Rear brake ?

[Bluesv]

How do u put a piston back in the calliper? I had a hard time pushing it back, really hard time, almost didnt throw away my tool, cause it wasnt helping too much, and yeah, mazda 3 uses star , or Torx set, its either 45, or 40 isnt sure now, look at the pictures,I think it says 45 on it, still when u buy torx key set u get them both, so u are OK,also look how bad my rear were, only 33000 on`em, but at least now Mazda is using better compound on those pads, at least that's what my service manager at the local shop told me, here are pics, and yeah,he gave me a quate for 294$ for rear brake replacement, with rotors turning included, damn I was like wtf? also he goes and say something like yeah, mazda used compound that was too soft on the pad in the rear, and IM like duh, how do u think we get all that dust from? air? that's what I was thinking , I just could get myself to say it out loud, cause I will be back there for some work on my car, oil, glove box, side door panels, so that would might piss him off a little,so the ? is, IS THERE AN EASIER WAY TO PUT PISTON BACK INTO POSITION ON THE CALLIPER? or it is that hard?and yes i did open the resourva for brake fluid

[flat_black]

Well, if it's ANYthing like the Protege's rear calipers, you don't push it back in; You have to use a hex (Or maybe torx, in this case) bit, and turn it back, which pulls the piston back into place. Then, once you install it again, you tighten it back down all the way, then back it off one third of a turn to adjust for the hand brakes. =) Hope this helps!

[Bluesv]

Not really, cause Iam talking about my last pic, where the part im taking about is this rusted part in the middle, that pushes the pads toward the rotors, too bad its rusted already, but they work fine, so are the rotors, and what u are taking about are those two nuts u see on the next pic i just posted

[flat_black]

Nope, looks like they aren't the same... You'd have a bolt RIGHT behind the piston if they were. But I DO recognize those divots. Try twisting the piston while you push, perhaps? That's how I have to reassemble calipers after a rebuild. *shrugs*

[goldwing2000]

Yeah, those two little holes in the piston are for turning it back into place with a rear caliper piston tool.

K-D tools makes a good universal one.

http://www.thetoolwarehouse.net/shop/KD-3163.html

http://www.thetoolwarehouse.net/shop/media/KD-3163.jpg

Moved to Suspension section.

[flat_black]

THAT'S where I've seen those dots before. =) I had one of those tools for my Volvo. Hehe.

[goldwing2000]

How many miles do you have on your car, btw? Brakes have a 12,000 mile warranty.

[Bluesv]

around 34000
I know, one year, or 12000
and yes i spent to much on oil changes ,but dont want to do it myself,

[goldwing2000]

around 34000
I know, one year, or 12000
and yes i spent to much on oil changes ,but dont want to do it myself,

You don't want to do an oil change but you'll do the brakes? (scratch)

(shrug) Ho-kay.

34,000 miles already??? When did you buy your car?? I didn't think they were out long enough to rack up that kind of mileage!

[Bluesv]

yeah, oil change 28$, brakes almost 300$, so yeah, thats a big difference, also I gat the car on 11/26/2003, and according to the dealer mine was the first one sold in the north america, but how do I check it out, dont know, plus i need that tool from the dealer to unscrew the filter, then pay another guy for used oil, takes too long and I would have to do it too often

[goldwing2000]

wow... 34k in 9 months. You drive to Alaska every week or something? (scratch) I thought I had a lot with 10,500 in 6 months but you take it to a whole new level!

oil change-$28x7 = $196

But hey... it's your money! :D

I don't know of any easy way to figure out which was the first one sold in NA. What's the last six digits of your VIN? I'm sure someone at MazdaUSA could tell you what the first one off the boat was.

Oh, 34k isn't really that bad for a set of brake pads, especially ones as soft as our rear set.

[Bluesv]

so how much did u pay for that special tool that only dealer will sell?

[goldwing2000]

so how much did u pay for that special tool that only dealer will sell?

Only the dealer will sell? Says who?

Scroll down. There's a link and a picture.

Will that one not work for some reason?

[Bluesv]

Gold I was talking about the tool for the oil filter, isnt it like 80$? and not the one for the calliper, also u read the post the calliper on 3 is diffent then the one on Protege, plus I didnt see any holes to put that tool to a good use, anyhow, if or better yet when U change the rear brakes plz tell me how u did it cause Im more then interested how u do it, and if there is a easier way to doing it, tx, also if anybody have a pic of the rear calliper of Protege, and the holes where Im suppose to use that tool I would apprieciate it, tx

[goldwing2000]

Ahhh... the oil filter tool. I just used a strap wrench. I'm pretty sure you can get the oil filter cap wrench from just about any auto parts store. You just have to get the right size. I think it's like 72mm or something.

I haven't changed my brakes yet but if the pictures you posted are from the car you're working on, then the tool I linked to the picture of will work to get the piston back in. There are two small holes in the piston that the two pins on the tool fit into.

[Bluesv]

so how big is that tool for piston? must be really small, so yeah, im buying it, also I will have to see how hard it is to replace that filter, it is as easy as it was in the Grand am then Im doing it myself, if its more like the honda civic then the dealer will see my car for the oil change, anyway tx

[goldwing2000]

The tool is about a 1.5" cube. You might be able to find it at a local parts store. It's pretty common. Call around before you order it.

The filter is definitely easier than a Honda, even with the cartridge filter.

