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I just had my ’05 Accord EX-V6 at the dealer and they told me my rear calipers are frozen. The pointed out that the rotors are covered in rust, as are the calipers themselves. I can post pictures if it helps. They quoted me $1300 with Honda parts or $1100 with non-Honda parts and I nearly barfed. I called a local mechanic and he asked for $775. Obviously much better but I think I want to do this one myself.
So I found one of Eric’s videos where he replaced pads and rotors on my generation of Accord, and another where he shows how to bleed brakes by yourself. I also found a video where the guy does the calipers (and pads and rotors) on my exact car. So I figure I now know enough to do this job. I have the tools and jack stands.
What I haven’t figured out is how to know which parts are good. It’s easy enough to find listings for calipers, pads and rotors but it’s hard to find reviews of them. I found some where the low-cost options have a few reviews where half the people say they’re fine and the other half say they rust quickly. I’m in the northeast so we get plenty of wet weather.
I don’t need top of the line high-performance parts, but I don’t want to buy junk either. How do I find the middle ground of decent parts at a reasonable price?
I don’t mind ordering online, but I also happen to have several major parts stores near me, including Advance Auto Parts, Autozone, Carquest, Consumer Auto Parts, NAPA, O’Reilly Auto Parts, Pep Boys, and US Auto Parts. If nothing else, a local store is more convenient for returning the cores after.
So, any advance on which parts/lines fit my range (not crazy expensive, will last a while)? Is my best bet to go to a few stores and ask what’s good?
Thanks for any info.
-cb
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I can tell you what I do.
And it really boils down to how long you want to keep the car.
I usually go for 2nd from the bottom up price wise. For Hondas, there is such a huge market and so many parts, you’ll have plenty of choice.
What you really need to do, after you DIY the job – and it’s quite easy, actually – is to bed pads to rotors IMMEDIATELY, without even trying to go for any driving. Or those will not last you long. It’s something about Honda brakes… So bed them in right away.Now, I don’t drive a whole lot these days, so the last car I had to do the brakes on was my 1992 Honda civic. But I ended up getting cheap parts store brand rotors and brake pads, and they worked just fine.
What ukrkoz said is quite prudent. Go find the absolute cheapest, then go one or two notches up from there. Brake rotors are a pretty simple part, it’s the pads that make more of a difference.
Something I like to keep in mind when looking for reviews of things like brakes is, the type of people who review brakes generally seem to be enthusiasts who will crap all over you if you don’t shell out the big bucks for Brembo rotors and EBC ceramic brake pads and so on. But the auto parts stores wouldn’t be in business very long if they sold unusable crap right?
I have a 02 & 05 Accord EX V6 as well as a 09 Honda Fit. I have had good luck with the Wagner Thermo Quiet pads on all of these vehicles. All of the major auto chains that you had listed carry this brand. Also have used the Advance Auto rotors and calipers with no issues after 50K miles. As was mentioned in the other replies it depends on how long you intend to keep the car as to what you decide to spend. Opinions on brake components can vary greatly, just depends on how you drive the car and budget. If you follow Eric’s videos for the DIY for this job it should turn out good and you will save yourself some money over the quotes that you had mentioned. Keep us posted on the outcome of the brake job.
No matter what turn you decide to take, do bedding.
Also, should you decide to go fancy and buy modded rotors (which I had on my 04 CR-V with HUGE success) do NOT buy drilled. Slotted or diamond slotted are best you can buy in that realm. Drilled are for performance applications only, and are routinely replaced after few runs. Or they crack on edges.I don’t remember getting a bad part from NAPA. The dealerships and repair shops use NAPA. The closest store to me is Advance Auto and I use then often. But at Advance Auto I look on their computer for their most expensive stuff. I’ve been burned even then but not usually.
Why was the car at the dealer? is it pulling when breaking? To me the rust itself doesn’t tell me the caliper is necessarily bound up. Rotors are steel, steel can rust.
[quote=”barneyb” post=107890]I don’t remember getting a bad part from NAPA. The dealerships and repair shops use NAPA. The closest store to me is Advance Auto and I use then often. But at Advance Auto I look on their computer for their most expensive stuff. I’ve been burned even then but not usually.[/quote]
I got a bad rear expansion valve from NAPA (that was a fun ordeal) so it can happen.
