Just bought rotors, pads, and sway bar links from Napa. Polymer coated (partially because I'm curious how long this "anti-rust" stuff will hold up in MN), Adaptive One hybrid ceramic pads, and CTR sway links. Rotors and pads were a suggestion from JM, the car is 06 Impreza 2.5i and my dd so nothing wild and I don't drive crazy. Just looking for tips on replacing brakes, I've done it once before with a mechanic buddy, but this will be just me. I'm specifically curious about seating the brakes, the previous time I was told to get up to 30 mph and come to a quick stop, then get up to 60 mph and come to a quick stop which worked just fine, I've also heard to just pump the pedal a handful of times. I'm also planning on getting the por15 caliper package, the previous owner painted the calipers a bright garbage green that's already half gone. I'm shooting to use the cleaner that comes with that package to clean the bad paint and other stuff off the calipers then just do por15. Any opinions and advice is appreciated.
People tend to skip a few steps when doing brakes that are really important for cars that are exposed to road salt. The metal clips that the brake pads ride on (see picture) need to be replaced. Most brake pads come with those, and for whatever reason, some people don't replace them . Stainless steel clips (or teflon coated) clips are the best. The rust underneath these metal clips needs to be wire brushed off too (and then some brake grease put between the clips and bracket). Many people skip this (including most mechanics), and the end result is that your pads can lock up in place. Rust builds under the clips, pushing the clips out of their spot (and towards each other) and pinching the brake pad in place. The caliper usually can still overcome the stuck pads and it lets you brake, but it means the pads don't retract properly, and the pads/rotors wear out faster. They can get so stuck too that the caliper will not be able to squeeze the pads and you lose braking power then. If you've ever had brake pads that had to be hammered out of the bracket, this is what caused it. Some people grind the new brake pad tabs down to make them fit, but that's not actually fixing the problem (some cheap brake pads do come with oversized tabs though). The brake pads should move smoothly and easily by hand in the bracket. Wire brush the caliper bracket underneath where the metal clips go, put some grease between the bracket/clip/brake pad tab and it will move very smoothly and prevent future rust build up. The key to greasing is not to use so much that it gets squeezed out and onto the rotor, but enough to lubricate it properly. Pull the caliper pins, and get rid of the old grease (I usually pull the pin out, wipe it off, put the pin back in, pull it out and wipe again a few time to get the old grease out). Grease with new silicone based lube- which is generally NOT the same stuff as most brake parts lube (like you would have used on the pad clips and brackets). Non-silicone lubes can cause your rubber rings on the pins to expand, thus locking your pins in place, and locking the entire caliper up. Learned that one by doing it....Napa Sylglide is what I use now for the pins. The bed in procedure I usually do is to get the brakes hot, but not glowing. Several hard stops from 60 (not a lot) usually does the job. The brakes aren't too large on these things and are easy to get heated up.
^good post Only thing I would add, bed-in/seating isn't nearly as important on stock-replacement pads with new rotors. It is important to step on the brake pedal a few times before you put the car in gear to bring the piston back in contact with the pads after compressing the caliper. With used rotors, you won't get full braking force until the pads wear to the grooving in the rotor, but there needn't be any special treatment to do this. With performance pads, it's important to gently heat cycle them without stopping the first few times. It's a good idea to avoid staying stationary after a really hard stop anyway, regardless of the age of your braking components. Even after the occasional emergency stop (traffic stopping quickly, or missing a stop light), I release the brakes as soon as I'm stopped, and then I inch forward for a few minutes, that helps allow the rotor to cool evenly, and pads to cool more quickly.
Awesome, I'll definitely make sure to include all this in my process. Would these adaptive ceramics technically be 'performance' pads?
Take apart one side at a time so you have a reference in case you are wondering how something goes back together. And for those not replacing rotors, buy a micrometer to check rotor thickness so you aren't inadvertently using rotors that should be replaced.
...And on an unrelated side note, don't listen to people saying StopTech pads are low dust pads. They aren't.
I just bought new pads so I can throw away my StopTech pads, I'm tired of cleaning my wheels every single day
@Shancaldazar great tips! I even picked up some new tips for a job that I've done many times - namely cleaning up the brackets prior to putting the clips back in. I normally do that anyway, but I didn't realize the potential issue from not doing it. I'm actually in the process of re-greasing my slide pins on my FRS. I've always used Permatex Ultra Brake Caliper lube, and I haven't had any problems: https://www.permatex.com/products/l...kes/permatex-ultra-disc-brake-caliper-lube-4/ I like the idea of the sil-glyde, however the upper end of the temp range is only 500* F. And now that I look at it, the upper temp range of the Permatex Ultra (green tube), is only 400*F. For street use, this is probably fine. For my FRS which sees track time, I probably need higher. I did just find this: https://www.permatex.com/products/l...licone-ceramic-extreme-brake-parts-lubricant/ Silicone and upper temp is 3,000* F! Looks like O'Rielly carries it locally...might need to pick some up.
This is the stuff I use: https://www.permatex.com/products/l...atex-ceramic-extreme-brake-parts-lubricant-2/
