Wheel off
Remove disc retaining screw
Remove disc
clean it all
reverse with new bits.

Yes. Have done it many times. There will be plenty of how-to articles on forums. You might need to buy some specific tools but the job itself should be pretty easy.

[quote="hammyuk"]
Wheel off
Remove disc retaining screw
Remove disc
clean it all
reverse with new bits.
realise someone's nicked your calipers 😉

Yes, I did it in March, and have done before.*
Youtube is your friend here.
Next.
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*That said, the Yaris had one single bolt to remove one wheel was off and it all was accessible to change, the Ford a bit more, but still same bolts. The fool who designed at VW needs a slap, when you need three different spanners or Torx, plus wind back tool and even then it was a pig to get at... 🙄

Great, thanks.
Seems to be pretty straight forward. Saturday job I would guess.
Just need a set of axle stands and whatever specific tools I need.

realise someone's nicked your calipers

and then realise the question is about car discs not bike discs.

It's a fairly easy job - the only thing that. An make it difficult is if the bolts are heavily corroded.

I'm assuming it's fronts you are doing? Rears can sometimes need a tool to wind in the calliper which makes it a little more tricky.

Guessing your 2914 fiesta bolts should be ok.

Tool wise last time I had a Ford you needed a 7mm Allen key and a socket set pretty much.

A day in advance of starting I'd spray a load of release oil into the brake calliper bolt area just to make them easier to undo.

Always - a piece of piss. Eurocar parts is a good bet with their DFS-esque discount policy. I got a set of Brembo pads for the little Civic for £35 delivered.

You might need a 7mm Allen key depending on the caliper bolts
You will need a winding tool/block for the rear calipers
To remove the disc, both the caliper AND carrier need to come off. The screw will likely be seized so drill it out. Only really needed to keep the holes in the disc lined up with those in the hub if you have lug bolts rather than nuts.

Yes,

4-6 wheel nuts.....
2 rataining bolts for pads....
remove pads
remove disc (generally 4-6 screws)
put new disc in
re screw into place
undo brake fluid filler cap
eitheer push or wind in caliper (posh tool or gclamp and block of wood)
fit new brake pads in place
re tighten retaining bolts
put wheel back on
put brake fluid filler cap back on
pump pedal a few times
Jobs a good un

Not really more than 15 mins a wheel if the caliper moves ok, bit more sometimes with a 'tight' one.

Don't forget to grease the pads before fitting them so they don't squeal.

Look up Eric the car guy on YouTube. Pretty straightforward job provided stuffs not stuck, not entirely unlike doing it on an MTB!

Great stuff! Thanks for all the replies.
Euro car parts have a huge discount; £116 for 2x discs, pads, axle stands and copper grease.
Readings suggest you don't have to wind front calipers in?

Question- ratchet axle stands or trolley jack?

Very easy. Only things to watch out for are fluid overflowing if it's been topped up since the pads were new, and possibly the handbrake on the rear. Some handbrakes work on the inside of the rear disc. If you don't release the handbrake, getting the disc off can be tricky. Did mine this weekend, and had to defeat an electric parking brake to get the pads out.

Carparts4less are the same people as Eurocarparts, usually a bit cheaper, and seem to have an offer with at least 10% off everything at least once a week.

Question- ratchet axle stands or trolley jack?

Both. Jack is for lifting the car, axle stands are for holding the car once it's up there. Don't go under a car that's only held up by a jack.

G-clamp and an old pad is what I use.

Also, I know you said Fiesta - do they have an e-handbrake? That is apparently a right PITA on VW's as it needs a computer.

That is apparently a right PITA on VW's as it needs a computer.

Or a 12V power supply (e.g. the car's battery) and some wire 😀

Just did mine on Friday. Transporter T4. Less than an hour to do the fronts. PoP.

Dont do EuroCarParts - ripoff merchants.

I got some Unipart Discs and Borg & Beck pads for <£45 on eBay.
ECP wanted more like £80 even after discounts.

I bought the Fiesta to be a cheap run around, so glad it's straightforward 🙂 !

The rears are drums though, which appears to be a whole different ball game. Just about to collect it after 2 new front tyres and tracking too.

Will check some videos and finalize my order. Will also check Carpart4less, cheers PDW.

