Ok so in August I had a tune up done and the mechanic mentioned that I had about 15% of my front brake pads left. I kind of didn’t believe him b/c he said I needed new tires too and I looked and obviously don’t. So I planned on replacing them sometime in the fall but never got around to it. My brakes have always felt the same, a little soft (btw is this normal), and there is no squealing even today. Because I had a flat tire last week, and had to take my wheel of anyways, I decided to see how much pad I had left. Right now there is about a quarter inch of pad left. How do I tell when I should replace them? Thanks

 

1/4" is almost half of the stock pad thickness (not including backing plate), IIRC. You will be OK for a few months but get some good pads when you replace them.

 

Quoting from the Haynes manual: "Disc brake pad lining thickness (minimum)......1/16 inch (1.59mm)"

 

i read that when they start to make the high sweaking noise its time to change

 

mine were replaced in the last 3 years, dont remember when, but i have not driven mre than 30,000mi on the new pads. They just started making a quiet high pitch squeeling on light application, I am not sure what this means...

 

I just change mines when they sqweek , i dont rely trust mechanics unless iknow them good.