Who Can Lend a Hand in Portland?

[XanRules]

Hi y'all,

It's about time for me to do my 60k service (I'm at 62k so far). I am going to be doing front and rear brakes (pads, rotors, and fluid), and I've never done brakes before so I would love an experienced/extra set of hands. If you want to help with any of the other crap - transmission fluid, coolant flush, etc - that's great, but really I just need help with the brakes. I plan to do this on a weekend at Gearhead Garage over in Tigard as he has a lift and tools. I have not booked a time slot yet and am happy to work with your schedule. I plan to do this at some point before the end of next month.

Happy to buy you lunch or beers in return. If you are willing/able to help out, let me know!

Cheers!

 

[gtx3076]

Looking to move up there. Just took my electrical license test. Won’t be there soon enough to help.

 

[foodtruck]

I'm a tad too far geographically, but FWIW this is the video I used as a reference when I did mine

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJ5Q6-Ee0UQ


Couple of things I bumped into:
* If your front pad set didn't come with new sliding clips, I would get those from RockAuto to save time scrubbing the old ones off, they get pretty grimy.
* Make sure you have a low enough profile wrench to hold front caliper pins from rotating (I think its 15mm). I found someone to machine a regular wrench down for me but I also heard bike wrenches work well too.
* If you changed / refilled your brake fluid since you had old pads installed, you have more fluid than necessary for brand new pad thickness and the extra fluid will likely go over the top of the reservoir when you start spreading the calipers. Have something on hand to siphon it out.

 

[XanRules]

Do you happen to have the part number, etc for me to order at RockAuto? I imagine they did as I bought a full kit (pads and rotors) but I'd rather be safe.

 

[foodtruck]

The term for these clips is apparently "brake hardware"

https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.php?pk=7183872
https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.php?pk=11910973

Some kits come with these and some don't; I think OEM Motorcraft one does but EBC kit I got didn't. One of those kits have two different kinds of clips and IIRC when you take the old clips off, the one closer to the front will be of a slightly different colour. That might be a different coating to make it more sturdy since the wheel rotation is pushing the pad and putting more stress on that clip, but maybe others can confirm.

Another thing I remembered is when you're rewinding rear caliper piston (you'll need a tool kit for that), make sure the + shaped grooves are aligned straight up / sideways so that the nub on the back of the rear pad slots into them, otherwise the piston will not seat flush on the pad.

 

[foodtruck]

Also @TyphoonFiST made a nice writeup here https://www.fiestastforum.com/threa...-and-rear-brakes-with-svt-brackets-diy.23810/

 

[XanRules]

Oh yeah, okay, mine did come with those. At least they were supposed to. I still don't love the idea of doing these myself, but this has been hugely helpful and I appreciate it!

 

[Williamson]

Brakes are probably the easiest thing you can do on a car, maybe even easier than oil changes. Forscan makes it even easier too if you're willing to pony up for a USB to OBD-II cable. Make sure you have brake bleeder bottles (Good size ones) and they should connect right up and make bleeding a breeze.

 

[XanRules]

I think the source of my nervousness is that the stakes are high - if I mess up an oil change, I trash the engine. Bad! If I mess up my brakes, I can really hurt myself or someone else. Even worse!

It's just not something I've ever done by myself before so I'd want someone with experience to lend a hand my first time. But if I have to go it alone, the above writeup is very nice and helpful.

 

[maxipaddleboat]

I'm in Puyallup WA. Just installed the Powerstop Z26 brake kit w/ stoptech stainless steel lines a few weeks ago. So far it has been great. Although you haven't done it before and brakes are critical to safety, I wouldn't fret about the job - as mentioned above it is an easy job for sure.

Bleeding the brake fluid properly is essential. There are various tools/methods to bleed your brakes by yourself, at a minimum one of the "One Man" brake bleeding kits will get the job done. Be mindful to maintain the level of brake fluid in the master cylinder while bleeding each brake. Buy a couple liters of brake fluid and take your time.

I would also suggest renting disc brake tools from Autozone/ O'Reiley's. It makes decompressing the caliper pistons quick and easy, avoid trying to piece something together with C clamps.

If you come up to WA I can help

 

[XanRules]

I'm in Puyallup WA. Just installed the Powerstop Z26 brake kit w/ stoptech stainless steel lines a few weeks ago. So far it has been great. Although you haven't done it before and brakes are critical to safety, I wouldn't fret about the job - as mentioned above it is an easy job for sure.

Bleeding the brake fluid properly is essential. There are various tools/methods to bleed your brakes by yourself, at a minimum one of the "One Man" brake bleeding kits will get the job done. Be mindful to maintain the level of brake fluid in the master cylinder while bleeding each brake. Buy a couple liters of brake fluid and take your time.

I would also suggest renting disc brake tools from Autozone/ O'Reiley's. It makes decompressing the caliper pistons quick and easy, avoid trying to piece something together with C clamps.

If you come up to WA I can help

Ha, that's the exact kit I bought - a couple liters of brake fluid, though? I was never able to find an actual measurement of how much brake fluid I'd need, so that's concerning. But yeah, I'll be doing the work at a place in SW Portland that rents lifts and tools, so I'll have all of that stuff handy.

 

[maxipaddleboat]

Ha, that's the exact kit I bought - a couple liters of brake fluid, though? I was never able to find an actual measurement of how much brake fluid I'd need, so that's concerning. But yeah, I'll be doing the work at a place in SW Portland that rents lifts and tools, so I'll have all of that stuff handy.

Oh nice, I forgot you were going to a garage, that is a wise choice. And yes I purchased 2 liters of fluid but I completely flushed out my brake lines and used fluid liberally, the actual volume in the system is far less (I think it is 500 ml). Just make sure the reservoir is topped off after bleeding. I used about 1 liter for the flush, now I have another for the future.

Also, don't forget to follow the bedding-in procedure and have fun!