Brake Pad Change Instructions

[yagophil]

any recommendations on which adhesive to use when reusing the dampers? i've been going back and forth on whether to reuse them. it seems silly to pay porsche $700-100 for a new set when all i need is the adhesive.

i was thinking of trying a packet of permatex "brake quiet" i found at the auto store, and clean off the old adhesive with acetone or thinner. i won't have time to bleed the brakes for a few weeks, so at that time i can evaluate if the "brake quiet" is working or whether i should get new dampers.

has anyone else found a good adhesive for this?

[JeTexas]

Just wanted to say thanks for this DIY. I did all my pads and the front rotors today. Only trouble I ran into was that one of the screws holding the rotor on was stripped out. I had to drill it out to get the rotor loose. I'm going to go check Ace Hardware for a replacement, but I'm assuming it's not too incredibly vital since the wheel bolts are all going through the rotor as well.

[Loren]

Just wanted to say thanks for this DIY. I did all my pads and the front rotors today. Only trouble I ran into was that one of the screws holding the rotor on was stripped out. I had to drill it out to get the rotor loose. I'm going to go check Ace Hardware for a replacement, but I'm assuming it's not too incredibly vital since the wheel bolts are all going through the rotor as well.

Still I suggest a stainless steel screw.

[JeTexas]

Just wanted to say thanks for this DIY. I did all my pads and the front rotors today. Only trouble I ran into was that one of the screws holding the rotor on was stripped out. I had to drill it out to get the rotor loose. I'm going to go check Ace Hardware for a replacement, but I'm assuming it's not too incredibly vital since the wheel bolts are all going through the rotor as well.

Still I suggest a stainless steel screw.

Does anyone know the screw size for the rotors on a 996 C2? I searched three hardware stores looking for a match yesterday and came up empty. It definitely falls into the category of "flathead machine screw," but the only thing close was a 1/4" screw, but the 1/4" seems just slightly thicker and has a slighty different thread pattern.

If anyone knows the size, I need to order a few.

[Loren]

M6 x 12

They are only $0.65 at your dealer - 900.269.047.09

[JeTexas]

M6 x 12

They are only $0.65 at your dealer - 900.269.047.09

Thanks Loren! I'll go by at lunch.

[my996]

This is the definitive brake pad/ brake rotor DIY page

http://www.bombaydigital.com/boxster/projects/brakes/

I like this link but it is for a Boster. Is the process for a 99 996 the same?

[Loren]

This is the definitive brake pad/ brake rotor DIY page

http://www.bombaydigital.com/boxster/projects/brakes/

I like this link but it is for a Boster. Is the process for a 99 996 the same?

Um... The DIY on the first page of this thread is for a 996.

[UT_Porsche]

Is there anyway NOT to use the sensors (and to not have the brake wear light on)? Not only do I not want to pay to replace them, but I feel like they are entirely pointless. It's not like I don't check my pad level every time I get gas. And the warning light always seems to like to turn on after washing my car (or exposing the sensor to a large amount of water some other way)

Also, in case I do have to have the sensors, my warning light is coming on only after a pretty prolonged period of driving (15 miles/10-15 min) on or off the brakes. Is this normal? It always ends up being off again when I start my car, even if I shut off the car for a few seconds.

Cost asside, how hard is it to replace the sensors? All it says above is: "Insert the warning contact wire and warning contacts." From looking at pictures of the cable it looks like it is a simple plug into one end and plug into the other. I don't really have the expertise to splice wires or anything crazy like that.

And lastly: It looks like there are 3 OEM brands readily available: Textar, Pagid and Mintex. Is there a significant difference between the three? There is a significant price difference, which is why I ask. From what I've read Textar is the brand that Porsche currently uses.

[Loren]

Is there anyway NOT to use the sensors (and to not have the brake wear light on)? Not only do I not want to pay to replace them, but I feel like they are entirely pointless. It's not like I don't check my pad level every time I get gas. And the warning light always seems to like to turn on after washing my car (or exposing the sensor to a large amount of water some other way)

Also, in case I do have to have the sensors, my warning light is coming on only after a pretty prolonged period of driving (15 miles/10-15 min) on or off the brakes. Is this normal? It always ends up being off again when I start my car, even if I shut off the car for a few seconds.

Cost asside, how hard is it to replace the sensors? All it says above is: "Insert the warning contact wire and warning contacts." From looking at pictures of the cable it looks like it is a simple plug into one end and plug into the other. I don't really have the expertise to splice wires or anything crazy like that.

And lastly: It looks like there are 3 OEM brands readily available: Textar, Pagid and Mintex. Is there a significant difference between the three? There is a significant price difference, which is why I ask. From what I've read Textar is the brand that Porsche currently uses.

