Hi all.

I am due to replace the front discs and pads this spring. The discs are the originals (7yrs!!!!)

What kind of problems will I have getting them off?

A few years ago I had an old Rover 200 and one was so seized onto the hub I had to give in and go to a garage.

Any tips welcome.

I know on the rears you need a brake winding tool but I'm not sure if it's needed for the fronts.

There is a good chance you'll need to use a hammer to detach the disks from the hub , and also if there's a large lip on the disks you'll need to chisel a bit of this off before you can slip the calipers off them.

Hi all.

I am due to replace the front discs and pads this spring. The discs are the originals (7yrs!!!!)

What kind of problems will I have getting them off?

A few years ago I had an old Rover 200 and one was so seized onto the hub I had to give in and go to a garage.

Any tips welcome.

Winding tool as already said.

Also my front ones were so badly rusted that no amount of hammering helped.

In the end I gave a garage some money and IIRC they said they used a hydraulic press of some description to get them off :eek:

Also don't try and use an allen key, I could go and get a suitable hex bolt thing for a socket set. IIRC the halfords hex sockets on a rail contain the correct size and have a lifetime guarantee

Front discs on my A3 came off easily after 7 years- even the screws came out, but odds are 50-50 you'll have to drill them.

If there's any allen fixings, clean them and tap the key home fully before applying any force.

i didnt think the front brakes needed the wind back tool, i thourght that was the back only :S

and blimey, 7 years, you must not do alot of miles annaully.

Sorry, need winding tool for the rear, but helps for the front to get the callipers out easily.

Changed my discs and pads this evening in less than an hour (2003 VRS, 52000 miles).

I think that the brake set up is the same, (apart from the VRS has bigger brakes,312mm).

REMOVAL

Get the front up on stands and take the wheels off! If your discs have the single screw fixing them to the hub rotate till the screw is at 12 o'clock, then looking from the rear of the disc you can see the end of the threaded hole that the screw is in (with a torch/lamp), spray plusgas/wd40 into said hole and go and make a cup of coffee.

After letting the fluid do it's job get a good fitting phillips screwdriver and with the aid of a hammer give the screw a couple of swift belts (loosens all the crud that builds up between the threads), don't remove the screw completely at this stage.

Next put a large screwdriver between the old knackered disc and pad through the hole in the caliper and lever the piston back until it won't go back any more, this will free the pads from the disc (even if it has a lip). Remove the large retaining spring type thing thats fitted to the caliper by levering out with a screwdriver.

On the rear of the caliper remove the dust covers from the rubber boots that conceal the sliding bolts, using a 7mm allen key undo the bolts and remove. Now that the bolts are out and the piston is pushed back you should be able to lift the caliper clear and remove the pads (you can hook the caliper to the spring lower mounting to keep it out of the way).

Using an 18mm socket undo the 2 bolts which hold the caliper carrier to the hub, once this is removed it's a simple job of taking the screw out and lifting off the disc (you may need to give it a helping hand with a hammer!)

REFITTING

Follow the instructions you get with the new discs and pads about cleaning etc. Clean the hub face before you fit the new discs and also any brake residue from the caliper carrier (where the pads locate) before refitting.

Smear the hub lightly with Copperslip (anti sieze compound) then fit the new disc and fixing screw (again with a little copperslip applied to the threads).

Refit caliper carrier to the hub, apply a little threadlock to the bolts and torque to 92psi.

Apply a little copperslip to the contact points for the pads on the caliper carrier, next fit the outer pad to the carrier and the inner pad to the caliper (put a little copperslip on the springs that go inside the piston).

Refit caliper ensuring the locating bolts are free from crud, then refit the retaining springs.

Refit wheels and lower car to the ground

Next get in the car and pump the brake pedal a couple of times to make sure the pistons have moved out and are making contact with the pads, there's nothing worse than going up the road to test new brakes to find the pedal goes to the floor the first time you try it :eek:!!

As an aside, I bought new drilled discs (Zimmerman, which are made by Brembo) and Mintex Extreme pads for £170 inc vat from German And Swedish (www.gsfparts.com)

The 110TDI has FSIII brakes, which are different to the VRS brakes.

The callipers are totally different, but are actually easier to get off.

Like I said my problem was in getting the disk off the hub.

Just had my original front disks and (more amazingly) pads replaced after just over 8 years and 75K!

The old disks came off no problem and it only took me about 40 mins a wheel. The reason for needing a tool on the back brakes and not the front is because of the handbrake auto adjust mechanism biult into the rear callipers.

Carefully driven octy 's brakes do seem to last amazingly well.....

i used this:

Brake pad and rotor replacement - Passat World Forums

I just struggled to get one of the screws out, and ended up drilling off the head of it :-)

7mm allen key on a socket drive and and your sorted. Was a pretty painless experience. The FSIII assembly is really nice to work with.