So I finally got my car running well(1995 legacy ej22, 189k). I replaced the egr valve and iac with some used parts from gross Gary and it's running well.

Now it seems like my front brakes are grinding. I don't rember noticing any sound until recently.

When I take the tire off and look will it be pretty obvious?

Rockauto.com has a front brake kit for $67, anybody have any experience with it?

How long did it sit without moving. was it out in the rain? Could just be surface rust.

A couple weeks at a time at the most. I would get it out running from time to time, even though I could barely keep it on.

The sound is pretty intense, and stopping once today seemed to take a little longer than it should have

Yes in the grass and in the rain

On mine a serious grinding sound has usually meant one of the pads was worn right down to the metal. Though some sources of rotors I have noticed seem to get destroyed from sitting outside without use for even a couple months. If you're looking at rockauto maybe try to gauge the condition of your calipers, they sometimes have reman calipers with the brackets for a really reasonable price. I like those because it takes any guesswork out of whether the piston is seized or rusty or pitted possibly and any cleaning/greasing/corrosion in the guide/lock pins/sliders. For rotors I have been having excellent results with Centric's lowest price rotors.

If it's just rust, a few good stops will take that off the rotors.

If it's still happening after that, plus loss of stopping power, you definitely need new brakes.  Incidentally, most aftermarket brake kits don't include the "squealers" which alert you to your brakes being seriously worn down.

 

Emily

The slots in the road wheels are generally large enough, so you can look through to see if the rotor is rusty looking, or bright shiney steel with grind marks This will give you a quick first indicator what you are dealing with.

nothing wrong with inspecting brakes - but the advice about it 'possibly' being surface rust is good.

 

I have seen light rust spots develop on my WRX's rotors in 8 hours parked at work!

Edited September 14, 201510 yr by 1 Lucky Texan

I tried to pop my tires off today and realized that the car must not have come with a lug wrench and I never noticed. So a better inspection will have to wait till I get my hands on one.

did get the car lifted a bit and hubcaps off to look around a bit though. No visible rust that I could see, possibly some scratches on the passenger side rotor but didn't see any on the drivers side.

 

I also noticed this in the picture I attached. What is it? A cv axle? and is that cracked boot a problem?

By the way the sound has been continuing for a few days now, even after a couple hard stops

that's a tie rod boot on the steering rack, good idea to replace that.

 

if a caliper isn't sliding, the inner pad could be down to the metal so, get those wheels off soon.

 

should be able to get a L wrench or a 4-way at the car parts store.

I will get them off tomorrow on my day off and take a better look.

The passenger side pad looks to me like it's down to the metal. The rotor has some scratching. I felt some sharp edges when I ran my finger down the rotor. The drivers side is close but not there yet. The rotor felt smooth, some slight ridges but no sharp edges.

 

should I replace both rotors just to be safe?

Not really sure what to look for as far as caliper damage?

 

Attaching some pictures of the passenger side

Drivers side

Your brakes are shot!. Replace both sides with the kit they have on Rock auto. When you change the brakes and rotors inspect the pistons to be sure they are not leaking or sticking. Also inspect the slides and grease them.

Thanks. Ordering parts tomorrow

Thanks. Ordering parts tomorrow

 

Good call. 

Parts came today. I am going to be doing this but by bit over the next few days. Any particular advice on doing legacy front brakes? I've read a few things online, in the Haynes and watched a video or two

It's been 15-20 years since I "helped" on a brake job. I can't afford to have someone else doing them, so I will be taking my time.

What else do I need?

Anti squeal compound? It came with a tube of "ceramalub", is that good enough?

High temp grease for the caliper pins

A c clamp, is 10 inch a good size?

Brake fluid

Is a torque wrench necessary?

Beside noticeably visible damage and piston not sliding is there anything else to look for as far as caliper damage goes? I did drive the car a few days when I probably shouldn't have. But used the brakes as little as possible

 

Thanks guys, you've been a big help to me

sounds to me you're all set.

don't let a caliper hang by its hose if you remove it completely (I have used twine and coat hanger to suspend it from the coil spring), don't twist a hose putting a caliper back on.

 

if some bolt or nut seems stuck, try not to force it - soak it in some PB Blaster or 50:50 acetone ATF fluid . even 10=15 seconds from a propane torch if necessary.

 

plenty of people have done great work on their cars without a torque wrench - I use mine when I can, but you will do OK without one.

 

I have had good luck carefully using my old brake pad as a lever to push the piston in with. the C clamp youmention should work too. main thing, try not to scar a rotor or puncture a rubber boot.

 

if it looks like there is any 'burs' or thinck paint on the edge or tabs of the pad backing plate, you can file/frind them a little. I always use the lube on any contact/sliding parts - even the surface rim of the piston. pads are held loosely and all the sliding parts should get a little lube.

 

if you got new rotors, clean the swept area with a light solvent or maybe warm soapy water, might have some protective grease on them.

 

whent he fluid reservoir rises from pistons being pushed back, you may be able to use a turkey baster to remove old fluid, put fresh fluid in before bleeding the brakes. DO NOT let that reservoir go dry.

Edited September 19, 201510 yr by 1 Lucky Texan

Pick up caliper grease.  You will want to grease the caliper pins and I also grease the bolts so next time they come out easy and don't seize in.

Is anti squeal compound worth getting?

Is anti squeal compound worth getting?

 

Personally I've never bothered because I prefer to know when they squeal.  If you have a quality pad it's only going to squeal when you got a rock caught in it, etc.... or when the pads are worn down.

Good to know, thanks

If you don't have a big enough clamp but have a big enough pair of channel locks I've found those work great to push the piston(s) back in. Plus in my mind it lets you kind of gauge how much force you're using. If it takes very much oomph or seems to get stuck that can be a bad sign, since if water got behind the piston boots the piston might have rust on it at the end, and then basically if you shove that rusty area into the seal it may get stuck or possibly start leaking if it rips the seal.

I'm having trouble gettin the upper caliper bolt undone. Soaking it in pb blaster which worked for the lower one.

No access to a torch right now though. Frustrating as hell