# Brake Replacement...



## glowsentra (May 27, 2003)

Hey i have a 91 sentra gxe (front calipers, rear drums brakes), and i just found out from the shop i took it to, that i need 2 new rear wheel cylinders, and two calipers up front, in addition to pads. How much would the parts cost individually, cause their estimate w/labor was around 560?


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## Catman (May 21, 2004)

For aftermarket you could go to Autozone or Parts America's website to get prices. That may be comparable to what they use at a shop. I had my brakes done about 26,000 miles. Front rotors, pads, rear shoes, rotors, and new cylinders. It was $500 at the Meineke I went to. On my other car (Saturn) I am learning how to do brakes. My understanding is front or not bad. Rear little more time consuming/challenging.


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## Catman (May 21, 2004)

Just one other thing. When you say shop, I don't know if you mean a local mechanic or a chain like Meineke. My front rotors were warped. My mechanic replaced the pads for $70.00, but did not turn or replace rotors. I was getting noise and brakes worked poorly after a while. I took it to Meineke. Replacing the rotors and pads made the brakes work great. However, I think they used an inexpensive organic pad. Lasted about 22,000 miles. You could get a comparable pad at Auto Zone for $18.00 with a lifetime warranty. I got the lifetime warranty at Meineke. When it came time to replace the pads it was another $40. Plus they wanted to turn rotors and clean and adjust brakes. I skipped the rotor turning and adjusted/cleaned the rear brakes myself. My brakes have never worked better. I am telling you this because some shops/chains will sell you the maximum. If you are not educated, aware, or assertive, you can get screwed. I could see my rear cylinders were leaking and now I know to change front rotors when they get old or warped. So, I feel it was worth the $500 since I did not have time to do the work myself.


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## Twiz (Aug 24, 2004)

I got ceramic pads from AutoZone for about $43.95 they had to be special ordered but I didn't mind waiting for them. They're top notch quality, I had them for almost two years and they didn't worn out at all and I use the brake a lot, they don't squeal and they don't get your rims or hubs all dirty with that brake dust. They're worth the extra $$. I replaced them myself... Secure the car... put it in Neutral...5 min to get the wheel off and 5 min to get the 2 bolts from the caliper off. You'll need a 4" C-clamp to compress the caliper back. $560 is a ripp-off the two cylinders are like 19 bucks each.


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## sno (Oct 4, 2002)

DIY brake job = cost of pads (usually). disk brakes are rediculously easy to do, drums on the other hand are more difficult.


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## Catman (May 21, 2004)

I have been thinking about your post. Don't know why they want to replace the calipers unless they are damaged. Twiz gave the abbreviated version of doing the front brakes. When you compress the caliper piston the cap on the brake fluid reservoir needs to be off and you need to lube the caliper pins before installing them. Haynes has nice instructions and pictures of the entire procedure. Regarding ceramic brakes, they may work for some. They dissipate heat great, but, if you are in a cold climate, it can cause reduced braking times until things heat up.


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## glowsentra (May 27, 2003)

Sorry i wasn't to clear on this. The front calipers need to be replaced, because due to the back the rear wheel cylinders are leaking, the calipers have "locked up:, and my brakes are overheating, which overtime will ruin the rotors too. I don't need new pads yet, but i will if i redo the brakes. My main problem is the car has 170,000 miles on it, and also has severe hail damage and rust in some areas. So it's worth around 700 dollars or so. I don't want to put money into this car anymore, because i plan on picking up a new car in spring. So i can either deal with the squeaking or fork out the cash to fix this. Also, I'm a college student, and i'm barely ever home to change the calipers and wheel cylinders. I'm just looking for an overall guestimate of how much time and money this will cost. Thanks.

Oh, and i took it to a local wisconsin chain wisconsin muffler. It's alot like meinke or w/e, but they've always been really good about repairs( the right diagnostics of what's wrong)


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## Catman (May 21, 2004)

Well, based on my experience they are in the ball park of what I paid. Only difference is they will replace the calipers, but I had things done you are not having done like new front rotors. I understand your situation. In college I had the venerable Pinto. Actually, it was a pretty good car as long as someone did not rear end you. With my Sentra, just a few thousand miles less than yours, I am going to get rid of it the minute it has a major repair. It is my second car, and like yours, not worth much. Maybe lubing the caliper pins would help them move more freely? At the Saturn Forum I frequent some people have had a problem calipers sticking/freezing and it was the pins needing to be cleaned and lubed. Others had to replace the calipers. Maybe you could get lucky. If an improper lube is used or if they get dirty, it can cause the calipers to bind. I have read it should be a silicone based grease. Maybe someone can direct you to what is best to use, if you decide to lube the pins.


