2003 CRV rear brake pads

[supton]

Looking to go somewhat cheap here--this car is going a timid teen driver who likely won't have a license for another year, and even then it won't get much more than backroads driving for a few years, at a few thousand miles per year. By the time he's in college it well may be worn out (or wrecked). And... they're brake pads, not that hard to change.

When I looked the rotors looked ok but the shop says it needs new pads, ergo just want to do a pad slap (unless if I get unlucky and it needs calipers too). Again, rear pads, not fronts.

I see on Amazon Wagner ZD536 Ceramic for $18.80, Wagner QC536 for $22.64, Bosch BE536 for $22.34 and then it goes up in price into the $30 range. All seem to be ceramic?

I will admit it might be nice to have low dust pads, this does have alloys and maybe it'd be nice to not have brake dust. Then again, it's no looker, dirty rims are the least of its worries.

 

[eljefino]

I'd worry more about keeping the rotors clean from rust on an infrequently driven car.

To me that says find a semi-metallic pad, though I also don't even know if they still make them for your car.

Edit, they do. Now before you bag on me for ebay brakes, I've gotten a couple of semi-metallic pad & rotor combos from their vendors for my prii that have been great. Since the prius does regenerative braking, keeping the rust off is actually an important chore.

I assume you'll be driving this thing once in a while in the interim to keep things lubed... and to keep the brakes clean.

 

[supton]

We go out driving around the block at least once a week. Made the mistake of letting it sit for 2 or 3 weeks already, and apparently it won't hold a charge that long (lost the radio as a result). On the good side, it's parked on asphalt, and it's the middle of winter, so little rusting going on--the cars in the garage are suffering worse at the moment!

 

[AutoMechanic]

Any of them you listed should do well. I would watch ordering from Amazon as many people have gotten knock off cheap low quality parts from there. For me brakes isn’t something I would cheap out on no matter the amount of driving or anything. But I have had good luck with those brands.

 

[JeffKeryk]

Many have posted the quality and good price of the Raybestos Element 3 pads.
I have used them on several cars with excellent results.

Good luck and have fun with it.
I would renew the brake fluid if it hasn't been serviced.

 

[supton]

I might pull some brake fluid, depending on my mood, probably should have this summer. At the very least I'll see if the bleeders break loose--if not, then nope.

Looks like the last brake flush was 2015, but I'm not sure if it was more than touching the master cylinder (all dealership service).

 

[The Critic]

Dynamic Friction #1552053600, $15.04. I have them on the Prius and a few other cars. No complaints. They do not include hardware though.

 

[skyactiv]

Do you know what pads are on the front? I don't like mixing friction front and rear levels myself. In Europe, brake pads, shoes, drums and disc have to be certified for this.

 

[supton]

TBH I would hazard OEM pads up front. I think my BIL changed the brakes but I don't have the receipts.

It does have ABS so I think mixing is better tolerated than if it didn't.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

Replace the rotors every time you replace the pads. You might even want to replace the slide pins too, if you're lucky enough to not need new calipers.

Akebono pads are the best.

 

[Hall]

I put Wagner QCs (all around) on my wife's Fusion ~2 years ago. No complaints at all. Quiet, smooth braking, no dust to speak of.

 

[meep]

Many have posted the quality and good price of the Raybestos Element 3 pads.
I have used them on several cars with excellent results.

Good luck and have fun with it.
I would renew the brake fluid if it hasn't been serviced.

I prefer the element3 pads over akebono and hawk, yet they are half or even less of their cost. Probably 30 bux on rock auto. They dust mildly, but the dust is a dark gray, not the ruddy brown that stands out. we have them on two vehicles with very different characters, the pickup and Lexus, and I’m quite pleased with them on both.

IME, akebono is very close in oem feel on Hondas. Hopefully pads, new fluid and greased slide pins will keep it rolling safely for your daughter.

-m

 

[eljefino]

TBH I would hazard OEM pads up front. I think my BIL changed the brakes but I don't have the receipts.

It does have ABS so I think mixing is better tolerated than if it didn't.

