Do brake pads have to be the same thickness?

What happened to the outer pad? If it was damaged through physical impact the caliper may also have been damaged enough to cause problems. For the cost of a replacement it would be a good investment, then just swap the pads on the other side as well.

micky wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@4ax.com:

if you don`t find out what is wrong, you will not like the results. Find the problem. don`t screw with brakes, do it right or don`t do it. KB

The outer pad is new.

Neither the old pad nor of course the new pad was damaged.

It's not damaged either.

So, is t here any reason one can't use a pad with some of the braking material worn off with a new one?

I should have explained more. My tool for opening calipers will get the caliper open all but about 1 or 2 mm. This is the reason the I can't get the new brake pad in place. It has to be open ALL the way. I can perhaps modify the tool (sand down one side of the handle) so that I can open the caliper more, but maybe not, and I won't know until the day Iry.

Idon't want to spend even small parts of separate days on this, so if the caliper won't open farther, I intend to put the old pad in.

Why would it not be fine to mix a pad with some wear with a new pad? Both of them are clean.

I don't drive much and the old pad had at least 5 more years in at at my rate, plus it will have the standard wear indicator to tell me when it's too worn.

The outer pad is new.

Neither the old pad nor of course the new pad was damaged.

It's not damaged either.

So, is t here any reason one can't use a pad with some of the braking material worn off with a new one?

If your tool is out of travel before the caliper is fully open just stick an old brake pad in there to get the additional travel. Or just use an old pad and something to push on it.

OK, As I read what you wrote it seems that The caliper didn't get hurt. The pads that were in use when the accident happened are OK as well. The "old" pads are the same as the ones on the other side of the vehicle.

If that is the case why are you installing new brake pads? Shouldn't need to if they are OK.

BUT to answer the mixed pads question The answer would be Maybe it's OK. IF the "old" pads are the exact same material and size as the new ones and they are OK then you could mix them.

BUT I wouldn't. Brakes are one item you don't play with. For instance you have a new pad that isn't wore in to the rotor, another one that is. That will toss the stopping ability off some. It will likely make the vehicle pull some to the opposite side.

I would replace ALL the pads with new. If you are replacing the rotor I would also either turn or replace the other side as well.

You do know it will need an alignment to make sure the sub-frame didn't bend at all. Even a bend as small as 1/4" can throw the alignment out the window.

Sorry. One just disappeared, I think. I found one pad on the street, away from everything. But now I'm not sure if the other pad was in the caliper or not. If no, it really did disappear, but if yes, that means I did have both of them and I lost one. It's been about a month, but I should remember, but now i realize I don't.

I went back and looked around and all I found was some of that black stuff which is the opposite** of styrofoam. No other parts, no damage to the road, or the curb, or the grass.

**Instead of plastic with holes where the air bubbles were (when styrofoam was foaming), this stuff has little soft plastic beads, all stuck together, with some empty space between the spheres. Is there a name for that?

I guess it was there to reinforce my fender, but not too well because even before the accident, if I leaned against the fender it popped in. Lucky for me it popped out when I stopped touching it. (That was more the top of the fender, and I'm guessing this was from the bottom. Some day I'll look at the other side.)

Yes, but thanks for reminding me.

Duh. Why couldn't I think of that?

I'm glad I hadn't ground the handle down yet.

Thanks.

I am an amateur! But I always spread the caliper PRIOR to any disassembly. Large screwdriver wedged against the old pad, a fee ounces of pull and plenty of patience. Takes as long as 10 to 15 seconds for the fluid to flow back. Ivan Vegvary

Not a bad idea.

In my case the rotor was broken and at least one brake pad had fallen out.

Some webpage on the topic suggested opening the brake bleeder valve if the caliper wouldn't open fast enough and I did that. Got a spurt of brake fluid each time I turned the tool handle, but not much in total.

Yes, I wll check the brake master cylinder reservoir. And I also remembered to close the bleeder valve.

But it didn't disappear, as of today. I found the other pad today, in the bottom of the plastic dishpan I use for my tools when I have to carry them from the house to the parking lot. . Actually, I found the pad that I had found on the street. This means the other old pad was still in the caliper when I disassembled it.

Temporarily. The one found on the street had its anti-squeak plate almost removed and 10% of the pad, in various pieces, was knocked off too.

This is okay. I use physical things to prompt my memory, and now it's been prompted. .

Yes, but thanks for reminding me.

Do brake pads have to be the same thickness?

AIUI, it doesn't matter.

I'm having real trouble getting the inner brake pad to fit all the way into the appropriate space. It won't go in the last 3/8". I'll use a brighter flashlight and try harder to see what is interfering with the thick brake pad, but maybe it is the thickness.

The caliper is open all but one mm. and after I modify the tool I have which is designed to open it, maybe I can get it open all the way. Or after I find my really big water pump pliers.

But assuming this doesn't solve he problem, and assuming the old brake pad will go in all the way, is that okay? The old brake pad was in use until the accident I've posted about, and it still has plenty of pad on it. And two pads of the same age are still in use on the left front wheel.

My understanding of disk brakes is that the caliper slides on the upper and lower pin and positions itself so the pads are inside the caliper, and that it closes when the brake pedal is pushed, And when the brake pedal is released, the caliper barely opens and the pads barely move back, but somehow this doesn't put drag on the wheels. And nothing requires the caliper to be centered above the brake rotor, only that it open wide enough for the rotor and the pads to fit between the jaws of the caliper.

Sure the new pad will still be good when it's time to replace the old pads, but that won't be for years yet.

Please let us know the state you drive in and the make/model o f the car. I want to make sure your in front of me, not behind me. Thanks.

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Buy a new caliper.