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## MShorten (Jul 19, 2004)

glowsentra said:


> Hey i have a 91 sentra gxe (front calipers, rear drums brakes), and i just found out from the shop i took it to, that i need 2 new rear wheel cylinders, and two calipers up front, in addition to pads. How much would the parts cost individually, cause their estimate w/labor was around 560?


I live in Mundelein IL and I've been doing some brake repair work myself on my 91 Sentra - B13 - the NAPA has rear wheel cylinders for about $15 each - work just fine. The calipers for my 91 Sentra (1.6) were about $60 each - fully loaded with pads - not including core charge. I just replaced the front right one. So I'm guessing about $150 in parts. 

Labor costs, shoot, it's not that hard to do the fixes yourself, if you live close to the IL/WI border, I could do it for you at much less of the cost. Only p.i.t.a. about this job is the brake bleeding! 

Good luck! :thumbup:


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## 95 SentraB13 (Jun 14, 2002)

You can easily buy all the parts you need for much less. Grab the phone book and search the yellow pages for automotive part stores in your area. Just because you found a great price on front calipers at one place doesn't mean you're going to get the best deal on pads, shoes or rear drum cylinders from their either. That of course is up to you on your schedule and if you want to drive around to get the lowest priced parts.

Here's a break down of parts I bought within the last year:

Raybestos front rotors: $20-$30 each
Raybestos rear drums: $20-$40 each
Rear brake-drum cylinder: $23 each
Rear brake adjuster & spring kit(both sides incl.): $15
Certified semi-metallic front brake pads: $20?
Certified semi-metallic rear brake shoes: $20?
Car-Quest un-loaded caliper w/core return: $55 each

*All prices are in Canadian funds.
- un-loaded caliper includes brake pad retainer clips, slide pins & dust boots along with the main caliper pin bolts.

Chances are, if your calipers are seized, the pads and rotors may be tore up a bit; as the mech. suggested replacing the pads anyway. I wouldn't waste the money on getting the rotors honed down either, new is almost as cheap.

I would say you're looking at less than $150 US also with just front calipers, pads and rear cylinders. If you can't do the work yourself or with a friend at least buy the parts and bring it somewhere you trust. You may want to pick up a bottle of Dot 3 brake fluid also as it would probably be cheaper than what the garage is going to charge.


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## glowsentra (May 27, 2003)

I bought the parts i needed for about 150 today at NAPA  . The core charge of the calipers is 110, but they're only 55 if u bring in the old ones. The wheel cylinders were 15.50 a piece, so not bad at all.

Any tips on installing these (i will be having some friends who are knowlegable about installing brakes, but i wasn't sure if there are any b13 sentra "specific" methods to installing them. Thanks for all the info though, u guys saved be 500 bucks :thumbup:


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## Catman (May 21, 2004)

I have never done brakes, but like I said, a Haynes manual has nice picture illustration. May be a good reference if you need a basic guide. Maybe MShorten can guide you, since he replaced similar parts. Glad you are making progress! :thumbup:


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## glowsentra (May 27, 2003)

So as i'm driving home today, i begin to feel the acceleration of the car start to slow, and i start to hear a grinding noise......then it got worse and became pretty loud. I think one of my calipers is fully locked up now, and the grinding i'm hearing is that on the rotor. I've put the car in the garage till i can fix it on saturday (have classes all day at school), but i'm just curious if that was the sound i was hearing, or it could potentially be something else. Also, if i'm replacing the calipers/pads, should i replace the shoes while i'm at it as well?


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## 95 SentraB13 (Jun 14, 2002)

My guess is the braking material on the front pads, at least on one side, broke up and fell off. Generally, if the pads are overheating a lot they will eventually desintegrated. The warning clip and pad backing/base studs could be scraping the rotors in which case the rotors may need to be replaced also.

As for the brake shoes, if you know they haven't been replaced in a long time then it doesn't hurt to buy a set. If you don't need them just yet you can use them at a later date. It's better to be prepared than to tear apart the brake drum assembly and realize you should have bought them. When I replaced the brake cylinders on mine, I believe the braking material on the shoes fell off either when removing or installing the drums.


