[Briland_1LE]

I changed the pads and flushed the fluid this past weekend on my SS1LE, I recommend doing this maintenance yourself because it is a surprisingly easy job and can save you a lot of money. If you have any questions about tools used, etc. let me know. I figured out what to do by watching a YouTube video on changing pads on an SS 1LE and a different one on flushing the fluid on an SS 1LE.

Matrials/Tools:

- 1L of brake fluid
- 11mm wrench for opening and closing the brake fluid nozzles on the caliper
- 13mm wrench for the front calipers
- hammer and punch for the pins to change pads
- brake pad grease for the back of the new pads
- blue loctite for the front caliper bolts
- brake cleaner spray
- brake fluid flush bottle
- floor jack
- breaker bar or something else to take off and put on wheels
- mechanic gloves for brake dust

Mistake I made to watch out for:

On one of my rear calipers I took the old pads out and then flushed the fluid out before putting the new pads in accidentally. This was a pain because I couldn't compress the caliper pistons off of the rotor. All I had to do was remove the caliber itself, two bolts on the backside, and then compress the pistons and put it back on, with loctite.

Order for fluid flush:

- Rear right, inner nozzle then outer nozzle
- Front left, inner nozzle then outer nozzle
- Rear left, inner nozzle then outer nozzle
- Front right inner nozzle then outer nozzle

[cdrptrks]

Originally Posted by Briland_1LE

Mistake I made to watch out for:

On one of my rear calipers I took the old pads out and then flushed the fluid out before putting the new pads in accidentally. This was a pain because I couldn't compress the caliper pistons off of the rotor. All I had to do was remove the caliber itself, two bolts on the backside, and then compress the pistons and put it back on, with loctite.

If you remove the brake master cylinder cap you should be able to manually push the pistons in with your fingers (gloves recommended) or using an old front brake pad for extra leverage. The key is to do one set of 2 pistons, insert the new pad, then do the other set of 2 pistons on the same corner and insert the new pad. Otherwise pushing one or two pistons in can cause the other one or two to push back out.

Also the service manual only calls for brake grease on the top and bottom edges of the rear pads, not on the front pads and not on the back of any of the pads. Permatex silicone ceramic extreme is the only brake grease I have found that will handle track temperatures.

The service manual also says to use red loctite for caliper to knuckle bolts although those should not need to be loosened for this job normally. I believe blue is not rated to a high enough temperature. Red is a pain to remove though.

The 13mm is for removing the bolt that holds the middle pin in place on the front caliper. I use a 13mm socket with a 3" extension with a 3/8" drive ratchet for this since a wrench would probably take longer IMO. The extension is needed to clear the hard brake line on one side on my car. No loctite is called for on this bolt and I never had it loosen by itself after hand tightening it with the 3/8" drive ratchet during many different brake pad replacements.

Using an 11mm flare nut wrench where you can will reduce the risk of damaging the bleeder nut if they require a lot of force to loosen. I believe there's only enough clearance to use it on one axle if I remember correctly.

Also add at least 1 jackstand to the list so you don't get crushed if the jack fails.

[Briland_1LE]

Originally Posted by cdrptrks

If you remove the brake master cylinder cap you should be able to manually push the pistons in with your fingers (gloves recommended) or using an old front brake pad for extra leverage. The key is to do one set of 2 pistons, insert the new pad, then do the other set of 2 pistons on the same corner and insert the new pad. Otherwise pushing one or two pistons in can cause the other one or two to push back out.

Also the service manual only calls for brake grease on the top and bottom edges of the rear pads, not on the front pads and not on the back of any of the pads. Permatex silicone ceramic extreme is the only brake grease I have found that will handle track temperatures.

The service manual also says to use red loctite for caliper to knuckle bolts although those should not need to be loosened for this job normally. I believe blue is not rated to a high enough temperature. Red is a pain to remove though.

The 13mm is for removing the bolt that holds the middle pin in place on the front caliper. I use a 13mm socket with a 3" extension with a 3/8" drive ratchet for this since a wrench would probably take longer IMO. The extension is needed to clear the hard brake line on one side on my car. No loctite is called for on this bolt and I never had it loosen by itself after hand tightening it with the 3/8" drive ratchet during many different brake pad replacements.

