So many abutment clips in brake pad box

[troymcclure]

Just picked up a set of Akebono ProActs and noticed the huge bag of hardware included had not only one extra full set of top clips but two extra full sets of bottom clips. Why so many? Am I missing something? Reminds me of asking for ketchup at McDonalds and they throw a bunch at you. I’ll probably swap in a fresh set in a couple years when everything gets relubed.

 

[KrisZ]

Are they all identical? Sometimes the pads may fit several models, but the hardware is slightly different. I don't see them including extras, unless it was a packaging error.

 

[troymcclure]

Admittedly I only gave them a cursory glance when they arrived in the mail and they looked the same but perhaps there are subtle differences I need to inspect for before throwing them on. Thanks for pointing that out.

 

[KrisZ]

Admittedly I only gave them a cursory glance when they arrived in the mail and they looked the same but perhaps there are subtle differences I need to inspect for before throwing them on. Thanks for pointing that out.

Definitely double check and when it comes to installing them, compare the hardware to the currently installed clips. Wrong clips may cause all sorts of issues, so it's better to make sure you install the correct ones.

 

[troymcclure]

Thanks! I bet you saved me from tearing things apart a second time. I’ve only purchased OEM pads and hardware before so haven’t experienced this before.

For those of you that do this professionally, what do your shops do with the extras? You must have thousands.

 

[Hall]

Pads for our Honda Civic apparently fit 2-3 other models based on the extra clips that are always included with the pads.

 

[WylieCoyote]

The pads I got for my Shadow came with three different sets, different thicknesses.

 

[D60]

Thanks! I bet you saved me from tearing things apart a second time. I’ve only purchased OEM pads and hardware before so haven’t experienced this before.

For those of you that do this professionally, what do your shops do with the extras? You must have thousands.

I almost always scrap them. Trying to store, sort, label them all just gets out of hand. If one is organized, it's not a terrible idea to keep them, but I've got better things to do.

 

[lbhsbz]

What's the part number...

I used to work for Centric, and back in 2005ish (IIRC) we started including hardware with all of our pads. This resulted in having to create 200+ new part numbers (for each grade...and we offered 8 different grades at the time)...so 1600 new part numbers total. There are some pads that can use 10 or 20 different hardware kits depending on what car they're being used on. The rust belt customers loved it. The non-rust belt customers hated it because they had to add a whole bunch of inventory for the same coverage they had before, and inventory is money.

In cases where the abutment hardware is relatively inexpensive, multiple kits go in the pad box because that expense is less than the expense of stocking mulitple pads on the shelf.

 

[JTK]

Hopefully the previous brake job used the proper abutment clips, so you've got the right ones to compare to.

 

[D60]

Hopefully the previous brake job used the proper abutment clips, so you've got the right ones to compare to.

I sometimes wonder about this, too!

 

[Rust_Belt_Pete]

What's the part number...

I used to work for Centric, and back in 2005ish (IIRC) we started including hardware with all of our pads. This resulted in having to create 200+ new part numbers (for each grade...and we offered 8 different grades at the time)...so 1600 new part numbers total. There are some pads that can use 10 or 20 different hardware kits depending on what car they're being used on. The rust belt customers loved it. The non-rust belt customers hated it because they had to add a whole bunch of inventory for the same coverage they had before, and inventory is money.

In cases where the abutment hardware is relatively inexpensive, multiple kits go in the pad box because that expense is less than the expense of stocking mulitple pads on the shelf.

That is odd. So rust belt customers dont use the abutment clips?

 

[IndyIan]

That is odd. So rust belt customers dont use the abutment clips?

We do, and in the past you had to order both pads and clips separately, or reuse the old ones... Now I don't buy brake pads without hardware included, and it seems all pads do include hardware now?

 

[D1dad]

Oem clips are typically way beefier so I reuse them whenever possible. The closest I found to Nissans were beck arnley. Never tried akebono but I’m sure they’re better than the paper thin clips raybestos included.

 

[Rust_Belt_Pete]

Oem clips are typically way beefier so I reuse them whenever possible. The closest I found to Nissans were beck arnley. Never tried akebono but I’m sure they’re better than the paper thin clips raybestos included.

