Rear Brake Disc & Pads

[iand123]

Hi

I have a 2003 Megane 1.6VVT. My MOT is due in a few weeks and im pretty sure my rear brake pads are shot probably to the point where ill now need new discs too (leson learnt)

Guy at the garage i go to said they need the rear bearing changed at that point as well. Done a bit of research and it seems it is true. WHat sort of cost has anyone else encountered when doing soemthing similar to this?

[joeishmather]

I bought tge parts from Renault and they cost £120 or £150 can remember off hand but that was after alot of bartering, the parts can be bought of eBay there genuine Renault parts and that wad the best deal I could find, it wad the price my dealers were trying to match! The discs have tge bearings pressed into them already and that set comes with everything you need, that's what I'd recomend as the best price for a named set was about £10/£20 less than the Renault ones, I'll have a look for the link to the Renault ones on eBay for you,

Let me know If that's been of some help, cheers

[joeishmather]

https://cgi.ebay.co.uk/RENAULT-MEGANE-RE ... 3ef890abe5
that's the link I'd definatly go for those, cheeper than anywhere else for sure!

[iand123]

thanks for the info pal

i've changed discs and pads before (with the help of my father-in-law because im completely clueless about cars!) is it simply a case of

1. remove wheel

2. prise open caliper (hope thats the right word)

3. remove old disc, put new one on

4, replace pads in caliper and then out back in place and put wheel back on?

appreciate thats a very basic approach to things!

EDIT: i;ve changed the pads/discs on ford focus y reg before, not a megane!

[joeishmather]

For the megane you need a star socket something I didn't realise unntill I had the car up on th jack and the wheel off, also ic your doing it properly you'll need a torque wrench so you ensure things are to the right tightness, I would suggest a haynes manual if you recon you'll be doing things like this yourself, they will show the tools you need and the torque settings.
Err appart from that yeah fairly straght forward easy job, when you have the tools!lol if you need anymore info I will do my best to help, I think haynes is the best way to go, however on here I can't find it now but there is a link to tge workshop manuals for the megane, that says how to do it all, not as clear as the haynes tho.

Cheers, Joe

[iand123]

i called the company doing that listing on ebay, really helpful

is there a set torque setting that needs to be used (im probably showing my level of car knowledge by saying that!)

father-in-law has more tools than halfords, so should be good, but ill ask him. guy from ebay also said that the hub nuts can be a pain and whilst stopped short of saying buying them, said it can be beneficial in case they break as they are very soft metal

[joeishmather]

Yeah if you pop into a renault garage they should, if there nice print you the settings, I have them somewhere but nit sure where, bmn yeah I replaced those, and they were an arse to undo, very very tight, so tight we were lifting the car off the jack, no kidding!! Yeah I suggest you check you have all the tools before you start, my fathers a mechanical engineer n I thought he had all the tools under the sun! These star nuts aren't all that common so check first
:-D

[AlexB]

Just read the manual in the sticky thread above! The torques and everything else are there.

Yes, it is a quick job. Just don't forget to clean off any corrosion you find on the calliper, especially under the stainless steel "sliders" supporting the pads. Then spray the bare metal with Hammerite.

The rear pistons need to be "wound in" clockwise (on both sides). I use an open end of the combination spanner as a "screwdriver" putting a short bar through the ring. You have to push the piston hard while rotating. It is easier than using the special tool. Open the brake fluid reservoir when doing it, then bleed the brakes. Brake fluid needs to be changed every two years, BTW.

[joeishmather]

Lots of copper grease!lol I have the tool and have to disagree, it makes it soooo much easier it's a hell of alot less fiddly!!

[AlexB]

"EBC does not recommend the use of any grease in or around the brake pad, which can severely damage the friction material and cause loss of brake efficiency, but unfortunately some installing mechanics still prefer to use it."
https://www.ebcbrakesdirect.com/car/faq.asp

[joeishmather]

Just don't get it on the pads or discs, not rocket science!! I suppose now they're saying not to use it on them that's why there are so many ppl with squeaky brakes!lol

[AlexB]

Joeish,

You are talking about the old days technology. If you look at your brakes, you will discover shims on the pads. The shims have special coating, which makes greasing them redundant. The whole pad has a different and also a special type of coating. The friction side of the pad is chamfered and coated with bedding-in compound. In the middle it has a cut to remove gasses under heavy breaking. The calliper also has coating and the stainless plates in the points where the pad contacts it. By applying grease, you are just inviting more dirt in the system, which will solidify once saturated with dust.

The brakes squeak because people use incorrect/cheap materials in servicing, do certain things incorrectly (the usual problem with adjustment of handbrakes) or don't repair them once damaged through lack of use or corrosion. There was also a batch of deformed front callipers for Megane, which had to be replaced.

Finally, copper grease is obsolete as an anti-seize. These days people use ceramic paste that does not cause galvanic corrosion.

[joeishmather]

I always use copper grease and genuine parts always have and probably always will, the shims are rubbish, if they get knocked out of place they'll squeak, the thing with the shims is that they act as a packing and they do do the job but like I said I'd they move out of place slightly then start vibrating you have the squeak again, ceramic paste is hardto get hold of, all decent part stores sell copper grease, my brake supplier, brakeline factors definatly does and they don't make anything on selling it!? Anyhow the guy doing his brakes will decide, I'll always use the stuff but I guess I'm old fashoned, it's my 21st this weekend... Dont like to think I'm old fashoned!

[AlexB]

What do you think is the function of the grease applied to the back of the pad? It is mainly to stop formation of a cushion of rust. If the calliper is galvanised and the pads have non-rusting shims, then grease is not needed. I still apply a tiny bit to the points of contact, just to protect the galvanised surfaces, nothing more. EBC shims that come installed on the pads are pretty good.

Ceramic paste is available on the Internet. It is the same that you use on high temperature fasteners. I did an experiment: screwed a couple of nuts on a bolt with this paste, then heated the bolt bright red. Upon cooling down the ceramic powder was still there and the nuts were removed easily. Excellent stuff, clean as well.

[bobthemonkey]

It seems like you have most of it covered in the advice above. One word of caution, check to see that your replacement disks have the magnet in for the ABS sensor. I changed the disks on mine with a set that didn’t, only realising once the ABS light came on after completion. If the new set doesn’t have them, they can be removed from the old disks.