• We’re currently investigating an issue related to the forum theme and styling that is impacting page layout and visual formatting. The problem has been identified, and we are actively working on a resolution. There is no impact to user data or functionality, this is strictly a front-end display issue. We’ll post an update once the fix has been deployed. Thanks for your patience while we get this sorted.

Schadenfreude's crackpot adventures in auto repair

Schadenfreude

Schadenfreude

Lifer
Alright,

I've never tinkered with cars much; take it to the mechanic for an oil change and regular maintenance, and forget about it.
Of course, it's not that I'm against the idea of tinkering with cars, it's more so that we live in an apt complex sans tools and garage (and I'm also horribly lazy).

Come a week or so ago, we start to hear a grinding noise from the car's front passenger-side wheel; I'm not too sure what it is, so I take off the wheel to see if there's a branch or a piece of debris stuck in the wheel somewhere.

Nope, it's the brake pad. It's worn down pretty badly and needs a replacement.

What better time to start tinkering than now, right?

I look up the vast resources of the internet, and I look up the info - seems fairly straightforward; take off the wheel, take off the caliper, take off the pads and bracket, and two more screws . . . done!

Well halfway done, but you get the idea. 8 bolts and 2 screws? I can do this.

All it takes is a few sockets, a c-clamp, a phillips screwdriver and silicon grease . . . I swing by Home Depot and pick them up.

Now let's get ready to work!

- I take off the wheel; I've done that before, easy enough.
- I take off the clamp. Requires a bit of elbow grease, but comes off easy enough.
- I take off the pad and bracket. More elbow grease, but damn it, I'm on a roll!

. . . and then I see the rotor. It's held in place by two phillips head screws . . . and one of the head is stripped. I try to jam a flathead in the vain hopes of getting it loose somehow, but all I get is a mouthful of shavings.

"deleted"

It's got to come off somehow, but I'm woefully under-equipped for that particular obstacle. In fact, I have no darn clue as to how I'm going to get it out. Sure, I can replace the shoes and go from there, but it's going to have to come off sometime, right?

Well I'm dejected now. Through no fault of my own, my hopes and plans for automotive repair is crushed.

Well, got to make with what you have - at least I can change the shoes, right?

Wrong.

The shoes I've ordered (which I got through entering my car specs - 2003 Honda Civic LX) does not fit the damn bracket.

"deleted"

At this point, I'm sitting out in the cold in the dark holding up a flashlight (I wanted to get this over with ASAP - nevermind the wife takes the car in the morning and I get off of work at 7PM) wrestling with this thing for 2 hours, only to put it back exactly the way I had it.

Great.

Well, I at least want to make sure that I put it back together properly; don't want my wife driving this thing and the wheels to fly off or have no braking power or something.

Oh, gee I can't even "deleted" do that. The steering column and lock is frozen up (I suspect that it has to do with me turning the wheel all the way to the left to expose the bracket) and the keys will not turn.

Great.

Oh, wait, I mean

[SIZE=+2]"deleted"[/SIZE]

Tl;DR?
- Schadenfreude tried to change brake rotor and shoes, "deleted" it up.

EDIT:

- Went out, re-jiggered the steering wheel, the car ignition turned on! Yaaay! We're at back at square one!

I do not know where to start...? First off you cannot use language like that in the title... Next while some profanity is allowed excessive use as in this post is not... Please try and keep it a minimum as it does not add any meaning to anything but does make it offensive...

AT Moderator
Bartman39

"Ass" isn't acceptable in the title. Edited
AT Mod
Gillbot
 
Last edited by a moderator:
manimal said:
Did you get towed somewhere or did someone come help you?
Click to expand...

Neither; I've had it raised on a jack and it was fairly straightforward so I didn't think I'd need much help - I just did it on the parking lot, hoping it'd be a fast job - which obviously it wasn't.

EDIT: Ooooooh you mean after all of this ordeal; I just went inside to do some online research and on another forum with a similar situation (stuck steering wheel/lock) it worked fine after letting a sit for a while - I'm loathe to look at this thing again anytime soon, but I'll go out once in a few and try to turn it on again.

At this point I'm a writhing ball of frustration; not at anyone in particular (well maybe the idiot mechanic who stripped the screw in the rotor) - I've sent a (non-threatening) letter to the auto parts dealer explaining the situation and hoping for a resolution, but my main concern is how to remove the stripped screw from the brake rotor at this point (and hoping the costs of getting this thing repaired isn't astronomically high).
 
