Hi,

I know absolutely nothing about brake pad wear. I've got 36K on my current brakes, and I'm worried about what might happen if I don;t change them. Car seems to be running fine right now, so this is just precautionary.

1) Is there some standard thickness that you hit before you replace your pads?
2) What should that be for a stock S?
3) Any rule of thumbs? (like the Lincoln's head of a penny for checkign tires)

Thanks!

 

Helms manual? Would be better than some unknown people on the internet telling you what to do IMHO.

 

If you need help checking them, I would be happy to assist you. Do you have a garage and tools? The stock pads have a metal clip that will make the pads squeak when they are nearly finished. Are you squeaking? You would need to take the wheels and calipers off to check the inside pad. The outside pad will show more pad than the inside pad. If the outside pad is looking thin, it might be a good idea to check the inside pad.

 

Helm manual:

Brake pad thickness:
Standard: 9.5 - 10.5 mm
Service limit: 1.6 mm

Replace when at or below service limit.

 

Thanks everyone!

Asura, thanks for the offer. I'm going to take a crack at it first on my own. If you see an S rolling around with no brakes and some guy frantically waving people out of the way....that would be me.

 

Hahah, that was a good one, and thumbs up to Asura for offering to get his hands dirty. As always, thanks Xviper for his positive contributions to the community ( move to Cali) and that funny a$$ picture!!!

 

Ok, I got a good look at the pads. I got at least this much"------" on thr front pads and more on the rear.

However, the pads seem to have 2 distinct layers. The outer layer is a dark smooth gray. The inner, abrasive layer, is somewhat discolored by rust. The inner layer is has a slightly smaller footprint than the outer layer.

When checking the pads....which layer should I be looking at? What's the purpose of the outer layer, and is it suitable for braking with if the inner layer runs out?

 

You should be looking at and measuring only the layer that touches the rotor. That next "layer" is the mounting/backing plate that holds the whole thing onto the caliper.

 

Thanks xviper. I guess I got plenty o brakes left.