Using an 11mm flare nut wrench where you can will reduce the risk of damaging the bleeder nut if they require a lot of force to loosen. I believe there's only enough clearance to use it on one axle if I remember correctly.

Also add at least 1 jackstand to the list so you don't get crushed if the jack fails.

Yes I had the cap open the whole time ofc and the bleeder valve open. The problem was the pistons compressed tightly to the rotor so there was no space to wedge something in between the two to pry the piston open so I had to just remove the caliper. As far as the grease on the pads goes, I thought it was standard to put on the back to help with squeaking but thanks for the clarification.

[cdrptrks]

Oh I understand now, that's unfortunate. I used to put grease on the backs of the pads before I checked the service manual. I didn't notice any squeaking after I stopped doing it. I think the backing material on the stock pads is already anti-squeak.

[RoaringV8]

Order for fluid flush:

- Rear right, inner nozzle then outer nozzle
- Front left, inner nozzle then outer nozzle
- Rear left, inner nozzle then outer nozzle
- Front right inner nozzle then outer nozzle[/QUOTE]

Any reason this is the order for doing the flush? I've always done farthest from the master cylinder and ended with the closest.

- Right rear
- Left rear
- Front right
- Front left

I haven't had any issues with this method over 3 years of brake bleeding before events. Curious as to thoughts or reasoning behind the method in the manual.

[cdrptrks]

The order posted by Briland_1LE matches the order specified in the service manual.

[Matos1LE]

Originally Posted by Briland_1LE

Yes I had the cap open the whole time ofc and the bleeder valve open. The problem was the pistons compressed tightly to the rotor so there was no space to wedge something in between the two to pry the piston open so I had to just remove the caliper. As far as the grease on the pads goes, I thought it was standard to put on the back to help with squeaking but thanks for the clarification.

Are you Briland Hayes? I think I've seen you at SRMS autocross days.

[Rik Chapman]

Originally Posted by RoaringV8

Order for fluid flush:

- Rear right, inner nozzle then outer nozzle
- Front left, inner nozzle then outer nozzle
- Rear left, inner nozzle then outer nozzle
- Front right inner nozzle then outer nozzle

Any reason this is the order for doing the flush? I've always done farthest from the master cylinder and ended with the closest.

- Right rear
- Left rear
- Front right
- Front left

I haven't had any issues with this method over 3 years of brake bleeding before events. Curious as to thoughts or reasoning behind the method in the manual.[/QUOTE]


You work from furthest to the nearest point from the master cylinder to get the best results... more fluid exchange less chance of air in lines.

[Msquared]

The order that RoaringV8 posted is straight out of the Factory Service Manual. The length of the hydraulic circuits is not as straightforward as you'd think due to the ABS modules, so the caliper furthest from the m/c may not actually have the longest hydraulic circuit. The correct way to do this is to follow the FSM.

[Rik Chapman]

Originally Posted by Msquared

The order that RoaringV8 posted is straight out of the Factory Service Manual. The length of the hydraulic circuits is not as straightforward as you'd think due to the ABS modules, so the caliper furthest from the m/c may not actually have the longest hydraulic circuit. The correct way to do this is to follow the FSM.

Yes, but he was asking why the manual had that procedure.

[cdb95z28]

The lines start at the master cylinder which is at the drivers side firewall then they go to the ABS module which is over at the passenger side firewall. The lines then exit the ABS to go to the individual corners.

[Rik Chapman]

Originally Posted by cdb95z28

The lines start at the master cylinder which is at the drivers side firewall then they go to the ABS module which is over at the passenger side firewall. The lines then exit the ABS to go to the individual corners.

True, but I don't think GM looks at it in that way. They always go by farthest to nearest of the master cylinder... as far as I know.

[Alpha1BC]

The reason behind the FSM order is that these cars have a diagonal-split braking system and results in bleeding one split before the other. In theory this will help keep contaminants from settling while bleeding one of the splits, but in practice (especially if the car is tracked and fluid is changed frequently) I'd be very surprised if there's any meaningful difference.

Any order should really be OK so long as clean fluid is coming out of all bleed screws and no air is introduced through the fluid reservoir.

[Briland_1LE]

Originally Posted by Matos1LE

Are you Briland Hayes? I think I've seen you at SRMS autocross days.

Yeah! Those events are awesome, you going to the next one?