How To Replace The Front Pads And Rotors On A Subaru

Below Is A Video On How To Replace Front Pads And Rotors On A Subaru

 

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Today we will be showing you how replace front pads and rotors on a Subaru. We will be showing you on a 2001 Subaru outback but it will work the same on almost every year and model Subaru as they haven’t really changed. So to start you will want to park the car on a nice level surface. Then we can apply the e brake and then grab a set of wheel chocks and place them under both rear wheels. Now if you only have one wheel chuck you will want to place it under the opposite side that you’re working on. So if you’re working on the driver’s side you will want to place it under the passenger side rear wheel.

 

Next we want to grab a 19mm socket and a breaker bar and crack the lug nuts loose just a few turns each. Once we have that done we can go ahead and start the car and turn the steering wheel to the opposite way of the wheel we are working on that will make it easier to get to the caliper bolts and caliper bracket bolts. Once we completed these steps we can go ahead and place our jack under the jacking point of the car and slowly jack the car up we only need to jack it high enough just to put the tire and wheel of the ground.

 

Once we have the car off the ground we can go ahead and remove the lug nuts the rest of the way. You can keep using your breaker bar and socket or switch to a ratchet and socket which will be a little  bit faster. If you would like you can do as I am going to do and use your impact drill and a socket adapter and socket to quickly remove them. Once we have all the lug nuts we can remove the wheel and tire and set it aside.

 

Alright so i will move the camera to get you a better angle to hopefully see the next steps better. Next we’ll start will grabbing a 14mm socket and a ⅜ ratchet to remove the two 14mm bolts that hold the caliper in place one on the top side and one on the bottom side. Once we have those 2 bolts removed we can then grab a pry bar or flat screwdriver and stick it between the caliper and the caliper bracket and pop the caliper free. Once we have it free we can go ahead and set it on the axle out of the way. Next we can remove the brake pads sometimes you can just wiggle them free if not you can use that flat screwdriver and stick it between the brake pads and the brake rotor and pry it free. If you can see the inside pad is worn uneven because the caliper slide was sticking.

 

Next we can grab a 17mm wrench to remove the caliper bracket bolts so we can remove the bracket. Iam using a ratcheting wrench. Well use the open end to brake them loose then we’ll use the ratcheting part to remove them the rest of the way. There’s one top and bottom just like on the caliper itself. Next we can remove the old rotor well just use a hammer and tap it on opposite sides and it should come free. You will notice that it also has to small bolt holes in it. You can thread two bolts into it to work the rotor off as well. Once we have it off we can go ahead and unpackage or new rotor and slide it onto our wheel studs. Next we can grab the caliper bracket and remove the two clips that under the brake pad spot. Once we have them removed we can grab a wire brush and wire brush under both of them to remove the rust to ensure the pads can move freely. Next we can remove the caliper slide bolts and a wire brush them. Once they’re cleaned up we can apply some new grease to them to ensure they slide nicely and freely. Once we have them reinstalled into the bracket be sure to pull the dust cover back onto the rib to keep the dust out.

 

With the caliper bracket cleaned up and greased we can go ahead and reinstall it making sure the threaded part is towards the car. It’s a good idea to put some anti-seize on the threads of the bolt so it will come off easier next time we have to do brakes. We start by aligning the bracket and the hole in the knuckle and then hand threading in the top 17mm bolt. DO not tighten it all the way as we need to align the bottom hole. Once we have the top one started we can thread in the bottom 17mm bolt. Once we have them both started by hand we can tighten them up using our 17mm wrench.

 

With those two bolts tight we can now open up our new pads. Now the ones we bought come with the new brake pad clips so we will start by installing those one top and one bottom. If your didn’t come with new ones you can clean your old ones and reuse them. They should clip on if you have them installed correctly. Next we can apply a small amount of grease top and bottom inside and outside where the pad tabs will sit. Once its greased we can go ahead and install the brake pads. They will fit only one way, the curve of the brake pad needs to match up with the curve of the brake rotor.

 

Next we can reinstall the brake caliper. Now you will notice that it will not fit and that is because the caliper pistons are all the way extended or close to it. So you will need a bigger pair of channellock pliers. Once you have those you will want to slowly squeeze the pistons back in one at a time. If you squeeze the pistons to fast you will just extend the other one. Once we have both pistons pushed all the way back in we can reinstall the caliper. Once we have the caliper in place we can start the two 14mm bolts one on the top and one on the bottom. You will also want to put anti-seize on them incase you need to replace your brake pads again. Once we have them hand tight we can snug them down with a 14mm socket and ratchet.

 

Once we have the caliper bolts snugged down we can go ahead and reinstall the wheel and tire. Well align the lug nut holes with the wheel studs and slide it on. Once we have the wheel and tire back on we can start the lug nuts by hand. Once we have them all started we can grab our impact drill and socket adapter and our 19mm socket and tighten the lug nuts in a crisscross pattern. Once we have the snugged down we can start the car and straighten out the wheel. Once we have done that we can lower the car down and remove the jack.

 

Now with the car on the ground we grab our ½ torque wrench and our 19mm socket and torque the lug nuts in a crisscross pattern to 89 lbs as our owners manual states. Once we have all the lug nuts tightened to 89 lbs that’s it for the drivers side. We can now repeat the process to replace the passenger side brake pads and rotor. I won’t show you as it will be the same except for turning the wheel to the driver’s side rather than the passenger side.

 

Once you have both driver’s and passenger’s side done and the car back on the ground. We’ll start the car and pump the brakes 4 to 5 times. What this is going to do is bring the pistons back out so they touch the brake pads. That way when you apply the brakes in the car it will engage the brakes. Next you will want to open your hood and check the brake fluid in the master cylinder as it maybe be over full since we pushed the pistons back into the caliper. If it is you can use a http://amzn.to/2v5J9kF to remove some till its at the max fill line. If you never added any you also may be low and need to add some either way grab some DOT 3 brake fluid at top it off to the max fill line.

 

Once we have the proper amount of brake fluid in the master cylinder we can now test drive the car. Start off at slow speeds and test the brakes. Make sure you don’t hear any noises also that it doesn’t pull one way. If you did rotors you should have no pulsation or vibration when hitting the brakes from a warped rotor. So with no problems with this one That’s it we have just shown you how to replace the pads and rotors in your Subaru.

 

 

 

 

 

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