Front break pads need replacing on xantia

lynndyloo · Post by **lynndyloo** » 12 Apr 2004, 19:11

Hi,The front break pads on our car have worn down,we only had them replaced last July.Is this normal?We have a xantia 1.9TD.My husband was thinking about doing them himself.How much can you buy them for and how easy are they to fit.Thanks.Lynn.

Post by **RichardW** » 12 Apr 2004, 19:45

Lynn,
If you've only done 5000 miles, then no, not normal, if, on the other hand, you've done 35,000 miles then yes, probably normal! What are you basing 'worn down' on - visual inspection or the wear indicator? - the latter is notoriously unreliable. If the pads are not worn evenly eg one side of the car much more than the other, then this points to a problem with the caliper - either the slide is jammed, the piston is sticking or the handbrake mechanism is sticking. Excessive wear might also mean the discs need replacement. It is normal for one of the pads in a pair to be more worn than the other due to the sliding caliper arrangement.
Replacing Xantia pads is pretty straight forward and well detailed in Haynes, but brakes are critical, so if your other half is not at all confident about doing the job properly, it should be entrusted to someone who knows what they are doing (mind you, I wonder about this in certain fitting places...!). Brake pads are very cheap from GSF, even for the Bendix originals.

lynndyloo · Post by **lynndyloo** » 12 Apr 2004, 19:52

Thanks for the reply.The brake indicator is not coming on.Had them checked at the garage and they said they were worn.Don't know if one side is worn more than the other,just said both need replacing.The back ones are ok,we have had the car for a year and not needed replacing them,just the front.The car has done 142 k and is an L reg,Thanks.Lynn.

JohnD · Post by **JohnD** » 12 Apr 2004, 23:18

I don't think I would like to rely too much on the say-so of some garages regarding the state of my front brake pads. If they are working correctly, you should expect a life of 30 to 35 thousand miles; the rears, more so. If your husband is capable of safely jacking up a front corner, removing the wheel, then the edges of the pads can be seen, either side of the brake disc. The metal backing of each pad is around 3mm thick and the friction material, between the backing and the brake disc should be between 8mm and 3mm, depending upon the amount of life left in the pads.

lynndyloo · Post by **lynndyloo** » 13 Apr 2004, 02:52

Hi,We have only done 10k since having new ones last year.I think they have worn down because we can hear a grinding sound when breaking,especially after coming off motorway.Somebody said that we may have a lazy caliper,thats why they are wearing down so fast.Don't know how true that is.Thanks.Lynn.