# death of sentra



## polishhotdawg (May 24, 2002)

well my brakes started dying and i took in into to a reliable mechanic and it turns out it needs new front and rear braks, new wheels, axle, and all new bearings and will cost 1200. dont have that much to spend on it so im going to have to sell the little 89 for parts. it has 109000 miles on the engine and runs so strong so its kind of depressing. that about it....oh if anyone is interested let me know.


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## Webfoot (Apr 24, 2003)

Dude, you can do all that yourself for under 300 - easy. Why would he want to replace your wheels? There's all kinds of posts in here on how to do literally anything to a Sentra. Replaced the entire caliper in the Suby yesterday and it only cost 10$. Cheaper than buying the seals and rebuilding it. Junk yard are full of these cars. Dude - it's way cheaper to keep er.


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## polishhotdawg (May 24, 2002)

all my wheels are bent up pretty bad and i dont have a lot of experience working with cars. also i have two junkyards near me and neither of them had any sentras so its not that easy to get parts for cheap. also i dont really have any clue as to how or where to start fixing this stuff. any advice is appreciated though.


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## RiceBox (Apr 30, 2002)

Get a Haynes!!! Seriously, all the stuff that needs to get done is easy work. I think it's also time for a new mechanic. Those prices are CRAZY!!!


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## B12 Dream Boy (Mar 19, 2003)

Exactly, those prices are waayyy high, if u pay that much to have that done those bastard mechanics win. Dont let it happen man.


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## polishhotdawg (May 24, 2002)

here is everything wrong:

front and rear brakes bad
right front wheel bearing bad
left front drive axle bad
worn front brake pads
sticking caliper slides
leaking rear wheel cylinders
worn out tires
needs wheel alignment

the only thing i know how to do is put on new tires....


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## Myetball (Dec 15, 2002)

polishhotdawg said:


> *here is everything wrong:
> 
> front and rear brakes bad
> right front wheel bearing bad
> ...


Brakes are a piece of cake to change...I assume he's telling you your rotors are screwed as well....you can get new rotors on ebay real cheap. You'll have to pull the steering knuckle and take it to a machine shop to get the bearing pressed. Drive axle is also cake. Wheel cylinder...cake. Sticking calipers....that's how dirty mechanics get you to pay $200 for a brake job. A rag and a tube of caliper grease will fix that up nicely.

Don't sell the car...we'll help you fix it. Don't EVER go back to that mechanic.


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## Webfoot (Apr 24, 2003)

Myetball = Correct. 
Rotors were only 15$ea at the local store. Wheel cylinders 12.50ea. Pads - 16$, shoes 12$. Clean the calipers. That's a COMPLETE brake job < 100$. You can take the spindle to a shop and have them press new bearings/seals for around 75$. Can repack for a lot less. Rebuilt drive axle 55$. While your at it, throw in new struts @ 40$ea and you still got plenty left over to buy tires and wheels - mag wheels. These guys can tell you exactly what tools you'll need and send pics if needed. PS: you picked the wrong forum to post a thread about scrapping your car.lol


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## rice rocket (soon) (Oct 28, 2002)

i paid, 87.00 cdn dollars for my front brakes, i don't know where you guys get 15 dollar rotors, but i want some, although i do have a extra set of rotors, that i machined and cross drilled at school for a physics project


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## WMengineering (Mar 11, 2003)

defaintly man...get a manaul..and prepare to leanr.. if you sell the car for parts from THOSE problems your getting raped....lets put it this way...
if you were to get the brakes, and misclelaneuos pieces...
id do it for you in a day and wed slipt a 6 pack...illid charge you for is the beer!
1200...wow..
thats how places make that money...ppl who know, dont pay that. ppl who DONT know..either pay or have no choice too...


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## Webfoot (Apr 24, 2003)

I got them at the local discount auto store Mike's Auto Parts. Shucks/Kragen had them on sale last month for 13.99$.


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## polishhotdawg (May 24, 2002)

okay here is the deal. you guys have inspired me to try and fix my car myself. learning this stuf would be good to know in the future too so i think i am ready to tackle the job. the only prob is i am going to need a LOT of help from you guys. i dont even know what some of the stuff is or does. i picked up a hanes manual and looked through some of it. good stuff. well first of all i dont know where to begin. what would be my first step inthe process of the repairs and where do i get the parts? also will the reparing process require lifting that car higher than using jack stands or can i fix everything with just using stands? well hopefully you guys can share some info with me and get this stuff started.


