I changed my own brakes and rotors! But some questions...

[96s281]

With the help of my buddy who's done them before, I changed my brakes last night in my '02 Eddi Bauer for the first time. I just got tired of the ridiculous shop prices for what I've heard was a relatively beginner's job.

It wasn't all that difficult, but I had some problems putting the new clips in as well as placing the new pads on the inside side of the rotor (if that makes sense). Again, luckily I had my buddy there to "supervise" my first real project and offer some assistance.

Based on research, I went with the ultra premium NAPA rotors and the Bendix semi-metallic pads. I really couldn't wait to order online, so a set of front rotors and pads cost me $260.

Now my questions...
1. I wish I took a pic for you guys but the inside pad on the passenger side had some really odd wear. The top side of the pad was worn, but nothing extravagant. The bottom of that same pad was very very worn. Each of the other 3 front pads had consistent wear from the top of the pad to the bottom, but this one looked as if one of the pistons wasn't driving one end hard enough?

Is there any way to troubleshoot this? Could a warped rotor cause this? The pistons went back jst fine when putting the c-clamp on each one, and there didn't seem to be any problem after pumping the brakes to reset the pistons after turning the truck back on. Maybe the only thing I can do is wait to see if it happens again in a few months?

2. Regarding the o-ring that goes onto the outside of the rotor, there was a layer of black electrical tape around it. Both of them had this, but the driver's side was coming off so I just removed it and left it bare when putting back on. Is there a reason I'd have electrical tape on that o-ring?

All in all it wasn't a bad job and I'm confident I'd be able to do it myself next time. It's definitely a good job for beginners to try out, and it really feels good that an hour or two of work will save you a few hundred bucks. And I gotta admit I had fun learning and seeing all the parts you always hear about. Now my braking system makes sense since I took it apart and put it back together again.

Thanks for listening fellas!

 

[my pos mounty]

Awsome! I love hearing about others getting into taking care of their own vehicles and not being afraid of it. I think it is also a rewarding experiance knowing that you can do it, and save a ton of cash in the process.
Typically when you find weird looking wear on the existing pads, it is one of only a few things.
1) Caliper is sticking, but since you say that the puck pushed back into the caliper body rather easily, thats not your issue
2) A warped rotor chewed it up, since you replaced the rotor, its a non-issue
2) The slide pins need a little grease. Its the long bolts you pulled out to remove the calipers. The calipers might be hanging up a little bit on them, causing some freakish wear patterns. You can remove them and if they don't have excessive rust or wear on them, wipe a little grease on them and be done. However if they do have excessive wear (or rust on the portion that the caliper rides on) the replacements are under $20 with replacement rubber boots, availabe at most auto parts stores. I pack the rubber boots with grease then push the slide pins thru, wiping off the excessive grease. Theres also some metal slides that are on the knuckle, those should be replaced every third brake job or so, unless they show excessive wear. Just a slight dab of grease on those as well. I actually just run my greasy finger along it leaving a slight film on it, no more.

As far as your second question, I have never encountered an O-ring like you described. I have not worked on the third generation trucks, so maybe someone with more experiance with them will enlighten us all.

Congratulations on diving in there and doing it yourself

 

[BigRondo]

I agree with my pos mounty, it is awesome that you not only tried the repair, but completed it as well. You have to love saving that cash! I just did my rear brakes last night. Purchased my 02 XLT in February. I haven't done the front brakes yet but will be doing them next week. Sorry I can't help with the o-ring but when I do the fronts I will check it out. Congrats on a job well done!

 

[DanaM]

Great job, it is a rewarding deal to do it yourself and have this forum to help out with the details. I went with the ones from Autozone, really cheap for such great pads and rotors, quiet, hard stopping and warrantied for 3 years. Quick question for you, off topic, what did you do with the old rotors?

I have my old ones sitting in the garage taking up space. I did not want to throw them away in the trash bin and take a chance on the rotors impacting the garbage truck blades when the city comes to pick up the trash. Are old rotors something that can be taken to Napa or Autozone for disposal?

 

[my pos mounty]

Not to bash, but If you use autozone rotors, you are asking for trouble. I have used them no less than 3 times in the past for rotors. All suffered the same fate, warped rotors, failed pads, rotors that rusted so badly they were pitted to the point the caused brake fade. Autozone manufacturers make them to the absolute minimum standard (same with most of their mechanical parts). Warping is almost a gaurantee. I realize they have a warranty on them, but that warranty is for 1 time only. If the second set fails also, your on your own.
I wont use them for ANY parts because I got tired of removing what should have been good parts after a short period of time and trying to convince the "counter jockey" to look up my purchase history because I did not have my reciept with me.
I would rather pay more, get the best quality part and do the job once and be done with it.
Wasn't trying to rant, or rag on you, just passing along what my experiances have been with them.

 

[96s281]

Thanks guys. I did a lot of research on these boards (as mypos mounty knows from the rotors thread ) and couldn't have gathered the nerve to do this without everyone's help in the first place.

And thanks for the suggestions, mypos. I should've mentioned I have after-market wheels on my truck, so it's possible that the o-ring is a spacer the rim guys put on there. Not sure why I didn't think of that until just now.

