Installing Faster Brakes

by "Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig" (AndySheehan-StreetsideStig)
Published 02/22/2017 at 13:54

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STARS: 6

I was getting that shimmy and shudder, with a dash of squeak. Any time I hit the brakes, they would emit a pulsing throb, and letting off the pedal would introduce a squeak in similar rhythm. It was time for some brake work, but instead of simple maintenance, I went for an upgrade.

A lot of performance upgrades take some work. Sure, anyone can bolt up a cold air intake, but if you want to upgrade your cam or install a turbo kit, you’re going to need some experience behind you. I don’t have it, so any chance I get to upgrade performance with some simple wrenching I try to take.

When the front brake pads and rotors on my 2006 Honda Civic Si started to wear, I decided to upgrade to Power Stop’s 1-Click Brake Kit , which handily includes their Z23 Evolution Sport carbon fiber/ceramic pads and vented, cross-drilled, and slotted performance rotors. Power Stop also includes new pad hardware and the packet of high-temp brake lubricant you always forget to buy when you get brakes from the parts store. Worn pad hardware is likely what caused my squeaking issue.

Full disclosure, here. If your rotors are vibrating, they’re probably warped. This doesn’t mean that you need to replace them. Some simply need to be machined, or “turned,” and you can get this done at some auto parts stores. You can buy some of that brake lubricant while you’re there.

But I didn’t want to just turn my rotors. They didn’t have that drilled and slotted goodness. Those holes and slots increase performance. The holes add ventilation, which keeps the rotors cooler (especially dual-layer, vented rotors such as these), and the slots sweep brake dust away from the contact patch between the rotors and the pads. You might not need this kind of performance for everyday driving, but I have been known to autocross , so that’s a good excuse. Also, they look cool.

I also wanted to check out Power Stop’s Z23 pads, which offer midway performance between their OE-level Z16 line and their trackable Z26s. The compound offers more friction for better grip. That means braking later, and the later you can brake, the faster you’ll be overall.

You can replace your brakes with simple hand tools, but I decided to use the excuse of this job to buy some specialized stuff. I got a brake caliper tool for $16 on Amazon to compress the pistons. This can be accomplished with a large C-clamp, but some cars feature those monumentally stupid rear calipers that require you to turn the piston during compression, so I just got this tool, which can do both.

I also bought a cool, old, electric impact wrench from a Craigslister with a single visible tooth. Really nice guy. Electric impacts are all the rage these days, because they give you all of the torque with none of the huge, expensive air compressors. But while most home mechanics prefer the cordless variety, they’re pricey. I found this corded one, by Rockwell for $20, and it works great.

Finally, another nice old man from Craigslist sold me some deep well impact sockets, metric, from 10mm up to 21mm (but missing the 20) for $30. He was a staff mechanic for Yellow Cab for 30 years, and was selling off some of his old tools. One socket is even a Snap-on!

Transactions with cool old guys completed, I headed home and started working.

First, I jacked up one side of my car. Always use a jack stand, even if you don’t think you’ll be under the car. It’s just good practice. With my shiny new impact wrench, there was no need to loosen the lug nuts before jacking up the car. It zipped them off with ease while the wheel was off the ground.

With the wheel off, I set about removing the caliper, held in pace by two bolts. If you’re only replacing the pads, you only need to remove the top bolt and rotate the caliper out of the way. I pulled both bolts and lifted the caliper off to set on top of the hub, careful not to twist the brake line.

Next I pried out the old, dead, flat brake pads and tossed them into the Pit of Doom, noting which one was positioned behind the rotor, then removed the two bolts on the back of the hub holding the caliper bracket in place, before pulling the bracket. I removed the old caliper springs from the bracket and stuck in the new ones from Power Stop. This took a little doing. The fit was so precise that I needed to press them in with my vise, but that worked perfectly.

As the bracket was free, I could now pull off the brake disc.

But no.

I couldn’t.

BECAUSE HONDA STILL THINKS IT’S A GOOD IDEA TO PUT THESE STUPID PHILLIPS HEAD SCREWS THROUGH THE ROTOR AND INTO THE HUB AND THEY’VE BEEN DOING IT FOR 30 YEARS AND IT’S STILL REALLY DUMB BECAUSE THE SCREWS ALWAYS RUST IN PLACE AND YOU STRIP THEM OUT TRYING TO REMOVE THEM EVERY SINGLE TIME BUT THEY’RE NOT NEEDED BECAUSE THE LUG NUTS HOLD THE BRAKE DISC DOWN JUST FINE.

Thanks for putting up with that, everyone. And thanks for nothing, Honda.

