time/difficulty of rear brake replacement D1?

[Tugela]

I have a set of new rear rotors and pads I bought from Will a while ago and have been putting off installation. For those of you that have done the job, can you please answer a few questions about it?

• How long did it take to do the job?
• Any special tools needed?
• Any info beyond what's in RAVE needed? (I plan to do my homework and read posts in the archives relating to this)
• Is a hub overhaul a necessary part of the job or can I just swap the rotors and pads?
• Any other gems of wisdom?

Thanks.

 

[apg]

As for special tools, I seem to recall that removing the caliper involved an unusual, eight-point socket-headed bolt. While I eventually found the right tool - at a considerable investment in time - your 1/2" drive (sans socket) works just fine.

Unless the caliper needs rebuilding (like on the bench), don't remove it entirely. Just remove said bolts and hang it on a wire or big nylock out of the way.

Cheers

 

[p m]

with an air gun and hub socket, you can do it inside an hour.
tools: 12-point (not 8-point, at least on 4 of my rovers), 1/2" (or was it 9/16?) socket for brake caliper bolts, 52mm hub socket if your hub nuts are tight (otherwise, channel locks will do), and I forgot what size socket for brake rotor bolts.
RAVE not needed.
You can keep the hub bearings or replace them if you want to.

 

[fishEH]

The first thing I did when I bought my truck was replace the rear calipers, rotors, and pads. Its an interesting design to put it nicely. It took me a while but the truck was new to me and I hadn't fully come to terms with the WTF factor yet.
You might as well repack/replace the bearings while you're in there. Plan on replacing the washer(the one that gets folded over) and the gasket(s).

Specialty tools? Hub nut wrench helps. You may be able to use a channel locks without too much marring.
An impact gun really helps for removing to bolts that hold the rotor to the hub. I did the rears without one , the fronts with one. It makes life much easier.
A BFH is mandatory for separating the rusted ass hub from your rusted ass rotor.
Otherwise its pretty simple.

 

[Tugela]

Thanks for these helpful suggestions. I am gradually getting a picture of what will be involved. Thankfully I will have the assistance of a friend who has done brakes before. No air tools, but it sounds like a hub socket will be a worthwhile investment, especially if I'm considering a front brake upgrade in the future.

I'd like to explore the bearing replacement idea a bit more. The write-ups I've read in older posts make it sound like it's a bit complicated, but maybe I just don't fully understand the process. How tricky is it?

Also, if I'm just hanging the calipers with a zip tie or something until putting them back on, am I correct in thinking that a brake system bleed won't be needed? I won't actually be opening the brake lines, right? Is a brake fluid replacement something I should do while I'm at it? I've had this truck for nearly a year and I don't know when the previous owner last replaced the brake fluid.

 

[apg]

You want to touch the hydraulic fittings are few times as necessary. For the bleed screw, you can use an appropriate socket to loosen it up, but if you *have* to remove the hose, use a line wrench, not simply and open-end or worse, vice grips. And use Girling rubber grease as an anti-seize on these if you do.

Replacing the fluid and then bleeding the calipers is up to you. How dark/discolored does the fluid look in the brake reservoir? The darker, the more it needs to be changed. While a pressure bleeder makes this an easy, one-person job, the *last* thing you want to do is introduce any air into a reservoir that has been run dry.

Oh yeah...buy the hub nut socket. Nice thing is that Rover didn't change some things, as Series vehicles use the same-sized socket. It's something like 2 1/16", but if you buy a 3/4" or 1" drive socket *that* big, it'll be too large to enter the hub.

Mr Natural sez, "The right tool for the right job."

 

[p m]

The same hub nut socket is used on old CJ5/CJ7 - NAPA will likely have the same socket on their tool shelf.

Air gun is fantastic for loosening the bolts holding the rotor to the hub. Otherwise, it's a clusterfuck with a vice.
Also, rotor sometimes is pretty tight on the hub; you may get creative on how to pound the hub out from the rotor without mangling it.

Bearing replacement is easy, too. Just need to get the old races out and new - in.
FWIW - in about 25 years I've been unprofessionally maintaining my vehicles, I've never replaced the wheel bearing race, despite abundant warnings about not mixing the new bearings with old races. I am yet to reap the consequences. OTOH, I've never melted my wheel bearings, either, so the races tended to be okay.

 

[mbrummal]

I would invest in a ratcheting wrench to get the ABS sensor rings off. No room for a normal socket. I forgot what size it is but its a pretty standard size (mm).

 

[d1driver]

If you have over 100k miles on it and have never replaced bearings, just replace them.

 

[p m]

IIRC, my white D1's wheel bearings have never been replaced. 210kmi on the clock.

 

[enjoi1968]

replace bearings,while you're in there. I had 2 of mine weld the stub axel to the hub. Took an oxygen acetylene torch to cut it all out.:banghead:

 

[discostew]

One thing I always do when I pull the axle out of a hub is heat the axle bolts a little bit (not red hot).If its the first time anyone has opened it up the the thread locker on the threads will cause the bolt to break. once its moving keep going. The heat melts the thread locking compound.

 

[syugg]

Check out the link below for a good write up and illustration of how to replace the front wheel bearings. Rear should be about the same.

http://www.4x4wire.com/rover/maintenance/front_axle/wheel_bearings/

 

[Tugela]

You guys are great, this is helpful info. Any thoughts on this bearing replacement kit from AB? The bearings look like a cartridge design.

http://www.roverparts.com/Parts/9002D.cfm

Are there other replacement kits available? Pros & cons? I'll be ordering from one of the Dweb vendors when the time comes.

 

[n8thgr8]

I would invest in a ratcheting wrench to get the ABS sensor rings off. No room for a normal socket. I forgot what size it is but its a pretty standard size (mm).

This is the part I have a question about, Sorry to dig up an old thread,
Are the ABS sensor rings easy to get off? Are they known to break? Does anybody have a picture, or a link to a writeup that includes this?