[Sahil]

Hey guys need a little help ... I wanna know how one can check for themselves if the cars brake pads have worn out or not?
My accord (2002) went in for its 15,000Km service ...while dropping of the car i just mentioned to the manager to check the brakes since i happen to drive my 2nd accord that is in poona after a long gap and felt that there was a slight difference in the brake feel which could be psychological also. Minutes later when i left the service station i got a call saying that my break pads have worn out, i didnt ask them to change it coz i dont trust ichibaan totally coz when i had asked previously when does the brake pad generally wear off i was told 30,000 Km to 60,000 Km it should last.On second thoughts now i feel that if there is a genuine problem with the pads i should get them changed as i dont wanna take a chance when it comes to safety.
If there is some way by which i can know for sure if they r worn out would be great thnx.

[GTO - Touring]

Sahil,

Theres two things in this equation:

1. Your car is an automatic (If I remember correct) and thus no engine braking. Pad wear will be faster on autos.

2. You drive the car very aggressively.

3. The inter-relation between Point. 1 and Point.2.

I remember reading that Overdrive had to get their pads changed on the New shape Automatic Accord around or just under the 20000 km mark. From my C Class experience, I can tell you its a money-making gimmic for the service stations....but replacement of pads cant be ruled out.

Keep us updated

GTO

[Revvmaster]

Hey Sahil

As GTO-Touring mentioned, it seems that since ur car is an auto, the constant pressure put on the brakes (eg. signals) leads to faster wear-out of pads than normal in comparison to a manual. However it is also dependent on ur driving style as well as the speeds u constantly decelerate from.

Generally a car's brake pads should last more than 20,000 kms in worst case scenario and 30,000 kms in bare minimum scenario. One way to aid braking if ur car isn't braking as expected is to get the brake linings checked and cleaned while also getting ur pads checked and cleaned with sand paper. If the problem still persists then i suspect ur brake pads are up for a change.

Revv

[Sahil]

Thnx for the replies GTO-Touring and Revvmaster
I had the same feeling that due to the car being automatic the brake pad wear out is more. But isnt there any way by which i can check it for myself by looking at it?I am sending the car for wheel alignment this week so since all the *wheels will be out it would give me a better view of the brakepads.
The brakes seem to work fine for now i dont think i am gonna get them changed as yet coz i am leaving back for new york whr i study in 2 weeks and after that hardly anyone in the house uses my car. But when i come back in december the car will be due for its 20,000 Km service since it has already done 16,000 as of today,before i go i will put a few more 100's on that and a lil bit of driving while i am gone should make it due for serivce by the time i am back so i guess i am gonna change it then.
....Also my tyres r not the stock ones,i changed them to 205/60 R 15 the day the car came,could that also be one of the reasons for the brake pad wear out?
My mags r the orignal ones that come with the car....when i get the new set of brake pads,do u think i should paint it red to add the sporty look? just wondering if it will really show thru those thick spokes well?

[Jaggu]

inspect the pads.. if the thickness of the asbestos is very thin say 1 to 3 mm.. high time u change.. i guess modern cars have a sensor connected to the pads to warn u with brake warning light on dash if the pads are worn (see if there is a wire attached to the pads for this)

[Jaggu]

and its not the pads that needs to be painted but the calliper assembly rather

[Sahil]

Haha .. sorry i mean ''Calliper''

[aadix]

hey sahil, dont do that, wouldnt suit a car like accord, how abt get some mugen accesories from the us when u caome back in dec, for a mugen kitted accord check out this month's bs motoring

[Rehaan]

Hey Sahil,

Meant to reply earlier but didnt get the time!

I went through the exact same thing on my accent about 2 weeks back.
The brakes were no good at stopping from high speeds, so i gave the car to the service center telling them to bleed the brake fluid and check the pads etc etc and they said that the pads were worn out.

Now since your car is an auto you could take 5k-km+ off the life of your brakepads, and the harder you drive it, it just shortens the life exponentially due to it being an auto. (but still...15k-km is quite early!!!!)
Also, im sure the upgraded tires do kill the brakepads a lot as well, i have MXFs on my accent and i am pretty sure that the insane grip levels are an accomplice to murder of the pads!

