Rear brakes and calipers

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prjt_blzr

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I just went to change the rear brakes on my 2000 LS. Every rear caliper that I have messed with in the past used a turn to retract strtegy for the piston. That does not seem to be the case with the LS. What am I missing?

Thanks in advance
Mike
 
prjt_blzr said:
I just went to change the rear brakes on my 2000 LS. Every rear caliper that I have messed with in the past used a turn to retract strtegy for the piston. That does not seem to be the case with the LS. What am I missing?

Thanks in advance
Mike
Click to expand...

it is a 'turn to retract' - it is a very very hard turn to retact.
 
Quik LS said:
it is a 'turn to retract' - it is a very very hard turn to retact.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the confirmation.

I have turned the piston about 5 turns. I did not get any linear movement. The only thought that I had was perhaps the piston is fully extended (lots of brake wear) and is no longer threaded to the rod. I assume that the piston is right hand thread.

The local lincoln dealer claims that the piston is just pushes in like the front caliper. That does not sound right at all.

Any other thoughts?
 
Could you please explain the 'turn to retract' for me. I've never done the rear breaks on a FLM car only trucks and SUV's. All have been pistons that just push in. :wrench
 
MikeB said:
Could you please explain the 'turn to retract' for me. I've never done the rear breaks on a FLM car only trucks and SUV's. All have been pistons that just push in. :wrench
Click to expand...
The piston on a rear caliper that does not use an integral drum brake, is pushed against the rotor by a threaded rod. Engaging the parking brake rotates the threaded rod and applies force to the brake pad and the rotor. When changing brake pads, the piston must be pushed back. The rod will not rotate as it is attached to the parking brake. To retract the piston, the piston is turned until it is seated deep enough to accomodate the brake pads and rotor thickness.

Hope that helped.
 
I went I bought the $5 rear caliper tool from autozone - but couldn't get enough down force to get any movement in it. I finally used a big wrench and 'carefully' turned it in - once I got passed the initial couple of turns it got alot easier.


Try making sure you have some down force on the piston while you are turning - and try popping the bleeder valve to relieve some pressure.
 
When I replaced my rear brake pads I had to push and turn counter-clockwise to get it to go down. Also, make sure the brake reservoir cap is off. It will create back pressure.
 
GrayGhost1 said:
When I replaced my rear brake pads I had to push and turn counter-clockwise to get it to go down. Also, make sure the brake reservoir cap is off. It will create back pressure.
Click to expand...
Thanks guys!!

There are a couple of good thoughts here. It was late last night and I had the car parked diagonally in the garage. I did not want to leave my truck out and I really did not want the wife to come home to two downed vehicles. (I also changed the oil on her SUV and the bozo that installed the oil filter at the factory used a 1/2" impact wrench on it. After some choice words I finally got the filter off the engine without destroying the oil filter mount) Anyway, I could not find my caliper tool and used a big wrench to turn the piston. I did not try to put down presuure on it and I did not try to turn it CCW. I was on the drivers side. I will try again tonight.

Thanks!!
Mike
 
Mike,

I went back and checked the rotation of the piston. I went clockwise not CCW. Also, here's a quick how to I did for LLSOC:

This is my rear brake pad install. Your mileage may vary with this but this is how I did it. First things first! You'll need these tools to start.

This is not required but if you have one it's a little quicker to use.
brakes6.jpg


Disc Brake Quiet by Permatex, 12mm open/box end wrench, 12mm socket and ratchet, flat head screw driver, Channel Lock Pliers.
brakes5.jpg


Let's get started! The first thing to do is jack the car up and place jacks at the appropriate jacking points. SAFETY FIRST! Remove rear wheel and you're ready to go. First take out the 12mm bolts on the back side of the caliper.
brakes1.jpg


Once you've taken the caliper bolts out you may have to use the flat head screw driver to gently pry the caliper from the rotor. Once the caliper is off you will notice the screw caliper piston with notches. Please take note of the position of the caliper piston notch. It will have to be in this position once you put it back on.
brakes2.jpg


Take the old brake pads off and you'll notice the difference in the OEM pad and the Porterfield pad.
brakes3.jpg


Before you install the brake pads you have to screw in the caliper so that it will fit over the new pads. You will need to make sure that the brake fluid reservoir cap is off because of back pressure. A local brake man here in town says you can buy the expensive caliper piston adjuster or just simply use a pair of channel lock pliers. I used the channel lock pliers to screw in the piston. When you begin to use the channel lock pliers be careful not to tear the rubber boot around the piston. Also, to screw it in turn the piston CLOCKWISE. As you turn the piston make sure you are applying pressure to the top of the piston to get it to compress. Take your time with this! Once the piston is completely compressed make sure one of the two notches lines up in the previous picture above. This is needed as a guide for the notch on the back of the brake pad.
brakes4.jpg


Before you put the pads on add some of the Disc Brake Quiet compound on the back side of the pad. Please make sure this does not get on the surface of the pad that touches the rotor. After the application of the Disc Brake Quiet compound let it sit for minute so that it doesn't appear runny. Put the pads on the rotor. To replace the caliper simply replace it back over the pads and tighten the 12mm bolts. You're done! It took me about 1.5 hours to complete the rear pad install on both sides and clean up.

As before, if you have the rear caliper piston adjuster tool it make not take as long. However, as often as you may or may not change your rear brakes it might not justify to purchase one.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
GrayGhost1 said:
Mike,

I went back and checked the rotation of the piston. I went clockwise not CCW. Also, here's a quick how to I did for LLSOC:

This is my rear brake pad install. Your mileage may vary with this but this is how I did it. First things first! You'll need these tools to start.

