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Friday, November 22, 2019

"How to Change Your Brakes " by Kyler L



When experiencing issues with their car, most people tend to resort to paying mechanics to fix their problems. Although this may save a person time and energy, It's going to cost a lot of money in the process. By doing this operation yourself, you can save up to $115! Hers how to do it
(This tutorial may vary depending on the car)

Materials needed
-2 car lifts
-2 Jack stands
-Tire iron
-Assortment of sockets (for variations in size from car model to model) -New brake pads and brake hardware

- Large C-clamp Steps
  1. Park your car onto a non-inclined surface, preferably in your garage if available. This is to prevent the car from moving when working on it.
  2. Place the lift under one side of your car and raise it up, putting the lift on the metal edge instead of directly onto the body. This is so we can remove the tire.
  3. Lift the car until you can slide a jack stand underneath it. Place the jack stand under and lower the lift until the car sets onto the jack stand. This is for safety precautions
  4. Take the tire iron and remove the tire by taking off the hubcap, and unscrewing the bolts that hold the tire into place. This is so we can get to the brakes and rotors.
  5. Once the tire is off, go to the other tire and slightly loosen the bolts, but not entirely. Just enough to where you would be able to unscrew it with your hands. This is to help remove the tire.
  6. Grab another lift and lift the other side of the car as well
  7. Repeat step 3
  8. Repeat step 4
  9. Now that the tires are off, unscrew the bolts that hold the brakes to the axel with
    a proper socket (not the caliper). This is to remove the brakes from the rotors.
10.Remove the brakes from the rotors. Make sure it isn't hanging from the hose it is attached to.
11.Grab a C-clamp. You must now push the brake piston backwards. To do this, use the C-clamp to sandwich the piston by putting it onto the back of the brake housing, and the other end on the edge of the piston. Twist the clamp until the piston is flush with it's housing. This is to give enough room for the new brake to fit.
12.Remove the old brakes from their slots along with the brake holding pins. Place the holding pins to the side to use them again later.
13.Remove the brake hardware that the brakes slot into, and replace them with their corresponding new ones. Make sure when removing the old ones, you pay attention to the orientation and piece that you are removing so you can properly place the new one in a correct position.
14.Once all the new hardware has been replaced in each of the four slots, place the new brakes into the slots where the old ones used to be.
15.Place the brake housing back on with the new brakes in, and bolt it back to how it was before.
16.Now you must remove the caliper (the part that slides). Unscrew the caliper and take it off This is to allow us to see the back of the pads
17. Now that the back of the pads are exposed, place the brake holding pins into their corresponding holes.
18.Once the pins are in place, bolt the caliper back into place.
19. Repeat the process for the other side.
20.Now you must put the tires back on. Place the tires on the bolts over the rotors,

and screw them back into place with your hands. Do not tighten them all the way with the iron because both sides are still lifted, so the wheel will turn when trying to tighten it.
21.Remove the jack stand from one of the sides by using a lift and lower it down to the ground.
22.Tighten the bolts on the tire that is still suspended into the air until it is extremely tight. This is to get the tire back on tight and properly attached
23. Lower the side that was just tightened, and then lift the other side back up (the non tightened one) and tighten the bolts
24.Lower the car back down
25.Congratulations, you have just changed the brakes in your car!



This is an image of my car. I recently changed the brakes on my car a few days prior. The brakes are working perfectly and I can now drive my car without the worry of brake damage.
I am knowledgeable on the topic because I am taking an auto elective class here at Etiwanda. My teacher has showed my how to change brakes, and we have practiced doing them ourselves with his supervision. I was also educated by my best friends grandfather, who is a handy man with cars. He helped me walk through the process when I changed my brakes a few days ago.
I hope you are now able to save money on your car expenses, and now have a better understanding as to how cars function and what you can do to fix them. Working with your hands can help you build critical thinking skills, and is an overall rewarding experience. Please take this information into account, and enjoy saving your hard earned money!

27 comments:

  1. Amazing step by step process for how to change your breaks. Your organization allowed me to easily follow along through each step that you provided. Great Job!

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  2. Firstly, I think it’s incredible that you can fix your own car! I believe our education should teach us some life skills, just saying. Anyways, I really liked the way you started off your blog with “people tend to resort to paying mechanics to fix their problems” because it’s so true! Everytime we have an issue, we have to send it to the mechanic, but I really wish we could just do it on our own. For such a complex problem, you articulate your points well! Your transitions help ease the readers into further steps. I also liked the way you elaborated on some steps: “To do this, use the C-clamp to sandwich…” and “Once the pins are in place, bolt the caliper back into place.” Next time, I will use your instructions to fix the brakes. :D

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  3. Thank you for making this! this will help me save money in the future. I liked how you went into specific detail with each step, for example when talked about how to use a C-clamp. This also helped me realize there are different types of clamps, so thank you for that step. -katera P.

