3gInOc

So my chick asked me to change her brakes on her LX470. No big deal so I thought. Trying to impress her I called the dealer to see how much money I would be saving her. They said it was going to be a grand. They said that when ever you change the brakes you have to change the wheel hub bearings. Is this true? Sounds really odd to me.

Is there anything out of the norm on changing the brakes on this vehicle?

midwest2

As long as you leave the rotor alone there is no difference.

3gInOc

So just to clarify. If I do not change the rotors I will not have to replace the bearings. But if I do I will need to?

midwest2

I'm not an expert on this, but I believe if you remove the rotors you have the wheel bearings to deal with. Doesn't mean they have to be replaced though.

kwatt1

$1000 - sounds like the fronts only.

Here is the deal...

If you have to replace the front rotors or turn the front rotors (which you should do with a brake job) then you have to remove the rotors up front. To do that you have to take the hubs apart. If you've not done that before its not a hard job but it's not like a typical car.

Bearing replacement can only be assessed AFTER the hubs are taken apart so that is bad info from the dealer.

The hubs NEED to be taken apart and greased on occassion - like 60K miles or something like that. I have 150K and I have only done it once. But I know its time because I am starting to feel a little wandering going on. The hubs come apart fairly easily except for 2 things. 1) The plates are held in place with a cone washer. You need a brass hammer or punch to pop them loose. It's not hard but it's nerve racking and reqjuires patience. 2) the bearings have to be pre-loaded. I use a fish scale to do it. Don't quote me, but I think 8-10 lbs on the scale to rotate the hub is the correct setting, but you should use the Toyota Tech site to get the torque and data specs.

Pad replacements are basicly similar to most vehicles. Just make sure you get all the support hardware. You should also replace the brake fluid - which is recommended for most newer vehicles. The front calipers are 4 piston each so pushing htem back means doing both sides at the same time. Open the bleeder prior so you get rid of the old brake fluid in the caliper rather than pushing it back into the system. Ceramic pads will get rid of the messy dust on the wheels and htey wear well; but you need to get a good quality rotor as the ceramics generate more rotor heat. Last pads I bought were either Monroe or Akebono Ceramics (about $40). For Rotors, I like the Raybestos Advanced Tech. (about $50 each); Centirc are junk - as I learned the hard way.

Lastly, advice, if you are a tinkerer with mechanics, impressing your *chick* with a LX470 could get expensive if you screw it up.