Re: brake job on '93 90CS

[Chris Newbold <cnewbold@transarc.com>]

At 06:23 PM 1/3/98 , you wrote:

>squeaking a bit.  I put it off, waiting to get a little more cash, but
>now it looks like I'm going to change them Monday because I'm having
>trouble stopping the car.

Hmm. I'd look closely at the condition of the exisiting front pads to
see if they really are worn out. This sounds like it could be more
than just a pad-wear problem.

The only times I've noticed significantly increased pedal effort
that could be blamed on pads were: pads seriously roasted at the
track and pads completely worn down to the backing plate (serious
screetching and sparks were the tip-off here :-) [that wasn't on
my Audi, BTW! :-) ]

I'm no expert, mind you, but my concern is greater if these symptoms
had a rapid on-set. With the exception of worn-to-backing, most
other pad problems are progressive...

>Has anyone done this job before?  I'm not sure if I want to attempt it
>or if I should take it to a garage to have it done.  I have the factory
>manual but it looks far too easy so I'm sure they're not telling me
>something.  I don't have any experience in this so if it is excessively
>complicated let me know and I won't even try.

It really is quite straight-forward. I managed to figure out how
to do both front and rear, pads and rotors, even without a manual.

Here are several things to keep-in-mind/check/buy-before-starting:

 - If you're doing rear pads, an appropriate tool for screwing the
 rear caliper pistions back in. Leise (sp?) makes a "brake caliper
 piston tool" that works well; I believe the adaptor for Nissans
 fits the Girling calipers on our car. About $10 at Pep Boys, etc.

 - Buy (from a dealer) replacement caliper carrier bolts. These are
 something like 13mm head by 1 1/2" long, pre-treated with the 
 appropriate LocTite to hold them in. You need two per wheel;
 cheap insurance.

 - Anti-seize compound; for application to the slides, contact patch
 between pistons and pads, etc.

 - If your rotors are worn, there will be a "lip" at the edge of
 the rotor where it hasn't been ground away by the pads. This
 can make it hard to pull the caliper off, as the pads catch on this
 lip. Just wiggle/wobble the caliper back and forth while pulling
 and it will eventually come free.

FYI, for the rear rotors, original thickness is 10mm, minimum allowable
thickness is 8mm. Don't know the specs for the front off-hand...

Let me know if you have any more detailed questions and
what your experience is... :-)

-Chris
1993 90CS 63k