I’ve had good luck with advance auto parts in conjunction with coupon codes from: retailmenot.com/view/advanceautoparts.comThanks. I hadn’t heard of bedding before, but thanks to you and google, now I know.
I plan to keep the car for as long as I can, until either it dies or the cost of maintenance gets too high compared to a new car payment. So far so good, only brakes, tires, and the scheduled maintenance. I’ve been told I’ll have to change the oil pan eventually. I haven’t checked for videos on that but a friend did his on an old Tercel and he made it sounds easy.
-cb
Along AaronE’s suggestion, did the dealer explain the problem with the calipers? For example, the slide pins can freeze and yield a similar symptom, but not warrant replacement of the entire caliper.
I’ve put Akebono ceramic pads (OE supplier) and Raybestos AT rotors on my Honda, and I’ve been satisfied for 2 years now. Amazon had the best price, but their “Does it fit my car” wizard can be wrong, so cross-reference the part numbers with the manufacturer’s catalog. Also, Amazon does not handle cores, so the prices for remanufactured calipers may be higher.
“Bedding in” is dependent on the type of brake pads you use. Please, DO read the instructions that come with your brake pads, and follow them to the “T” The manufacturer knows the best process to follow. Some brake pads will instruct you NOT to follow any kind of bedding in process, and to just drive normally. I have found this to be especially true of Ceramic pads, which often have a special layer designed to help the pads bed in properly without the typically aggressive driving process that must be followed with other pads.
As for parts, I have had absolutely NO problems running the cheap rotors, and calipers from Auto Zone, however, I only use the C-Max ceramic brake pads. I have tried their Duralast Gold pads, and was completely un-impressed with them.
They didn’t explain the problem beyond saying they’re frozen. I don’t even think they pulled the wheels off. Why would a dealer shop put in extra effort to see if they can save me money?
Tomh,
Thanks. I found a page of bedding instructions on tirerack and it gave different instructions for different brands, so that made it clear that you have to follow the right procedure.
Another question: do you have to match the brand & line of pads and rotors? Or can you mix them and then follow the bedding instructions based on the pads?
First, you may want to read through this article. It has a LOT of information and videos that I think you will find beneficial.
http://www.ericthecarguy.com/faq/solving-brake-problems
As for parts, don’t price shop. Go for good quality name brands, preferably ones that come with a warranty.
You may also find this information helpful.
Good luck and keep us posted.
I am skeptical that these are so rusty to require replacing. I maintain my 2008 Honda Civic, and a 2002 Honda CRV in the Northeast where they are very generous with salting the roads and I have not encountered anything close to the amount of rust you are describing.
However, I’ve had horrible luck with remanufactored calipers with Advance Auto- the cardone brand. I bought three caliper assemblies from them (2 for my Toyota Sienna, 1 for a Honda CRV) and all three had to get replaced again within a year and a half. I looked up Honda calipers for your car from bernardiparts.com and it’s about $137 or $180 for Honda parts depending on which one you get. That what I would do if is really needed, which I doubt.
Also, I bought rotors from Advance for my Civic and I had to pull them out after 1000 miles due to severe vibration, I had saved my original Honda rotors and put those back in and no vibration for a year since then. I have 170,000 miles on those Honda rotors! No issues with them.
[quote=”EricTheCarGuy” post=108066]First, you may want to read through this article. It has a LOT of information and videos that I think you will find beneficial.
http://www.ericthecarguy.com/faq/solving-brake-problems
[/quote]
I’d read that article. Lots of good stuff. Thanks.I’ve decided that before I buy anything I should try to determine if the calipers really are toast.
[quote=”EricTheCarGuy” post=108066]As for parts, don’t price shop. Go for good quality name brands, preferably ones that come with a warranty.
[/quote]
So what are the good quality name brands? I get the impression that Beck/Arnley stuff is good, and that A1-Cardone stuff generally isn’t. Is Wagner good? Duralast? Wearever? (Side question: is Wearever the house brand for Advance?)
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