So.... this happend...

[Palmz]

Well i was driving yesteday to take a look at a new project car. i was coming down a hill and i push the brake the paddle went all the way to the floor and tha car wasnt stopin so i quikly pulld the E-Brake and it workd realy slowly so i had to use a curb to stop the car completly.
What had happend was one of the brake pads fell out because of one of the brake disks has cracks in them and it just shaves the pads... lucky me i hadnt sold my other project car so i got a ride home and took that out. now im thinking about buyin bigger disks and bigger everything. Any estimets on how much that could cost?

picz;
The pad that fell out... the other pad seems to be fine and could last maby 3 - 5 more months


the cracks in the disk.

No jacks for me... use lifter if u have it... :D

annnnndddd the project car.. it was cheap when i got it, i fixd it up and paintid it and now im trying to sell it.. bmw 520i e34

[keith6110]

talk about dangerous brakes. You say the other pad has 3-5 months left? I wouldn't trust this "other pad" with my life. Throw that crap out and get all new brakes. If you're saving brake pads, there's no way you can afford the "upgrade" if you were meaning brembo's or vr4 calipers with bigger discs. Just replace your rotors, pads, and possibly calipers if they stick. You're lucky the e-brake worked.

[troubled4g64t]

Glad your okay, but WHY in the world would you take chances with brakes.
For me it was fairly cheep i can get calipers for 25ea. at local yard them bought new pads and rotors. I have v6 dual piston fronts and rear disc swap. I think it was about 275 for all the rotors pads and rear e brake hardware.

[Palmz]

Nah nah im not sayin i want to save the other pad im sayin i find it wierd that the other pad has so much left of it. i will be buying all new rotor and pads but i wonder if i should just replace or upgrade while im at it...
and correction... the ebrake barly workd :P

[troubled4g64t]

And ALWAYS do breaks in pairs no if, and, or buts.

[troubled4g64t]

might just need to be tightened

[wetamup2k3g]

I'm missing something. How does a pad with what appears to be another 1/10th on it just fall out the caliper? I've worked on cars where the pads were metal-to-metal with the discs and not fall out. I've seen rotors worn to the vanes but the sliver of metal of a pad was still there. Is your caliper okay? I've never seen a properly-installed pad fall out, especially one with so much life left. And not to bust balls here, but unless you track your car, cracks like that don't develop overnight. I know times are tough, but do not cheap out and hold off on your brakes. Cracked rotors are not safe, you can lose parts of the disc. Change them shits immediately bro! I'd exchange your brake fluid too, no doubt it's seen some serious heat cycles and is compromised. Good luck and be safe man!

Also, as a forklift operator myself, don't get under your car and do shit to it while it's on the forks, they're slippery and smooth, at least use it to lift and slip a jack stand, some blocks, wheels, something solid and stationary under the car and then remove the forklift.

[E_Emerson88]

im with Greg. that pad shouldnt have fallen off. i would get new calipers. if your gonna go with a BBK its about a grand for hardware plus actual brake pads + rotors if your lucky

[beam514]

I guess my question for you is why were you driving a car with cracked rotors??

[Palmz]

To answer some of your questions i first noticed the cracked rotors on saturday and where i live no parts store is open for the weekend so i thought it wait til monday and buy new rotors i was under the impression the pads would be ok since i bought them just about 2k miles ago.
i just sold my BMW like 10 minutes ago and thats where im geting the money to buy the parts.
What ive decided to do is just replace the disks and pads and the rear drum pads and order in a lowering springs, if someone could tell if i need lowering shocks with the springs?? there are some mixed opinions on this. also are there some manufactures that i should avoid?
The forklift thing i did put the car on stands i just took a pic cos it looked cool

BTW. the car broke down about 15km away from my dads shop. My dad told me to put a vise grip on the brake line and drive it back. (ofc my dad was my escort)

[bgood12]

Yea man your pads look hella low they should have metal indicator on them that sticks up to let u know when pads are too low, maybe I missed it but in your pic I don't see a indicator.