The brake sensors are just wires. When the wire wears through it breaks the connection and turns the warning light on.

If you do not want to use the sensors then just tie the wires up and away from the pads.

[Hobbes]

My Brake Wear warning light came on and I wanted to tackle the task of replacing my brakes. I was reading the DIY and it stated I needed "2 sets 996 612 365 00 Front and Rear Wear Sensors"

Before I purchase anything, I want to make sure I get the right stuff and quantity.

1. Is there a difference between the front and rear sensor?

2. Do I need a total of four for the entire job or is it two per wheel for a total of eight pieces?

Thanks,

Ken

[masq]

I spoke to Jeff Clark @ Sunset Imports just now and received a fantastic price on all the parts. About 40% savings from the local stealership!

He did let me know of some part number changes.

996 351 088 01 has changed to 996 351 088 02

996 351 959 00 has changed to 996 351 959 01

964 352 096 01 has changed to 996 352 086 01

996 352 959 00 has changed to 996 352 959 01

He also said that you would only need one repair kit per axle, if you even need it. As a low wear item, you could most likely get away with reusing the components until you hit the 80k service time frame.

[masq]

I spoke to Jeff Clark @ Sunset Imports just now and received a fantastic price on all the parts. About 40% savings from the local stealership!

He did let me know of some part number changes.

996 351 088 01 has changed to 996 351 088 02

996 351 959 00 has changed to 996 351 959 01

964 352 096 01 has changed to 996 352 086 01

996 352 959 00 has changed to 996 352 959 01

He also said that you would only need one repair kit per axle, if you even need it. As a low wear item, you could most likely get away with reusing the components until you hit the 80k service time frame.

I did the work today. I can confirm that you can have ONE repair kit per axle. I also saw that I didn't really need the repair kit, as all the components were just fine to reuse.

I also saw that the front pads got much more wear than the rear. While the sensor wires were almost gone in the front, the rear still had 1 mm of pad left before any of the sensor would have made contact with the rotor.

Overall, it took me 3 hours to do. An hour of that time was probably spent figuring out how to best lift the car on to jack stands....

[vette67]

Hi Loren,

Is it necessary to get the repair kit (bolt, expanding spring, securing clip), damping plate, warning contact, etc?

Can I just replace the pads and re-use everything else?

Thanks!

Well it is up to you.

We suggest the dampers but I've heard of folks reusing them - worst case you will have some squeal.

If the sensors turned on the brake pad light then one or more of them will have to be replaced (or jumpered).

You would need to look a the pin and spring to see if they are worn.

I just did my front brake pads today but forgot to get new dampers.

I seperated the dampers from the old pads and left them in the caliper. I was betting on them sticking to the new pads once they are under pressure.

I drove aound the block and I can hear the pads (or something) constantly (lightly) rubbing. I also get some occasional squeal when braking. Hopefully after 150 miles or so the pads will be bedded in and the noise will go away.

Edited August 18, 2008 by vette67

[thedarkknight]

Hi Loren,

Is it necessary to get the repair kit (bolt, expanding spring, securing clip), damping plate, warning contact, etc?

Can I just replace the pads and re-use everything else?

Thanks!

Well it is up to you.

We suggest the dampers but I've heard of folks reusing them - worst case you will have some squeal.

If the sensors turned on the brake pad light then one or more of them will have to be replaced (or jumpered).

You would need to look a the pin and spring to see if they are worn.

I just did my front brake pads today but forgot to get new dampers.

I seperated the dampers from the old pads and left them in the caliper. I was betting on them sticking to the new pads once they are under pressure.

I drove aound the block and I can hear the pads (or something) constantly (lightly) rubbing. I also get some occasional squeal when braking. Hopefully after 150 miles or so the pads will be bedded in and the noise will go away.

Did the noise go away? Also, did anyone determine if there is a recommended glue to use to reattach the dampers to the pads? The backs a pretty cheap to replace, but the fronts are a little pricey. I have squeal, and I am trying to determine if it will go away, can be secured or do I need to just pony up and swap the dampers :D

TDK

Edited October 7, 2008 by thedarkknight

[roastduck88]

TIPS: 1. In order to remove the brake sensors, be very gentle and just pull on the plastic piece that fits in the grove on your brake pad.

