question about doing brake job

[williecume]

i'm going to be getting ready to do a brake job soon and was wondering. on my 97 xlt does it have the emergency drum brake, and if so can you get the rear rotor/drum turned (@ autozone maybe). this is the first time i have ever had to do a brake job on anything this new. also do i need to do anything special or be careful since it has ABS.

thanks guys/gals. thats all i can think of right now.

 

[addkev]

No, you have 4 wheel disc brakes and the emergency brake works the 2 rear disc brakes.

 

[MyExpWork]

Yeah but on the rear discs, doesn't the emergency brake on a little drum within the "hub" of the rotor assembly?

As far as the ABS, I don't think you need to worry about anything because as far as I know it is a valve in the brake line not on the rotors anywhere. Someone correct me if I am wrong.

Brian

 

[weebo]

As long as the pads haven't worn down to the rotors, then you probably don't need to have them turned. Find a good machine shop in your area to check them if you're worried. I don't think that Autozone turns them.

Kev is right, you have 4 discs and no drums. I wouldn't worry about the ABS...it shouldn't effect the brake job.

 

[williecume]

ok..for some reason i thought it had a drum inside the rotor.

i guess it shows how much i know about the new cars.

the old ones are the easiest one to work on. d@mn i miss my old cars.

but i love my a/c on the new ones

 

[laynlow]

I won't say for sure on the 97xlt, but my 97 sport does have a drum opperated emergency brake. You are correct when you say the rears are disc, but the hub there is also a drum for some small emergency brake shoes.

Most autozones turn rotors for about 6 bucks a pop, and I always turn em'. You can remove the glaze with sandpaper rubbing in a circular motion, but turning is just better.

 

[Robert]

You definately have rear drums inside your rear rotors in addition to the smaller shoes for the emergency brakes. As long as you don't make it a habbit of driving with your ememrgency brakes on you do not need to have the rear drums turned. The emergency shoes only press against the inside of the drums hopefully when your Explorer is parked therefore they shouldn't be worn. It would be best to have the rotors turned though when you put the new pads on. Your emergency shoes have about 1/4 the material a regular set of brake shoes would have. As long as they aren't falling apart or are worn down to the rivets you do not need to replace them. Once you've removed the rear calipers and released the emergency brake, the rear drum/rotor will slide off. It might take some coaxing with a rubber malet but it will come.

 

[GenerationX]

I agree with what Robert said. Turning the rotors is going to seat the new pads on the rotor for maximum contact.

 

[mgv366]

How difficult is it to change the front pads? I'm going to attempt it for the first time this weekend. Any threads that might help me through the process? Any suggestions from more experienced owners?

 

[VairKing]

It took me about 45 minutes to do my front ones last weekend, but thats on my 91, im not sure if the late model is different...I just popped out the pins, slid the new shoes on and put it back together.

[edit] I just read you have a 94, which should be the same as a 91, so it should be really easy for ya...

 

[weebo]

Yeah, I'd say about an hour for your first time....after that probably 30-45 minutes. Most of the work involves jacking up the truck and removing/replacing the tires instead of the actual brake work. just two pins to drive out on each side (you'll see what we mean once you take off the wheel) and then pull the caliper off. Pop out the old pads...re-seat the caliper piston, pop on the new pads and put it all back together. My biggest piece of advice is to make sure you have a very large c-clamp handy to re-seat the piston. Also, lay something flat over it (the old brake pad works great) before cranking it back in.

 

[jimbo74]

for a 91-94 4x4.... if you are going to turn the front rotors (recommended) you should also repack or replace the bearings at this time and rebuild the manual hubs... you will need the hub sockets for the auto hubs or the lockouts also..... the reason i recommend turning the fronts, is that the earlier x had very severe problems with warping... this cuases undue vibration and faster equipment wear.....

 

[CougarX]

Just for everyone's info:

As far as i know all autozones got rid of their brake lathes. The one that I work at no longer has a brake lathe and my manager said that all of them were being taken back. Not sure if this has effected farther out west yet but its probably going to soon.

Also, on subject, the brakes are very easy to do your self. There are two bolts per caliper that have to be taken off and you need a C-clamp to compress the pistons back in. Other that that, as long as you know how to take the wheels off you're set.

 

[jimbo74]

we turn rotors and drums at work...... i dont know about autozone, but i do know that napa auto parts turns them for a nomial fee and so do automotive machine shops

 

[Robert]

I had Pep Boys turn mine. It was supposed to cost $20 for all four but when I went to pick them up, they couldn't find my paper work so they said "this one's on us". They were my third choice after the first two places said they wouldn't be done until Monday. This was on a Saturday morning at 8:00. I had even called the first place the night before to be sure that they would get them back to me the same day. Pep Boys had them finished by late afternoon on Saturday.