[Bluesv]

so then simply turn it clockwise and it will slide back? thats it? damn that is simple then (cool)and will it work on the front too? or dont know? so will it work on front too? or not? or do u need another tool to get it that one done?

[goldwing2000]

Sometimes clockwise, sometimes counter-clockwise. You should be able to tell once you start messing with it.

Here's a couple pics to clarify, showing the two holes and the two pins.

The front pads you just squeeze in with a c-clamp or a hella-big pair of channel-locks.

The reason the rear pads have to be turned in is because of the parking brake mechanism.

[hworth18]

How many miles do you have on your car, btw? Brakes have a 12,000 mile warranty.

So, if the brakes are warrantied, does this mean that Mazda will replace the crappy soft pads for the better ones if we "bi*ch" enough???? (smash)

[goldwing2000]

Possibly. Don't bet the rent on it, though. Unless you actually wear out the pads before 12,000 miles, you're pretty much out of luck.

[Rock]

Like goldwing said, don't even bet on it.
Sure the pads are shit, but as long as they are doing what they are designed to do and not causing failure during braking or some other defect, MAZDA won't bother replacing them. Personally, this is the only gripe I have about my mazda 3, but can be remedied with replacement pads.

[Bluesv]

yeah, too bad that nobody have pads for the rear except Mazda dealer, even the front are hard to come by, :bs:

[hfaze]

Ok, I just went through this ordeal when trying to paint the calipers on my '04 Mazda 3 hatchback.

The calipers are PARTIALLY screw-down type. Screwing the piston in will only take it half way down. In order to get them to fully retract, I had to put a C-clamp on the caliper, and screw down the piston using an adjustable wrench. Using this method, the piston came down rather easily.

Mazda probably has some custom tool to do this in a snap, but these steps work out well for us shade-tree types... ;-)

[Protege52003]

Yeah, those two little holes in the piston are for turning it back into place with a rear caliper piston tool.

K-D tools makes a good universal one.

http://www.thetoolwarehouse.net/shop/KD-3163.html

http://www.thetoolwarehouse.net/shop/media/KD-3163.jpg

Moved to Suspension section.

this is what i needed when i reset the calipers on my 86' saab many years ago.....was a PITA with the custom tool that i made.....

[AzMz3]

Ok, I just went through this ordeal when trying to paint the calipers on my '04 Mazda 3 hatchback.

The calipers are PARTIALLY screw-down type. Screwing the piston in will only take it half way down. In order to get them to fully retract, I had to put a C-clamp on the caliper, and screw down the piston using an adjustable wrench. Using this method, the piston came down rather easily.

Mazda probably has some custom tool to do this in a snap, but these steps work out well for us shade-tree types... ;-)


They are not a partially screw down type. You do not need C-clamps. You just need to screw them in clockwise while pushing the piston in.
It is very ease. I didn't even use the special tool, I don't see a need. I just used some needle nose pliers.
The tool is actully very simple it attaches to a socket wrench, so it is pretty much a socket with the two nipples on it.

[tsunami]

yeah, oil change 28$, brakes almost 300$, so yeah, thats a big difference, also I gat the car on 11/26/2003, and according to the dealer mine was the first one sold in the north america, but how do I check it out, dont know, plus i need that tool from the dealer to unscrew the filter, then pay another guy for used oil, takes too long and I would have to do it too often

you don't need a special tool, i bought one at like autozone or something... it was 3$ and then all you have to do is buy the filters at the dealer until some one else starts makin them, or you buy the spin on conversion....

just saw the date on this.... hahaha.... eh oh well, the info is there is if someone else thinks the same thing...

[mazda3zoom]

Yeah, those two little holes in the piston are for turning it back into place with a rear caliper piston tool.

K-D tools makes a good universal one.

http://www.thetoolwarehouse.net/shop/KD-3163.html

http://www.thetoolwarehouse.net/shop/media/KD-3163.jpg

Moved to Suspension section.


Those tools dont work on our cars. When my rear brakes went out i had to change them and ran into the same problem this guy has. So i went and bought one of those little square things and not one side fit out pistons. I ended up just hammering the damn things back in cuz i got mad. I know thats not good cuz u could mess up the seals and whatnot but oh well, they work fine now.

[Bluesv]

that is what I did too, the hamer way on my first brake job, although i did bleed the system then, on my second try I used pliers, worked much better then the hammer, but still was a pain, next time Im renting a tool from the shop and see if it will fit, I dont know why they made it so damn hard on themselves, but then again that is why they charge almost 300$ do change them,

[krstofer]

OK, I have had this car jacked up for almost 2 hours and I can't get this damn caliper to colapse. I bought the universal adapter that doesn't fit. SO I tried the needle nose pliers. I even opend the bleeder valve. I've turned this thing over 20 times and nothing is happening. Can someone give me some advice? THe hammer didn't screw up anything?

[goldwing2000]

You have to turn and push in at the same time.

I wouldn't recommend the hammer method.

[Bluesv]

botom line is that there is no easy way to do the rear brakes on this car, pliers work the best but it does take time and patience. Hammer is a big NO NO it may damage the seals and you have to bleed the system, I did it, so it is possible but it is messy and maybe expensive down the road. universal tool and rental tools aren't really working on those holes, but at least when u rent the tools you have easier way to turn and push at the same time, u will see why when u get the tool from any car store that rents it, my best advice would be to buy good quality pads cause they will last longer I bought the green stuff and am very happy with them

[jhoak123]

it took me less than a minute with a pair of vice grips. just lockt them on then turn and push at the same time.