Although this may seem "no-duh" for some, especially for those who have replaced the brakes on your bimmer before, this could potentially save hours of frustration and mouthfulls of four letter words.

Tip #1. Buy an impact driver ($25 at Sears). It has a socket receiver on one end and the other end is where you whack it with a hammer. It converts some of that impact into a torque. This prevents you from stripping out the rotor retainer bolt. You'll also have to buy a 6mm hex socket.

Tip #2. Disengage the parking brake when replacing the rear rotors. Be sure to block the car so that it doesn't roll. With the parking brake on, you will never get the rear rotors off.

Tip #3. When removing the calipers to replace the pads, remove the 16mm bolts that hold the caliper bracket to the hub, not the 7mm hex caliper guide bolts. The 7mm hex's are much easier to strip out, so don't mess with them unless you have to.


That's it! Hindsight is 20/20. With the right tools and know-how, replacing all 4 rotors and pads should only take about 3-4 hrs (conservative). However, if you strip out a hex bolt, you're in for a very long and very frustrating weekend (first-hand experience).

If i get my parts this week...and with no rain on saturday, i will be replacing the rotors and pads on all four corners. This will be my first time doing this. i am a bit nervous becasue this will be the most complicated thing i have ever done to the car. i have some wuestions though.

1 Will i need to replace the anti-rattle clip? or will the one on the car work?

2 right now my brakes are down to bear metal...do i need to replace the pad sensors because of this?

3 do i need to clean the rotors before installing?

If i get my parts this week...and with no rain on saturday, i will be replacing the rotors and pads on all four corners. This will be my first time doing this. i am a bit nervous becasue this will be the most complicated thing i have ever done to the car. i have some wuestions though.

1 Will i need to replace the anti-rattle clip? or will the one on the car work?

2 right now my brakes are down to bear metal...do i need to replace the pad sensors because of this?

3 do i need to clean the rotors before installing?

1. No, just clean the anti-rattle spring up.

2. If you brake warning light is on, you'll need a new sensor. There are 2 , one on the fron and one on the back.

3. Yes, clean the rotors. The first thing I do is to remove the rotors and scrub them with simple green or other good degreasing cleaner. Then I risne them off with water. Just before installing the wheel, I spray the rotors with aerosol brake cleaner and wipe them with a clean rag to make sure there is no grease or dirt on them.

In 25 years of working on BMW's I've never stripped a caliper slide bolt. Removing the whole caliper assembly to replace pads is ridiculous. Don't make the job harder than it has to be.

It's very difficult to pry the old sensors out of the old pads and then insert them in the new ones without damaging them. Just get new ones and don't waste time with the old ones, unless you like making extra trips to the parts store for a $6 part you should have bought the first time you were there.

If you're replacing the rear rotors, you'll also need to adjust the park brake shoes afterward. Also if the rear rotors don't come off easily, don't force them. You'll damage the park brake. Instead, loosen the brake shoe adjustment first.

Lol @ #2

In 25 years of working on BMW's I've never stripped a caliper slide bolt. Removing the whole caliper assembly to replace pads is ridiculous. Don't make the job harder than it has to be.

Well I've read other posts where they've been stripped out, and if they're as tight and siezed as mine were, I'd much rather take the 2 16mm bolts out than the hex's.


Lol @ #2

Took me a good 3-4 minutes to figure out why my rear rotors weren't coming off...then I smacked myself for being a dumbass. But hey, it's a good tip for somebody that has never done a brake job before.


Again - this info was meant for brake job virgins....don't go bashing it because you've been working on bimmers all your life - some people do other things with their life as well.

i just for the parts. new rotors and pads. i want to do the job saturday since my brakes are really bad. i am not sure if i order them now if i will get them..so my question is...can i replace the pad sensors after i've completed the brake job?

also..there are 4 pad sensors right?

i just for the parts. new rotors and pads. i want to do the job saturday since my brakes are really bad. i am not sure if i order them now if i will get them..so my question is...can i replace the pad sensors after i've completed the brake job?

also..there are 4 pad sensors right?

Yeah, you can do the sensors after everything else.

No, there are only 2 sensor wires - front driver's side and rear passenger's side

Thanks a lot!!.

Its an easy time to swap fluid in your system too. One thing to remember when pushing the piston back in is that its not good to push the fluid back up in the brake line. This can lead to problems with the ABS and or the master cylinder I've read. When your compressing your piston, open the bleed valve so the fluid in the caliper goes out the bleed valve instead of back into main system.

hey guys. im gonna have a rough time sunday when im working on the brake. the groove on the rotor nut is all gone on the driver side and almost gone on the passenger. actually...sonmeone cut a slash as if you are goign to use a flat head screw driver to remove the nut/bolt. DAMN.

brakes are fun fun fun on any car

I've tried replacing pads in the rear, the guide bolts were seized on, I had one of those hex-on-a-sockets, and the damn hex piece just began twisting. The bolt did not give. I purchased a new socket bit, will be trying that again soon.