not to do any emergency stops for the first 200-300km, what if someone jumps out in the road

Matt82 · 31 Aug 2009 at 00:25

are the pads making full contact with the disc?

Howard · 31 Aug 2009 at 00:25

You run them over, duh!

Dup · 31 Aug 2009 at 00:27

Well done on going solo. I haven't done it on the CTR, in the back of my mind I think it's too new and precious (to me at least) to drop ir off a stand/jack in the process.

Next car (probbly MX5) will get serviced by myself. Very gratifying and a big saver on the yearly budget. It's not really that difficult if you have a saturday afternoon and the right tools.

As for bedding in, it should be a good oppertunity to learn how to feather the brakes and drop gears at the right time and anticipate traffic flow. You just got to make sure thye get a slow but full heat cycle over 100 miles or so to stop them glazing over quickly.

whitecrook · 31 Aug 2009 at 00:27

everytime i put new pads on i do 2 or 3 70-40 hard on the brakes just to 'bed them in' a bit.

dalin80 · 31 Aug 2009 at 00:28

hope you cleaned the brake pad carrier surface and used a nice layer of cooper grease.

vauxhalls seem to like getting a case of sticky pad.

Biohazard · 31 Aug 2009 at 00:30

dalin80 said:
hope you cleaned the brake pad carrier surface and used a nice layer of cooper grease.

vauxhalls seem to like getting a case of sticky pad.

i was thinking that, I normally file inside the carrier to remove crud but his calipers look in good condition.

You should be able to look to see flush fit, any warping or trapped particles will appear after miles.. pitting etc

miniyazz · 31 Aug 2009 at 00:32

Release the drag parachute!

Howard · 31 Aug 2009 at 00:34

Dup said:
.

Next car (probbly MX5) .

Fr0dders · 31 Aug 2009 at 00:40

Matt82 said:
are the pads making full contact with the disc?

Yes

Cant say i filed or greased anything.

I did give everything a nice clean while the caliper was off though.

Will have to wait and see if they start sticking.

Biohazard · 31 Aug 2009 at 00:44

its good idea to put a wee blob of copper grease on the pads to stop them sticking to the carrier.

won't kill them if you don't mind you.

jamoor · 31 Aug 2009 at 01:24

very easy job to do, but tbh I prefer to pay £20 and have someone do them for me, my indy usually does them free if its the same time as a service.

Hades · 31 Aug 2009 at 01:38

Must do this myself. Have been quoted £141 to change the rear pads on my Golf (VW dealer). Apparently they are 80% worn so I really need to get around to them. Never done it before but will probably give it a go.

Any basic info to point me in the right direction?

Biohazard · 31 Aug 2009 at 01:57

don't go in the bonnet, not necessary.

miniyazz · 31 Aug 2009 at 02:12

Hades said:
Must do this myself. Have been quoted £141 to change the rear pads on my Golf (VW dealer). Apparently they are 80% worn so I really need to get around to them. Never done it before but will probably give it a go.

Any basic info to point me in the right direction?

Get a Haynes manual. If you have to ask even with a Haynes manual, you should probably take it to a garage.

Lumeycom · 31 Aug 2009 at 03:07

Why Yellowstuffs?

milgo · 31 Aug 2009 at 05:21

Its normally a good idea to chamfer the edges of a pad with a file if you are fitting them to used discs. Otherwise they can catch or drag on the lip. But i've always found new pads take a while to really bite.

saitrix · 31 Aug 2009 at 08:40

Nice amount saved. Do a few harder stops from 70 to 30 and that should help bed them in nicely. Also I hope you have changed the rears as yellowstuffs have a higher coefficient of friction than normal OE pads would. So you have effectively messed up the standard brake bias of the vehicle, which by changing to yellows on the rear it will allow you to stop quicker than you can now. Rears are afterall only £50 too, so if you're fitting yourself again it isn't much to spend to keep your brake balance good.