psteng19

Looking through the spokes, I can't see the pads under the calipers at all. I thought I had nothing left, but my mechanic said I have plenty of brake left (@70k miles, still stock pads).

Are they not visible except with the wheels off?
I don't feel like removing the wheels in this 100* weather.

PACman

Remember there's 2 pads per rotor. To get a good look if both sides are wearing down evenly, the wheel should be off. In our cars, it's not uncommon that the rear pads wear faster then the fronts.

nj2pa2nc

I have all the maintenance done by a acura dealer I think is excellent. When I have the tires rotated/balanced they check the brakes. I had them done less than 2 months ago. The fronts were 8's and the rears 6's on the originals. My car has almost 124K miles.

psteng19

Yes, but the pads facing the exterior, is it normal to not be able to see those under the caliper?

main70072

The rears you could see, but you might not be able to see the fronts. You could always look at the back surface of the pads facing outwards and see how far it has traveled in on the brake hardware retaining clips and have an idea of how much is left. Best way to check the fronts are to take the wheels off and look at the window on the calipers to see both pads per rotor.

PACman

On stock wheels, it can be difficult to see the exterior pads.

Simba91102

You'll need to remove the wheels to check the pads. The front calipers have slots facing the front that let you look at the amount of material left on the pads. The rear pads are easy to see, but again, that's with the wheels off.

SoCaliTrojan

You will need to remove the wheels to inspect the pads. You have to be able to see the side of the calipers.

If you want to keep the wheels on, you need to buy one of those small mirrors on the end of an extendable rod (available at auto parts stores). You can then use the mirror to see the calipers from their sides. Here are some examples: http://www.harborfreight.com/telesco...rror-7361.html and http://www.harborfreight.com/2-inch-...aft-97217.html

myname367

I had my brakes checked about 2 months ago and I was told that they were fine and would last me a few thousand miles. Then I was at the dealer yesterday for oil change and they said I have to change them soon....im suspicious.

would the brakes make sounds towards their end? like a screech sound when braking?

PACman

Yes, a screeching sound can be heard, or it could be a normal sound depending on what type of pad and who made them. For example, I had Brembo rotors w/ Hawk ceramic pads that always made screeching sounds upon braking, but the pads were abundant.
Key is check how much pad life there is. Are yours stock rotors / pads or aftermarket? How many miles do you have on them?

SoCaliTrojan

Yes, the inner brake pad usually has a metal part that sticks out slightly. If the brake pad wears too much, the metal will contact the rotor and make sounds. The brakes usually have to be really low for you to reach that point, though. When I replaced my brake pads, they were really worn out, but there was still enough distance to keep the metal part away from the rotors for a few hundred more miles.

It is better to rely on visual inspections instead of sounds. If your outer pads wear out faster than the inner pads, you might lose your brakes before you even come close to hearing the screech.

As mentioned above, the pad material also affects whether or not you hear sounds. Some materials are noisy, while other pads like ceramic are designed to be quieter.

It could also be that the tech misjudged the mileage during the first visit, or you did an unusual amount of hard braking in the last couple of months. Still, it's better to know for sure first, since dealers make money off of services (not selling cars). The dealer might be feeling a financial pinch this summer. *shrugs*

myname367

Definitely good advice, I will have to get a second opinion on that!

npolite

If you look at the top of the pad where it goes into the slider for the caliper and the distance away from the rotor, it will give you a good idea of how much padding is left without taking the wheel off. If you are getting low though I would suggest taking the wheel off to inspect the inside one as both pads do not wear evenly.

You might have to look at it at different angles but I can do it without taking the wheel off.