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  4. I like that there was background given to your knowledge with cars, which happens to be right on campus. There were also thorough directions given which is always a plus. Thanks for the useful life hack! (not sure if I'd necessarily be able to ever do it correctly)

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  5. This is such a helpful entry because not everyone wants to spend about $115 just to change their breaks when you can do it yourself. Thank you for this entry because now I have a little knowledge on how to change my breaks. - Leigh Rubillar

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  6. This is such a helpful skill, similar to replacing a flat tire. You guided each step and they were easy to understand. Thank you for sharing this helpful skill that could save us $115.
    -Stephanie Cabrera

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  7. It's great that you possess such a useful skill such as changing the brakes to your own car. It's very obvious how much of a help that skill would be in the real world and it's awesome that you took the time to share that skill with others. Good job.

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  8. This guide is very helpful and makes the process of changing your brakes much more simple than I had imagined. Knowing how to change your brakes and work on your car is a dying art nowadays and will save money in the long run. Very cool! - Cameron Hunter

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  9. Rumjeet Pandher PER 2December 3, 2019 at 5:06 PM

    With these useful steps now I can change my brakes I hope i can use it so I dont need spent $115 or more on my brakes. Thanks for these helpful tips.
    Rumjeet Pandher

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  10. I think this is something that everyone should do at least once in their life’s and I think you showed that it really isn’t that hard. It was great the organization of the tutorial, I felt like if I didn’t already know how to do this then I could most definitely do it with your steps. Even though it is a little different for each car I think you showed the basics well and that this could help a lot of people.

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  11. Not everyone knows how to do this and you've created a clear step by step process how to. You even have experience doing this and it shows. This was a very helpful tip and now it can help others.

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  12. WOW! I didn't know how easy and cheap it would be to change your brakes!! Your How-To guide helps a large population in not only saving money but also efficiently doing it themselves without having to drive to a automotive shop and having it done. Not many people know how to change their brakes and not a lot of people know that it can actually save them time and money. - Aaron P

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  13. This was VERY useful information to anyone with a car. I am not good with mechanics, but these instructions made it very clear and easy to understand. Thank you! -Kayla M.

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  14. Just as a side note, being able to fix your own car in this phase of your life is a talent in itself and the most incredible part of this is how cheap it is to fix your brakes! Anyways, thank you so much for this I will certainly be using this blog for years to come if my car is able to be fixed from this process. Your detailed step by step process certainly will help people who do not want to bring it for replacements. This is a true blessing to post on a blog website I will save this for the rest of my days. Thank you for sharing this with all of us!

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  15. Woah I definitely feel like I can save a lot of money on labor after reading this tutorial! Many people see the U.S. public school system as not teaching important life skills but this definitely goes to show that our education can prepare us for real life. Thank you for this Kyler!

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  16. This is so great for people who have no idea how to work on their car when there are important issues that need to be fixed! With every step provided I was able to read through and follow each instruction that needed to be carried out. The hard work put into these instructions are apparent and will definitely help people save money and time while fixing their cars!

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  17. I loved how easy you made it to follow it was just a numbered step by step process that was very concise and thorough. I didn't have to read through a lot of fluff and unnecessary information that I would probably find on other articles on the internet teaching me this same subject.

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  18. This is something not many people know how to do. The instructions that you proved were detailed and clear. I truly felt like I look this up. -Rebeca Sandes

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  19. Whoa that’s awesome Kyler! The how-to was clear and precise. It’s really cool to know that you have been learning such useful life skills in your ROP class, types of things that will save you money in the future. Thank you for teaching me how to change my own breaks, I’ll make sure to look back to this tutorial next time my car is having break trouble. Amazing job!

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  20. I think it's amazing how you know how to fix your own breaks. It's such a useful skill to have in life and you've made clear instructions on how to fix the breaks. Thank you for sharing!

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  21. I’ll have to use this one if I ever get into car trouble! Your how to might just save some people more than 100 dollars. It’s good that you were able to keep it interesting while doing this. good job kyler, very cool - Hannah Colunga

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  22. I’ll have to use this one if I ever get into car trouble! Your how to might just save some people more than 100 dollars. It’s good that you were able to keep it interesting while doing this. good job kyler, very cool - Hannah Colunga

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  23. Wow honestly thank you for this because I had no clue and this is incredibly helpful! I respect how you know how to do this given tat many young people don’t. Question what are the pads ? What’s a caliper?

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  24. Great step by step guide. This is really helpful and a great explanation that can help save money. Not a lot of people know how to work on cars anymore. - Tyler Denton

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  25. Great step by step guide. This is really helpful and a great explanation that can help save money. Not a lot of people know how to work on cars anymore. - Tyler Denton

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  26. I couldn't have read this at a better time! Great job writing out the steps for people that don't know much about mechanics. Now i can change the brakes on my car!

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  27. It’s so cool how you can save money and fix your own car! This was a very helpful step by step guide that was clearly organized and thoroughly thought out. It’s an important skill to know and I’m glad you were able to share with us. Great job!

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