Brake pads

Hello everyone;


I have a few questions to ask... Well, first off I was reading about brake pads and replacing them and I realized I might replace them myself and might want to go ahead and upgrade my braking system. My concern is I am having a grinding noise from my back right tire and I read something about it being the "proportioner valve" now, I have no clue of what that is or where it is. But if that is the problem........

1) Where is the proportioner valve so that I can take a look at it?

2) I want to check my brake pads and see if they are wore down but, how can I look and tell if it is worn down or just needs cleaning?

3) What do you recommend are the best brake pads?

4) What do you recommend for upgrading brakes?

5) Is there a tutorial out with pictures how to change brake pads on a 98 grand prix?

Also, I stock rims so upgrading the brakes are based on 15'' rims
I have 97,000 miles on the car, 98 Grand prix gtp

Thanx for all your help you guys.....

You really do have some questions. First of all the proportioning valve is located under the hood and is preset by the manufacturer and is therefore non-adjustable. Second, if you have 98K on your car and are still on the original pads you probably need to change them regardless as they are probably worn to the point where they need replaced anyway. When you look at the pads they will have a wear indicator on them, it is a little metal tab that is designed to rub on the rotor when the pad needs to be replaced. A good rule of thumb is that if you pull the pad and have less than 3/32 of an inch on one or both pads, then replace them. They are cheap enough to replace at frequent intervals especially if you hot rod the car.

Since you car has front and rear disc brakes the same would be involved for the rear pads as well althoug the rear pads do not do nearly the work the front ones do. There are so many pads on the market that it is hard to pick on over the other as long as you stick with the better quality pads. I recommend for the best stopping power, a set of ceramic pads. They wear well and will last quite a while. Other than those, performance friction carbon metallic are my choice for pads. If you wish to upgrade your rotors, slotted or drilled and slotted are good choices. Rotors are a bear to change on these cars due to the mounting brackets needing to be removed and they are very tight.

As for the noise in the back of your car, does it make this noise all the time or only when braking? If it makes it all the time you may need a new wheel bearing assembly as yours may be bad. Have it checked.

As for changing the brakes, purchase a shop manual or a chiltons or haynes manual. They will help you in changing the brakes. One word of caution however, don't push fluid back into the system by using the c-clamp trick. Loosen the bleeder valve and then push the fluid out. You will need to bleed the brakes afterward but it will save the ABS system on your car by doing it this way.
Good Luck!!

Over a year ago i did my brakes front and back....New ceramic pads and new rotors...The mounting brackets for the calipers were very tight , but i used a breaker bar and got them off with no problem.....One word of advice...when caliper is removed from bracket, try not to let it hang freely, it may cause problems w/ the rubber hose and leaks....I did use a C-Clamp to push the pistons back in and to date have no problems w/ ABS. I may have been lucky....BUT>>>I believe GTPDAD's advice is better, and you could avoid ABS problems...after all 4 brakes were done i noticed in the brake fluid reserve that the fluid looked milky brown...In the future i think this could cause me problems with seals...New fluid is better...

Well, thank you for all your advice. Now the answer to your question, it only makes the sweaking sound when I brake at very low speeds. Also, my pads have been changed since I got the car I replaced them twice. But, I took them to a shop because, I really didn't have any experience in changing them. I would like to learn and change them myself because, I think fixing things yourself gives you more experience and makes you feel better because, you know you didn't and not someone else you don't know.

Also, where can purchase the manuals you listed?

I would stick to the higher quality pads. You may have had to change them twice so far because they are the cheaper pads. I had a pair or cheapies wear out on my Olds Bravada in 8,000 miles and learned a lesson the hard way. I now use nothing but ceramic pads from Autozone. You will also see a big difference in the brake dust on your wheels from the cheapies to the ceramics.

The manuals may be at Autozone or try amazon.com or ebay.

I would stick to the higher quality pads. You may have had to change them twice so far because they are the cheaper pads. I had a pair or cheapies wear out on my Olds Bravada in 8,000 miles and learned a lesson the hard way. I now use nothing but ceramic pads from Autozone. You will also see a big difference in the brake dust on your wheels from the cheapies to the ceramics.

The manuals may be at Autozone or try amazon.com or ebay.

Im glad you want to do the repair yourself....If it is your first time i would suggest having a friend help you, one who knows what he is doing..... Brakes are pretty easy on your car.

i started doing brake jobs, thats how i got into working on my car. Just watch out for brake dust (well ventilated area + spray brake cleaner) and it can be a very fun job. You learn all about torquing bolts, replacing parts, greasing it all up...good experience in my opinion.

oh and for brake pads, i use Munroe's. i had them on my neon way back when, i put them on my gf's escort too. Braking is always consistent and they dont glaze my disks either. They last for a good few years too before needing replacement.

