Looking at these instructions......
http://boostedmaximas.com/howto/brakepad.html

What is the brake fluid for? I can change pads without changing fluid, right? My fronts are squealing like crazy after only 20,000 miles.

Also, should I get the Axxis pads? Or something different? Oh, and any opinions on 4th gen vs. 5th gen pads?

 

I think it is to top off any lost due to compressing the piston back far enough to allow pad swap. The master cylinder reservoir should be opened to allow for this 'backpressure' in the line and I guess the spare fluid is for topping off if any is lost during this process.

 

Is this the bottle under the hood?

 

yep

 

Are you REALLY going to do this...Look forward to the stories. J/K

If I remember, in the article he also change out the brake lines to SS lines. In THEORY, you should not have to replace the fluid as if you push the pads in, it will fill the res up more. As the pads wear, the fluid will get low in the master cyclinder res.

The res is to the right rear of the engine compartment. Make sure that the lid is off when you are compressing your cyclinder back. Check for spillage when you are done.

 

If you are looking at the engine bay from the front of the car its in the back on the right side. Up against the firewall in front of the driver's steering wheel.

You shouldn't really need the brake fluid even when you are compressing the caliper because it shouldn't overflow unless it is already overfilled. And when you go to compress the caliper just loosen the cap on the brake fluid reservior, don't take it off because the fluid has an affinity for water and will take the moisture out of the air. Water in brake fluid is BAD! Can lead to corrosion, and worn parts. Also make sure that when compressing the caliper to compress it uniformly otherwise you might cause a crack in the rubber seal.

I would go with Axxis. They are prett popular. I have them on the front and rear. The wear time is good, not much brake dust, and they have good stopping characteristics.

 

j/k

Yes, it should be near the firewall....I think.

 

Hey, take it easy. At least he is asking these questions before getting halfway through the project first (like some people would undoubtedly do).

 

What....you think I would do such a thing????

 

Why, do you feel some sense of deja vu?

 

Its usually vuja de......dont remember anything

 

Okay, okay, glad to know that he changed the brake lines at the same time. The turkey baster and fluid was totally throwing me off. I was 99% sure it was plug and play with no fluid before I checked the "how to". But those two items threw me for a loop, hence the reason for the relatively retarted master cylinder resivoir question.....

 

As noted above, the brake fluid shouldn't overflow unless it's been topped off, but watch it while you're pushing the calipers back in. Brake fluid is HIGHLY corrosive to paint, so you really don't want it to spill.

 

Dont do it in nice clothes either.

 

Generally speaking it is advisable to bleed your brake lines when changing pads. The justification is that fluid in the calipers is best not re-used. Personally I have not done this but I understand the reasoning.

 

Good thread here. I too am about to have to do this and was wanting to do it myself to save some money. asu174, let us know how difficult or easy this is. I haven't done anything like this before. Thanks.

 

I haven't done brakes either, but it doesn't look too hard...... What could possibly go wrong?

 

Nothing another half a mortgage payment wouldn't fix.

 

Really?

Matt93se had instructions on how to change brake pads/lines but the site didn't include REBLEEDING the brakes(but anyone w/ >1 oz of common sense would know). So he changed everthing, started the car and went blasting down the street. He promptly crashed! haha (idiot)

Then he threatens Matt by telling him he's responsible for the accident! hahahahhahahahahahahhahhahahahahahahahahhahahahaha hhahaah!

 

Wait. Jeff, I DON'T have a 1/2 ounce of common sense when it comes to this stuff. How do you rebleed the brakes? Is that just lightly pushing the brake pedal from a slight roll (20 mph...)?

 

I'm not sure if it's different on the max, but on my honda all you had to do was pump the brake pedal until the pressure built back up.

 

Hmmmm I would STRONGLY suggest two things:

1) Keep searching on .org and the net in general. www.howstuffworks.com might help also
2) Buy at least a cheap arsed Chiltons manual

You are seriously starting from block 1 here.

 

Ah no, that is incorrect.

