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Car Forum / Toyota / Toyota Cars / March 2007

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Sequoia front brake pad replacement

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Ray O - 05 Mar 2007 23:08 GMT
The brake warning light has been flickering in our Sequoia, and if the brake
warning light is on long enough, the traction control and stability control
warning lights illuminate.  There was 3 mm remaining pad life, so I was
putting off the job until the weather warmed up to at least freezing on a
weekend.   The lights made my wife nervous, and she didn't seem to believe
me when I told her that it still stops fine for around-town driving.

On a previous replacement attempt, I couldn't get the pad retaining pins out
and the ends were starting to mushroom so I gave up and bought new pins.

Started the job on a Sunday evening around 4:00 PM.  It usually takes me
about 45 minutes to do a brake job, and with the stuck pins, I guessed 2
hours would be more than enough.  What a pain in the neck it was to remove
the pins!  I used a drift and hammer, then got a bigger hammer, then got out
the air chisel, then got out the angle die grinder, then got out the air
cutoff tool.  The driver's side pins took about an hour each to remove, the
passenger side only took about 20 minutes each.  Somewhere along the line, I
knocked over my halogen work light and broke the bulb so it was back to a
drop light and the LED head light I use for camping.  The Sequoia has a
4-piston caliper, so compressing all 4 pistons simultaneously without
removing the caliper took a little more time than on a single-piston
caliper.  The stupid wire retaining clips for the pins are hard to hold on
to with gloves, and by the time I was working with them, the temps had
dropped to around 27 degrees, which is tough bare-handed at 10:00 PM.  My
hands were getting a little cold, those stupid clips fly a long ways in the
dark!

The replacement pins got a coating of Anti-Seize to make the next brake job
easier.

For the wheel torque fanatics out there, I ran the lug nuts down in a star
pattern with my impact gun and stopped as soon as the hammers hit the anvil
and took a final pass with a torque wrench

Took it out for a road test at 11:15 PM, back to stopping without any
warning lights.  Even taking an hour out an hour and a half for dinner, that
was the longest time I have ever spend on a brake job, even ones where I've
worked on all 4 corners and flush the fluid!
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Ray O
(correct punctuation to reply)

Scott in Florida - 06 Mar 2007 00:00 GMT
>The brake warning light has been flickering in our Sequoia, and if the brake
>warning light is on long enough, the traction control and stability control
[quoted text clipped - 34 lines]
>was the longest time I have ever spend on a brake job, even ones where I've
>worked on all 4 corners and flush the fluid!

Jeez, I would never have started a job on Sunday night at 4!  (oh yes
you said the boss didn't believe ya....now I know why....LOL).

I think I'll do the next brake job on the '92 Corolla Wagon.  I'll
replace the rotors when I do that.  They have been resurfaced twice.

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Scott in  Florida

Ray O - 06 Mar 2007 00:17 GMT
>>The brake warning light has been flickering in our Sequoia, and if the
>>brake
[quoted text clipped - 48 lines]
> Jeez, I would never have started a job on Sunday night at 4!  (oh yes
> you said the boss didn't believe ya....now I know why....LOL).

I didn't think it would take 5 freakin' hours to swap pads!

What gets me is that I'd swap the brake pads in our Previa in about 45
minutes, and the boss used to accuse me of not doing the job and trying to
finish her off.  ;-)   I think she reads to many Danielle Steele novels and
watches the Lifetime channel too much!

> I think I'll do the next brake job on the '92 Corolla Wagon.  I'll
> replace the rotors when I do that.  They have been resurfaced twice.

Brakes on a Corolla are very easy, even when replacing the rotors.  I'll
give you step-by step directions if you want.
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Ray O
(correct punctuation to reply)

Hachiroku ハチロク - 06 Mar 2007 03:55 GMT
>>Took it out for a road test at 11:15 PM, back to stopping without any
>>warning lights.  Even taking an hour out an hour and a half for dinner,
[quoted text clipped - 6 lines]
> I think I'll do the next brake job on the '92 Corolla Wagon.  I'll replace
> the rotors when I do that.  They have been resurfaced twice.

I usually just get new rotors. I haven't had rotors resurfaced for 25
years. On the 'beaters', I get the Chinese things; for most Toyotas
they're $9-16. The Celica's were $12 each, and I got the Canadian made
ones for the Supra at $21. The most expensive ones? The rear drums for my
'95 Tercel. Even with my Employee discount at CarQuest they were $55! I
called the place the boss used at the Used Car dealer and they were $35.

Drums for the '83 Tercel AWD Wagon were $18, and the rotors were $9.
mack - 06 Mar 2007 00:22 GMT
> The brake warning light has been flickering in our Sequoia, and if the
> brake warning light is on long enough, the traction control and stability
[quoted text clipped - 36 lines]
> that was the longest time I have ever spend on a brake job, even ones
> where I've worked on all 4 corners and flush the fluid!

Quite a tale of woe, Ray.  Sorry you got to hung out to dry in what I'm sure
you considered a job you could do blindfolded.   Now you know how it is for
the rest of us ham-handed amateur shade-tree mechanics!   Thanks for the
warning....brakes are one component that I'd never try to renew, though it
looks not that hard, I'm sure it can be on a cold Sunday evening.
Hachiroku ハチロク - 06 Mar 2007 06:42 GMT
>> The brake warning light has been flickering in our Sequoia, and if the
>> brake warning light is on long enough, the traction control and
[quoted text clipped - 46 lines]
> though it looks not that hard, I'm sure it can be on a cold Sunday
> evening.

LOL! Toyota brakes are really easy, I think the stuck pins along with the
less-than-spring-like weather threw Ray for a loop!
Hachiroku ハチロク - 06 Mar 2007 03:56 GMT
> The brake warning light has been flickering in our Sequoia, and if the
> brake warning light is on long enough, the traction control and stability
[quoted text clipped - 36 lines]
> that was the longest time I have ever spend on a brake job, even ones
> where I've worked on all 4 corners and flush the fluid!

Hmmmm...dedication. I would have taken the wheel off, looked, put the
wheel on and said, Honey, they're fine. Drive it to the dealer tomorrow...
Ray O - 06 Mar 2007 19:24 GMT
>> The brake warning light has been flickering in our Sequoia, and if the
>> brake warning light is on long enough, the traction control and stability
[quoted text clipped - 44 lines]
> Hmmmm...dedication. I would have taken the wheel off, looked, put the
> wheel on and said, Honey, they're fine. Drive it to the dealer tomorrow...

That's what I did 2 months ago.  December and January were warm so I figured
I would get a warm weekend in February but no dice.

The dealer wanted over $500 - yikes!  I think I spent under $75 to do the
job, including 4 new pins, new pads, busted halogen bulb for my work light,
the little bit of Anti-Seize and Permatex Disc Brake Quiet spray, 3 drops of
air tool oil (1 ea for impact gun, die grinder, & whizzer), and a little
wear on the cutoff wheel and grinding stones.

Next on the agenda... '97 Avalon front brakes, this should go a lot quicker
since I've had it apart before and coated everything that could stick or
rust.
Signature


Ray O
(correct punctuation to reply)

Hachiroku ハチロク - 06 Mar 2007 20:12 GMT
>>> The brake warning light has been flickering in our Sequoia, and if the
>>> brake warning light is on long enough, the traction control and
[quoted text clipped - 58 lines]
> quicker since I've had it apart before and coated everything that could
> stick or rust.

Yeah...whenever I take something apart now, I do the same thing! Beats
fighting with it all over again...

Now, if I had just done that on the Hachiroku alternator 15 years ago...
 
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