Changing Brake Pads

[shaman1204]

I bought my brake pads (Mintex Red Box), motive bleeder and 2 ltrs (?) of ATE brake fluid from Pelican Parts. Got free shipping for the whole lot. Just check your master cylinder under the front boot to see what color brake fluid you currently have and buy the opposite, i.e. if it's blue buy gold, if it's gold buy blue and you can easily tell when you have bled all the old fluid out of the brake system. I didn't check what I had and used the same color, so it was kind of a pain to tell when all the old stuff was bled out.

If you are flushing the brake system I used a flavor syringe I bought from the cooking section of Target for $1.99 and siliconed a section of tubing on the end to extract all the old fluid out of the reservoir. Also, be sure to buy a roll of tubing from Home Depot so you have a long enough piece to set the container that catches the old fluid on the ground, the one the power bleeder supplies you with is pretty short.

It took me about 2 hrs to do all this and I have never replaced brakes before in my life. Another tip if you order the Mintex pads, before you try to push the wear sensors back into the pads you might want to pre-drill them slightly, I broke two of mine trying to get them back in.

[Lil bastard]

Originally Posted by shaman1204

I bought my brake pads (Mintex Red Box), motive bleeder and 2 ltrs (?) of ATE brake fluid from Pelican Parts. Got free shipping for the whole lot. Just check your master cylinder under the front boot to see what color brake fluid you currently have and buy the opposite, i.e. if it's blue buy gold, if it's gold buy blue and you can easily tell when you have bled all the old fluid out of the brake system. I didn't check what I had and used the same color, so it was kind of a pain to tell when all the old stuff was bled out.

If you are flushing the brake system I used a flavor syringe I bought from the cooking section of Target for $1.99 and siliconed a section of tubing on the end to extract all the old fluid out of the reservoir. Also, be sure to buy a roll of tubing from Home Depot so you have a long enough piece to set the container that catches the old fluid on the ground, the one the power bleeder supplies you with is pretty short.

It took me about 2 hrs to do all this and I have never replaced brakes before in my life. Another tip if you order the Mintex pads, before you try to push the wear sensors back into the pads you might want to pre-drill them slightly, I broke two of mine trying to get them back in.

Good advice! But, if you get pads w/o the groove for the wear indicators, you can leave them connected to the harness and cable-tie them out of the way. That will keep the Brake Wear Warning from lighting on the dash. It's really not at all necessary for anyone who is diligent with their car's maintenance, kind of a toy accessory.

My pads are always changed before the wear indicator comes on anyway. IMHO, anyone who relies on these wear sensors is either a little lax when it comes to maintenance, or a little lazy. If you don't service your own car, a dedicated mechanic should warn of the upcoming need, again long before the Wear Indicator lights.