I thought those pads looked familiar. I have had them on mine for a few years now. They work just fine, rotors too for that matter.

I attached a pdf that shows where to lube.

 

yea the rotors are by centric, they seemed pretty decent and they have a coating on all non friction parts to prevent rust

 

where did you get them from?

 

auto parts warehouse .com

 

thanks for the DIY steps, bookmarked+

 

The front rotors and brake pads for my 2001 RX300 (2WD) need to be replaced soon. Yet I already have new Lexus (Toyota) OE front pads. Could anyone tell me what brand/model, if not OE part, and where to buy front rotors to best pair with the Lexus OE pads?

 

Great write-up. You make it look easy!

I find that what should be a straight-forward project - never really is. For me, it's usually a rusted bolt that makes a 2 hour project in to a 1 week project! You folks who live in the snow-free south don't know how good you've got it!

 

Oh yes we do!

 

I never thought about putting lube with the brake pads so they would float and glide better. Also, I always pull out the glide bolts and put some lube on those. One time I didn't and the brake pads had uneven wear. One pad wore out completely and the other pad was almost brand new. This solved that issue.

 

i dont know that youre going to have much trouble with aftermarket rotors if you are just doing everyday kind of driving, ive had the centric rotors on for quite awhile now and theyre doing great, if you want OEM though you could go to lexus parts online .com but you will spend more

 

Nice write up and pics. Thanks.

What torque are the 1. Caliper slide bolts and 2. Caliper bracket bolts?

 

Nice write up. Just to add some comments, Definitely remove the caliper guide pins and lube them with special disc brake grease. These pins can 'dry-out' and bind and wear out a good set of pads and rotors in short order; not to mention adversely affect drivability. Also, while it is not required, I always bleed the brake lines and install fresh fluid when doing pad replacements. Fresh fluid can extend the longevity of your brake system.

With 182k miles on the RX, this last brake job I replaced the calipers with a nice set of reman units and replaced the front brake lines. I don't rebuild my calipers anymore like in the old days. Reman units are fairly good quality and much cheaper than doing the work myself. One cannot always tell if those flex lines are in good condition from examining the condition of the exterior since they can deteriorate internally. This is an inexpense measure on such important safety component.

 

One thing I would like to add is always make sure the mating surfaces between the new disc and hub are totally clean and free from any debris or rust particles before you bolt the disc on, the slightest dirt here could cause runout problems on the disc and be felt as a slight wheel wobble that will never go away no matter how much you try to balance those wheels!

As always with anything brake related, cleanliness is next to braking effeciency!

 

UNOHOO: Thanks again for this "How To" thread and the pictures. It was very helpful doing my '99 RX300 AWD rotors and pads.

I read everyone else's comments, too. All very, very helpful.

I replaced my '99's rotors and pads 2 days ago. I just bought NAPA True Stop rotors and NAPA ceramic pads. Over the years, I have been pleased with NAPA products and quality and have used them on other vehicles with good success. (No, I have no financial interest in Napa )

I'll add some comments and pics here, too.

First, I am glad I did this myself. After 130,000 miles on this original rotors, it was definitely time to replace them.

1. I spent a lot of time cleaning things with different sized wire brushes--Caliper bracket bolts, the hub mating surface, the metal spring clips (thanks for the suggestion), etc. Wear goggles or glasses as stuff will fly. I don't think any shop would have cleaned them as good. Thanks for the suggestion, boxbrownie.

2. I lubed the caliper guide pins with caliper slide grease as was suggested by JohnLX300. I wiped them clean first with brake parts cleaner on a clean dry rag and put on fresh lube. They needed it as the old lube was starting to get gummy. Be sure the rubber boots completely cover the guide pin (over the lip) when reinserting.

3. Compressing the caliper piston with the old brake pad in place was an excellent suggestion by carguy07. I had to compress it fully to have it fit on the new rotor & pad. Here is a picture of the technique:



3. I lubed the contact points before installing the brake pads. (Thanks again carguy07). Helpful pdf.

4. If your new pads do not have this little spring clip (wear sensor), be sure to remove the old one and place it on the new one. The little nipple goes in the indent on the new pad upper corner (inner brake pad only). Picture:



5. The old rotor did not come off easily and I had to really wack on it with a hammer. Lots of old rusty particles came out of the cooling vanes. Again, I cleaned the hub with a wire brush before installing the new rotor.

6. Before installing the new rotor I sprayed it with brake parts cleaner to remove any residue. Then, I installed it and kept it in place with a couple of hand tightened lug nuts while installing the caliper bracket, springs, pads, and caliper. I torqued per specs all bolts.



7. When reinstalling the wheel, the rotor may float a little. Be sure the lug nuts are hand tightened first, then spin the wheel to make sure nothing is rubbing. The rotor was not against the hub the first time I tightened it and it made a metallic rubbing noise. I loosened the lug nuts, then made sure the wheel was pressing the rotor flat against the hub. All on, and spinned smooth the second time.

 

For those with stubborn rotors, you can "borrow" a bolt to screw into the rotor to help. I "borrowed" this screw from under the hood that fit perfectly into the rotor.