Changing Brakes
By: Michael Freels
South College
Abstract
There’s a few things I believe everybody should know about vehicles. I am by far no mechanic, but a little simple knowledge about your car will save lots of time and money. Knowing how to wash your car, change spark plugs, change the oil, and changing the brakes on your own will save tons of money over your life.

We’ve all heard that terrible screeching sound coming from our front wheels. That terrible sound of finger nails on chalkboard sound that sends chills down our spine and an instant pain in our wallets. Then you realize you need new brakes and you can either make the decision to go pay the no less than $100 at an auto repair shop or the $29.99 at an auto parts store.
If you’ve made the decision to do it yourself, you will need to find the nearest AutoZone, Advance Auto Parts, or O’Reilly’s. Make sure you know the year, make, and model of your vehicle. I like to choose the ceramic pads, since they usually last just a little bit longer, along with a lifetime warranty. Although, this will cost just a little more but is well worth it when it’s time to change brakes again and you don’t have to pay.
Preparation
After you have your new brake shoes in your hand, find a nice, flat surface to start your project, preferably a garage with a concrete floor if you have one. Once your vehicle is parked, set you parking brake and get all your tools that you’ll be needing together. Once everything is gathered, you will need to use your four-way lug wrench to break loose all your lug nuts on the wheel you’re going to do first. Remember to loosen only and do not remove them yet.
Safety with the Jack Stand
Once all lug nuts are loosened, you will need to use your jack and jack up your vehicle. Make sure to use a jack stand to set your vehicle on once it’s jacked up. Once on a jack stand, remove your jack, and then take off the lug nuts and the wheel.
Caliper Removal
Next step after your wheel is off is to take off your brake caliper. There will be two bolts holding it on, sizes of the bolts will vary from vehicle to vehicle so make sure you have a variety of sockets available. Most of the time the caliper will not just slide off the rotor very easily, so you will more than likely need a flat head screwdriver or small pry bar to get the job done. Take the caliper off and place it on your suspension or use something to secure it to keep it from dangling and putting stress on your brake line.
Brake Pad Removal
Now that you have your caliper off, we can get the old brakes out. Turn your caliper over and look inside that is where your brakes are located. The brakes are usually held in by pins or bolts, whichever ones it is, get those out so you can get your old brakes out of the way.
New Shoe Preparation
With your old brakes out, it’s now time to get the new ones in there. The caliper has pistons inside of it, these small pistons are what pushes your brake pads against your rotors to stop your car. With the old brakes being so wore out, the pistons will be pushed out pretty