When i was shopping around, Canadian Tire had three types of pads: Murnoe, "Certified", and "Super econo"...the choice wasnt that hard...cheap pads will go to dust in under a year, not to mention they might crack and possibly seize the brakes.

-Steve

Update: This morning I bought all the parts to replace my brakes...
brake pads, brake cleaner, brake fluid, c-clamp, and I even purchased the haynes manual. Everything was looking good until I tried to remove the bottom bolt. In the manual it saids to use one open wrench around the bolt and another wrench to hold in the middle. Well, I didn't have the right size for the procedure so I tried to use a wrench and a hammer and tried to loosen the bolt. No luck! Didn't have any grease or spray to help loosen the bolt. Now, my problem is how can I get the bolt to come loose and continue on with the project? Now I assume counterclockwise is the correct way.... Also, do I need a special tool to bleed the brakes?

Are you speaking about the bottom caliper bolt or the bottom bolt on the caliper bracket. It it is the caliper bolt you can use a socket, I prefer them to a wrench anyway. It should break loose fairly easily although some pressure will be required.

If you mean the mount then you will need a long breaker bar or a heavy duty impact wrench.

As for bleeding the brakes you can do it two ways either with a length of hose and a soda bottle. Put the hose over the bleeder screw and insert it into the bottle with a small amount of fluid in the bottom. Pump the brakes and hold. Open the bleeder and vent the fluid until it is clear. Do this several times until you see no more bubbles in the hose, close the bleeder valve and snug it up.

The other way is to purchase a one handed bleeder bottle and put the end of the hose in the bleeder valve. Put the bottle below the level of the bleeder valve and repeat the same procedure similar to the soda bottle method.

WHOA watch out there

if you are sitting facing the wheel, counterclockwise is going to do up the bolt, since the bolt is bolted in towards the outside of the car. To avoid getting confused, poke your head behind when you first put your wrench or socket on there. I made that mistake once...sheared the bolt right off...when you have to get the drill out for a brake job, it starts taking alot longer :(

See I purchased the haynes manual and I can't seem to loosen the bolt. I used a socket wrench which didn't help out at all. That thing was so tight I thought I was going to bend the wrench. Now I read the statements from my reply a few days ago but, the manual makes it sound so easy. It says that there are two bolts holding on the brake and I saw that right off. Now it says remove the bottom bolt and then lift the caliper up and remove the pad.
Do I need to apply grease or W-40 to loosen the bolt or am I just doing this wrong.....

The caliper bolts are the small ones going to the rear of the caliper the larger ones near the caliper bolts are for the bracket to the knuckle, no reason to touch these for a pad job. Listen I think you need someone to watch over you shoulder with this or it sounds like you are going to do something wrong, you were already advised of this.

From the list of your questions, it seems that you have not done many break jobs before. Unless you really are locked on into doing this breakjob, I would have a professional mechanic do it and avoid the hassle. May save you money in the long run.

Don

Look I like to learn how to do things.... I want to do this brake job myself, it's not really that hard to change the pads I just can't get the bolt off.

If the bottom bolt seems to be frozen try to use PB Blaster...its a penetrant that works good...WD 40 is not to good for this...If your using a standard wrench it may not be long enough to give you the leverage you need..Try using a ratchet and socket.. A breaker bar would be ideal... Make sure the socket fits the bolt snug, or you will strip it.... I think its good you take an interest in fixing your own car...There is no better way to learn it than getting in there and just doing it.... Take your time and double check each step...Once the bolt is loose, replacing the pads will be the easy part....bleeding will be harder, because it needs to be done right and you need 2 people to do it....the second person needs to be in the car to press on the brake pedal.

the caliper bolt you are having problems with is known for getting seized in the bracket. A little PB blaster and/or some heat(from a hand propane torch) should break it free. If you need to use heat, replace the rubber bushings, as heat may deform/damage them. Try the PB Blaster first, and apply it a couple of times, letting it set for a few minutes between applications. It's rare that PB won't free up a caliper bolt. Only use heat as a last resort.

Thank you for all the replys you guys have all sent. Well, I might go ahead and buy a breaker bar to get the bolt off. I think after time and heat the bolt just seems to get stuck on there. I tried to use a socket wrench and get the bolt off gosh that thing seemed to be melted on. Oh well, I know the bolt that needs to be removed is the one holding on the pads to the rotor. There are two bolts one on the top and one on the bottom. Now the haynes manual said to remove the bottom bolt, so I now know I was doing the right thing it was just that I need a breaker bar to get. This weekend I will probably get one. How much do those things run? Also, what is so special about this particular tool?