They are wonderful thick stainless hardware unlike some of the recycled tin can spam from auto part stores.
While we are on the subject any one use centric abutment clips covered in weird plastic film?

 

[D1dad]

They are wonderful thick stainless hardware unlike some of the recycled tin can spam from auto part stores.
While we are on the subject any one use centric abutment clips covered in weird plastic film?

I did. They were like $2 on rock auto when I was replacing pads on my 09 Altima that my son was driving. I have nothing negative or positive to report. They went on with some Ebc red stuff pads and did their job. They’re something I would never use on one of my newer rides though. Gimmicky and cheaply made. I wasn’t sure whether I needed to apply any lube, but I did. The covering almost felt fabric like, although I can’t verify that’s what it was.

 

[D60]

We do, and in the past you had to order both pads and clips separately, or reuse the old ones... Now I don't buy brake pads without hardware included, and it seems all pads do include hardware now?

For most vehicles the bottom-end pads are just pads a la carte. This is my experience on RA.

I typically try to only buy pads that include hardware as it just simplifies things. But I also usually still order new slider pins and rubber boots where applicable, so I still have to order those separately.

And as I've lamented before, in most applications slider pins are sold per caliper but boots are sold per axle. Makes no sense. I just have to remember.....

 

[troymcclure]

What's the part number...

ACT815A. I checked back and they go on Sentras, Altimas and some older Maximas so the smattering of clips makes sense now.

Oem clips are typically way beefier so I reuse them whenever possible. The closest I found to Nissans were beck arnley. Never tried akebono but I’m sure they’re better than the paper thin clips raybestos included.

Sadly the last pads on here were from the dealer who put on Nissan Value Advantage pads so I didn’t get to see the original clips which were probably pretty nice, likely made by Tokico since they made the caliper. The shims were identical to the Akebonos.

Hopefully the previous brake job used the proper abutment clips, so you've got the right ones to compare to.

I wondered the same. So I cross referenced to the pictures from Rock Auto for model specific clips and they matched as well. The 360deg spinner was amazing for that.


I did a strip down to bare metal for the clip seats with the Mueller Keups file which was fantastic. I was surprised by how deformed the clips were once I put them in. The wings that fan out to the left and right of the pad ears cupped upwards and pressed against the entire upper and lower perimeter of the pad and kept them from sliding easily. I ran it for a test drive to see if things would seat better after braking but no go. No brake drag but I wondered if there would be accelerated pad wear as the return springs couldn’t move the pads. Had to go back in and use pliers and a flathead to crease and bend areas to get them to conform to the caliper better. Slid great afterwards.

Is it intentional for there to be some pressure on the pads from those wings to reduce motion and chatter? I am under the impression the only contact should be at the ears so I reformed the clips to do that.

 

[D1dad]

Nissan value advantage isn't necessarily bad on some things. They install some of the best wiper blades i've ever had at the factory but sadly don't sell them at the dealerships. I bought a set of value advantage and they seem to be close. I had the dealer do rear brakes on my wifes 07 murano when I was recovering from knee surgery and the value pads lasted close to 60K and were very well made.

 

[troymcclure]

Nissan value advantage isn't necessarily bad on some things. They install some of the best wiper blades i've ever had at the factory but sadly don't sell them at the dealerships. I bought a set of value advantage and they seem to be close. I had the dealer do rear brakes on my wifes 07 murano when I was recovering from knee surgery and the value pads lasted close to 60K and were very well made.

My major experience with NVA is with brakes on a Sentra. Two successive sets of NVA front brakes developed a judder within 30K miles. The pads also squealed in the cold and Nissan had a TSB on this saying this is normal for value advantage but it was a warranty issue if factory pads are installed. Seems they have a lower standard for NVH issues on these NVA pads. The kicker was that the NVA parts were only $10-15 cheaper than factory Nissan parts. With the drums NVA was uncoated vs coated from the factory. Given all of this, ironically it seemed factory brakes were a better “value”.

I did have to get an AC compressor replaced at one point and the dealer used a valueadvantage compressor was just an updated version of the factory Valeo that ran much quieter so that was great.