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## MShorten (Jul 19, 2004)

glowsentra said:


> I bought the parts i needed for about 150 today at NAPA  . The core charge of the calipers is 110, but they're only 55 if u bring in the old ones. The wheel cylinders were 15.50 a piece, so not bad at all.
> 
> Any tips on installing these (i will be having some friends who are knowlegable about installing brakes, but i wasn't sure if there are any b13 sentra "specific" methods to installing them. Thanks for all the info though, u guys saved be 500 bucks :thumbup:


Tips on the rear wheel cylinders:

Replace the existing cylinder bolts with new ones - get the exact same size. 

Remove the bleeder screw BEFORE trying to loosen those bolts. I had one of the bolts snap off in a bad way and I had a helluva time getting the cylinder out. If the bleeder had been off, would've made a big diff. The bleeder was frozen, but if I hadn't have loosened the bolts to the cylinder, I could've hammered the top of the bleeder off.

Take a moment to clean out your drum, a little compressed air and brake parts cleaner.

Tips on the front calipers:

I have the rubber hoses going from the hard line to the calipers. Clamp them off or compress the U hanging portion between the strut connector and the hard line and use a quick tie to hold it together (think of how you would kink a garden hose to stop the water and you'll see what I mean) - this keeps you from losing all your brake fluid. 

Clean off your rotor.

Make sure you put the gaskets back on when you reconnect the bolt to the brake line to the caliper! I forgot and had a nice little leak going. Grrr.

Tips on bleeders:

Get one of those $0.99 packets of antiseize and put it on your bleeder screws on your new calipers/cylinders. Those things are a royal pita when they freeze - antiseize will keep that from happening. 

Tips on bleeding:

There will be air in your new calipers/cylinders - they are "dry" inside. Do an initial bleed, but then drive the car SLOWLY for about 2 to 3 minutes, use the brakes GENTLY - this will heat up the parts a bit, get the air moving so that it's not in the cylinders or that it's good and worked up, then bleed again. 

Good luck!
Regards,
Michael


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## PeaNutB13 (Apr 14, 2004)

Ok here is the skinny on the parts needed to do your brakes, from www.Advanceautoparts.com. And they price match!

Most brake shops want to sell you the whole package and I mean "Yo man your shit is F'ed..this is what you need" Hell that is their bread and butter. You can do all of this on your own with the repair manual and some simple hand tools..... oh yeah get a set of flair nut wrenches they will save a lot of time.. :thumbup: 

PeaNutB13


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## glowsentra (May 27, 2003)

Mike, thanks for the tips. Just one more question, and i should be good to go. About how much time should this take? I have a friend helping me do it, and he has a decent knowledge of brakes, but i was just wondering so i can plan out when to do it.


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## MShorten (Jul 19, 2004)

glowsentra said:


> Mike, thanks for the tips. Just one more question, and i should be good to go. About how much time should this take? I have a friend helping me do it, and he has a decent knowledge of brakes, but i was just wondering so i can plan out when to do it.


Oh man... the phrase "there's always something" went thru my head.  Honestly, I always assume that something is going to happen that will slow me down, usually does.

Honestly, start early in the morning when AutoZone/Pep Boys/Napa are open, so that you know that if/when you run into something, you'll be good to go for parts - or advice.

To swap out 1 rear cylinder took me about 30 min when all went well. To swap out 1 front caliper took me about 15 min when all went well. 

Prep time was about 30 min to jack the car up, get the wheels off, tie off the lines so that they don't leak, get tools together, etc. The longest about all this was bleeding. About 90 minutes when all was said and done. (bleed, put wheels back on, lower car, run it around to work air out to the ends of the line, jack back up, remove wheels, bleed, put wheels back on, lower car, run to test.... yea, sucks!)

So all said an done, about 4 to 5 hours. If you've never done this before, add another hour for scratching the head, reading the Chiltons and going "WTF?? SDF!!!" alot. Heh. 

To bleed, make sure you have lots of brake fluid. I bought two of the big (2 qt?) containers and with all the brake work I've done, I've went thru both of them. 

Also someone mentioned having flare wrenches. You'll need a 10mm one. I also ended up needing an 8mm and 10mm wrench for the bleeders - I *think* 12 and 14mm sockets for the various bolts. 

Anyway, good luck - you mentioned, IIRC, you live in WI... like I said, I'm in the WI/IL border area, drop me a line if you need any other help.

Regards,
Michael


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