I am the proud owner of a black 97 se. I have a problem with the rear brakes. The right side caliper is sticking and has worn my pads substantially on that side. I am planning on changing pads+rotors at all four corners and I am guessing that I will need to rebuild the caliper. I was wondering if anyone has suggestions about upgrading the brake hardware. I am thinking about slotted or drilled rotors and I have heard good things about porterfield pads. Has anyone here upgraded their brakes? What worked for you? Any suggestions are welcome and I would also like to know where I can buy/order the stuf.
I have changed pads before but I have never changed/rebuilt a caliper. Does anyone know EXACTLY what this involves? I am assuming that I will need to bleed the lines when I am finished and that is something that I have never done before. If anyone can instuct me on how to do all this or point to someone who can I would appreciate it.
SCRAP-IRON

 

Caliper replacement does require brake bleeding.

Caliper rebuild and brake bleeding are covered in the Chilton repair manual (page 9-10). The Haynes repair manual doesn't show the rebuild but does cover bleeding (page 9-16). Most people (even professionals) prefer to install a rebuilt caliper rather than struggle through the tedious rebuild process.

Bleeding is a two-man job unless you have Speed Bleeders or a Mityvac hand operated vacuum pump (or equivalent).

For more information on Speed Bleeders go to http://www.speedbleeder.com/

For more information about Mityvac, go to http://www.mityvac.com/

 

slotted/drilled rotors won't provide any noticeable gains for street use; people do it mainly for the looks. Most of the gains comes for better brake pads, SS brake lines, and DOT 4 brake fluid.

Click on my signature and follow the link on the main page to the Maxima Brake Sale for pricing.

 

I'm having problems with my parking brake sticking. I also have a '97 SE 5spd with 65K miles. Did you rebuild your caliper? or buy new one?

 

Scrap-iron here, I successfully changed my rear pads. I was replaced 'em with nissan pads. What I found was that my right side pads were worn down to nothing while the left side was maybe 40% worn. My right side P-brake cable is sticking. I just left the right side cable disconnected when I changed the pads. I suspect that the problem is with the P-brake equilizer. This is the junction where single cable from teh Pbrake handle splits and operates the cables that run to teh individual wheels. I haven't played withthis yet but you can gain access to the "equilizer" by raising teh car and removing the heat shield above the cat-converter. I expect to find a jammed cable or some other corroded part. I may tackle this job tomororow, If I do, I will post the results. It doesn't look to difficult but I live in Maine and Its pretty coooold up here right now. I may just wait until spring. The parking brake holds just fine with only one wheel/brake connected. If you try this, let me know how you make out.

 

scrap-iron and Curt Deiner, I would suggest replacing the caliper with a rebuilt rather than rebuilding it yourself. If your caliper is the culprit (rather than the cable), the most likely fault is corrosion on the piston, if so, rebuilding it will be only a temporary fix. Another strong point for going with the rebuilt, most of them will carry a lifetime warranty. Now, the rear caliper will be more expensive than the fronts due to the complexity of the parking brake, but you should be able to find one for under $100. I know 'cause I replaced the left rear about a 6 months ago. Easy process, just bleed that caliper when you are finished. And scrap-iron, 10-4 on the cold in Maine as I also reside in Maine.

But the best part of reading this post was seeing Daniel B. Martin back. Great to see your valuable input again, seriously.

 

Sorry, but check the date, it's an old reply from Daniel. I agree, was nice to see his input when I did a search.
Any way, I investigated further this weekend. It is my CABLE. The cable mounting bracket in the rear was holding the cable against the rear susp arm. Couldn't see until I pulled down on the bracket to expose the top of the cable which was sliced thru and all rusted. Water and crap had gotten inside the cable.
I'm in Minneapolis, we had a big weather change here this weekend. 68 Sat now 38 high Mon. But I'm a hearty soul and will tackle the cable replacement...in my heated garage.

 

Curt Deiner, dang I missed the dates on the earlier posts. I do miss Daniel's comments. Anyhow, the parking brake cable doesn't seem to be a difficult job. When I ran across my caliper problem, I had checked out the cable, no such luck. I did find some wear on the right half of the cable but the left looked fine. Good luck, but hey a heated garage is a luxury. I live in Maine with an unheated garage. You have to think long and hard about lying on our back for any length of time during the winter months.

 

I hear ya! I actually just have insulation in the garage ceiling, and a propane heater. Going to stop by my Nissan dealer and show them, see what they can do.