Luckily it's the good old manual handbrake.

If i'm not getting under the car, then the trolley jack should be enough..(?)

Carparts4less are Eurocarparts.

Like PlanetX/On-one. But not as shit.

Just need a set of axle stands and whatever specific tools I need.

Axle stands not necessary I just lower the sill onto the wheel I've just taken off. You're not crawling around underneath the car, so that's as safe as it needs to be. 🙂

Don't use copperslip, it's a carcinogen.
Clean your caliper with rubber safe brake clean to get rid of the dust and grime.
Use silicon brake grease on the contact the points of the pads, both there the back plates and where the pads slide on the caliper bracket while not getting any on the pad or rotor surface.
Also...oddly not mentioned, apply silicon brake grease to your piston boots and most importantly, clean and re lube your slide pins before reinstalling.
Cleaning and re lubing your caliper prevents drag, seized calipers and ultimately a far more expensive visit to the garage later.
Good luck, it's easy

Dead easy.

Then drive one hundred meters and blow the corroded pipe.

Then fix this and get 200 meters before blowing the other side.

Like all these things I'd only do it if I can afford to not have the car for a day or two and it's somewhere I can leave it half finished when I realise I've bought two right hand callipers

Don't forget to grease the pads before fitting them so they don't squeal.

Don't do this. When it gets hot guess where it goes.

Use hi temp ceramic grease on the sliders not copper slip (not because it's a carcenogin but because when it heats up it dries out goes hard and causes more issues than it solves -most vehcleb lubricants are carcenogin)

Don't forget loctite on the caliper carrier bolts and the caliper to slider bolts.

Don't do this. When it gets hot guess where it goes.

Don't forget to paint the discs to match the callipers before you install them...

[img] [/img]

Drum brakes are easy just keep an eye out for spring and things flying off.
Pun intended

Edit if your under the car stack the wheels you have taken off under the car stops your head doing the job if the car falls.
And surprisingly as I found out on a car forum last week it's best to undo the wheel nuts a little before you jack up the car 😯 some people should take stuff to garages

If i'm not getting under the car, then the trolley jack should be enough..(?)

I'd have a plan for what happens if the jack suddenly disappeared, as you'll have various parts of your body in the wheel arch. Slinging the wheel you've removed under the sill is often good idea.

One other thing to figure out before you start is how to jack it up. I don't know about Fords, but the jacking points under the sill often only work with the supplied scissor jack, and trying to put a normal trolley jack on it may cause damage.

You may also need a sledgehammer to encourage the disc from the hub. They're often corroded together and need a tap or two to release the rust binding them. A fried does this a little differently, he jacks up the rear of the car (RWD), removes the bolts for the discs, then gently applies the accelerator and taps the breaks...it works, but doesn't solve the problem for the other axle.

A ratchet g-clamp on the old pad is enough to drift the pistons back in. I usually smear/inject a little dot fluid behind the piston shroud before doing this as it helps the piston to move and is the same fluid as the seals are used to seeing when in use. Remember to release the cover from the master cylinder before doing this.

One other thing to figure out before you start is how to jack it up. I don't know about Fords, but the jacking points under the sill often only work with the supplied scissor jack, and trying to put a normal trolley jack on it may cause damage.

I use a modified rubber hockey puck for this.

Drums are easy if it's all in good condition. It won't be though, it'll be 10kg of rust held together with malice and uneven lips

Discs are easy. Anyone know if the Fiesta can flip its m/c seals if you push the pads back without releasing fluid? That's something I've heard about on the Mondeo, though never seen.

No longer do it because I have to park on the street and sold all my car maintenance equipment on ebay. But I used to do all my own maintenance, including having changed discs on two vehicles.

For me I wouldn't bother...

• Not enough of a saving.
• Too new a car - with potential loss of service history (and value) - people don't like it when home mechanics tinker, especially with brakes.

Get the Haynes manual and double check what needs to come off to change the disk.

Depending on the hub etc you may as well change the bearings whilst it's all off the car. My philosophy is there's little point putting consumable bits back on the car if you've had to do some work to get them off.

Easy job, saves a fortune, etc so go for it.

Do make sure the car is secure when lifted, because the requirement for this:

You may also need a sledgehammer to encourage the disc from the hub.

