NEED A GOOD Brake Job How-To!!
 

I seemingly dislike the current Brake job instructions in the How-to locker. Does anyone have a better How-to for replacing SVX brakes without the redneck comedy?? (No offense to the member who submitted them!) :D Looking for replacing rotors and pads... Pictures are good too for those who skipped their hooked on phonics courses like me! :D

I could write one up next time I do my brakes.... but yeah, those instructions suck. He got some of the bolt sizes wrong, and it isn't clear as to what to grab and what to do if you've never done it before.

- Rob

Lossen lug nuts.
Jack-up the SVX and support with stands.
Remove fluid from master cylinder.
Remove wheels.
Place newspaper or basin under hub and spray with brake parts cleaner to remove dust.
Using flat screw drivers thru slot in calipher, push rotor to compress psitons. Check MC for overflow.
Remove bolts that hold brake lines.
Remove calipher bolt, swing calipher up and support with coat hanger to spring.
Remove bolts that hold calipher bracket. Spray with PB blaster or equal before removal. Breaker bar might be required.
Spray bore of rotor to hub with PB. Tap with rubber hammer and use JACK bolts to loosen rotor from hub.

Oh got to go...........

Didn't think you needed to drain your system to do replace pads and rotors?

I have always just compressed the pistons with the reservoir lid on... never had any problems...

I figured...THX!

Just as an addendum... you don't have to remove the caliper from the hub to change the pads. You only have to remove the lower caliper bridge slider bolt (12mm I believe) and swing the bridge (including the pistons) upward to gain access to the pads. This gives you easy access to the pads, the pad clips, and the piston itself by only removing one bolt, and you don't have to do anything with the bracketry or the lines or coathangars, etc.

This is of course assuming your rotors do not require machining.

Best of luck! :D


[edit] Just realized my finger slipped and I had written "142mm" rather than "12mm" for the size of the required socket. Fixed it! ;)

Check out this for a step-by-step SVX brake installation:

http://www.ryanmacdonald.com/car/howto/brake/brake.html

If the old rotors won't come off, you can use a little WD-40 and let them sit until it loosens them up. Then give them a few gentle taps until they come off. The brakes I replaced were aftermarket ones that didn't have the bolt hole to use to loosen the old rotors.

I am looking for a how to on how to replace the brake lines. I bought some SS lines I need to install and I don't have the first clue on how to go about it. Pictures are always nice.

Matt

Well I am back:D

Check the rubber around the pistons for breaks. This is where water and salt gets in rusts piston OD and calipher bore.

Push the calipher pistons in using old brake pad and C-clamp so that psiton is flush with calipher. New rotors, pads and shims take up a lot of space. Watch you MC for over flow.

Remove rust from the hubs where the rotors go.
PLace new rotor on. Use lug bolt to hold in place or to push on.

Install bracket use antisieize on the bolts and torque.

Remove the slide guide pin in calipher. Remove boot so pin slides thru the boot. Push it through the rubber boots and remove. Clean the hole and the pin and reassemble with high temp anti seize compound. Not silicone as this gets to thick and sticks, (has with me anyway). This pin should slide very easily.

Lubricate and clean the other slide pin and bushing.

Check that the pin is tight to the bracket. Torque.

Check the fit of the new pads in the holder. It should not hang up. Remove rough burrs if it does.

Install shims with anti-seize (A-S) onto the back of the pads.
Install new pad spring into bracket ro clean the old one.
Coat contact surface of bracket with A-S where pad touches.
Install pads.

If you don't have back of the pad shims, coat the piston surface very lightly with A-S.

Place calipher onto pin and slide down over the pads very slowly and watch that the rubber is not pinched on the pad/shim edge.

Install bolt that holds calipher thru the slide pin and torque.

Install the brake lines and torque. :D

Drain the MC the rest of the way.

Install new brake fuid and bleed the brake caliphers and ABS if you got it.

Install wheels, let down the SVX and torque lug nuts.

Break in the new pads and rotors. 10 stops with light peddle press from 30 mph and 2 minute cool down between.

How do you replace the rubber if it is broken?
Thanks, wolf33h

There's no how-to really, I just did this myself with the FSMs. I can scan the pages for you if you want to wait to the weekend (unless someone else wants to do so sooner). Look for my post "Caliper Rebuild Finished" from like 2 days ago for some tips. You'll need one seal kit for the front and one for the rear (about $20 each from subaruparts.com).

Steve, thanks for the tips. I have access to a FSM, will look.
wolf33h

Glad I could help, if you have any ?s PM me.

Just thought I would add a little something.

If you need to remove your rotors and they are not coming off easily, you can thread a bolt through one of the holes on the rotor where it rests on the hub. This will push off the rotor. Believe it or not, but the bolt that holds the radiator bracket is exactly the right size. I found this out while having to do a brake job outside without the right tools while it was snowing. It was a lucky find.:D

Caliper rebuild >>
 

If you rebuild the calipers with new seals, you may have difficulty replacing new seal/booty on front calipers. It took me about 2 hours to get these 4 seal/booties installed. Needless to say, I was a little frustrated! Maybe there is an easier more obvious way, but I could only come up with one way that worked:

Place the outer end of the booty over the inside end of the piston. Be sure to use the supplied brake grease on the booty lip which fits into the groove at the top of the piston bore to hold the inner end of the booty seal in place. [The lip cannot be inserted when the piston is in place, because the piston doesn't leave full access to the groove.] With the one end of the booty on the piston part way, and the lip of the other end of the booty greased, gently insert and twist the booty until the lip slides into the groove in the bore. [This wouldn't work before I started to use the grease!] Then, gently insert, while twisting, the piston into the bore (past the inserted lip end of the booty) until you can move outer end of booty into its groove in the piston and finish inserting piston. [The lip actually serves like an O-ring >> it must be in the groove in the bore for the piston to fit on by.]

Hope this helps! :D

P.S. I also installed SS braided brake lines and EBC Green Stuff pads >> My brakes are about 50% better than they were stock!