03 Brake Question

[Hungrycat7]

OK Guys, brake changing virgin here. I am about to change the front pads on my 03 Taurus. My question is if I am just doing the pads do I need to bleed the lines and if I do how do I go about doing this? Any advice or pointers would help! Thanks!

[mwt47]

No you don't

Remove the caliper
Open the cap to the brake resovoir
Use a turkey baster and suck as much fluid out as you can.
Use a large set of channel locks or a C clamp and the old pads to compress the piston.
Put your new pads on and reassemble.
add new brake fluid
pump the brakes a few times and add more fluid

I do it that way because I like putting new fluid in the system

Mike

[Hungrycat7]

Hey There Mike thanks for the speedy response! Hopefully I will get that done either today or tomorrow! I'll be back if anything goes wrong! LOL

[Hungrycat7]

OK so my first brake job went pretty well! I do have a question though. I did the drivers side first and everything went well. When I got to the passenger side I pulled the pads off and noticed there was something different. Three of the four pads looked the same (about 50% pad left) but the inside passenger side pad was totally worn down to bare metal. What would make just the one pad wear so much? Is this something I need to be concerned about? I pulled the pins and oiled them up and also cleaned the piston on the caliper real good!

[shorod]

Yes, that is something to be concerned with. I would suspect that the pad that was so warn was one of the inside pads, right? It wore more quickly than others because the pins were seized so the caliper wasn't floating. The piston was pushing against that pad, but since the caliper wasn't floating, nearly all the force was being applied to the inner pad.

Since you pulled the slide pins, you hopefully cleaned them with a wire brush and lubed them with brake grease rather than just oil. If you cleaned them well and properly lubed them, you will probably be okay.

-Rod

[Hungrycat7]

Thanks for the reply! It was the inside pad. I did pull the pins, clean them, and re lubed them. Hopefully all will go well and the next time the car needs brakes things will be worn a little more evenly!

[shorod]

Yep. You could always inspect the pads again in a few months to see if they appear to be wearing evenly.

-Rod

[Hungrycat7]

OK. . . Another question on the same 03 Taurus. I replaced the front pads hoping that would take care of the squeeking in the brakes. Unfortunately I seemed to have gotten the squeek wrong. It seems to be coming from the rear drums. So now I was wondering if anyone had any advice on changing the drum pads. Also people have told me that I should replace the springs when I change the pads. Is this true? And I watched a video on you tube about changing Taurus drums and they kept mentioning using a brake tool to remove the spring and the washer (Insert it and turn counter clockwise a quarter turn to release it) Do I need this special tool or is there something else I can use to release this washer? Thank you in advance for any advice!

[shorod]

Depending on the squeak, you may just need to remove the brake shoe dust from the drums and spray the shoes, hardware and drums down with brake cleaner.

If you find that the shoes are saturated with brake fluid from a leaky wheel cylinder, then you will need to get new shoes and a rebuilt wheel cylinder.

To remove the retaining springs, you don't necessarily need the brake tool but it will make things easier. If you have pretty strong fingers and some patience, you can hold the pin from the back side of the backing plate, then push the spring down by the washer with your other hand and rotate to get the spring and washer loose. It doesn't matter if you turn clockwise or counter clockwise, whichever is easiest.

It's always recommended that you replace the brake hardware when you service them. They're springs, they will wear out, and they are a critical part of probably the most important system on your car. However, I'd bet that few people actually do change the springs with each brake job.

To aid in assembly, getting the adjustment correct, and minimizing the liklihood of squeaks and squeals, you should consider having the drums resurfaced/machined as well.

-Rod

[tripletdaddy]

I've not had any problems with not resufacing the drums with each shoe replacement, but they were always in good condition, so they really didn't need it and never had any squeeks. I've actually had brake hardware break during the removal process or was already broken. I think they were only the hold down springs, which aren't as critical to brake function, but I'd guess are the most common to break. If you have more than just light rust, DEFINETELY replace them. Quite frankly, some aftermarket hardware is inferior to OEM, I think that was Advanced Auto Brakeparts brand. I confess, I have been one to reuse brake hardware if I consider it in good condition.

I was shown to help minimize squeaks and other breaking vibration noises to camfer the leading and trailing edges of the braking material on each shoe with a file. I've seen a few manufacturers do this on their pads and shoes.

[Hungrycat7]

Thanks for the help guys! I will keep everyone posted!