Can I do this with normal tools, or do I need a special tool. Someone told me I need some special tool that he doesn't have. Like one that mechanics would have. Is he full of ****, i think hes just trying to get out of helping me. Does anybody know how long it takes, roughly. Im just thinking about labor costs. Thanks.

 

The only special tool he is thinking of is a special socket to twist the caliper piston back in. But you can use needle nose pliers easily. Other than that, not special tools are required.

 

like vlasic said you can use a set of needle nose pliers. that's what they used in this writeup. i bought new pads and rotors and I'm going to follow this. Good stuff, props to whoever wrote this:
http://instructional1.calstatela.edu...n%20Maxima.htm

 

Thanks guys. I'll try that.

 

the rear brakes are the same process as the front brakes except for screwing in the piston instead of pushing.

I dont know how the hell you guys were able to to push that piston back in with needle nose plyers. I had the specific tool I rented from autozone and man I have to damn near turn into the hulk to get that piston all the way back in. I worked on another max a couple weeks later, his was easier to retract but still took some muscle to get it back.

 

Exactly! The tool costs about 5 bucks and worth every penny. My calipers were tough to turn and I can't imagine using a needle nose.

 

well, thanks guys for the tips. looks like i'll save myself the headache and just buy / rent the proper tool. might be a dumb question, but what exactly is it called? just so that i know what to ask for

 

ask for the piston tool for rear brakes. they should understand if not explain its a tool that will retract the piston on a rear disk brake setup.

At autozone they have a chart (usually) thats on the table and you can look and see what you need. Most people working at the area the give you tools at autozone know about cars so they would catch on to what your saying and help you out.

 

Cool, thanks alot.

 

if you dont know what you're doing, don't mess with your breaks. breaks are probably the most vital thing on a car and with your life riding on them, you shouldn't just mess around. buy some good pads online and bring them to a pro

 

At first, I thought the same thing. but i've done many other things on my car myself, and from the writeups i've read i feel that i can do this, not to mention everyone's told me it's really straightforward. Also, i'll have help from people who've done it before. Also it's always a great feeling when you save that $$$ on the mechanics. now, my water pump, that's a diff story - after reading the writeup, i took that to the mechanic in a heartbeat.

 

Thanks guys for the help.

 

People have that perspective and it makes sense, but after you work on your brakes one time, you'll realize how easy it is, and how it would take a lot of effort to actually mess something up that could put you in danger.

The "pro" do the exact samething you would do, but since its such a vital part of driving, they can play on that and charge more.

 

Brakes are also probably one of the easiest and most straight forward jobs to do. First time I changed my brakes I didnt know what the hell I was doing. That whole philosophy of "if you dont know waht your doing, dont do it", is stupid, the best way to learn how to do something is by DOING it and playing around with it. While changing your pads and or rotors, its pretty difficult to screw up something that would cause your brakes not to work. A little common sense goes a long way.

 

Start with one side and if you get lost or confused, you still have the other side to look at for an example. The only tricky part about the rear is you have to unhook the parking brake linkage. The best way I found was to take the spring out and set it aside.

 

Sounds good. Ive changed the front pads before and it was pretty self explanatory.