How long to change rear pads?

[bigrubberjeep]

I'm getting my rear pads today? How much time should i plan for? Any special tricks on the 930 (917) Turbo Brakes?

[Larry Harris]

About 2 hours. Buy and read 101 Projects for your Porsche 911 by Wayne Dempsey.

[Zeke]

2 hours? I suppose, if you get into the "while I was in there" syndrome.

Take off the wheels, pry back the old pads enough so the new ones will slip in and.......done. If you have trouble, don't force anything. You can remove the calipers and spread the pistons with or without the pads on with a piston spreader. Careful to watch the resevoir when you do this as it will back fill and may run over. Best to start with it not full. Remember to check it when you go back to setting the pads down with the pedal. Don't get any air in there and it's a breeze.

If you want to bleed the brakes, that's a good idea. Get some fresh fluid in there. Did you buy some ATE or some high temp stuff?

[goat]

2 hours for the first time. Seems about right to me too, unless you get a little neurotic like I did and clean all the parts, fender wells and anything else within arm reach.

[bigrubberjeep]

Piston speader? Oh oh! Sounds like a tool I dont have!

[goat]

I bleed the brakes at the same time I did mine.
Zeke is correct it will overflow if you don't bleed some off.
For a piston speader I just used a strong wooden dowl & levered them back,,, I think waynes book was my inspiration for that idea..

[ruf-porsche]

A big C-clamp is what I use for pushing the pistons back into the bore.

[Zeke]

Originally posted by bigrubberjeep
Piston speader? Oh oh! Sounds like a tool I dont have!

The stick trick works most of the time unless there's a lot of crud in there, in which case, you should be thinking of rebuilding the cals.

AutoZone and the rest of the bonehead parts houses rent a spreader for a buck or two.

[Jack Olsen]

I use a screwdriver and a small pair of vice grips. once the wheels are off, it's five minutes per wheel, tops. You can push the calipers back using the pads that are in there and the screwdriver. Just be patient.

Loosen the cap on the brake reservoir. I've never seen fluid back out, even going from toasted pads to new ones.

[MotoSook]

Unless there is something wrong or in bad shape...15 minutes per wheel..that includes jacking the wheel up and removing it. You don't even have to take the caliper of. Release the butterfly shaped spring that holds the pads down, use a flat screw driver to ease the old pad back. That should get the pistons back into the bore. You'll have to use the old pad or figure a way to get both pistons to move back to the same depth. Slide old pad out, new pad in, repeat for oposing pad....secure pads and replace tire..


Repet on the other side.

[jmohn]

The only thing that may look tricky to you is "butterfly shaped spring" (as Souk calls it). Just grab the middle of it (the body of the butterfly) with a pair of pliars or channel-locks and squeeze, one end of the spring (I forget if it's the front or rear) will pop loose, then pivot the spring up. Now you can remove the pads. As others have said, do one pad at a time, slowly and gently pry the old one away from the rotor just enough to insert the new pad, then do the other pad, rotate the spring back down and squeeze the middle to allow you to re-fasten it. BTW, my favorite tool for prying the old pad back is a thin flat pry-bar (favored by finish carpenters) available at any home supply store, AND, I usually find it easiest to remove the old pad by grabbing the top edge of the pad with a pair of vise-grips and wiggling/prying it up and out.

Good luck,

Jerry M
'78 SC

[89911]

The hardest part is getting the lug nuts off and the wheel in the air. Figure about 10 minutes a side. 2 hours is the Porsche dealer rate!

[bigrubberjeep]

Well, here comes the flames, I took it to my wrench.

Now hold on he gave me a good price on a full service which I promised I would have him do for all the help he gave me in finding the right car.

So I am having, valves adjusted, spark plugs, fuel filter, rear pads and rotors resurfaced. All for a decent price, not o mention I feel I am paying him back for all the free advise from over 9 months of me buging him to look at this and that car for me.

[MOMO3.2]

FWIW:

Pump the pedal a few times after installing the new pads BEFORE you put the car in reverse and start to back out. Otherwise, the pedal will go to the floor and you won't stop!

Ask me how I know.

Mike