This is not required but if you have one it's a little quicker to use.
brakes6.jpg


Disc Brake Quiet by Permatex, 12mm open/box end wrench, 12mm socket and ratchet, flat head screw driver, Channel Lock Pliers.
brakes5.jpg


Let's get started! The first thing to do is jack the car up and place jacks at the appropriate jacking points. SAFETY FIRST! Remove rear wheel and you're ready to go. First take out the 12mm bolts on the back side of the caliper.
brakes1.jpg


Once you've taken the caliper bolts out you may have to use the flat head screw driver to gently pry the caliper from the rotor. Once the caliper is off you will notice the screw caliper piston with notches. Please take note of the position of the caliper piston notch. It will have to be in this position once you put it back on.
brakes2.jpg


Take the old brake pads off and you'll notice the difference in the OEM pad and the Porterfield pad.
brakes3.jpg


Before you install the brake pads you have to screw in the caliper so that it will fit over the new pads. You will need to make sure that the brake fluid reservoir cap is off because of back pressure. A local brake man here in town says you can buy the expensive caliper piston adjuster or just simply use a pair of channel lock pliers. I used the channel lock pliers to screw in the piston. When you begin to use the channel lock pliers be careful not to tear the rubber boot around the piston. Also, to screw it in turn the piston CLOCKWISE. As you turn the piston make sure you are applying pressure to the top of the piston to get it to compress. Take your time with this! Once the piston is completely compressed make sure one of the two notches lines up in the previous picture above. This is needed as a guide for the notch on the back of the brake pad.
brakes4.jpg


Before you put the pads on add some of the Disc Brake Quiet compound on the back side of the pad. Please make sure this does not get on the surface of the pad that touches the rotor. After the application of the Disc Brake Quiet compound let it sit for minute so that it doesn't appear runny. Put the pads on the rotor. To replace the caliper simply replace it back over the pads and tighten the 12mm bolts. You're done! It took me about 1.5 hours to complete the rear pad install on both sides and clean up.

As before, if you have the rear caliper piston adjuster tool it make not take as long. However, as often as you may or may not change your rear brakes it might not justify to purchase one.
Click to expand...

Wow, that is a great help!! You must have been in my garage last night taking pictures. If only the piston cooperated........

It sounds like I just need to open the reservoir cap and push down while I turn the piston.

I appreciate all of the help from everyone. As you can see from my post count, I am new on this site. Hopefully I can visit on a regular basis and help contribute.
Mike :wrench
 
***UPDATED***
prjt_blzr said:
I just went to change the rear brakes on my 2000 LS. Every rear caliper that I have messed with in the past used a turn to retract strtegy for the piston. That does not seem to be the case with the LS. What am I missing?

Thanks in advance
Mike
Click to expand...

Well, the new brakes our on the rear of the car. It took a clamp pushing on the piston and channel locks turning the piston to get those puppies to retract. It took no time at all once I figured out a way to apply a lot of down pressure while turning.

Thanks for all of the help!
Mike :steering
 
Great write-up. Just finished changing the pads and rotors on all four wheels. Retracting the rear calipers was the only really tricky part. The tip on using the channel locks was great!!! Thank you :D
 
I would just like to say this:
This forum contains some great information for those willing to search for and use it properly. Much thanks to those LS enthusiasts who have helped us all through many trying times with our beloved cars.

I must also add to this thread:
I just replaced my rear pads with EBC Redstuff pads (Thanks again for the fast shipping Ken). I tried using the channel-lock pliers for about an hour on the left rear to no avail. I could not get adequate pressure on the piston while turning it. I left the car on the jack-stands overnight, went to Autozone yesterday to use their loan-a-tool program. WOW! That made a world of difference! The piston compression tool they loaned me was like any other piston tool, but with a twist. :) The job was completed quickly and my girlfriend was happy to have her spot back in the garage next to the LS.
While it may be possible to get this done with just the channel locks and some elbow grease, the piston compression tool set made it much easier.

N8

Here's a shot of that much appreciated tool:
cmp-tool-kit.jpg
 
n8bachelor said:
...and my girlfriend was happy to have her spot back in the garage next to the LS.
Click to expand...

I hope you at least let her in the house when it's cold out... ;) :D


J/K - but seriously, that's the same exact tool I used when I changed my rear pads and rotors and it worked perfectly!
 
HDDave said:
I hope you at least let her in the house when it's cold out... ;) :D
Click to expand...

LOL. I'm just glad she has a small car ('04 Tiburon) so there is room for both vehicles and a couple tools (lawnmower, weed eater, etc) in the 2 car garage. If I buy any more tools I will have to get creative with my space though... or build a shed. Such is life.
 
I haven't done my front brakes yet but was wondering if they are dual or single piston on front...if not can a cobra or mach1 caliper be swapped to are cars?
 
the tool to screw back in the piston is AWESOME!!! it only took me about 1.5 hours to do both back brakes. that time also included taking off the brackets and cleaning them up and regreasing the slides. i did not use the disc quiet stuff. when i got my ebc pads, they had 3m strips that they claim eliminates the squeal. they still squeal. my friend also has these on his mustang and he said it will do it for awhile and then go away
 
They were a breeze for me, as I bought the kit shown above, from Harbor.
The right tool for the right job...does make it go smoother
 
I went to borrow one from Pep Boys but they didn't have one? :confused: so I bought it at Harbor Freight, it was on sale and it worked great.
I tried the pliers method before.... not worth the effort and frustration IMHO!
 
what am I dfoing wrong?

I am in the middle of replacing rear disc pads on 2K5 LS for the first time (diy). I purchased caliper tool from FH. I can turn the caliper piston (cw), but it doesn't retract. I still have about 1/4 in. of metal above the rubber boot. What am I doing wrong? Any/all suggestions are welcomed. Thanks in advance
 
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