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## WMengineering (Mar 11, 2003)

just use jack stands..youll be fine. make sure they are secure on the chassis rails. and that they are well supported.
next get your parts. lay everythng out you need in an organized manor..and have your computer ready. this is precisily the same thing im doing with my tranny swap
do work. hit a road block... get online...we ll be here to help.
check your local parts store(dont go to dealer). and any other junk yards you can find within a 50 mile radius(its worth it)
1.) take wheels off
2.) unbolt the caliper bolts, rasing them upwards
3.) take off brake rotor

theres your first step guy.


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## Webfoot (Apr 24, 2003)

ok BUT, you have to take all the Pollock jokes.

Jack stands are fine. a good floor jack will be handy. You might need to invest in a few tools. 
A 32mm axle nut socket
pickle fork or ball joint seperator - can use same tool on tie rod ends. 
If you want to do struts, start asking about or looking to buy/rent a spring compressor. The 17mm socket, box and open end will be a favorite tool. And the usual 12 and 14mm. Get all that together and a few things I forgot and I'll go think of a few pollock jokes. I can type them twice if you dont get them.


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## WMengineering (Mar 11, 2003)

> A 32mm axle nut socket


yep...i just had to buy one. 15 bucks!
lol its an investment i guess...
oh and i wil add i DID have to use an impact wrench to get mine off. i doubt the axles were ever off on my car prior becasue they were torqued on there so good.
if you dont have access to a air compressor and impact wrench(which i didnt either til my brother in law came to the resque) youll have to invest in a god long breaker bar, and alot of man-strength. have a friend hold the brake on the front wheels to get this axle nut off without spining the wheel? get it? you will...and good luck bro..itll be frustrating.but worth it in the end..trust us.


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## Webfoot (Apr 24, 2003)

Shop around. I found the axle socket at GI Joes for 7$. Use a big cheater bar or the box end on a 1" wrench. This stuff is alot fresher in Wmengin' shead


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## Myetball (Dec 15, 2002)

My axle nut teqnique. Use the handle from my floor jack and insert it between two wheel studs and wedge it on the ground....put 18" breaker bar with 32mm socket on so it's level and pointed left....grab the fender...stand on the breaker and bounce on it.

I'd say your first job should be the brakes. The rest of the stuff isn't gonna cause you to crash any time soon. Read the Haynes as many times as it takes to understand and have it next to you as you take things apart. A large C-clamp or caliper spreader (I use the GM style) will help to push the caliper piston back in. Somewhere on this forum there's a thread about one-man brake bleeding. You'll need it if you take the rear cylinders off.

When doing the back brakes...do one side at a time...this way you have an example of how to put it all back together. Without a doubt you'll get it all apart and have no idea how it all goes back together.


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## WMengineering (Mar 11, 2003)

*rear brakes really bad?*

im just curious....is he redoing the drums? i asume none of these cars came with 4 wheels discs. im just wonderign how bad the reasrs really are if they are drums and how much that was the guy at the shop padding the bill...hmmmm


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## polishhotdawg (May 24, 2002)

hey guys thanks a lot for your help. i probably wont be able to start anything till monday but i have a couple questions. are there special brakes i need to get? what kind should i get and where? what do i need to get along with the brakes? is there places online that sell what i need? as i said ive never really done stuff like this on cars so i will need lots of help. i will probably be able to get my dad to help me with a lot of it though. not that he knows much more about cars than me though... but thanks for all your guys input.


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## Webfoot (Apr 24, 2003)

If you want to keep it stock/cheap, then there's nothing special. You can get all the online. It's a good idea to research prices online and make phone calls to the local guys. I found competitive prices on everything cept struts local. Nice thing about buying local is if you have any probs you dont have to return crap in the mail and wait. Rather march up to the counter and say "refund, now".
I/we don't know how shot your drums/rotors are. Can you take pics? For brakes you'll need 
front pads
rear shoes
2 rear wheel cylinders
can probly clean or rebuild front caliper. Get a rebuild kit for calipers
2 no 4 cans of brake kleen
Take some pics of the rotors and the drums.


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## rice rocket (soon) (Oct 28, 2002)

while were on the subject of rear brakes, where is the star nut on the drums, on these brakes?


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## Myetball (Dec 15, 2002)

*Re: rear brakes really bad?*



WMengineering said:


> *im just curious....is he redoing the drums? i asume none of these cars came with 4 wheels discs. im just wonderign how bad the reasrs really are if they are drums and how much that was the guy at the shop padding the bill...hmmmm *


Good point...I usually go throught 4 or 5 sets of front pads before the rears need to be changed. It helps to buy some good rear shoes like wagner...they last forever.

Since he's changing the wheel cylinder may as well put new shoes on.

Most of the major chains (autozone, advance auto, etc.) have price matching so if you have a store close to you, you can get them to match prices for stores farther away.

You're better off buying a quality set of pads (one with lifetime warranty on failure and wearout). I'm always broke when my brakes go out and get the cheap ones....last about 6 months.

