I need to do my brakes and I have questions. Im not 100% sure what exactly I need to do but I need pads and shoes at least and if I can find rotors and drums for cheap Ill just do them for piece of mind, or if they are that much easier to do at the sametime.

*Easy one first, I have heard that something breaks when doing the front pads? Anyone know what this is or am I just mistaken? Any tips or suggestions for installation or the pads themselves?

*Ok now the drums, are they easy to do? Again any tips or suggestions? What do I need for tools and what do I need to buy other than the shoes themselves (do I need or should I replace any of the springs or other hardware while Im in there)? I know there isnt really performance for drums but I want something decent quality for a brand.

Thanks guys I have been avoiding this project cause it just seems like a nightmare waiting to happen but I need to do it at this point.

 

drums are a huge pain in the *** to do... all the little springs and parts that you have to mess with make it no fun at all... what i would do is google it and hopefully they will be able to walk you through what it takes to change out the discs and the drums. other than google after market parts for brakes and that should give you a little bit of ahand and help you figure out what you will need to do...

good luck

 

Ok so I have the haynes (probably should have said that) but they make it seem so easy and some of the steps are usless. "remove the [blank]" is a ****ty description for a guide.

Just looking for real life advice and tips before I start. If its that big of a pain I might have my mechanic do it so its done right. Of course Id rather do it....

 

it's common for the caliper bolts to strip out when removing them, pray em own with pb blaster and go back to them in 5 mins. unless you're turning your rotors and drums, replace them. they will tear apart the new pads and shoes. as for the brake shoes ( rear drums). theyre going to be only 1/4" or 3/16" thick. dont bother replacing them if they arent down to the rivets. drum brakes typically will outlast disc brakes 3 fold. back to the discs, jsut like any other brake job, take out the 2 caliper bolts out, pull the caliper, dont let it hang by the brake line. take emery cloth and sand away any rust on the caliper slides on the steering knuckle. put a film of anti seeze on the slides to prevent the calipers from getting caught up. make sure you remember to reinstall the one spring clip between the caliper and the steering knuckle? i dont remember but memorize how it came apart. coat the caliper bolt threads as much as you can with never sieze to prevent them from stripping out.

now for the rear drums if they have to be done. take both wheels and drums off at the same time. but do one side of brakes at a time. use the opposite side as a guide to where each spring goes. a basic drum brake service tool will help with the job. but new hardware kits from napa (springs, etc). that one little cable guide for the auto adjuster that looks like a crescent moon, enjoy f**king with that thing. had lots of problems with mine. im able to disassembly and re assemble my rear drum brakes in the matter of 2 minutes. thats not including removing the tire and drum. good luck and get a chilton manual to aid you with the job

 

Ok well Ill have to crack open the drums to see if I even need to touch them. But I have a brake squeak now and its driving me insane. I might just do pads and rotors if the drums are ok for now.

Any suggestions on brands? I dont need or want high performance but I would like something good. I was thinking brembo blanks (for like $52 ea) and a set of hawk pads. Just not sure what line hawks yet tho.

 

When my front brakes were squealing all I had to do was remove the pads out of the calipers and put a good coat of anti-squeal compound on the back side of each pad then reinstall the pads back in the calipers. I greased everything real good with caliper lube and greased the slide pins and slide surfaces with regular high-temp bearing grease. I put bearing grease behind the contact points on my rear drum brakes too. Haven't had even one bit of squeal or brake noise since then. And it was really easy to do. Get you a Haynes book like Fox said. The brake section has all the steps you need and pictures with very good instructions. Don't pay somebody to do something you can do for yourself.

Jimmy

 

you can do it.

the discs on the front are pretty easy. you'll need a big c clamp to push back the caliper. replace the pads. replace the rotors if they are warped. if warped, you'll feel pulsing and shimmy in the pedal. everything slides on the caliper bolts. if they are excessively rusty and rough, replace them. unless you have a specific problem, your master cylinder, calipers, and hoses are probably ok.

rear drums. not bad, just more pieces to keep track off. note the front shoe on each side may be bigger than the rear shoe. if so, don't get them reversed. next - only do one side at a time, that way you can use the other side as reference. take a picture if you can. if you have any leakage, replace the wheel cylinder. note the adjuster at the bottom or the top and the rubber access plug on the backing plate. when wheel and tire is back on, adjust them up very tight where the wheel won't turn, then back them off to where it will turn with just a little scraping sound.

 

never use bearing grease on brake components. you can use never sieze or specialty grease for brake calipers.

 

I guess I wrote that wrong. I got a big container of caliper grease with a brush in the lid at Advance and used it to lube my brakes, the caliper slide pins and boots with it. I only used the bearing grease on the slide surfaces on the knuckle and the backing plate. Haven't had any problems with it at all.

Jimmy