2. For some reason the caliper bolt replacement I received used a different tool (a Torx T-55 I believe) to screw in versus the old one, so you'll need a Torx T-55

3. Remove the mounting bracket of the brake line with a 10 mm socket so that you don't accidentally bend the line too much when you are moving the caliper around

4. To replace the rotors you just remove the 2 screws on the rotor once the caliper is off so it's pretty easy to do, if you can't get it off with a screw driver use an impact driver so you don't risk stripping the screws on the rotors

5. Sunset Porsche sent me the wrong dampeners, so I ended up just reusing my old ones. All I did was pry off the old dampeners, cleaned off all the residue with brake cleaner and applied brake quiet to the metal plate. I drove the car for a few miles and so far no sqeaks (hopefully it stays that way). The important thing to remember is to remove all the residue from the old dampeners so that you get a nice flat surface to apply the disc quiet.

(drove the car for a few hundred miles and so far and have not heard the front brakes squeaking at all, so you can resuse your old dampeners if you want but I probably wouoldn't resuse your old dampeners more then 1-2 times, I used a red bottle of "disc quiet" I bought from Kragen for $5 and applied it on the old dampeners)

Edited December 2, 2008 by roastduck88

[Bigwave]

Did my front pads today and it was very easy like everyone said....But I tied the sensor wire back and I am getting the brake service light the second I start the car. I had worn the pads into the sensor on the previous set. I cut the wires before the first sensor and separated the two wires and tied the wire back. Should the two wires remain separate or should they be connected to complete the loop? Anything else I may have missed. Also the rear pads are new with only 10k on them.

[Loren]

The brake wear warning light turns on when the circuit is broken - so connect them.

[vette67]

Hi Loren,

Is it necessary to get the repair kit (bolt, expanding spring, securing clip), damping plate, warning contact, etc?

Can I just replace the pads and re-use everything else?

Thanks!

Well it is up to you.

We suggest the dampers but I've heard of folks reusing them - worst case you will have some squeal.

If the sensors turned on the brake pad light then one or more of them will have to be replaced (or jumpered).

You would need to look a the pin and spring to see if they are worn.

I just did my front brake pads today but forgot to get new dampers.

I seperated the dampers from the old pads and left them in the caliper. I was betting on them sticking to the new pads once they are under pressure.

I drove aound the block and I can hear the pads (or something) constantly (lightly) rubbing. I also get some occasional squeal when braking. Hopefully after 150 miles or so the pads will be bedded in and the noise will go away.

Did the noise go away? Also, did anyone determine if there is a recommended glue to use to reattach the dampers to the pads? The backs a pretty cheap to replace, but the fronts are a little pricey. I have squeal, and I am trying to determine if it will go away, can be secured or do I need to just pony up and swap the dampers :D

TDK

TDK, I'm very sorry to have missed your question. No, the noise did not go away. What I did was get some $5 "anti-squeal" spray from the local auto parts store. This stuff is actually a strong, spray-on adhesive. I pulled my pads and dampers and re-attached them with the spray. Problem solved.

[UCrazyKid]

I did a rear brake job (pads and rotors) on my '02 996 this weekend following these directions. It was a piece of cake. I just wanted to thank this community again for providing such a great resource!

[jvcuenca]

Any reason why we shouldn't grease the back of the brake pads(not the one touching the rotors) but the one touching the pistons...I just did my brake pads on the rear and I put on some disc brake quiet grease...just needed to know what would happen greasing up the back of the pads...thanks

[Loren]

Any reason why we shouldn't grease the back of the brake pads(not the one touching the rotors) but the one touching the pistons...I just did my brake pads on the rear and I put on some disc brake quiet grease...just needed to know what would happen greasing up the back of the pads...thanks

I wouldn't use brake grease - I would use the Porsche anti-vibration pads.

[jvcuenca]

thanks!

Any reason why we shouldn't grease the back of the brake pads(not the one touching the rotors) but the one touching the pistons...I just did my brake pads on the rear and I put on some disc brake quiet grease...just needed to know what would happen greasing up the back of the pads...thanks

I wouldn't use brake grease - I would use the Porsche anti-vibration pads.

[355bhp]

I'm doing some preventive maintenance on a newly purchased car for my wife. Pre-purchase inspection indicates the pads are about 50% worn and the rotors have some "grooving" but the note siad it's consistent with the mileage and year - 2003 with 19K miles.

. . . Should I change the rotors as well since I'm there or is minor grooving not that big of an issue?

Measure them with a micrometer and see if they are within spec (26 mm front and 22 mm rear). Also check for radial cracks:

http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?s...ost&p=18082

Loren,

Are these thickness specs the same for 'S' rotors? Mine's a MY '05 C2S. Thanks.

[355bhp]

Loren,

Are these thickness specs the same for 'S' rotors? Mine's a MY '05 C2S. Thanks.

Here I go replying to my own post. I did a search like I was SUPPOSED to, and came up with the answer. Here's a link to the forum page: http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?s...8&hl=rotors, and scroll down to Post #6.

Cheers