To answer Dana's question...my buddy took the old rotors b/c, funny enough, he was talking to a local trash picker (local pick-up truck driver who drives around the night before trash pickup, pretty much every neighborhood has one of these guys!) and he's gonna give them to him. I guess he'll scrap it for some cash or something. Good thing too, b/c I'd be in the same position as you and not know what to do with them.

If I didn't start the job until 7ish at night, I would've taken pics along the way to come up with a step by step for us beginners. Sometimes it's easier from a beginner's point of view for others just starting out.

 

[DanaM]

Cool,

I will set them out for someone to pick them up for junk cash. Thank you!

D a n a

Thanks guys. I did a lot of research on these boards (as mypos mounty knows from the rotors thread ) and couldn't have gathered the nerve to do this without everyone's help in the first place.

And thanks for the suggestions, mypos. I should've mentioned I have after-market wheels on my truck, so it's possible that the o-ring is a spacer the rim guys put on there. Not sure why I didn't think of that until just now.

To answer Dana's question...my buddy took the old rotors b/c, funny enough, he was talking to a local trash picker (local pick-up truck driver who drives around the night before trash pickup, pretty much every neighborhood has one of these guys!) and he's gonna give them to him. I guess he'll scrap it for some cash or something. Good thing too, b/c I'd be in the same position as you and not know what to do with them.

If I didn't start the job until 7ish at night, I would've taken pics along the way to come up with a step by step for us beginners. Sometimes it's easier from a beginner's point of view for others just starting out.

 

[DanaM]

Don't worry about bashing, good to hear your expericne if I ever encounter the same problems. Thanks for sharing!

For now, she is stopping great! As a mater of fact, she is stopping better than my Charger which has custom made drilled and slotted roters and huge ceramic posi quiet pads. If I do not get any warping on the Ex, I might switch to the Autozone brand on the Charger when needed. No use paying 6 or 700 bucks for a setup that does not work better than Autozone's 140 dollar solution, hell for that savings and better stoppage I can forget about the cosmetics loss too.

D a n a

Not to bash, but If you use autozone rotors, you are asking for trouble. I have used them no less than 3 times in the past for rotors. All suffered the same fate, warped rotors, failed pads, rotors that rusted so badly they were pitted to the point the caused brake fade. Autozone manufacturers make them to the absolute minimum standard (same with most of their mechanical parts). Warping is almost a gaurantee. I realize they have a warranty on them, but that warranty is for 1 time only. If the second set fails also, your on your own.
I wont use them for ANY parts because I got tired of removing what should have been good parts after a short period of time and trying to convince the "counter jockey" to look up my purchase history because I did not have my reciept with me.
I would rather pay more, get the best quality part and do the job once and be done with it.
Wasn't trying to rant, or rag on you, just passing along what my experiances have been with them.

 

[96s281]

OK, I spoke too soon and have another question ...

I drove around for a bit today and just got back. I noticed a greasy smell which I expected fo the first few times out, but I also noticed a bit of smoke coming from the brakes after parking.

I used brake cleaner on the rotors when putting them on last night, but didn't wipe it off, just kinda let it drip dry. Is this smoke anything to worry about?

 

[my pos mounty]

If you cleaned off all the "packing oil" that was on the rotors, and also cleaned off any and all contamination on the rotors before putting on the brake pads (also cleaned off any contamination) then theres nothing to worry about.
There shouldnt be any weird smells or smoke coming from the brakes. If you are not sure you got everything as clean as possible, you may want to jack it back up, take the calipers off and reclean the rotors with a brake cleaner. Also clean the pad surfaces. If you have any light sandpaper or emery cloth, you could gently scuff the surfaces of both.

 

[96s281]

If you cleaned off all the "packing oil" that was on the rotors, and also cleaned off any and all contamination on the rotors before putting on the brake pads (also cleaned off any contamination) then theres nothing to worry about.
There shouldnt be any weird smells or smoke coming from the brakes. If you are not sure you got everything as clean as possible, you may want to jack it back up, take the calipers off and reclean the rotors with a brake cleaner. Also clean the pad surfaces. If you have any light sandpaper or emery cloth, you could gently scuff the surfaces of both.

Since I didnt take a rag to the rotors after spraying them, I'm thinking there is a bit of residue oil still laying on there. If that's the case, I'm hoping that will all burn off after the first couple of runs in the car. If it continues to smoke, I'll try what you said and clean them thoroughly.

Thx agin my pos!

 

[96s281]

If you cleaned off all the "packing oil" that was on the rotors, and also cleaned off any and all contamination on the rotors before putting on the brake pads (also cleaned off any contamination) then theres nothing to worry about.
There shouldnt be any weird smells or smoke coming from the brakes. If you are not sure you got everything as clean as possible, you may want to jack it back up, take the calipers off and reclean the rotors with a brake cleaner. Also clean the pad surfaces. If you have any light sandpaper or emery cloth, you could gently scuff the surfaces of both.

Since I didnt take a rag to the rotors after spraying them, I'm thinking there is a bit of residue oil still laying on there. If that's the case, I'm hoping that will all burn off after the first couple of runs in the car. If it continues to smoke, I'll try what you said and clean them thoroughly.

Thx agin my pos!

 

[jakedrew]

this forum is the best place to be for explorer info. Any problem you have just search a little and you will find the info. If not make a post about it.