If anything you want more friction in the rear. This car is very likely set up for 90% braking power in front anyway, which is fine on dry roads. But on snow you won't get the weight transfer, fronts will lock up, rears won't do anything.

With ABS they won't "lock up" but they'll be pulsing away, and you'd be losing precious seconds of good speed scrubbin' off time.

 

[JimPghPA]

Honda says that the break hydraulic system should be flushed every 3 years on a CR-V.

When you do a simple rear break pad job, be sure to clean the caliper slide pins, and lube them with the proper high temperature silicon grease. You should also clean and put a very very small amount of the high temperature lube on the abutment spring plates ( try to only put that very small amount ONLY on the parts of the abutment spring plates far from the disk where the metal backing of the brake pads touch it ). There is no need to put any grease on the abutment spring plate near the disk and the working surface of the pad where it is not needed and can have a slight possibility of getting on the disk if you put it there. You might want to look into if the pads come with a small supply of the proper high temperature grease. It would be worth it to pay a few extra dollars to get pads with the grease, because a container of the proper grease will cost you much more than that.

If you are going to do the brakes yourself, and are not familiar with doing it, watch several of the YouTube videos on how to do it. It is good to watch several because some do it better than others.

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In addition to the brakes, if it is an all wheel drive, then the rear-end fluid should be changed every 15 K miles. It only takes about 1.4 to 1.5 quarts but you have to ONLY use the proper Honda fluid. You can buy it online from some of the online Honda parts stores for less than a dealer wants, but unless you are buying other Honda stuff, the shipping may make the total price higher than going to a dealer. There are YouTube video on how to do it. It is easy to do. Again, watch several. You will need the low cost pump with hose that you can buy on e-bay that screws onto a quart bottle, and two new crush-washers ( I am pretty sure the fill and drain are different sizes ). And you will need to use a 1/4 inch drive torque wrench ( which you should also have when tightening the oil drain bolt when doing an engine oil change, the housing is aluminum, and you want it to be tight enough to not come apart, but not strip the aluminum threads ). When you get the crush washers for the rear-end you probably should get some for the engine oil drain bolt. I think it is the same size as one of the ones on the rear-end.

 

[JimPghPA]

Most of the YouTube videos for Honda CR-V back brakes show how to do the pads for the disk brake.

Here is one that concentrates on how to adjust the parking brake when putting on a new disk:



Of course if the parking brake pads are worn too thin then you will have to replace them.

 

[Trav]

Another vote for Raybestos Elements 3, I just looked at my VW rear calipers and rotors through the wheels and they are still in good shape going on their third winter, most importantly the caliper E brake mechanism still works like a champ which is a sore spot for these cars. The road is white with salt, so the conditions are horrible for them.
They stop great and are priced right, I cant find fault in them. Note that every coated rotor I have tried has had the coating damaged by some wheel cleaners and industrial cleaners like purple power.

 

[supton]

Thanks all. I'll see what Rock has and if I want to pay for Raybestos--they seem like good quality, for what I've used in the past, just not concerned here at this time. I mean, I have other vehicles to drive and the driver for this is a year out from getting a license. I dislike driving this vehicle and would take any other vehicle over this so it's not going to see snow duty for a while to come (needs tires and the AWD is a joke, plus kids don't go to school if the roads are bad, plus pandemic for who knows how long).

 

[Hall]

and if I want to pay for Raybestos

They aren't "expensive" by any means. They might be more than the others you listed but I'm confident they'll be less than $30 per axle.

 

[Trav]

$18.57

 

[supton]

They aren't "expensive" by any means. They might be more than the others you listed but I'm confident they'll be less than $30 per axle.

I see now that they are the $18.57 as Trav points. But Rock wants $9.99 to ship. So it's $30. I guess that isn't bad, was hoping for $20 or so, just being a cheapskate--and before you complain, cheap brakes on this will still be better than anything I drove, and not be all that bad. Let's keep in mind, it's an old CRV that is more than halfway done.

Right now I'm trying to figure out how I'm going to get some RT43's onto this--the Tire Paws are only half worn, but they really suck in snow. It's not going to get driven much in snow but I'd like to have decent tires on it all the same.