ford mondeo rear brakes

If the disks are unevenly worn it may point to the less worn side being partially seized.

Wear on a disk can be measured and assessed, but one noticeably different to the other means they need to be replaced anyway.

Nowadays discs are often replaced at pad change time simply because they are now so cheap and easy to do, it also obviates any squealing as new pads are worn to match the worn discs.

Years ago discs lasted much longer and were rarely changed in the life of a car.

I find nowadays that the discs don't last as long as the pads. Just seems wrong, somehow. Maybe I'm buying cheap discs?

It makes little if any difference what make you buy. Modern pads wear the disks much faster, cars are faster and heavier, and modern drivers tend to drive on their brakes much more than in ye olden days. It is extremely rare that I replace pads only, as disks almost always have wear ridges which preclude putting new pads against them, even when the disc thickness and evenness is actually acceptable.

Most disc I have had have had scores rather than ridges.

On some cars its 20 minutes to change pads but then 2 hours to change the discs.

In rare cases, yes, but all of the most common household cars are simple, the last car that gave me real grief to change the discs was a Rover 620, the discs are inside mount and one drive shaft was seized solid in the hub, happily most of that model are long gone.

OK, the last 2 needed the hub removing and improvised pullers to get the discs off the hub.

I must have been unlucky!

I hear 2CV brakes are fun to do.

Are you saying scores are ok but ridges are not? At what point does a score become a ridge?

Thanks Stephen

Not that bad - rear drums are one nut (albeit big and tight), then have no handbrake gubbins. Front disks don't even need the car jacking.

Front drums are a pita, though...

a score is cut in such as a trapped stone might do, a ridge is (effectively) a raised part and shows there is heavy wear on the unridged part.

years ago pads had asbestos in them, and now they don't. Hence the industry has gone from 'soft' pads and hard disks, to much harder pads which need correspondingly softer disks to give the same efficiency.

Pretty certain discs have always been cast iron on road cars.

Of course, more powerful servos are now used. In fact, some earlier disc- braked cars didn't even have servos, and had pads so soft enthusiastic drivers could wear a set out between services.

Chris

Thanks. I still haven't changed the brakes but will try to do so this week, as the pads are low. I need to decide which make of pads and discs to use, so I will post a new thread.