How To: MP3/P5/MSP Front & rear Pad/Rotor Change (No 56K)

[Dave_x]

My friend offered to lend a hand with changing my front brakes and said I needed two things to do the job right. New hardware and an adhesive to keep the hardware and the pad together.

Do I need new hardware? The car has 66K miles in Michigan weather. Am I better safe than sorry by picking up a set at the dealership or are they not really needed?

Doesn't the M Spring act to keep the pad and hardware together and not an adhesive? TX's How To makes no mention of using anything other than the Spring to keep things in order.

 

[DrummerJim50]

My friend offered to lend a hand with changing my front brakes and said I needed two things to do the job right. New hardware and an adhesive to keep the hardware and the pad together.

Do I need new hardware? The car has 66K miles in Michigan weather. Am I better safe than sorry by picking up a set at the dealership or are they not really needed?

Doesn't the M Spring act to keep the pad and hardware together and not an adhesive? TX's How To makes no mention of using anything other than the Spring to keep things in order.

Probably only $8 for new hardware...probably don't need it but it definitely can't hurt.

 

[dstone]

My front rotors and rear drums are 4 years old, and they are not visibly worn-out where the pads touch them, but the rotors are rusted between the plates and the drums are rusted on the outside.
They are the original rotors and drums that came with the car, when I bought it new in 2002.

Should I change the rotors and drums or just the pads???

 

[chuyler1]

The rust should come off with a steel brush. If you just replace the pads you should have the rotors turned/refinished. A shop can do this for you pretty cheap.

 

[Mick]

Just a reminder. Those caliper bolts are pretty damn tight. DO NOT use a 12 point socket. Use only six, and if at all possible, avoid using an open ended wrench. A 6 point good quality socket is the best. I first tried a Craftsman open ended 17mm to loosen the bolts (for convenience) but the wrench flexed and rounded the bolt a tiny bit. It hardly did anything at all actualy, but it freaked me out when I heard it slip. A socket and a relativly short breaker bar did the trick.

 

[Outkastedpro]

wow 2 yrs later and it's still going strong...once again thanks for all of the pix every little $$$ saved on simple stuff like this can go into the back for a tubro kit!!!

 

[6speed]

2 Years Later...

I kinda feel funny coming back to this thread a few days shy of exactly 2 years after first posting to it.

I think I am to the point of replacing everything on the left rear, but wantto make sure before I dump the money.

A few days ago, I noticed a grinding sound, and realized it HAS been 2 years since I last changed my brakes, my previous streak was 8 months, so I figured it was past time for new pads all around. I bought the pads yesterday and replaced the right front fine,left front seems like the bolt the caliper hinges on is/was seized. I lubricated it up over a few hours and it moves, though with effort. Enough to get the pads replaced without any other issue. However the inner pad on the right front had a hard metalic line across it, in-line with the rotor spin. I can't find any scoring or flaws in the rotor, so going to keep an eye on that corner.

Anywho, I came to the left rear, and the caliper there is also seized, though definately more than the front left. I pulled the whole caliper off, and that is when I found that the outter pad was at about 60%, but the inner pad had no friction material left, rotor was just polishing the back plate.

(I have since found quite a bit on an issue with this that had a TSB released to cover it. Just 97K miles, so no warranty)

I figured I would have to replace the caliper, since it was seized so badly, but then I pretty much solidified that when I stripped the adjustment screw behind the piston, the bugger wouldn't rotate at ALL. And I remember how freely it turned before.

So I know i have to replace the rotor from the horrible scoring that it was subject to, and I believe I have to replace the caliper and caliper brace now as well. Just thought I would check here to see if anyone has any other ideas I should try.

 

[chuyler1]

Something is up with that pad wear. Rather than risk ruining a brand new rotor I would go ahead and replace the caliper also.

 

[6speed]

Yeah that is what I was thinking.

