duckdive

Any help would be appreciated. Rear passenger inner pad wore twice as fast as the outer. Is it fairly easy to replace the caliper or should I have a shop do it (I'm a novice...but an intelligent one)? If i replace it, should I put a new one on the driver's side? Where can I find literature about brakes for a '97 2.5 tl?

96TL

You want to replace the pads or the caliper?

duckdive

I'm assumming the cylinder in the caliper is sticking because I have twice as much wear on the inner pad as the outer. Is this assumption correct? If so, I wanna try to replace the caliper myself. Thanks

Wampum

Well there is pad on each side of the caliper, and there is only one piston which is on one side. The pads are relatively easy to replace. Not sure about the calipers, if you have the right tools I am sure its not that difficult

96TL

It shouldnt be hard to do. Just make sure thats the problem before you buy another caliper because I bet they're expensive. Keep in mind you'll have to bleed the brakes when you take the lines off so you'll need to have all 4 wheels off the car at the same time. Kind of scary without a lift. I did it to my friends BMW and I was a little worried about it falling. Someone needs to stay in the car and pump the brake.

miguel

Just a FYI: I have a 1996 3.2TL and I had to change both front brake pads twice w/in a year. So I went a local hook up shop and they gave me ceramic brake pads. I'm telling you they are the best. I have them for over a year and no problems! No squeaking, no strange noises, no grinding and it stops on a dime. The cross drilled rotors help as well. I'm forgot the brand, but as long as they are ceramic, get them. I guarantee complete satisfaction. Good luck!

SamZman

I usually have my friends take their cars to Midas or someplace that offers free inspections. Bring the inspection sheet and you know exactly what you need to replace

Doing brakes is extemely simple but you may want to have someone who has done it before with you (brakes are kind of important ).

I haven't done brakes on a TL yet but have done many, many cars. I have a tendency to open my yap when people need help :o and it's ruined many a weekend...

Ook I'm babbling but here is a rundown of brakes.
1. Remove tire
2. Unbolt caliper from hub
3. Pull caliper off of rotor
4. You can then pull,slide the pads out of the rotor
5. Use a C Clamp and compress the caliper piston back to it's original state. This allows the new,larger pads to fit.
6. Slide the rotor off. This is where cars differ.
a. You may be able to slide it off or there may be a caliper bracket which requires removing.
b. There may also be a hub and bolt holding it on. If this is the case it will be a little messy. You can figure this stuff out as you go but you slide a cotter pin out and take the bolt out. The rotor will slide off now. There are bearings in there so make sure you pay attention to how they come out. You will need to pack some grease on these bearings. This is also a good time to replace them if they look worn.
7. Replace the rotors with new rotors or take them to NAPA and have them turned. This is important because any imperfections will cause squeaking or early pad wear.
8. Stick pads back on caliper. Hope you paid attention to how you took them off..
9. Bolt caliper and bracket back on.
10. Put wheel on.
11. IMPORTANT. Get in the car and pump the brakes. They should go to the floor the first time till the caliper compresses..


Ok man I cant believe I just typed all that.. I hope someone gets SOMETHING out of it

SamZman

ok, one more thing about replacing the calipers.

As said earlier you will have to bleed the brakes. That's the only real trick to replacing them. Now it may not be necessary to bleed ALL the brakes, just the one you changed. Some systems ( like in my Camaro) have their own specific line to the master cylinder for each caliper. Just bleed the side you are on and test the brakes when you get done. If they aren't mushy you are good to go. And calipers should include directions on how to bleed if you arent familiar. Or you can buy a bleeding kit at the parts store..


ok, yes I'm done this time

later guys.

marko

Just an important notes how to compress caliper piston properly.
If the car has ABS it is important to open bleeding screw before you start compressing caliper piston back. You do not want to force contaminated brake fluid back into ABS pump because you can damage it that way. This is the only way to do it properly and many people either do not know or do not want to do it this way. If you do it this way, there is a chance that you have to bleed brakes after and in order to do it quickly many dealerships do it improperly because who is going to prove they are guilty if very expansive ABS pump goes dead.
Anyway, you are supposed to use rubber hose flexible enough to sit tight on bleeder screw and the other end of this hose should be in the container filled with fresh brake fluid. Then slowly open the bleeding screw and start compressing piston back. When you are done just tighten the bleeding screw and that is it. You can use the same trick with rubber hose and container to bleed your brakes if you are alone and there is nobody around to pump your brake pedal.
The older ABS systems were under heavy pressure so they needed to be depressurized before any brake work.
All in all, brakes are not a rocket science but you should definitely read general-purpose book about brakes before trying to do it yourself.

duckdive

Thanks for all the input...I'm still having trouble finding a service manual...Chilton's doesn't seem to explain it well (at least to me). Any other sources of info on changing my rear passanger caliper...I do have ABS...it does seem to be getting a little more complicated when you throw that in the equation. Thx again.

Phatty 2K 3.2TL

Let me throw another wrench into this conversation on brakes and their bleeding. I thought as a safety, the TL's (and I think every other car now) have two "circuits" for the brakes. Where the left front and right rear are on one line and the right front and left rear are on another. I have never touched brake work before (probably would never, I just don't feel comfortable), so I may be way off. But, how would this factor into the equation?

Noam

Sask32TL

One thing I have seen frequently is rear brakes failing prematurely on Acuras.

The most common reason I have seen is the failure to use the emergrncy brake regularly. If you set the e-brake every night when you get home, your rear brakes will last a lot longer.

WHY???

Because the emergency brake centers the rear calipers. If you never use them, the calipers can drift off center over time. If enough time elapses, the calipers can freeze in the off-center position, and will apply most of the braking pressure to only one of the pads.

I had to get mine replaced annually on my Integra until a buddy of mine pointed this out to me. Once I started using the e-brake every day, the last set of rear brakes lasted me three years, and are still going strong.

TLover8888

how is the brake fluid contaminated if the whole braking system is a closed system?