Performing a Front Brake Repair at Home

When you are driving your car, one of the features you want to work properly is the braking system. When those work properly you will be keeping your loved ones safe, as well as extend the life and performance of its parts. With the normal operations of your vehicle comes wear on the brakes and they will eventually need to be repaired or replaced and the most common brake repairs are done on the front brakes because they do most of the work. Some of the tools that are used when you are repairing your brakes are some of the most common ones and it only requires basic knowledge of the automobile. These are: the jack, two jack stands, and a wrench specifically designed for lug nuts. If you plan on doing your brake repair yourself, the first thing you need to do is remove the negative battery cable from the battery in your vehicle, then remove the master cylinder cap and throw away one half of the fluid and leave the cap off. Next you need to put the jack under the vehicle and carefully lift the front end and place a jack stand under each side of the wheel assembly, then lower the vehicle onto the stands and take the jack out. Now you can remove the lug nuts and wheels, revealing the brake caliper assembly. Now you are ready to remove the caliper bolts and slide off the brake pad and throw them away. If you have to replace the rotors, throw them away also. To re-assemble the brakes, first you need to put on the new rotor and hold it together with a c-clamp and tighten it, leaving enough space for the brake pads, and then you can remove the clamp. Make sure that the pad is fully seated on the brake caliper and facing away from the piston, and the outer brake pad should then be facing the piston. Next, you can slide the brake parts back onto the caliper mounting assembly and tighten it using a torque wrench. Now you can put the wheel back onto the lugs and tighten it onto the studs with a torque wrench for each wheel, then add the proper level of brake fluid, raise the vehicle with the jack, remove the wheel jacks and lower the vehicle, and take the jack out. Now the battery cable can be re-connected. Before you do any work, check the owner's manual for your vehicle to make sure that the parts match up. Never use an air compressor to clean any parts, and make sure you throw away any fluids that you have removed to a local recycling center.