[wetamup2k3g]

^^Some pads don't have the indicators, it's been a while since I bought some that had them on it. OP, check that caliper to make sure all is right before you use it, a stuck piston along with the hella skinny disc that's on there along with the possibility of the sliders on the pad holder (for lack of a better name) being stuck I could see a pad dropping but you should've had other signs before that happened. At any rate, check your hoses too, make sure the vice grip didn't pinch or cut your line.

Oh, and yeah a forklift makes lifting hella easy lol, just don't get under the load!

[Palmz]

im going to take a pick of the the other pad tomorrow it HAS a indicator it had maybe 5 - 7 mm left of it this one has maybe maybe 1 mm
and yeah thanks for the advise Greg i will check the caliper and hose. but if anyone could give me advice regarding my lowering shock question that would be great

[Skyforger]

Holy shit, those rotors are horrific. They cracked because they're too thin, and too hard on the brakes. Uneven pad wear like that usually points out to either:

1) The slider pins in the caliper braket have dried out, you need new grommets
2) The caliper is showing early signs of the piston locking up, replace BOTH front calipers

Last, how has your brake pedal feel? I'd make sure your master cylinder hasn't blown a seal, that rotor got those cracks from overheating, and that's usually connected to a bad caliper, or bad master cylinder (you're pressing on the brakes much harder than you should because of the lack of brake fluid pressure) Check the caliper hoses as well, if one of them has collapsed, it can cause the caliper's piston to not retract, and again, replace BOTH hoses if one is bad.

[Palmz]

okey guys stop.. ure makin me scared lol...

But i work at a machine shop and i have all the tools at my disposal and i think if the piston in the caliper is locking up i shoul be able to fix that..

plz keep in mind if i ware to get a new caliper i would have to order one from the us and lets say it cost 50 $ its going to cost me about 90- 110$ total. so yeah.. stop freaking me tha f out

[jubeiaire]

dude with that much dmg and heat wear on your breaks just get the money together and rebuild your front brake system.

Sky is right abought them cracking from being worn to thin but im also looking at your inner veins(the area inbetween the rotor plates) and they look like they are rust clogged worse than a 60lb heart during a seizure.

It takes a lot of abuse to put rotors in that condition and id not take the chance the calipers were dmged in the process, including the fact that your pad found a way out while the caliper was in a proper bolted position i wouldnt trust that caliper to be a paper weight at the bottom of my desk draw.

Its your life but me personally i think im worth a lot more than an extra $100 bucks in caliper fees.

If your scared from what were saying thats good it means your paying attention and thinking.....buy new brakes you can trust and allways stop...use old shit and go off a cliff or out into oncoming traffic cause you couldnt stop......

[Skyforger]

okey guys stop.. ure makin me scared lol...

But i work at a machine shop and i have all the tools at my disposal and i think if the piston in the caliper is locking up i shoul be able to fix that..

plz keep in mind if i ware to get a new caliper i would have to order one from the us and lets say it cost 50 $ its going to cost me about 90- 110$ total. so yeah.. stop freaking me tha f out

I'm going to be blunt, bare with me...

Your safety shouldn't hold a pricetag, if you need calipers, BUY NEW ONES, replace in pairs, and do it right the first time. I've been in the auto repair field for ten years now, and if there's one thing I've learned, half assing repairs ALWAYS bites you in the ass in the long run.

Save up, let the G sit, and do it right. It's not just your safety, but the safety of the others you're sharing the road with. It should scare you, having your brakes fail while doing highway speeds is something you should never experience.

[oakrdrs187]

Why did you let the brakes get to that point? :smh:
Especially the front brakes. With rotors like that I'm not surprised the "emergency" brake didn't work well in the time of an "emergency"

[Palmz]

well i bougt pads and rotors today no need to change the calipers they are fine. the piston moves with no problem but.
i also had the dealer order in the brake fluid hose or what ever its called
the total repair today cost me about 125USD wich is alot less than i tought it be.
the drum pads on the rear are realy good i think i just have to tighten the cable

[Skyforger]

Having the rear drums out of adjustment can also put more stress on just the fronts, definitely adjust those. Are the slider pins okay? Were they dried out?