Folks,

I'm doing the brakes all round on my vRS this weekend - so far I have got:

- the discs and pads I need for both axles;

- the Laser 1314 caliper rewind tool;

- a 7mm allen key;

- Castrol Response fluid for top up.

Anything else I'm likely to need in terms of tools and/or parts ? A set of axle stands, wheel chocks, and a trolley jack is taken as read

Thanks,

Si

copper grease - I started changing mine once and found the tube was empty

Looks like you've got the lot there mate.

One other thing ,,,, some Copperslip ,,,, smear it on the contact area between the wheel & hub. It'll make it easier to remove the wheels the next time.

Rear need a 8mm allen key to get carriers off.

I use the allen key on a socket drive... much easier that just a allen key by itself. A set of a about 6 from Halfords and the like is only around the £10 - a good investment.

Since I have bought mine I have used them loads - even to help part the front clamps when changing my shocks and doing my cambelt change.

On the rears to wind the piston back in, I used to open the bleed nipple and let a bit of fluid out, so you would also need a suitable sized small spanner, a short length of clear hose and a glass jar to catch the fluid in (small mustard jars work well for me....)

Oh... and a nice warm garage to work in ;-)

You'll need a cross-head screwdriver and/or Torx-head screwdriver if you need to get the discs off. Don't know how many actually have the discs held on by a Torx, but there's a picture of one in my Haynes manual with one...

I could not get one of front screws out, it was well and truely stuck in there, drilled it out in the end....

Oh adn the plus for the pad wear sensor on the FNS pad was a b!tch to undo... I broke it in the end (just the plug bit that belonged to the old pad) as it was easier than spending 10 minutes faffing about!

Copper anti-seize and 8mm allen key picked up today, thanks folks.

If you are bleeding the brakes don't push the brake pedal to the floor. Only push it down about half way. The pedal never normally travels that far during normal braking and you risk knackering the master cylinder seals on any 'wear' lip or corrosion present in the cylinder bore if you take the piston seals into this 'unswept area' when pushing right to the floor.

JR

VAG-com can also help with bleeding the brakes I believe... I know i had it do something when I was bleeding mine :-) but I had drained all the fluid out first - which turned out be a rather stupid thing to do as I ended up with air in the ABS unit....

Job done - but one more piece of kit I'd thoroughly recommend is an impact driver.

This lets you get the little screw out of each brake disc, which invariable seizes up. Driver and a set of bits was £15 from Halfords.

Thanks to all those who posted with helpful hints

I want an impact driver..... something useful I can add to my christmas present list!!!

would you recommend buying new disc bolts incase i nakker some?

Any other bits needed? Like guide pins??

would you recommend buying new disc bolts incase i nakker some?

Any other bits needed? Like guide pins??

Deffo get new disc bolts. You can add me the list of people who had to drill the original ones out. As someone else said, the wear indicator wire is really awkward to undo. Make sure that if you have to use violence to undo this - aim your violence at the bit connected to the old pads (doesn't matter if you damage that).

is there just one retaining bolt per disc then??

will the discs just come off once I have removed this bolt?

(vRS rear brakes)

just looked at the haynes manual. he says to replace the rear caliper guide pins aswell. gosh

do i really need to.......

is there just one retaining bolt per disc then??

will the discs just come off once I have removed this bolt?

(vRS rear brakes)

May have to force it off as they sometimes stick to the hub.

just looked at the haynes manual. he says to replace the rear caliper guide pins aswell. gosh

do i really need to.......

You should get 4 bolts with a new set of brake pads,otherwise use a little thread lock.

Merci!