[Krix]

This guide for the front disc on a 88-91 CRX. Pics are of a 91 Si but all years should be the same, with the exception of different pads and rotors. I know alot of people know how to do this but some people dont.

Tools Needed:
Lug wrench
14mm wrench or socket/ratchet
17mm wrench or socket/ratchet
C Clamp
Caliper grease ( I use sythetic caliper grease w/ brake quiet )

First break your lugs loose with the car on the ground

Jack up the car ( dont forget to use a jack stand just incase. and if your on soft ground like I am, put a board under your jackstand.)
and remove the wheel.

Remove the 14 mm bolt on the back side of the caliper to swing it up to remove the pads.

While you have it open use a C-clamp to compress the piston so it will go back into place with the new pads and rotor. Take the master cylinder cap off to relieve the pressure while you do this.

Dont put the new pads in just yet. Swing the caliper back down and get a 17 mm wrench or ratchet.
There are two bolts on the back side that mount the caliper to the knuckle.

Make sure you dont lose the washers on these two bolts, they are very important. You will see what happens later.

Make sure you use somthing to support the caliper or you risk breaking the brake line. I use an every day hanger bent around the upper control arm to hold it back.

Once the caliper is off the rotor is ready to come off. You might have two screws holding your rotor on. Be very careful not to strip these, so use the right size screw driver. Even if you use the right screw driver like I did they will probably still strip. In that case get a drill and a drill bit and drill the head of the screw off, like I did. I did this years ago so I dont have a pic, pretty self explanatory though. Those screw are not needed, I dont care what anyone tells you.

Put your new rotor on

Ive painted the areas on mine that rust, the overspray will come off the first few times I hit the brakes. This is just a cosmetic step and is not neccesary.

Now mount your caliper back up and insert the brake pads.

If you forget a washer on one of those bolts, this is what can happen.

Put a small amount of caliper grease on the back side of the pads and in the marked spots.
Also put some here

Close the caliper down and put the 14mm bolt back in. Put the wheel back on, remove the jack stand and lower the car. Torque down your lug nuts. Before you go driving around, start the car with the ebrake on and pump the pedal a few times to get the piston seated back where it should be. Now go drive around and enjoy being able to stop. [/img]

 

[justcrx]

Nice write up

 

[crxfisher]

Looks good. What rotors are those?

 

[Krix]

cheapies. advance auto $20. they work for me, i just need somthing that stops.

 

[stick]

Excellent write up. Even learned a couple of things from it! Hopefully my next brake job will go a little smoother because of it!

I have a recommendation for an additional tool that *really* helps remove those pesky screws from the rotors. If you guys can get your hands on an "Impact Driver", it will make your life a lot easier, and it will not strip those screws. An Impact Driver is basically a fancy screw driver with "ratchet action" that turns whenever you bang it on the end with a hammer. This means that it will be exerting a lot of downward pressure while also turning the screws. If any of you have worked on motorcycles, you will know just how essential it is to have one of these tools in your toolbox.

 

[toxiclows]

Black Krix. very nice writeup...... That makes it easy for anyone...... just think of all the money we will all save.... i think you get a better sense of feeling when you have sone your own brakes.... .the satisfaction runs through you every time you hit the brake petal....

a like the painting them black too.... keep that darn "rotor Rust " off...

just another little tip that i have picked up on......

if you have a rotor that has been on there for some time and it seems to be frozen, corrodes, glued or welded to the hub assembly..... .
ya see where the 2 phillips screws went it ? Those holes are countersunk... so that the screw does not protrude out...... .but look at those other holes there..... .scroll up to his pic ^^^^^ the countersunk ones line up with the screw threads in the hub assy before putting the rotor on..... yeah you dont need the screws..... . but they are a common metric thread..... ..go to the hardware and pick up 2 bolts with the same thread pitch....... having trouble getting that rotor off. . .. thread your new bolts into these holes and work evenly tightening the one then the other and then back over agian..... it will give you a press effect thus driving the rotor away from the hub, , , , , ( a little pb blaster oil can be of use here as well to help )

there ya go a way to deal with those stubborn rotors.......

Krix, , i am not hi jacking your post..... i just wanted to add this and your article was just great.. .. and will be of good use to people. So i wanted to post it along with your great writeup. .

Chris

 

[Krix]

No problem, I forgot what those other holes were for. As for the paint, I used a High temp engine paint

 

[GSRCRXsi]

nice right up.

a few more tips

yes the impact driver is the ish! i just did a brake job on my integra and those little screws came off like no ones business. after 5 or 6 hard wacks with a hammer they will be finger tight and come off like butter

also its easier to just take the caliper completely off the bracket before taking the bracket off the hub. it gives a little more room for getting those bolts out. and USE PB BLASTER ON THOSE BAD BOYS. from all the bolts ive taken off on my crx, i think those bolts are one of the hardest to get off. they just get all rusty and fused on there.

and about the rotors getting fused to the hub. just get a hammer and give the rotor a few good whacks and itll come right off.

 

[Krix]

ive had so many problems with my front brakes those bolts dont have time to seize up :lol: .

but the first time they were a pita.

Also if you guys havent done so yet, I suggest investing in some quality ratcheting wrenches. My GF bought me all the metric minus the 17 mm for valentines day and they are the ish. Plus she got em half off....woot woot. Craftsman makes a 17 mm but its not the same as the ones i have and its 25 bucks. I got the 17 at autozone for $18. Its a duralast w/lifetime warranty and so far no problems.

 

[Fly Baby Ride]

Nice write up! Not sure if it was mentioned and I missed it but don't forget to pump your brakes afterwards! I see a lot of people leave that till after they jack it back down, put their tools away and then forget 'till it's too late.

 

[Krix]

Close the caliper down and put the 14mm bolt back in. Put the wheel back on, remove the jack stand and lower the car. Torque down your lug nuts. Before you go driving around, start the car with the ebrake on and pump the pedal a few times to get the piston seated back where it should be. Now go drive around and enjoy being able to stop

Yeah I didnt forgot it I have forgotten to do it after a brake job and let the ebrake off and rolled away :shock: :lol:

 

[Fly Baby Ride]

Lol same here! :lol:

 

[getrealjoeruss]

On my 89 DX, the the way to remove the caliper is a single 12MM bolt, not two 14MM ones... The only 14MM bolt on the back of the caliper is the brake line... Just thought I would put that up for clarification.

 

[tyson]

channel lock pliers work better than a C clamp to compress the piston afterwards.

its also good to look under the boot too to get an idea of how corroded the piston surface is before pushing it back in.

 

[Krix]

To take the caliper off you only need to remove the one bolt. To swap the rotors you have to remove the caliper bracket which has 2 17mm bolts holding it on, like in the pics.

 

[Dave_Darling]

I recommend using a torque wrench on all of those fasteners, and torquing them to spec. Most especially the lug nuts, which should be tightened in a criss-cross pattern.

Overtightening the lug nuts helps lead to warped rotors. It is also just plain A Good Idea to torque your fasteners to spec.

--DD

 

[h224me]

Thanks for the advice.

 

[keganaraujo]

I would have used a dial indicator to measure the run-out of the new rotor

 

[jtkc]

good post as i am getting ready to replace my rotors and pads up front. I noticed you mentioned those phillips head set screws in your post. On mine the heads are broke off but the thread of the screw/bolt is still in there. you mentioned that those in no way effect the drive-ability or removal of the rotors is this correct and if so why were they there in the first place just wondering thanks post was very informative

 

[Dave_Darling]

The screws are there to make sure the disks don't fall off if the car gets moved around without the wheels on it. Say, when the car was originally built.

--DD