Star nut? Are you talking about the self adjuster?


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## rice rocket (soon) (Oct 28, 2002)

yeah the adjuster, there is usually a little rubber cap that goes on the back so you can adjust it, to take the drums off, it looks like a star hense star nut


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## polishhotdawg (May 24, 2002)

Webfoot said:


> * For brakes you'll need
> front pads
> rear shoes
> 2 rear wheel cylinders
> ...


okay so i walk into advance auto parts and tell them that i need all of this stuff for an 89 sentra and they will be able to get them for me? or do i need to go elsewhere???


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## Myetball (Dec 15, 2002)

You can go here and use the links to look up the parts yourself before you go to the store. Will also tell you if your local store has them in stock.


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## WMengineering (Mar 11, 2003)

*re*

dude if it was me the first thing id do is stay cheap and simple for your first task..just get new front pads..and new front rotots. see how much differnece this makes(if your brakes are gone youll hear the differnce)..or well you wont hear anything but nice stopping quiteness....if it was me id this first above all else if your on a budget......


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## Webfoot (Apr 24, 2003)

What makes your mechanic think the drive axle is bad? pics?


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## polishhotdawg (May 24, 2002)

the new pads and rotors for starters dont sound like a bad idea.....i dont have pics or a digital camera...yet...but everytime i turn i hear a squeeking noise...could that be the axle? where can i get some cheap stock rotors and pads? what brand?


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## Webfoot (Apr 24, 2003)

Squeeking could be a brake rotor. Axles usually go clunk or click. Check the axles by inpsecting the CV joint. Check to see if the boot is in good shape and that there's no grease flying all over. 
You;ll see all that real clear when you have the wheels off. 
Check online for prices. See Myetballs post


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## polishhotdawg (May 24, 2002)

ya i just need my parents to let me put the car in the garage. il try to check into it this weekend and hopefully take some pics. thanks for all of your guys input and help so far its much appreciated.


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## racecargo11 (May 18, 2003)

as long as you have to get brakes and wheels and tires get nx 2000 with abs brakes and it will be the best thing you ever did for her


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## Webfoot (Apr 24, 2003)

You'll need to get bigger wheels. They wont fit on 13" wheels.


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## sentrastud (May 3, 2002)

well, i have all the same problems as you and ive been putting them off pretty well forever now. I think ill get in on this and fix my busted ass brakes, and get a new (not sunken) suspension but in. About the CV joints, mine are badly shot, how do you go about replacing them? Should i just go with junkyard parts or buy new?

And since someone mentioned Polish jokes at the beginning of the thread... 
Whats green and flies over Poland?



*Peter Panski* 

-Nick


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## Webfoot (Apr 24, 2003)

lol good one. I seen drive axles at the jy for like 20$ ea. I replaced both of mine w/rebuilt ones for 55$ ea. If you plan on replacing them, do all the bushing and sus parts while you have all apart.


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## Guest (Jun 15, 2003)

quote:

i paid, 87.00 cdn dollars for my front brakes, i don't know where you guys get 15 dollar rotors, but i want some, although i do have a extra set of rotors, that i machined and cross drilled at school for a physics project

end quote


dude - you got ripped ! i paid $20 for each rotor at auto zone . .. the pads were $15 . . . 

and for the guy who started this thread - so far the replies i've read here are pretty much on the money - these are all minor repairs that you could do yourself for the most part . . . .except the front 'drive shaft' which you can put off until a later date . . you will hear it crunching loudly when it's time to replace that one . . . .

when i bought my sentra for $900 (147,000 miles on it), it needed new front brakes and rotors , and had a bent rim , plus 2 bald tires . . . i fixed it that day and drove it to work the next day . . . 

with 100,00 miles on your car , you'd be crazy to give it up that easily . . find a friend who can do brakes , and have him teach you to do it. . . it's pretty easy !

good luck


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## Webfoot (Apr 24, 2003)

Just inspect for leaks. If you're not going through brake fluid it obviously dont leak. Start with rotors and pads - real easy. But tell dad you'll put down some cardboard b4 you start.


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## AVERAGE (Aug 9, 2002)

what if i am going through brake fluid , what would u guys suggest. if inspected each wheel and cant seem to find any leaks nor excess build up


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## sentrastud (May 3, 2002)

park your car in the garage, put cardboard under it and mash the brakes. Look for a puddle. 
Dont do this too much or you can cause permanent dents in the rotors.. Use the old rotors and pads if you wanna be safe. 

-Nick


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## Myetball (Dec 15, 2002)

If it's not leaking at the wheels, or anywhere along the brake lines look inside the car. You may have a leaking master cylinder and it's pumping the brake fluid inside the car and running under your carpet.


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