29 March 2021
Contrary to popular belief, changing your car's brake pads by yourself is not that difficult. In fact, with a little bit of knowledge and the right set of tools, it should take no more than 20-30 minutes. Before jumping into the pads’ replacement, one should carefully prepare by gathering the right kind of pads set, right-sized wrench, jack and jack stands, new brake fluid, gloves, and patience. Also, professional mechanics advise that the pads should never be changed all at once. Instead, they should be changed on one side first and then on the other.
There are a few easy steps that mark the braking pads’ replacement process.
- The first step before proceeding to change the pads is to buy new ones.
- The second step is to switch off the car and let it cool down for a while (in case it had been driven before the change).
- Proceed by loosening up the lug nut of the vehicle's wheels.
- Use a jack and jack stands to lift and secure the car.
- The next thing to do is to remove the wheels and the caliper bolts that hold the brake pads.
- Now that the way is clear, it is time to remove the old pads and place the new ones.
- Most experts advise that along with the pads, brake fluid and calipers should also be changed.
- It is time to put the wheels back on and put the lug nuts back on their places, carefully tightening them up.
- Next, it is time to check if the replacement was successful by starting the car and testing the brakes on the road.
- If everything is okay, it is time to bleed the brakes.
- The process of bleeding starts by removing the cap of the brakes’ masters cylinder and determine the right bleeding sequence.
- When the air is out of the brake system, the car is ready for another test. If everything is okay, it is ready to be driven.