Can lead to mrschips's sportage falling off the stands. Do not sit with your legs under the car, for now hopefully obvious reasons.

"[i]Question- ratchet axle stands or trolley jack?[/i]"

Get both. They will be useful again in the future.

"[i]...do they have an e-handbrake? That is apparently
a right PITA on VW's as it needs a computer.[/i]"

Not true. I did both rear calipers (on separate occasions) on our old B6 Passat without needing the computer.

Not true. I did both rear calipers (on separate occasions) on our old B6 Passat without needing the computer.

Equally I know a friends apprentice working at a national chain managed to create a £4k headache when he tried to change the pads, which necessitated the car begin put on a trailer back to VAG to have the ECU sorted.

That's pretty quick to need new discs on a 14 plate runaround

You sure that you actually need the new discs ?

Garages will always try to sell you on them to maximise their invoice

the-muffin-man - Member
For me I wouldn't bother...

• Not enough of a saving.
• Too new a car - with potential loss of service history (and value) - people don't like it when home mechanics tinker, especially with brakes.

Not enough of a saving - fair enough, and in this instance, I agree. It'll take you at least 2 hours and for £55 an hour, I'd rather be with my kids or on the bike. Mine was £216 (Brembo 330mm F/325mm R Discs, pads and sensors. The BMW Value Service package was £530 + sensors + VAT so around £720. Net saving £500, no extra tools required.

Home servicing - when have you ever asked/checked? You may ask when they were done, you may even ask for proof - receipts, but as to who did the work...I've sold tens of cars and I've never even been asked about their condition.

Yeah, it's relatively low mileage but there's a nice lip on the disc and I can see a few MM on the pads. Need to get the wheel off to inspect.
Nothing stopping me from buying the bits and doing it later anyway.
It passed it's MOT 1 1/2 months ago when I bought it.

Garage came back with a lower quote of £235. Tools, parts & extras come to £170.. so only a saving of £65, but then I have the tools for other jobs making the changing of consumables cheaper in future.

Thanks for the Euro car parts tip off.
I was looking at doing this myself and debating if the costs were worth it.
Just for the fronts disc and pads the garage had quoted £230.
Parts on euro were £105 so worth the saving (I've done it on a car in the past and can borrow the jack/stands off brother in law).
Then I saw the CRAZY70 code at the top of the page. Put it in and the price dropped to £68 😀 😯
Defintely worth doing it DIY for that!

[quote="thisisnotaspoon"]Equally I know a friends apprentice working at a national chain managed to create a £4k headache when he tried to change the pads, which necessitated the car begin put on a trailer back to VAG to have the ECU sorted.£4k 😯 That's enough to replace the entire braking system.

Is this apprentice the sort who reaches for a lump hammer to free off a twopenny plastic clip from a grands worth of hardware.

That's pretty quick to need new discs on a 14 plate runaround

Some cars eat brakes more than others.

My berlingo goes through a set of pads in 20k and needs new disks ,every second set of pads.

I've never in my life seen a family car go through pads so quickly. I suspect the brakes are just underspeced for weight of vehgle

samunkim - Member

You sure that you actually need the new discs ?

Garages will always try to sell you on them to maximise their invoice

Just had new pads, discs and a pair of (midrange) tyres on the wife's 14 plate Fiesta for £250.

I'd find a good independent garage if I were you.

I used to do my own brakes, but now I'm time poor it's a job for the garage. Also if something crops up eg seized/corroded piston/caliper the garage is much better equipped at dealing with it.

£132 seems a bit steep for parts, are those genuine bits ?
You can go much cheaper and not notice any difference.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/162488998173

£83 for the front axle on mine on ECP (after discount). Their prices seem to be very similar to ebay prices before discount. A timely thread for me, as mine need doing, though I also need to get some tools for it (but then I also have other jobs I need those for).

i find REALLY cheap disksand pads dont last long at all and can be noisy - some have even needed reshaping to fit in the caliper

I certainly wouldnt buy any that dont even mention who makes them.

At the last set of pads and disks i plumped the extra for the brembo disks and pads and the wife did make comment about how much better the brakes were .... i usually go for pagid as a minimum after i had a set of eichler (ECP own brand) last less than 6 months before the rear face of the front disks delaminated.