i went to a honda dealership today and received a free 40 point inspection :thumbup: they told me the brake pads in the front should be replaced and the rear brakes need some cleaning. what does that mean btw? as for my brake pads, how much do they cost are how hard is it to change them myself using a jack? also do i need brake pads for all wheels or just for the front disc brakes. help me out, i am a newbie when it comes to these things. also, my car is now 30K, is it normal to change the pads now? those clowns wanna charge me $99 for the front and $59 for the rear.

 

Yes, it's normal to have to change your pads now.

Easy thing to do!

Tools you'll need:
- Jack & stands (to be safe)
- Wheel lug wrench (or 19mm socket w/ breaker bar)
- 12mm and 14mm wrench or sockets w/ rachet
- Caliper piston press (a.k.a C clamp)

Parts you'll need:
- New brake pads (4 for the front)
- OPTIONAL: some anti-squeak stuff for the back of the pads

Process

1) Make sure the car is cold cause those brake pads get HOT!
2) Loosen the lug nuts on your wheels (front)
3) Jack up the front of the car
4) Remove the wheel of the side you're working on
5) Remove the 12mm (might be 14mm) bolt at the bottom of your caliper (thing that sits on your rotor)
6) Swing the caliper up toward the top of the car (swings from the bottom up)
7) Remove the inner and outer pad from the caliper and gently set the caliper back down onto the rotor (IMPORTANT: REMEMBER WHICH PAD GOES WHERE SO THAT YOU PUT THE RIGHT ONE BACK INTO THE RIGHT PLACE)
8) Use the caliper piston press to press the piston back into the caliper, this way you can get the new pads on and the caliper will swing back down over the rotor. If you don't do this, the pads will not allow the rotor to fit between them.
9) Replace the pads and remember to put the metal plates back onto the back of the pads.
10) Swing the caliper back into place
11) Replace and tighten the bolt you removed in step # 5

That's it! Now, do the other side just the same.

 

thanks for the useful info dude. i have a really dumb question tho. what exactly is a jack stand?? the jack is included with the car in the spare wheel compartment right? how much is a jackstand and what is the exact usage. can't i just jack up my car and leave it up on the jack and do all the brake pad changes?

 

You can get a jack stand at any auto parts store, or at Wal-mart.

The jackstand is a safety measure. It's a tripod (usually) that you put under the car that you rest the car on. That way if the jack fails for some reason, the car is resting on the jackstand, not on your head.

Get it?

 

yeah, i really like my head too. thanks dude.

 

sure thing man...

 

Super easy to do, I've done my fronts in 10 minutes.

 

:werd:

 

some brake pad grease to apply on the brake pads will help on the killing some noise too... if needed.

u can get these at any auto store, kinda pricy though. 2 bucks for a pack of 'em?

 

i think im gonna attempt the first chainging of my brake pads then. i heard good things about AEM pads so imma gonna try those and see how they turn out to be. my brakes aren't bad but its probably safest if i change them since its 30k already.