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MG MGF Technical - Brakes Change.

I am looking at changing my disc and pads front and rear on my 98 MGF and also doing a brake fluid change at the same time. I have had various quotes for this job and the cheapest (parts and labour is £250). I was looking at doing the job myself to not only keep costs down but also get my hands dirty for my own car.
Is this a difficult job to carry out? Does anyone have any information or websites to assist in the job? Does anyone have any suitable websites for getting the parts at a reasonable price?
L Shinton

Pads and discs can be had for very reasonable prices from various sources on the internet - including eBay. I can't vouch for the quality yet, but the set of grooved discs I bought for the Shed project car look fine on first inspection.

Changing pads is a doddle - various websites, here's mine:

Front: http://mgf.ultimatemg.com/group2/DIY/maintenance/brakes/front_pad.htm

Rear: http://mgf.ultimatemg.com/group2/DIY/maintenance/brakes/rear_pad.htm

Changing fluid is more a case of bleeding the system dry, replacing and then making sure you've got rid of all the airlocks. Simple to say, rather more of a phaff in practice, but certainly do-able. Use an easy-bleed type kit if planning to do this on your own.
Rob Bell

If you want to save even more, I've still a full set of slightly used standard discs for £30 posted - see http://www.lejambonfute.f2s.com/page54.html - although the postal situation might mean you'd have a bit of a wait to get them!
Mike Cunningham

Undoing the disc retaining screws can be the first hurdle, I'd recommend an impact driver - the screws are fairly low grade metal and can shear off (much swearing) or round off (almost as much swearing).

Getting the discs off can be the most time-consuming part, so arm yourself with a wire brush & a can of penetrating/dismantling fluid - PlusGas is one brand. Use the wire brush to remove as much rust as possible from inside the disc bell, and then use a flat blade screwdriver to scrape clean the area where the rotor fits over the hub flange. The trick to this is to press the screwdriver in and then turn the disc a good few times. Then squirt a liberal dose of penetrating fluid into the recess, again while turning the disc. As you'll probably see when you take the disc off, rust forms in the sliding fit between the disc bell and the edge of the hub flange and that rust seizes the two surfaces together. If you can get enough penetrating fluid into that sliding fit, after a few minutes of soaking in it'll be a whole lot easier to get the disc off - a relatively gentle hammer-turn-hammer-turn-hammer-turn-hammer should be sufficient. The alternative is sustained attack with a much bigger hammer, sometimes for an hour or more, which is good for letting out any pent-up aggression & working up a sweat on a cold day, but not so good for the wheel bearings, or your hearing...

Before fitting the new discs, smear some copper grease around the edge of the hub flange, and on the corresponding area on the inside of the disc bell. That way, whoever next changes the discs will have a much easier time. Then you can pat yourself on the back that not only have you saved money, you've done a much better job than a garage would.
bandit

My old ones were a pig to get off - I finished up hacksawing a crack-inducing slot into the disc and attacking it with a cold chisel and large hammer until the disc broke!
Mike Cunningham

The big hammer may help to remove the discs but the impact will dent the bearing tracks causing bearing failure at a later date.
It is cheaper and less hassle to pay someone who has the right tooling.
Geoff F.
Geoff Farthing

The trouble is, "the right tooling" at a garage will be a gas axe - which will be just as damaging (perhaps more so) to the bearings because the grease will run out.

Neil22

Gents,
Thanks very much for all advice given. In the end I have opted to go for getting them changed by a mechanic. Unfortunately my callipers (both front and rear) are also shot in different ways with one or two being seized and others showing signs of bad corrosion. So I am expecting an expensive bill but I think calliper changes would have gone beyond my experience. Just to top me off too my battery has also decided to give up on me!!!
Thanks again.
L Shinton

This thread was discussed between 04/11/2009 and 09/11/2009

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