New brakes

almost rolled 100k kms on my truck now... Only a couple millimeters of pad life left so i'll be changing them out soon.

 

Changed mine for the first time last year with 55K miles. They still had 3/16th material left - and just wanted to get it done and out of the way. They were doing a lot of 'clunking' also. The clunking went away after I changed them.

 

My experience with dealers has been that when my pads were down to 50% they told me that "they will need to be replaced soon". The best way to know for sure is to pull the wheels off and look for yourself!

 

Agree with what partzguy said. Did the dealer give you a printout showing the actual thickness of the pads? Standard thickness on Taco front pads is 11.5 mm and minimum thickness is 1 mm. Unless you're getting close to the minimum thickness, I wouldn't worry about it.

I once had a service advisor try to scare me by telling me that I *only* had 6 mm left on my front pads. He left out the part about them only being half worn out.

 

Unless you are very hard on your brakes regularly, there is no way they need to be changed so soon! I think they are trying to get money out of you.

 

By now you should be getting the idea:
1) 38K is low for "needing" pads
2) YMMV according to braking style, use, towing, etc. etc. etc. etc.
3) Have them print you out an exact measurement of your pad thicknesses, and a printout of the factory-recommended replacement thickness. Then ask them to explain to you, in very specific terms, why they think you need brakes.
4) Pull your front wheels off and have a look-see for yourself. It should be obvious.


I replaced mine at 20K, but they weren't even half worn out...LOTS of meat left on them. I did it because I was constantly pushing them past their limit (I run really, really heavy, especially on my numerous expedition-style trips......but I don't ride them or brake hard). I replaced them with Porterfield A4S (I think that's the compound), and let me tell you it's as if I put on extra-large 8-piston calipers and enormous discs, the stopping power was so dramatic! The factory compound is utter garbage.

 

I think Porterfield makes Hawk pads. R4S is usually used for street cars.

 

Been out of town, just got back this afternoon. I checked the tech sheet, it says I have 6mm left on the front and only 4mm on the rear. I think I'll have to check this out for myself. Out of the 38k miles, I have driven from West Virginia to Michigan twice (1,200 miles roundtrip), Virginia Beach 5-6 times (550 roundtrip) and Phoenix (4500 miles). So, there is a lot of highway miles in that 38k. Thanks for all the replies.

 

What about the rears brake drums and shoes how do i knoe about that?

 

Check it yourself to be sure, but that sounds like plenty of material.

 

Take a look yourself.

 

huhhhhh

 

I got 80K out of the O.E. pads. I also replaced the calipers at 80K since the new pads would last at least 60K, I didn't want a leaking caliper midway through the life of the new pads...preventative measure, don't wait for the calipers to fail kindofa thing. It may have been a mistake to use aftermarket parts because the pedal is softer now. I have bled the entire system twice with DOT 4 fluid...there is no trapped air anywhere making the pedal mushy.

 

I wouldnt trust the dealership. they told me after my last scheduled oil change (25,000 miles) that I would need them soon. So I bought pads and when I checked at 29,000 miles i had more then 50% left on them. They just want you to spend money.

 

If your calipers are operating freely, as they should, I see no reason to lump them into the 'preventative maintenance' category. I put them with u-joints and wheel bearings, replace them when they start making noise or acting up.

 

Agree here! Replacing calipers based on just an arbitrary schedule is a waste of money IMO.

Clean, grease the pins and inspect when you rotate the tires...

 

Just got the word that I have 3mm left on my fronts at 77K miles. So nearing the end of those.

Rears are getting close as well. I think they said 2mm.

I'll just go ahead and replace all four in the next few weeks.

Any recommendations? I offroad a little, just to go hunting. I tow a 3500lb trailer occasionally. Mostly around town driving up here in Flagstaff.

 

OEM and nothing but.

 

I went with Duralast pads and rotors from Autozone. I hated the OEM brakes and was happy to get rid of them.

 

I used to use them, but only get about half the life I get out of OEM.