Brake discs and pads

[TeamG]

Wire brush the contact points on the hub and the pad carrier and caliper. Grease the new pads using the contact marks on the old pads as a guide (back of the pads and the ‘ears’ where they make contact). I found it easier to insert one pad with the spring clips in the caliper, the other in the carrier then reassemble. Grease the pins and tighten, don’t forget the end caps and spring clips for the calipers, then tighten everything to the right torque including the wheel nuts.

I forgot to mention - I cleaned everything with brake cleaner and also the braking surfaces of the new discs. The one tricky bit about the fronts is the torque for the pad carrier bolts - my spanners were probably at the limit of their strength getting the bolts off, next time I’ll buy a black impact socket at 18mm and do it with the rattle gun instead.

And then went for a 12 mile return trip to B&Q (needed a new toilet seat, which they didn’t have…) with the route selected for a series of brakes from 30-10mph of increasing pressure to check everything and bed them in. Sorry, that should have read 20-10mph as I live in Wales, but 30-10 for everyone else who’s first minister’s aren’t @rseholes or the 90% in Wales who’ve opted out of the 20mph limit….

They feel amazing - really great feel, very smooth and only need a light pedal touch. Much better than the well-worn genuine Volvo that I took off except for the old rear pads, and that was with a good 3-4mm pad depth remaining and discs still within thickness limits. Don’t leave yours too late everyone.

I hope this thread helps others that fancy giving it a go themselves. You don’t need any special tools, but an 18mm impact socket, 11mm hex socket, 9v battery and battery tails will help. If you do have any questions about steps that I may have missed, please ask and I’ll respond.

[bushy989]

I will have a go myself this weekend. Very good write up it reads well and easy to follow. Thank you TeamG

[wynnj]

Thanks TeamG for an excellent write up. Been servicing my own cars for over 50yrs but the EPB and brakes with 11mm hex sockets will be a new 'experience' when the need finally arrives.
Only thing I would add is a smear of copper grease to the wheel/disc contact faces and round the hub flange to minimise the likelyhood of the alloy wheels corroding themselves onto the disc/hub assembly and becoming very difficult to remove in the future, not something you want to discover on a cold dark night in the rain!

[TeamG]

Originally Posted by wynnj

Thanks TeamG for an excellent write up. Been servicing my own cars for over 50yrs but the EPB and brakes with 11mm hex sockets will be a new 'experience' when the need finally arrives.
Only thing I would add is a smear of copper grease to the wheel/disc contact faces and round the hub flange to minimise the likelyhood of the alloy wheels corroding themselves onto the disc/hub assembly and becoming very difficult to remove in the future, not something you want to discover on a cold dark night in the rain!

Yes, thanks for pointing this out as I should have mentioned it. You’ll see in my first photo of 28 December that the old discs had a good covering of the relevant surface. I tend to apply it to the inside of the alloy wheel though, to avoid accidentally getting it on the friction surface of the discs.

[Chudy85]

Originally Posted by TeamG

A good wire brush of the hub and pad carrier, insert the new disc and pad clips, clean and lube the pins, then pop them back in making sure the rubber boot is located covering the pin.

Did you put any anti Squeal paste between disc and hub?

[TeamG]

Originally Posted by Chudy85

Did you put any anti Squeal paste between disc and hub?

Just a good coating of copper grease. Make sure that it’s a thin, but thorough coating. You don’t want so much that it squidges out everywhere.