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Your vehicle has provided you with a safe form of transportation for the past few years. However, you're now starting to notice signs of brake failure—brake judder, scraping noises, and significantly reduced braking performance. To properly replace your worn brakes and bed your new brakes, follow these steps.

Gather Your Tools and Equipment

Replacing your worn brakes will require several tools. If you don't already own these tools, then head to the closest auto parts store to purchase them:

• Replacement brake pads

• Brake cleaner

• Ratchet

• Socket set

• Floor jack

• Jack stands

• Silicone lubricant paste

• Brake piston tool

Additionally, if you plan to replace your vehicle's rotors, which is absolutely necessary if your rotors have already been smoothed with a lathe (or turned) once before, then make sure to have them on hand before you begin the replacement process.

Removing Your Worn Pads

Place your jack under a reinforced section of your vehicle's frame to lift your vehicle without causing any accidental damage. Slide a jack stand underneath both the left and right side of your vehicle's frame to keep your vehicle safely suspended.

With one set of tires off the ground, use your breaker bar and a socket to remove the lug nuts from your suspended tires. Pull off each tire to reveal your brake assemblies. At this point, you'll have access to the two large bolts that secure your brake calipers. Remove these bolts with your ratchet. Once your calipers are loose, you'll be able to pull your worn pads out of place.

However, before you can install your new pads, you'll need to assess the condition of your rotors. If you replace your pads without servicing or replacing your rotors, your brakes will develop judder and provide poor performance within the near future. This is because your rotors and pads function as one, cohesive component to create the friction required to reduce the speed of your vehicle. The friction and heat generated during the braking process will cause excessive wear to your new pads if your rotors aren't serviced by a professional mechanic or replaced with your pads.

Replacing your rotors is a simple process. Pull out your linchpin from your hub nut, remove your hub nut, and break loose the bolts on each of your wheel studs. At this point, you can pull off your worn rotors and have them serviced or replaced.

Preparing Your Brake Assemblies

In addition to servicing or replacing your rotors, you'll also need to adjust your brake pistons prior to installing your new pads. Locate the knobs on your piston tool that fit into the slots of your brake pistons. Turn your tool to depress your pistons and create room for your new pads.

Once your pistons are adjusted, use your ratchet and socket to remove the slide bolts from your calipers. Pull the rubber sleeve off your bolts and thoroughly clean them with brake cleaner. Apply a generous amount of silicone lubricant to the bolts and interior sections of your rubber sleeves before reinstalling them into your calipers. By performing these steps, you'll improve the response time of your brakes and prevent them from becoming seized.

Installing and Bedding Your New Pads

With your rotors serviced and your brake assemblies prepared, you can now seat your new pads into your calipers and reattach your calipers to your wheel assemblies. If your vehicle's other set of brake assemblies must be serviced as well, you must now reinstall your tires, drop your vehicle, and perform the replacement process on your other set of brake assemblies.

Once you've finished servicing the necessary brake assemblies, take a slow drive around your neighborhood to ensure you've performed the replacement process correctly. If you encounter any braking problems during this test drive, then stop and have your vehicle towed to a professional mechanic for an inspection.

If your brakes function correctly during your test drive, then head out to the nearest freeway to begin bedding your brakes. Once you accelerate to freeway speed (and once it's safe to do so), firmly apply your brakes until your speed drops by about 20-30 miles per hour. Accelerate back to freeway speed and repeat this process at least a dozen times to ensure your new pads bed correctly into your rotors. If you fail to bed your brakes in this manner after servicing your brakes, then your new pads and rotors will fight against each other and cause judder, poor braking performance, and unnecessary wear.

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