Mikey...Thanks for the pointers....I already have the caliper grease as well as new brake fluid and anti squeal. I'll check the pad thickness and report back. BTW, I forgot to mention in my previous post that the $75.00 per axle price for the pads was quoted by my Lexus dealer's parts dept.

Lee

 

I am not sure if I would use the anti squeal, if it's what I think it is. It is usually a adhesive type of material that goes on the back of the pads and in theory when the piston retracts the pads stick to it and also retract. It is made for cars that have a squeal problem. I did hear of some people using this with success on the older RXs (99s) which did have a squeal problem. I also read a post on one of the RX boards that claimed it neeed to be renewed every few months. RX squeal problems seemed to go away in 2000. Maybe the shims were added at that point or pad compound changed or something else changed. But as long as you have 2 shims on the back of each pad (one is silver, looks like stainless and the other is black), you should just have to clean the shims and use brake grease on them per the instructions.

 

Okay, I installed the new pads today.

Mikey, you are correct that the Irontoad replacements only have the wear indicators in the rear while the original pads had the indicators in the front and rear.

Here are some observations:

The front replacement pads were slightly thicker that the rears...I'm talking only about the wearing part of the pad. The fronts are 11 mm thick and the rears are 10 mm.

My originals had about 2 mm to go before I got down to the wear indicators and about 5 mm left on the pad. So it seems that the wear indicators are set to start warning you when there is still 3mm left even though the owners manual says that the pad wear limit is 1 mm.

Now, considering that my RX has 51K on the clock which is nearly 100% around town (very little highway) driving, we are talking about 1mm pad wear every 10,000 miles. Granted that this is my wife's car and she is very easy on the brakes. This being said, my local mechanic was full of bull...he had said I had another 1500 miles left on the pads. By my calculations I could have put something in the neighborhood of another 20,000 miles on the pads before I began to hear the wear indicators and (not that I would) another 20,000 before I reached the I mm wear limit (that is if I wanted to hear the wear indicator squealing for the final 20,000). So Mikey...you were right again...these pads last a long time....I'd say they are good for at least 70K and maybe more of around town-easy on the brakes-wife style driving. I'll bet you my mechanic didn't even look at the actual thickness left in the pads...He probably just said great...an RX with 51K...I'll hit him up for a brake job before I pass it for inspection.

Even though I really didn't need to change the pads just yet, I did it anyhow since I had it jacked up with the wheels removed with the new pads sitting on my workbench. I'm figuring I won't worry about them again for another 70K or until I hear the wear indicators.

Also FYI...I did not use the anti squeal...I'll report back if I hear any squealing but I do not anticipate it being a problem.

And finally, Irontoad delivered in ONE DAY to NY using normal UPS ground. I absolutely could not believe how fast they were.

Many special thanks to you Mikey for all your help and good info.

Lee

 

To all who are interested in this tread I have an update.

I was on the phone with Irontoad today ordering some other parts not listed on their web site. I asked about the lack of wear indicators on the front replacement pads that I had previously ordered and installed. I was told that the original wear indicators are reusable and should be removed from the old pads and installed on the new replacement pads. This applies to the front pads only since the replacement rear pads have permanently attached wear indicators

When I took a look at the old pads, the wear indicators just press on and they do come right off. So, I guess the next time I have the RX jacked up, I'll put the old wear indicators back on the new front pads.

Lee

 

Good information. I will have to do the same next time I have mine jacked up. This is the first I have ever heard of re-using wear indicators. I bet there are a lot of RXs running around without wear indicators on the front.

 

I replaced the pads on the two rear wheels within thirty minutes.

When I pulled the pads off of the front wheels, I noticed that the pads had two end "tabs" or "stubs". The pads (which I purchased from the Lexus dealer with the correct part number on the box) had only one end "tab". I suspect the wrong pads were placed in the box. Did anyone have a similar experience?

 

I would suspect that you may have the wrong front pads...My replacement pads from Irontoad looked exactly the same as the originals except for the wear indicators. I actually don't even think you could install them witha missing tab...If I'm understanding you correctly, that's the part that slides into the clips on the calipers and hold the pad in place.

I believe if you inspect both the original and replacement pads you will see numbers stamped on the back side...you may want to compare the two and see if the numbers match.

Lee

 

Yes...I concur that the wrong pads were packed into the box. I didn't even attempt to force in the non-conforming pads.

 

As it turns out, my 2002 RX300 uses part number 04465-48050 (not 04465-48060) as front disc brake pads. Again, the ends have two "stubs" which fit into the caliper.

 

Thanks for the great info in this thread.
No one mentioned about resurfacing the rotors,
is it necessary every time pads are changed?

 

If you refer to the DYI instructions as pointed out on page 1 of this thread, there is a discussion on resurfacing.

There is got to be a demonstrateble need ... pitting & warping before rotors should be turned. In any case they thin out the material and hasten its demise. I reccomend replacing the rotors if there is a problem.

Salim

 

Again thanks for the info..
My wife took our 01 RX300 w/56K on it..to the dealer while I was out of town. Thank goodness she called me first....when they said we badly needed front and rear brakes for ~$600

I said hell no... it's just one bolt after you get the wheels off...I'll try to do it myself.
So I bought Raybestos pads from Pepboys..(didn't read here first). The stock pads were worn...but no where near the 10% left the dealer said. I probably coulda got another 15k comparing them to the new pads...but I decided to change them anyway.

The fronts went on without a hitch..can't believe how easy it is. The rear however is giving me a problem.
I can't seem to get the caliper over the new pads. Either the pads are too large or I'm missing something. I'll try to explain...
The piston has been pushed back in, and the caliper goes over the pads...but their isn't enough clearance to slide the caliper out so I can line up the hole for the bottom bolt. It's like the outside pad needs to be half the size so I can bolt up the caliper.

I considered taking off the caliper completely...but I couldn't figure out how to get the top bolt off.
I took of the little dust cover...and I figured an allen would fit..but none do.

Am I making any sense...
Are my aftermarket pads..crap..or am I missing something..or doing it wrong.

 

I had exactly the same problem, click on this link and read my directions on the last post to solve your problem.........

http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums...opic=18978&hl=

 

It has to do with the metal bushing the caliper mounting bolt slides through, if you look carefully, that is what is preventing the caliper from lining up and allowing the bolt to slide through. You just can't push the bushing back unless you have some super-super strong hands or a press.

In short, do the following......

1. Remount the caliper on the car with the old pads, as it originally was,
2. Press on the brake pedal to push the caliper piston back out.
3. With the caliper still mounted on the car, use a c-clamp to push the piston back.
4. Dis-assemble and change the pads as normal.

This will allow the bushing to retract back ever so slightly and let the caliper and new pads to slide over the rotor.

George

 

Thanks for the quick replys..sounds good.
However, I'm having a hard time getting my head around.."compress the piston while the caliper is still mounted"

How is this possible...are you saying "don't remove the bottom bolt", and somehow compress the piston which will make the metal bushing/sleeve move back as well.

I'm not getting it...don't see how I can compress the piston without unbolting the bottom bolt..(which is what I did the first time).