Hello PC, I have questions about DIY Brakes replacement. I have a 2010 Prius about 150k miles on it and I'm going to replace the front and rear brake pads, but do I also need to replace all the hardware also? I bought the OEM Toyota parts and does not have any hardware inside the boxes. do all the hardware also need to be replaced? I was surprise when I received my order. all I got were pads and nothing else. I got to call the local Toyota dealer to get the hardware if necessary. Thanks in advance. Yoko
^ These little bits (highlighted in yellow) will very likely be fine, I can't recall ever replacing them, on any car. They're hard to remove too: you pretty much have to remove that "brake cylinder mounting" bracket to extricate them. I would leave them be. ^ The shims, will probably be re-usable. The little clips on the edges will start to rust out, that's the main thing that can go. If they're ok, I would just clean them thouroughly, then reassemble on the pads with a thin smear of anti-seize compound on all the points of contact. If you suspect they're going to need replacement, you can pick up the shims from a local dealership parts department, for $15~25 for front or back. If you've alternate means of transportation, verify the dealership has the shim parts in stock before starting, remove the calipers and make a decision then. Just general: 1. To be on the safe side, disconnect negative 12 volt battery cable before starting, and when brakes are reassemble, pump brake pedal several times, and only then reconnect the cable. This will prevent possible caliper piston ejection when the caliper's off (if system decides to pressurize, most typically when driver's door is opened), and ensure the computers don't detect excess brake pedal travel when you next use the car. 2. Be very careful when reassembling rear brakes, that the piston face pattern is in X orientation. Like this: Further, do the multiple brake pedal depressions to ensure it's well seated in that orientation, and avoid using the parking brake till you've done a test drive, to further seat the piston in that orientation. You do not want it rotating. To double check: raise the rear of the car a day or two later, with parking brake released, and check rear wheel drag. There will be light drag, but it should be relatively easy to spin the wheels a turn or two. More info in the attachment:
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For the rears, the springs and liner plates are 04948-47010 Fitting Kit Disc Bra $22.71 from my local Toyota dealer. If they're well-rusted in (as they were in my case), they can take a bit of doing to pop out with a screwdriver. Although the caliper mount doesn't have to be removed to replace them, you might have to take it out, as I did, to file out the accumulated rust from the channels. The new ones will then pop right in.
Everything depends on condition ... so far, those little bits (sold as the "fitting kit" by Toyota) are the only rear brake parts I have changed on my 2010. On my first tire rotation/brake check after I bought the car (at about 110,000), I noticed they were rusty and rough, and the ears of the pads did not move very smoothly in them. I didn't have a new fitting kit handy, so all I did was note the problem, and order a fitting kit before my next rotation/brake check, when I put them in. I didn't find them stubborn to get out, just persuaded them a little with a small screwdriver. When new, the pieces have a very slippery dry coating (Teflon-like). No grease (which, paradoxically, would just attract grit and make them less slippery). Did a bit of wire-brushing on the ears of the old pads (which still have plenty of lining left). A new fitting kit is so slippery, in fact, it turns reassembling the caliper into a bit of a slapstick routine. It takes one hand just to hold the pads together against the rotor while flipping the caliper body back down, because otherwise, the V springs on top (also part of the fitting kit) will slide them right apart. And again, that's without any sort of grease. -Chap