I changed my front pads yesterday after 29k miles, so I figured I'd tell the story here since I had a tough time finding any detail on this.
What you'll need:
One (1) Ford Focus
Jack and jackstands
Lug wrench
Socket wrench
T-45 (3/8") Torx bit
a spreading device for the caliper
new brake pads (duh)
some twine (optional)
a flat-head screwdriver (or something small for prying.)
a friend to drive you to a machine shop
I'm not exactly sure on the Torx bit. I think I read somewhere that it's a hex bolt, not Torx and that you shouldn't use a Torx bit. I used the Torx bit and it worked for me. Like an idiot, I never actually looked at the bolt to see which it was. I actually called the service department of a nearby Ford dealer before I started, and they couldn't tell me. Anyway, I got the appropriate Torx and hex bits along with a caliper spreader at Checker in their 12 peice disc brake repair kit(#410030) for about $25.
Anyway, Loosen up the lug nuts while the car is still on the ground. Now, go ahead and jack up the front and take the wheels off. Now you're faced with detatching the caliper from the spindle. There are two bolts holding the caliper to the spindle on the engine-side of the caliper. The bolts are covered with little plastic caps which you can easily remove by hand.
I should note here that unless you are doing a complete brake job with a bleed and new fluid, DO NOT disconnect the caliper from the brake line.
Use your socket wrench and the T-45 bit to loosen the bolts. At some point they will stop moving when they clear the threads, but you can use your finger or a screwdriver to push them out a bit more. The next thing that is holding the caliper to the spindle is the clip on the outside brake pad. Just pull (really hard) the clip off the caliper (I guess you could cut it, too).
At this point I tried to pull the caliper off the spindle, but it would not come off. I took a hammer and just tapped the ends of the brake pads to loose them from the spindle. After that they slid off with some effort. Now you can pull the pads off. The outside pad is just clipped on and it slides right off. The inner pad is clipped into the piston. You'll see what I'm talking about when you pull it out.
From here you could just set the caliper on top of the spindle, but I chose to tie it to some suspension bits with a piece of twine. I've heard that you can just leave it hanging by the brake line, but I wasn't too comfortable with that.
Pull the rotors.
Luckily, I had Simulacrum over to drive me down to Red Rooster, an auto parts store with a machine shop. They turned the rotors for $14 a piece. They originally told me it would take an hour, but it ended up taking two. They also told me that there was so much wear on the rotors that I would probably have to replace them next time. Be prepared to wait. I suggest getting some tacos for lunch. After that, you can hang out in a cramped pawn shop, looking at the collected works of Merle Haggard.
Bring the rotors back to the scene and put them back on the car. The sequence of reassembly is of importance. First, get the inside brake pad clipped into the caliper piston. Once that's done, use the spreader to push the caliper piston back in. Clip the outside pad into the caliper, but don't swing the second, bigger clip around the caliper just yet. Set the caliper back on the spindle and drive in the bolts. Now you can pull the outer pad clip around the edge of the caliper so that it's secured (this is hard to do).
Double check everything.
Put your wheels back on and lower the car. After I started the car, the brake pedal was very soft. Immediately I thought that there was probably brake fluid all over the place under my car, but after about six presses, the pedal firmed up and all was well.
Do as much tesing as you can. I took a ginger drive around the block, braking often. Everything seems fine. My braking kinda sucks now because all the pieces have to settle in, but it's getting better as I put on the miles.
Thanks to Sim for driving me around and for providing physical might where necessary. Thanks to the guys at Checker for trying to sell me stuff I don't need. Thanks to Red Rooster for doing a thorough job with the lathe. Finally, thanks to Ford for having crappy service that prompted me to do my own brakes in the first place.
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What you'll need:
One (1) Ford Focus
Jack and jackstands
Lug wrench
Socket wrench
T-45 (3/8") Torx bit
a spreading device for the caliper
new brake pads (duh)
some twine (optional)
a flat-head screwdriver (or something small for prying.)
a friend to drive you to a machine shop
I'm not exactly sure on the Torx bit. I think I read somewhere that it's a hex bolt, not Torx and that you shouldn't use a Torx bit. I used the Torx bit and it worked for me. Like an idiot, I never actually looked at the bolt to see which it was. I actually called the service department of a nearby Ford dealer before I started, and they couldn't tell me. Anyway, I got the appropriate Torx and hex bits along with a caliper spreader at Checker in their 12 peice disc brake repair kit(#410030) for about $25.
Anyway, Loosen up the lug nuts while the car is still on the ground. Now, go ahead and jack up the front and take the wheels off. Now you're faced with detatching the caliper from the spindle. There are two bolts holding the caliper to the spindle on the engine-side of the caliper. The bolts are covered with little plastic caps which you can easily remove by hand.
I should note here that unless you are doing a complete brake job with a bleed and new fluid, DO NOT disconnect the caliper from the brake line.
Use your socket wrench and the T-45 bit to loosen the bolts. At some point they will stop moving when they clear the threads, but you can use your finger or a screwdriver to push them out a bit more. The next thing that is holding the caliper to the spindle is the clip on the outside brake pad. Just pull (really hard) the clip off the caliper (I guess you could cut it, too).
At this point I tried to pull the caliper off the spindle, but it would not come off. I took a hammer and just tapped the ends of the brake pads to loose them from the spindle. After that they slid off with some effort. Now you can pull the pads off. The outside pad is just clipped on and it slides right off. The inner pad is clipped into the piston. You'll see what I'm talking about when you pull it out.
From here you could just set the caliper on top of the spindle, but I chose to tie it to some suspension bits with a piece of twine. I've heard that you can just leave it hanging by the brake line, but I wasn't too comfortable with that.
Pull the rotors.
Luckily, I had Simulacrum over to drive me down to Red Rooster, an auto parts store with a machine shop. They turned the rotors for $14 a piece. They originally told me it would take an hour, but it ended up taking two. They also told me that there was so much wear on the rotors that I would probably have to replace them next time. Be prepared to wait. I suggest getting some tacos for lunch. After that, you can hang out in a cramped pawn shop, looking at the collected works of Merle Haggard.
Bring the rotors back to the scene and put them back on the car. The sequence of reassembly is of importance. First, get the inside brake pad clipped into the caliper piston. Once that's done, use the spreader to push the caliper piston back in. Clip the outside pad into the caliper, but don't swing the second, bigger clip around the caliper just yet. Set the caliper back on the spindle and drive in the bolts. Now you can pull the outer pad clip around the edge of the caliper so that it's secured (this is hard to do).
Double check everything.
Put your wheels back on and lower the car. After I started the car, the brake pedal was very soft. Immediately I thought that there was probably brake fluid all over the place under my car, but after about six presses, the pedal firmed up and all was well.
Do as much tesing as you can. I took a ginger drive around the block, braking often. Everything seems fine. My braking kinda sucks now because all the pieces have to settle in, but it's getting better as I put on the miles.
Thanks to Sim for driving me around and for providing physical might where necessary. Thanks to the guys at Checker for trying to sell me stuff I don't need. Thanks to Red Rooster for doing a thorough job with the lathe. Finally, thanks to Ford for having crappy service that prompted me to do my own brakes in the first place.