Anyway, I fetched my drill and used three sequential sizes of bit to drill out the screw heads. Was I going to reuse the screws? Ham, no. I had no qualms about destroying them, and I actually took some pleasure in it. It proved incredibly easy. If you’re doing this, just drill until a ring of screw wreckage pops out around your drill bit, and you’ll be golden.

Back to important work. The old rotor was rusted a bit to the center hub, so I used Mjolnir, my trusty mini-sledge, to slap it free. I AM THOR, SON OF ODIN, AND I HAVE BEEN FOUND WORTHY.

Focus, Andy. Drilled and slotted rotors are directional, so be sure to pay attention to which side is which. Power Stop helpfully labels theirs (with dumb paper labels that are impossible to remove, guys), but the general rule is that a slot or a line of holes should angle down toward the center of the wheel in when it moves forward. Like this:

I began to put the pieces back together in reverse, starting with the bracket. I then compressed the caliper piston using my handy new tool, put the new pads into the bracket, and lightly coated the back of each pad with the included grease. This will cut down on brake noise. With this and their well-shimmed pad backs, the Power Stop pads shouldn’t make any annoying noise for a long, long time. I put the caliper back on, then the wheel.

I used my impact to spin the lugs on, but not to tighten them, which may have damaged the threads or made the lugs impossible to remove again. Instead, I then lowered the car back down and properly torqued them to proper spec (88 lb-ft on every singe Honda) with my torque wrench.

The other side was identical and faster.

I have since heard nary a squeak from my new brakes, and they feel great. My first autocross event is coming up in April, and I look forward to seeing how they’ll really do.

This originally appeared on StreetsideAuto.com , where I “work.” I got a discount on the parts, but didn’t buy the caliper tool from us because it was cheaper on Amazon.

Replies (33)

"Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo" (rustyvandura)
02/22/2017 at 14:04, STARS: 1

I saw that strip of sockets and thoughtit was a strip of .50 S&W.

"razorbeamteam" (razorbeamteam)
02/22/2017 at 14:34, STARS: 1

Great writeup, but wouldn’t better brakes be slower brakes, not faster?

"BeaterGT" (beatergt)
02/22/2017 at 14:40, STARS: 1

How well does the electric impact work? Thought about picking one up when I was removing the caliper bracket bolts on my heavily salted ride. Would it break the head off a bolt you think?

"Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig" (AndySheehan-StreetsideStig)
02/22/2017 at 15:12, STARS: 0

I’d say for rusty stuff, you’re probably better off with a breaker bar, at least to get it loose. Hit it with some PB blaster, wait an hour, then put a long handle on it. You’ll get more torque on it without the violence.

But I love the impact. It’s working great and made the job soooo much easier.

"Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig" (AndySheehan-StreetsideStig)
02/22/2017 at 15:13, STARS: 0

Slower brakes are faster.

"Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig" (AndySheehan-StreetsideStig)
02/22/2017 at 15:13, STARS: 0

Ha! I wish. I did fire a 500 once. It felt like it broke my wrist. So much kick I probably killed a satellite.

"gawdzillla" (gawdzillla)
02/22/2017 at 15:19, STARS: 0

the only tool that i ever used to compress the piston on a caliper is a c-clamp

"BeaterGT" (beatergt)
02/22/2017 at 15:20, STARS: 0

Hmm breaker bar is what snapped the head off and this was after hours and hours of soaking with PB. I guess it was meant to be replaced!

"Party-vi" (party-vi)
02/22/2017 at 15:32, STARS: 1

“the general rule is that a slot or a line of holes should angle down toward the center of the wheel in when it moves forward.”

Nah. I think each rotor manufacturer flips a coin to decide what direction the slots run. The slotted rotors I put on my E46 run opposite of what you have on your Honda.

"Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig" (AndySheehan-StreetsideStig)
02/22/2017 at 15:35, STARS: 1

Huh. Interesting. I thought it was pretty standard.

"Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig" (AndySheehan-StreetsideStig)
02/22/2017 at 15:36, STARS: 0

Seems that way.

"Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig" (AndySheehan-StreetsideStig)
02/22/2017 at 15:39, STARS: 1

Awesome! I bought the caliper tool because some silly car manufacturers insist on using these dumb rotating rear brake caliper pistons for no reason whatsoever. None of my cars have them, but I have worked on them for friends before, and the tool is always helpful. Plus, the tool was $16 shipped to my door, which I thought was a pretty great deal.

"Party-vi" (party-vi)
02/22/2017 at 15:51, STARS: 0

It looks like Mercedes, BMW, and Audi run their dimpled or drilled rotors like yours, but they don’t have slotted rotors that I can find. It seems like the direction on the rotor surface doesn’t matter, but the vent vanes inside the rotor do matter.

"Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig" (AndySheehan-StreetsideStig)
02/22/2017 at 16:05, STARS: 0

That makes sense.

"ateamfan42" (ateamfan42)
02/22/2017 at 16:08, STARS: 2

Awesome! I bought the caliper tool because some silly car manufacturers insist on using these dumb rotating rear brake caliper pistons for no reason whatsoever.

It is not for no reason whatsoever. It has to do with the way the parking brake in integrated into the caliper.

In my experience, disc brakes with a separate drum-style parking brake do not utilized the rotating piston.

"Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy" (camshaft-chris)
02/22/2017 at 17:03, STARS: 0

Are these kits front only? I need to replace the rear pads on the Vic, but was considering redoing all the pads and rotors, so I would need something that does front and rear.

"TorqueToYield" (torquetoyield)
02/22/2017 at 18:04, STARS: 0

I haven’t seen much evidence that slots or holes in brake rotors do anything but cheesegrate your brake pads and cause stress fractures respectively. Especially for street cars. Basically more metal=better.

"Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo" (rustyvandura)
02/22/2017 at 19:33, STARS: 1

Ruger Super Blackhawk in .454 Casull. A magnificent firearm. “Bear repellant,” my cousin -- who owns it -- calls it.

"Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig" (AndySheehan-StreetsideStig)
02/23/2017 at 08:37, STARS: 0

Balls. That is an engine of ruination. I love it.

"Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig" (AndySheehan-StreetsideStig)
02/23/2017 at 08:39, STARS: 0

That certainly could be! We may never know!

"Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig" (AndySheehan-StreetsideStig)
02/23/2017 at 08:40, STARS: 0

Nope. They have kits that include all four corners. I only did my fronts because the rears are in good shape. What year is the CV? I’ll see if I can find you a part number.

"Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo" (rustyvandura)
02/23/2017 at 10:52, STARS: 1

When you get right down to it, revolvers really are the firearm that I love. I don’t like semi-autos because I don’t like the feel of the slide moving around when you fire it. I like that to fire one of any significance required a degree of hand strength, which I possess. But I also don’t like ridiculous overkill revolvers with 12-inch barrels, and so on. A .357 mag with a four-inch barrel is in the zone. That Blackhawk is also, because of its short barrel size, which makes it manageable.

“Engine of ruination:” I have added that phrase to my lexicon. Thank you.

"Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig" (AndySheehan-StreetsideStig)
02/23/2017 at 11:06, STARS: 0

Well, I can’t hit anything with bullets, anyway. My weapon of choice is a Mossberg 500. Which is why I need a Taurus Judge. So I guess I have to agree!

"Camshaft Chris: Skyline/McLaren/Porsche Fanboy" (camshaft-chris)
02/23/2017 at 12:30, STARS: 0

‘97. It’s the LX, not the P71. Though I am putting P71 wheels on it. So if the P71 kit is better, I know it’ll fit my car as well.

"Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig" (AndySheehan-StreetsideStig)
02/23/2017 at 13:11, STARS: 0

Hmm... Looks like I can’t find a kit with all four drilled and slotted. You can get a whole kit of OE-Spec , or a front kit of drilled and slotted and a rear kit of OE spec .

"Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo" (rustyvandura)
02/23/2017 at 14:45, STARS: 0

The Judge chambers the .410 shotgun round?

"Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig" (AndySheehan-StreetsideStig)
02/23/2017 at 15:00, STARS: 0

Yes sir. That was the party piece. Really neat.

"Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo" (rustyvandura)
02/25/2017 at 08:17, STARS: 0

Where do you know the prase engine of ruination from?

"Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo" (rustyvandura)
02/25/2017 at 08:26, STARS: 1

Here is an interesting reddit thread on the Judge:

https://www.reddit.com/r/CCW/comments/2o1pd8/anybody_here_carry_a_taurus_judge/

I’d probably hold out for a Governor.

"Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig" (AndySheehan-StreetsideStig)
02/27/2017 at 09:10, STARS: 0

I don’t know. Is it from something?

"Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo" (rustyvandura)
02/27/2017 at 11:49, STARS: 0

I don’t follow...

"Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig" (AndySheehan-StreetsideStig)
02/27/2017 at 13:03, STARS: 0

I thought I just made it up. Is it a line from a movie or something?

"Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo" (rustyvandura)
02/27/2017 at 15:49, STARS: 0

If you come up with an original idea, and someone else has already patented it, then was your idea less original or not patentable? “No,” says I.