Do the rear calipers on a 2003 SE work the same as the 89's? That is, do they have to be turned in instead of pushed in like on the front? My neighbor wants to do the rears, but I've never looked at them. My wife has an 02 SE, but I've never looked at them; however, I have replaced the pads on the rear of my 89. Just wondering if the procedure will be the same. Thanks in advance.

 

You must always turn in the piston to bottom it on rear discs that are also used as parking brakes. So, yes to your qeustion.

 

Thanks. That answers another question. My neighbor told me that the reason he needs to replace the rear pads with 20,000+\- miles on it was b/c it got driven with the parking brake engaged (sounds like more than once). I wondered how that caused his problem b/c I just assumed that the parking brake worked like many others (drum inside the rotor), but now I know. Any tips on turning the piston inward? It's been a while since I did mine and I remember it kind of being a pain with the tools that I was using.

 

You're welcome. You can use needle-nosed pliers if you don't have access to the special tool to turn the piston. The Nissan service manual (2K2) says to line up the concave surface on the piston with the convex portion of the brake pad before installing the caliper. I have not seen or done any rear disc brakes on a Nissan yet. It should be obvious if you look closely at the parts.