Wednesday, September 14, 2011

How much would it cost to change my front brake pads???

i have a 2002 honda accord SEHow much would it cost to change my front brake pads???some people might try to charge upwards of $150 for new brake pads.. If you look on the shop website if its a major place, you can find a place that can do it for $99 or sometimes $69. Ideally you want them to put new brake pads and resurface/machine the rotors. Firestone is ok, a trusted independent repair shop might be good, or mavis discount tire (brake special for front or rear brake pads 59.99, looks like a deal)

http://www.mavistire.com/ProductCart/pc/



be sure to call a few local places on the phone to confirm pricing and get a few estimates for replacing front brakes and machining rotor, final cost with labor. then when you bring it in, you can know the final cost before they remove the wheels and force you to pay a high unexpected price. Of course if your rotors need to be replaced (not likely) it will be more expensive... be sure to ask them to replace the pads if necessary, and machine the rotors if the pads are replaced.. Tell them you do not want new rotors unless it absolutely needs to be replaced...



also read this msn article on brake jobs to make sure they dont try to sell you extra services you dont need...

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15606631/



good luck...!!!How much would it cost to change my front brake pads???Not a hard job, - if you do it yourself, -- it does not require much more than basic mechanical ability! As to cost it is dependent on whether the brake pads are just %26quot;worn down%26quot;, - or whether they are %26quot;shot%26quot; and you are stopping %26quot;metal to metal%26quot;! At this point the metal part of the brake pads (backing plate) is hitting and digging up the disks,-- characterized by grinding noise when brake applied!

The brake pads are usually equipped with %26quot;squeakers%26quot;, - which are small pieces of spring steel which drag on disks and make squeaking noise to tell you %26quot;it is time%26quot;!



Now the price of pads is about $18, - give or take a little, - unless you have some kind of %26quot;super braking material%26quot;, - in which case they may run as high as $40 (for some special applications)! -- Time to install them yourself, - about an hour.... If I were doing it I would probably get it done (and out) in about 1/2 hour (maybe a little less).



I think Brake Check is still advertising $59 per axle (both sides front, - or back)! This of course depends on how much more is required, - such as replacing disks, or other brake parts (besides the pads only)! If disks are damaged, they will %26quot;re-surface%26quot; them if not damaged beyond point of acceptable material left after re-surfacing %26quot;grinding%26quot; job is done! Also they normally re-surface them every time, which shortens the effective life of disks,-- (but protects them if anything goes wrong with system that can be blamed on disk condition)!



If you do it yourself, -you can leave disks alone %26quot;if%26quot; pedal doesn't pulsate when you apply brakes, and the metal is not %26quot;gullied up%26quot; an appreciable amount. On my own brakes I don't worry about minor damage from metal to metal contact, since the brake pads will eventeually polish them up so that they doesn't excessively brake:%26quot;early %26quot; on that side. Also if I am really worried about the damage, I pull them off and pay about 5-8 dollars to have them re-ground (re-surfaced)! Only if they %26quot;flunk%26quot; thickness left - do I junk them and get better (or new) ones! True pads on rough area will wear faster, - but after surface %26quot;broke in and %26quot;shiny smooth%26quot; again, next set will wear about normal rate, -- first set may wear down a few thousand miles sooner (depending on damage they had), - but it is cheaper to replace pads, than replace disks - to get a few more miles between replacement of pads!



If you don't know how,- and want to tackle the job, go get yourself a %26quot;Haynes Auto Repair Manual%26quot; for your year and model car, - it will cost you less than $20, and it has a host of information that is useable for general maintainance, - or even so that you understand how things work, and are able to prevent yourself from getting %26quot;took%26quot; at the garage! (available at AutoZone and the likes). This book has very good information and illustrations to tell you how to do most everything on the car! It is also useful, if your mechanic doesn't have a manual specifically for your car!



One other tip -- fronts wear out about 4 times as fast as the rears under normal use, --- so don't buy the %26quot;works%26quot; every time you go to have brakes serviced! Make sure that the %26quot;rears%26quot; are really worn out!How much would it cost to change my front brake pads???$147.98 This includes new rotors, pads, tax, and labor!How much would it cost to change my front brake pads???Suggest that if that is all that needs to be changed,should be less then $100.00. Now if you wait too long,and the pads are now metal to metal with the rotors,and scoring the rotors ,that's another story.How much would it cost to change my front brake pads???You can do it yourself - and it would only cost you the cost of the pad. But if your car has ABS make sure you don't just compress the piston back. See this video to get an idea:



http://www.expertvillage.com/interviews/



If you want to get a pro, it should be basically the cost of the pad plus about 2 or 3 hours of labor cost MAX.





Good Luck.

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