Last edited:
You may find this tool useful. It's the best thing that I've found for getting out screws.

http://www.harborfreight.com/impact-screwdriver-set-with-case-37530.html


You can try cutting a slot for a flat head bit in the screw with a dremmel or other hand tools then use the impact screw driver. The worse case scenario is that you have to drill the screw out which may be above your abilities.

I've found that the first time you do anything on a car it takes about twice as long as it should. I guarantee you'll be much faster on the other wheels.
 
Howard said:
Drill out the head of the screw.
Click to expand...

the DRIZZLE said:
You may find this tool useful. It's the best thing that I've found for getting out screws.

http://www.harborfreight.com/impact-screwdriver-set-with-case-37530.html


You can try cutting a slot for a flat head bit in the screw with a dremmel or other hand tools then use the impact screw driver. The worse case scenario is that you have to drill the screw out which may be above your abilities.

I've found that the first time you do anything on a car it takes about twice as long as it should. I guarantee you'll be much faster on the other wheels.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I was thinking of something like that; a friend of ours (with a garage and tools) offered to help this weekend so I will need to take him up on that offer I think. Hopefully he has a set of them bad boys . . ..
 
Yeap had a similar incident. Changing out the brake pads and I find that one of the calipers have seized. Luckily I waited till a weekend and gave myself time and managed to pick one up.

Then I found out that in replacing the caliper that I've introduced air into my braking system and I had to bleed the brakes. Fun times.
 
I've found that 99% of my frustration while working on cars comes from rusted, stripped, or otherwise damaged fasteners.
 
The solution to rusted fasteners that I really like is a combination of WD40/Kroil/penetrating oil of your choice, some sort of torch (propane, MAPP, oxy-fuel), and a little patience. Heat the outside material of the fastened joint, i.e. the nut or whatever the bolt threads into, spray some oil onto it, let it sit for a little while, heat it again, and usually it'll come out. Rinse and repeat for more stubborn fasteners.
 
just drill it out and do not reapply new screws, they always seize anyways. And its not like they accomplish anything the wheel hold the rotor on anyways.
 
Oh, in case you didn't think of it - pick up some good antiseize for anything that gets assembled that needs to be disassembled in the future. You can't go wrong with metal-free anti-seize, but the best stuff is nickel-based.
 
HarryLui said:
Grind out the top of the screw also works.
Click to expand...

I can't picture it in my head - it sounds like you're saying I should grind out the entire screw? How would I extract the rest of the screw then?

Rifter said:
just drill it out and do not reapply new screws, they always seize anyways. And its not like they accomplish anything the wheel hold the rotor on anyways.
Click to expand...

Hmm, I will consider this.

Gillbot said:
Profanity, even minor, isn't acceptable in the title. Edited
AT Mod
Gillbot
Click to expand...

Methinks I've been neffing in the OT forums for much too long - my mistake, I was just really, really vexed last night! 😛
 
No need to remove the whole screw. There is no female thread in the rotor, so once the head is removed, the body of the screw acts only like a cylindrical pin. The head is the only thing holding the rotor in place (aside from corrosion in various areas) once the wheel is taken off.
 
This is where a welder comes in handy, you can just tack a bolt on to the end of it.

And LOL, "excessive" swearing isn't allowed in the garage? Don't come to my garage when I'm working on something rusty. 😉
 
Don't bother buying any special tool. As others have said, those screws do nothing for the functionality of the car. They just hold the rotor in place before a wheel is mounted. You don't really need them. Most cars that I've worked on the brakes on (albiet, only 2 or 3) haven't even had anything other than the wheel studs holding the rotor in place. (I take that back, one car had wheel bolts instead of studs, and if I recall correctly, the only thing holding the rotor on when you removed the bolts was the corrosion, and the slight lip on the edge of the axle).
 
Last edited:
I have been there many times, including the "mechanics words". Having the right tools makes automotive work so much easier it is almost silly. I finally got access to a lift and it made dropping a transmission so easy (maybe 2 hours or so with help for half the time grinding rusted bolts. ) I was able to get the replacement trans from the u-pull it place the same day. Which actually took about the same amount of time, again had help for the crossmember bolts/ lowering (thanks for the steaming pile of rust Nissan, these were '01 and '98 trucks).

But there is lots of fail in between, and there is still having to know how to use the tools effectively, it's a process.

or something.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

Back
Top