2006 Honda Civic Si Rear Brakes

I had a vehicle before with disc all around but in the rears the piston rotated in and out. So in order to compress them for new pads I had to screw them in. I think I used some kind of vise grip jobby to grab the piston. A special tool is available for it as well. Just a thought.

Many just use a large blade flathead screwdriver. I got a block tool that fits on a ratchet and has a different pattern on each of it's 6 sides to fit the various different screw-in calipers.

Joe wrote in news:0096d647$0$19598 $ snipped-for-privacy@news.astraweb.com:

They corrode something awful unless you live in Arizona.

The pistons SCREW in, so do NOT be tempted to use a C-clamp to force them back.

Rear discs are sexy, so they're good for marketing, but in practice are a dumb idea for FWD road-going cars.

Usually just a cable and clevis on an arm on the top of the caliper.

Don't get those crappy aftermarket ones. Spend a couple of hundred bucks and get the REAL THING from Honda. It's expensive, but you'll never regret it, believe me.

As an alternative, you can (only if an American resident) go to Honda's Techinfo site:

you can subscribe for ten bucks a day, and download the necessary pages from the genuine Honda service manual. I STRONGLY recommend this option if you are able to access it.

Try here:

and here for rear-specific items:

Note: I haven't updated these pages in a /long/ time, so if you have any questions, ask here.

I'm gonna be rebuilding my own rear calipers as soon as I get around to finding a set of snap-ring pliers that go deep enough. I picked up a scrap caliper at the wreckers and pulled that apart to see how it worked: Pretty cool, and /really/ complex inside, like an ABS brake master cylinder.

I'll let you know how they are when I'm done. I'm in Buffalo, and last winter was likely THE last winter the car will see while I own it. Picked up a used 4WD Dodge pickup for the Winters. The car is just too low, and bottoms out in the snow a lot, since the damned city plows side streets on odd-numbered storms if I'm lucky... ;-)

Gotcha. Bought the tool for it. Set me back about $4...

Maybe, but I always hated changing drums. They work fine, but too many fine details with all the damned springs... ;-) Besides, with nice rims, discs look a lot better... ;-)

I may do this for other jobs, as your pages are pretty excellent for this task. BTW: It's $10 for 3 days. Now THERE'S value!

Will do. I have everything I need now, and will be tackling it in the next couple of days, when weather permits. Stuck driving the 13MPG (mixed driving, on good days) pickup until I get the brakes done on the car, so there's some incentive...

Way beyond my scope. I'm a computer geek. I like doing brakes, but I leave most of the complex automotive things to trained professionals... ;-)

Thus spake Joe :

I was able to order my service manual for my 2008 Fit within about 48 hours of taking delivery, and paid less than "list", from a Honda dealer.

I haven't checked the site lately, but for the first year after the 06 Si was released, the service manual was still not available. I'm sure it's there now, but so far I haven't needed it.

BTW, Tegger, I did the rears today, and they were easy as pie. They weren't very rusty at all, so there was minimal effort. The worst part was that I broke 2 cheap-assed 12 MM sockets. Went and bought a good set of 6 pointers, and all was fine.

With any luck, she'll be good for another 50,000...

Thanks for all the help. Your guide was a life saver!