My 2006 Corolla is passing inspection at the Toyota dealership. I'm being told that I have 2/32" remaining on the front pads and that I should replace them now.
Question: how much longer can I go (city driving) before really having to replace them?
Another question: the quoted cost is $265. Pepboys next door will do it for $190 (they touted their ceramic pads). Is the $75 difference justified?
How far you can drive on the pads will depend on your driving style. If you hear a grinding noise that means the pad is gone.
My OEM pads on an 05 Corolla were down to about 10% at about 43,000 miles (several months ago). Dealer wanted $490 to replace both pads and rotors. Had Pepboys inspect the brakes and they said pads where gone but rotors were within spec. They wanted $210 to replace pads and turn the rotors (their Silver level of service).
Decided to replace the pads myself and it cost under $80 to do so. While one should use a car stand, it is possible to just use the car's jack to replace the pads. Its what I did, but it was not something I'd recommend others doing.
I started off buying some Wagner ThermoQuiet Ceramic Brake Pads QC923 from Advanced Auto Parts (set of four pads in box, two for each wheel), a can of Brake Cleaner, and a small packet of brake grease for under $80. I then followed the directions from this link Toyota Corolla Front Brake Pads Replacement Guide, and it was pretty easy to do. Took about 30 minutes to replace just the front brake pads (both sides). I've put about a 1,000 miles on the car since putting the in the brake pads, and have had no problems with them.
When one does the brakes themselves or have the pro's do it, remember to "bed-in" the brakes to help maximize braking performance.
Last edited by bennor; 05-16-2011 at 05:10 PM.
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There's a metal warning tab on original brake pads that starts squealing whenever you're NOT braking, to let you know you're near the limit of usable pad material... You can look how much there's left with the wheel removed.
I started off buying some Wagner ThermoQuiet Ceramic Brake Pads QC923 from Advanced Auto Parts (set of four pads in box, two for each wheel), a can of Brake Cleaner, and a small packet of brake grease for under $80. I then followed the directions from this link Toyota Corolla Front Brake Pads Replacement Guide, and it was pretty easy to do. Took about 30 minutes to replace just the front brake pads (both sides). I've put about a 1,000 miles on the car since putting the in the brake pads, and have had no problems with them.
When one does the brakes themselves or have the pro's do it, remember to "bed-in" the brakes to help maximize braking performance.
Great info and links. Its about time I do mine. Should cost anywhere from $30-50 for the front pad replacement.
__________________ 2003 Black Toyota Corolla LE (Original Owner) 87,000 miles
Great info and links. Its about time I do mine. Should cost anywhere from $30-50 for the front pad replacement.
generally i recommend to change out your back shoes at the same time as your front pads, since they usually arent far off from being finished by the time your pads are gone, to save you another trip to the brake shop in 1-3 months. as for my opinion of brake pad choices, personally i like softer, lower grade pads. and i recommend them if you dont have a really heavy braking foot. stick with a good brand, wagner for example. The denser material in the more expensive pads does last longer but expect a bit of brake noise from the higher quality pad. as for DIYing this project, someone whose mildly mechanically inclined may be able to replace pads (if they have a steady hand and a prybar or a 6-8" metal clamp to depress the slave cylinder) but i would not recommend an inexperienced mechanic to tackle replacing the rear shoes. it's not rocket science but getting the shoes reinstalled tests more than a few mechanical skills. also, the rear shoe adjustment for this vehicle is almost impossible to loosen if you don't know where it is or don't have the properly shaped tool(similar to a dentist pick) to pull back the release tab which is hidden behind the adjustment screw.
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2000 white 4runner
2004 black tundra
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There's a metal warning tab on original brake pads that starts squealing whenever you're NOT braking, to let you know you're near the limit of usable pad material... You can look how much there's left with the wheel removed.
Don't forget to reuse the wear indicator bars when doing the front pads yourself. The Wagner pads I bought didn't come with them. And I had to use pliers to tweak the wear indicator bars so they fit properly on the new Wagner pads (they were slightly loose when compared to the old pads).
Doing just the front pads are not hard at all even for those not mechanically inclined. It can be as simple/ease as removing the tires, taking out the bottom caliper bolt and rotating up the caliper assembly then changing out the pads. I also hosed down both the calipers and the rotor with brake cleaning fluid to clean off the built up brake dust residue before changing out the pads.
Last edited by bennor; 05-17-2011 at 11:08 AM.
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Be wary when a shop tells you your brakes are bad. I cant tell the number of times I have just replaced my brakes , went in for tires and was told your brakes are shot " I cant even let you drive out of here they are so worn" this is a real money maker for dishonest repair and tire shops.
Be wary when a shop tells you your brakes are bad. I cant tell the number of times I have just replaced my brakes , went in for tires and was told your brakes are shot " I cant even let you drive out of here they are so worn" this is a real money maker for dishonest repair and tire shops.
Good point. Unfortunately more than a few shops and dealerships like to upsell to make money. Its more than annoying when they do so, and you know they are doing so. Its tough with the brake pads, unless you get a grinding noise (for several weeks ), to know when to replace them since a person's individual driving habits and their city/highway driving mileage mix impact how long the pads will last.
No mechanic has ever told me to replace both the front pads and rear pads at the same time when the fronts go for their first time. I had my car inspected twice before I changed the pads myself. Both mechanics, including one at the dealership where I bought the car (and who had been telling me the front pads should be replaced during the last two oil changes), claimed that OEM front pads tend to last around 30,000 to 35,000 miles for most passenger cars. My front pads were past the 40,000 mark.
Both mechanics also indicated the rear OEM brakes were fine with lots of pad left and the rear's tend to last longer than the fronts. The dealer went so far as to claim the rear brakes should last anywhere from 50,000 miles to 100,000 miles before replacement. He claimed something to the effect that the rears only do 30% of the braking, the fronts do the rest, which is why the fronts wear out faster than the rears. Don't know if he or the other mechanic was pulling my leg with those numbers and information. But with a past small car (Nissan 200sx) the fronts were replaced at least two times before the rear brakes needed replacement.
I just couldn't take forking over $490 to replace the pads/rotors when the rotors were fine (according to two different mechanics/shops) and the front pads can be changed so easily and relatively cheaply.
Last edited by bennor; 05-17-2011 at 04:33 PM.
Reason: spelling
I learned early how to do my own brake repairs. First set of drum brake replacements was on a 1970 Road Runner over 33 years ago. Done many since and its not that bad. Do one side at a time in case your forget where things went:-) I let the repair shops do my exhaust systems but I do everything else myself. I hate the thought of getting ripped off or having them do shotty work.
__________________ 2003 Black Toyota Corolla LE (Original Owner) 87,000 miles
Plus, i find it completely rediculous how much they charge you to replace the rotors with a brake job, once the wheels of it's literally 2 bolts to take the caliper off. I say it's extortion.
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2000 white 4runner
2004 black tundra
I have found over time, that Toyotas like Toyota parts. Aftermarket parts are generally cheaper, and that does count for a lot, but the OEM ones I think work best. I've got 86K on my 07 and I need to replace the front pads and turn the rotors. That is great performance for my purposes.
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Its more than annoying when they do so, and you know they are doing so. Its tough with the brake pads, unless you get a grinding noise (for several weeks 
), to know when to replace them since a person's individual driving habits and their city/highway driving mileage mix impact how long the pads will last. 
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