Problem fitting new brake pads

I could not find anything where the recent problems I experienced fitting new brake pads has been mentioned before, so I hope this helps someone to save a few hours struggling with the job.

Having decided to change my Gen 2 Prius for a 2010 model, I travelled less than 20 miles before the grinding of metal on metal made me aware that perhaps the "well looked after" car had not had a recent service. It was clearly a job that needed doing urgently, but taking the old pads out proved to be more difficult than it should have been. It was then impossible to fit the new ones, leading me to wonder if the correct pads were in the box.

The reason for the problem was that there was a build up of rust below the clips which the pads fit into and this had made the housing too tight. Once I realised this and managed to grind it down using a 'Dremel' I was able to complete the job.

I had intended to replace the brake fluid with the "Not using Techstream" method. However, I could not get it to work and never got the brake warning light to blink. The English on the sheet is not perfect, so I am not sure where it went wrong. I normally use a brake hose clamp and open the bleed screw connected to a tube etc. when returning the cylinder into the caliper and this worked ok on the Gen 3 with no warning lights after the job was done.

 

I had the parking brake on when I did the front pads, but of course it needs to be off for the rear. There was a build up of rust under all the clips. but it was worse on the bottom clips. The problem with brake pads on the Prius and perhaps on all hybrids, is that if the car is driven properly in an attempt to maximise mpg then the brakes do not get used so much and pads may last for several years. I would guess that the pads on mine at 62,000 miles had not been changed since the car was new, so probably never had more than a quick inspection for the MoT.

I did notice that there was uneven wear on the pads. Mostly the outer one was near or on the metal, whereas the inner one had as much as 1/4 inch left. Perhaps that pad was sticking in the caliper due to rust build up and on some of the past MoTs there are 'advisories' that the brakes were binding but not seriously!

The advantage of using a brake hose clamp and filling a jar with the fluid is that you are are not forcing the old fluid back into the system and are able to see the condition of that fluid.

It's not a bad idea to occasionally check whether the temperature of one (or more) of the discs is warmer than the others after a short run, indicating that the brakes could be binding, especially if mpg begins to drop. In the absence of anything better a wet finger will do, but be careful. When I did it with a dry finger, it got burnt!

You may see the struggle I had with the pads on the photo.

 

On reading again, I see that you are asking about the parking brake when trying the "Not using Techstream method". Sorry, and I cannot remember, but I will try the method again to see if I can get the blinking brake light, while making sure that the brake is on.