How To :changing You Brakes And Rotors

SKperformance · June 28, 2004

removing brakes

open hood

open brake reservoir

loosen 5 wheel bolts

jack front end up under rad support subframe hump

place 2 jack stands under driver/passenger front doors

remove 5 wheel bolts

remove 2 bolts holding caliper assembly to rotor assembly ,located behind it at the top and bottom

use something to support the caliper from stressing the rubber brake lines

use piston compressor tool to push piston back into caliper and the fluid will raise it level in reservoir ( it is a good time to change the brake fluid now if you have a friend to pump the brakes )

remove the 2 bolt holding the assembly brackets on the hub

to remove the rotors which usually are stuck on don;t hit them with anything hard as it can damage the abs sensor easily

there are 2 bolt hole on the rotors hub/hat to thread a bolt in there, i have an extra set i use other wise you can use a bolt from the rear caliper assembly ( same thread pitch) or maybe one of the front ones might fit ( can;t remember)

this will press the rotor of the hub ,do each bolt a few full turns then back out and do the other, continue until you hear a loud bang like you broke something, it is just the 2 metals separating no worries.

now replace the rotors and reassemble.

You don not need to remove the axle bolt for the CV shaft to remove the rotors, it just looks lie the hub and rotors are one piece because of time and rust.

If replacing the pads make sure you have all 4 spring clips on the ends of the pads to seat them correctly in the caliper assembly or they WILL squeal.

Also use brake quiet if not using shims on the pads

Use good OEM parts or bembro's rotors which are just less than 100 and can get slotted almost anywhere cheap

A pro also regreases the pistons every time they do a job , a simple way is before you reinsert the piston to the caliper is to use the rod and spray WD 40 in the rubber boot between the boot and the piston to lube it.

Also use anti seize on all the caliper and assembly bolts especially the slider bolts ,if possible score them slightly to remove all debris

If you are going to change the fluid get 4 brake piston clamps and keep all the pistons fully inserted . This will press out all air from behind the piston which is where they like to sit and never get removed by 90% of mechanics ( this is what separates a technician from a mechanic) you need top do all 4 so you have to raise the whole vehicle with 2 jack stands.

I think the bleeder valve is a 10mm use a socket not a wrench to loosen the valve.You can use the wrench to open when the pedal is pressed and close it then let the person release the brake and press again. get 2 liters atleast if you haven;t changed them in a while this way you are flushing and cleaning the system. or old fluid cake. Use dot 4 fluid for its higher brake temp ,don't waste your time with dot 5 silicone it is for race only ,has no use on the street and it needs a complete dual bleed to use the system so it gets very expensive. Silicone based fluid also absorbs water not air faster and goes bad faster which dot 2-4 attracts air instead to destroy itself by lowering the boiling temp, which is the reason race cars use silicone as they change it allot and water still compresses but boils still so there is less brake fade characteristics.

Start at the closest wheel to the booster and proportioning valve ,which is the driver wheel then the rear passenger then the front pass then the rear driver side.

Here is the reasoning as most will not understand why, The brake system is like all modern day system car. It has a proportion valve to adjust for front rear brake bias since you need more brakes up front than rear. Now as a safety feature the front left and rear right is one circuit and the front right and rear left is the other.

WHY?

Incase you loose pressure from a rupture the system allows the car to be semi controllable under braking .If it was all left or right or front or rear you hit the brakes and you would swerve hard right left or over or under steer very abruptly this X give most balanced control in an emergency ( it happens on TV all the time)

I don;t think there is anything else i could add beside

92-96 have the same rotors rear are not the same as the camry which are smaller the fronts are the same as the 97 and up but not the rear

97-01 are the same for the camry/solara front and rear ( which is the older camry's smaller diameter rotor, they fit though.

While you are under there check the CV joint ( mainly the outer boot ) for crack rips or grease,rotate the rotors to move the CV turn the wheel in any direction and then turning the rotor will expand the ribs so you can see inside the groove to inspect them ,use wd40 to clean the dirt for a good visual inspection.