I am fairly certain the unusual pad wear is the same thing that I have read about over the past few days. Alot of comments on forum boards, TSB boards, etc, about the rear pads wearing down MUCH faster than the fronts on 01's and 02's. Apprently it was fixed for the 03's, and I am thinking if I replace the calipers on both sides, it should be with the 03 calipers (assuming they would fit) to avoid the problem from occuring again.

Or it might just be that the caliper seized a while ago, and the only braking force i have been getting is from the 1 pad.... scary. Especially how I drive.

 

[chuyler1]

I'm more inclined to think the caliper just can't retract...Every time you hit the brakes hard it would compress the rear pad and just leave it there causing the entire caliper and pad to heat up which might explain why the adjustment screw was so difficult to move.

 

[Pmpkinhead]

I just had left rear "uneven" pad wear with all OEM pads and hardware. I replaced everything about 14 months ago. I found that all of my synth brake grease was GONE and the pad was not sliding freely. They must slide back and forth or you will have problems. I doubt your caliper is bad unless you can somehow prove it. I am gonna start re-greasing everything but the face of the pad every 6 months!

367 (mp3yellow

 

[6speed]

Aside from the seized caliper then, is there an easy solution to the stripped set screw on the back of the piston?

Probably just buy a new caliper after work.

 

[DrummerJim50]

You can go to a tool store and get a special bit that will dig into that screw to get it out HERE for example. Unloaded calipers are relatively inexpensive anyways...at napa semi-loadeds are only $38 for fronts (although $69 for rears)...may as well just replace 'em.

 

[hotrippr]

Good write up. Have to do the wife's corrolla tomorrow. Gonna take some fluid out before compressing the piston, not sure if anyone mentioned this but if you have been keeping all fluids filled then you will have too much fluid, so take some out to avoid spilling on the engine, then top it back off after completion with NEW fluid.

 

[SiL3nTKiLL]

i CANNOT for the life of me get the bolts that hold the caliper on the front rotors off.

i will try a breaker bar tommorow, but there is another bold that is in the way so i cant get the socket back there :/

any other ideas?

 

[hotrippr]

i CANNOT for the life of me get the bolts that hold the caliper on the front rotors off.

i will try a breaker bar tommorow, but there is another bold that is in the way so i cant get the socket back there :/

any other ideas?

Spray em with liquid wrench like mad, and let em soak tonight. Mine came off after a big squeal but were not that hard. The breaker bar will get em off, try different extensions, angled wrenches etc for that hard to reach one. But really if you let em soak they should be doable. Try a bar that can fit over a wrench for that hard to reach one.

 

[SiL3nTKiLL]

Spray em with liquid wrench like mad, and let em soak tonight. Mine came off after a big squeal but were not that hard. The breaker bar will get em off, try different extensions, angled wrenches etc for that hard to reach one. But really if you let em soak they should be doable. Try a bar that can fit over a wrench for that hard to reach one.

hmm, ill have to try everything possible then lol

its just that top bolt which has other bolts in the way, i could probably get the lower one off if i let it soak, i can get a box wrench to fit on the top one, but no leverage on it :/

 

[hotrippr]

hmm, ill have to try everything possible then lol

its just that top bolt which has other bolts in the way, i could probably get the lower one off if i let it soak, i can get a box wrench to fit on the top one, but no leverage on it :/

Are you sure you are loosing the correct bolts? I think they are 17mm. Remember righty tighty lefty loosey, but if you are behind the bolt then it seems like the opposite. Sorry I am not trying to diss you or anything..just want to make sure.

What car do u have?

 

[SiL3nTKiLL]

Are you sure you are loosing the correct bolts? I think they are 17mm. Remember righty tighty lefty loosey, but if you are behind the bolt then it seems like the opposite. Sorry I am not trying to diss you or anything..just want to make sure.

What car do u have?

u know what.....i might be turning it the wrong way. DAMMIT lol

if im doing the passenger side, facing the rotor, the screw is on the back side, i would turn it right which would technicly be left in the screw perspective correct?

i just gotta find out how to get that dang top one off

 

[hotrippr]

hopefully that was it, good luck, keep me posted.