 

In other words...pumping the brake pedal is not bleeding the brakes...all that does is push the piston back out and push the pad back up against the rotor.

FYI...I am doing my pads and rotors this weekend (first time on this Maxima)...I'll post any odd gotchas if I find any that haven't already been posted.

 

I just spent the last ten minutes on that website and searching here and I found jack squat. Anyone care to "give a man a fish"? How do I rebleed my brakes?

 

Your kidding right?
http://forums.maxima.org/search.php?...der=descending

 

If you do not drain any brake fluid or disconnect any brake lines, you do not need to bleed your brakes. If you are just removing the caliper, swapping pads, and putting the caliper back...you do not need to bleed your brakes.

Bleeding would only be necessary if you were replacing the calipers and/or brake lines or just replacing brake fluid for kicks.

 

I searched "rebleeding" and I got squat. I am a *****. Thanks.

Bleeding procedures:
First the car must be at neutral or park, the engine must run at idle, the hood must be open so you have access to the master cylinder oil container. You need a 10 mm key, for opening and closing the bleeder. The bleeders are located on the caliper assembley on the inside, there is a little rubber cap on it, remove it. We are now ready to proceed, your helper is in the driver seat, ask him to pump the brake pedal 2-3 times and hold the feet on the pedal to keep the pressure, then you unscrew the bleeder with the 10mm key, loose it so the air-oil can be pushed out, as soon as it stop spilling which should take approx 2-3 seconds , then quickly close the bleeder, during all this time the driver keep applying pressure on the pedal and it is only after you close the bleeder that the driver can release the pedal, repeat the same operation twice before moving to the next wheel. After the 4 wheels are done you want to verify if the brake pedal is hard and high or soft and low, cuz if the pedal is soft and low it's because there is still some air in the system, and you need to bleed a little more, you need to bleed each bleeder until the brake pedal is ferm and high.

 

That's what I thought.

Jeff, did you think I was swapping lines and fluid too? I am leaving everything else "as is".......

 

Some change the fluid depending how long it's been there.

But in your case, just change the pads (but be sure when you push the piston in, you don't overflow the master cylinder)

 

Amen to that my northwest brother.

 

Mike it never hurts to bleed the the system when changing pads and it's generally a good idea.

asu174 bleeding the brakes is a 2 person job unless you have the right equipment (which you don't). And given you don't have much experience with this I would have a friend that does help you the 1st time. Changing the pads and bleeding the system is not a hard job but there is to much at stake if you F up. You will also want to look at the rotors for deep wear groves, if needed Pepboys will cut them for around $5 each.

 

Alright, now I'm starting to get discouraged. My pads are squeaking only the first 2 or 3 minutes I drive. Do I need to check all this stuff?

 

You sure it isn't a belt? What makes you sure it is a brake pad?

 

It squeaks the second I touch the brakes. Then it lets up as soon as I take my foot off. I'm positive it is the front brakes.

 

How many miles you got on it?

 

44,000.

The rotors were turned and the pads replaced about 20,000 miles ago. I also drive them fairly hard, but not like a lunatic.

 

You do NOT need to bleed your brakes with only 44k miles on the car, unless you feel the need to make your life more complicated (or if the brake fluid is really dirty (dark). Bleeding (actually replacing) the fluid in the brakes isn't a bad idea as you put more miles on the car (think the schedule calls for it at 60k?), but even then it's not required - unless something unusual has happened, your fluid shouldn't have much moisture in it. And changing the pads is a pretty simple procedure.

Here's a tip I used the first time I did my brakes - if you have a video camera, video the wheel and brake as you take everything off the first wheel. Then, if you get stuck on where something goes (or which way round it goes), you can watch the video and see how it came off. It's kinda stupid, but saved me once doing something else...

 

I don't believe color is an accurate measure of the fluid's condition. The mileage isn't really either. It's time. The one thing that us Americans probably neglect most is changing the brake fluid enough. Every 2 years is probably not too frequent. I should flush mine more often also. I just did it last year for the first time on my 3-gen! Much too long!