How to decide if you pads need changing - Every manufacturer has a certain lower limit of pad thickness that they consider allowable, if the pads are thinner than that they have to be changed. The accord should have a in-dash warning for brake pad wear, or the "oldfashion" way of doing it is that there is a metal peice on the pad, so after the pads wear out to a certain limit the metal peice comes into contact with the disc making a screeching that lets you know. I doubt your pads will be below that limit, but if you feel the brakes arent confidence inspiring then you may as well do the deal now.

I had got some tire work done as well, and had taken a peek at my pads, and they seemed fine. (The caliper has a hole at the rear of it for this very purpose). But if you want to be extra sure it makes sense to pull out a pad and see the thickness (preferably the Front Right wheel). Its quite a simple process.... just DONT press the brake pedal while the pads are out!

My car has done 26k-km. Out of which i have driven it myself for about 10k-km, pretty damn hard on the brakes, but making good use of engine braking too. And when i gave it to the serivce center they told me that the pads had to be replaced. So that was done (cost - 1600Rs for 4pads for the 2 front discs fyi) and it did make a noticeable difference.

Painting the calipers red......nahh... dont like the idea much....

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] ]As GTO-Touring mentioned, it seems that since ur car is an auto, the constant pressure put on the brakes (eg. signals) leads to faster wear-out of pads than normal in comparison to a manual.

Revv, keeping constant pressure on the brakes at signals etc doesnt really wear out the pads any faster. Its the defficiency of engine braking on autos that causes greater pad wear.
That reminds me.... isnt it possible to engine break (quite a bit) on an auto if you "downshift" from Drive to D3 or D2/S. Works on some trannys.

cya
R

[Rehaan]

Another thing everyone might want to check to possibly improve braking performance, feel and reliability is to make sure that the brake fluid is filled to a level between MIN and MAX stated on the reservoiur in front of the brake booster.
Most of the time the people at the service station think they are doing you a big favour by filling it past the MAX level!! which is actually not a good thing at all.
Filling the brake fluid past the MAX line causes extra stress on the braking system, brake drag, or even brake lock (premature brake lock?).

Note - Any foreign substances getting into brake fluid can cause damage to the system, you have to be particularly careful not to ever let any water/moisture or dirt enter the brake reservouir. Dont open the cap of the reservoiur for longer than necessary. Take care not to drip any brake fluid on painted surfaces as it will eat through the paint.

A good way to remove excess brake fluid is to use a clean new cyringe (spelling?).

cheers.
R

ps - if you dont know what your doing, dont do it!

[Jaggu]

bleeding for air is another point and yes its good to flush your brake fluid off completely and fill with new every 2 years or so, to get the moisture / water that contaminates it in our inidan driving conditions

[Rehaan]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] (Rehaan @ Aug. 07 2004,17:31)]The brakes were no good at stopping from high speeds, so i gave the car to the service center telling them to bleed the brake fluid and check the pads etc etc and they said that the pads were worn out.

What Jaggu said reminded me....

I checked the pads that they replaced, and quite frankly they werent worn out enough for a change IMO, and thats what led me to search for other causes.

So the difference i felt with the new pads was probably 50% new pads and 50% after the bleeding/new fluid.

However just yesterday i reduced the brake fluid from over "max"....havent got a chance to really see what a noticeable diff it has made....will get back to you.

cya
R

[Rtech]

Just a point to remember...even if a pad is not worn out, it may have glazed over. This is caused by the heat off the discs when braking. Sometimes though this glaze is not worn off and needs to be physically removed by removing the pads and sanding them. Then wash em down with brake cleaner ( a spray that is meant for pads and discs...cleans em). Try them now, you will notice a big difference.

Rt

[Rehaan]

Hey Rtech,

Did not know that the heat could do permanent-ish damage to the pads (as opposed to only hi-temp brakefade)!

Are the petrol accent discs vented? coz i know the CDRi's are.....so i might consider an upgrade if the current ones arent vented....

Also, the older accents came with oil-filled shocks, and the newer ones with gas-filled..... im assuming those are interchangeable as well..... any reason why not? (assuming springs are the same)

cya
R

[Rtech]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] ]Did not know that the heat could do permanent-ish damage to the pads (as opposed to only hi-temp brakefade)!

Well, its not really permanent. You can sand it off!! But (excess) heat can permanetly damage most things it comes into contact with actually. And that high temp brake fade you talk about is basically the pads glazing ove due to the heat. The other layer of the pad gets a mirror smooth finish which isnt as effective. Also, instead of speed being lost to friction, its being lost to heat which makes is less effective for stopping the car!

As far as the shocks go, it should be a simple swap job.

Rt