Hey Guys... First of all, AWESOME site... I just got my Tracker in Jan. for a daily driver.  I never realized what you could do to these things and have got the bug, just not the funds.  I have been logged into this place for over 8 hours searching through info and now I have a couple of questions.

#1. After driving this thing for a few weeks I noticed my passenger side rotor is shot because the pads were wore down to the metal.  When I looked at the driver side pads, everything looks good... Lot of meat on the pad and the rotor is fine.  Does this suggest that the passenger side is seeing more braking pressure than the driver side?

#2. My Tracker is up on jack stands right now.  I went in to replace the front rotors and brake pads and ran into a problem with the rusted rotors stuck to the hub... This thing has virtually no body/frame rust, but these rotors are a mother to get off.. I noticed the new rotors have threaded holes to pry the rotor off, but the ones that are on the Track now don't have the holes available.  Any suggestions on how to get these rotors free, any sprays that will help loosen up the rusty stuff?


Thanks!

ERock

#2.  The fact that there are no threaded holes in the rotor indicates that these are not OEM rotors.  From my experiences with the TracKick,  rotors are replaced when people drive like idiots with their foot on the brake pedal.  That said, taking them off is a matter of a few "love taps" from the backside edge of the old rotors with a hammer.  Of course, you can help things along with some PB Blaster...

#1.  Three possibilities: 

The pads were not replaced as a front set. 

The passenger side pads were improperly installed.  I did that on my '93. I put the outer pad on backwards and driving to the garage for other work nearly destroyed the rotor.  oops!  If the installer decided to slap on a fresh set of pad without turning the damaged rotor, braking would be bad on that side and the replacement pads would wear faster.

And there is/was air in the passenger side brake line from a bad bleeding job.  Air in the line will cause uneven braking and uneven pad wear. from side to side.

Hope this helps!

may need a new caliper also... could be seizing up and dragging a bit.. if you change one change them both.

Thanks!  This will get me headed in the right direction.

try to push the caliper piston back in with a large set of adjustible pliers. it should move in nice and smooth. also check that the caliper sliders are free and move easily. if you have to buy a new caliper spend a little extra $$$ and get the 4 door calipers, rotors,and pads. you will notice a big difference in the braking.

derek

I second the four door motion!   
They will last longer as well.  I seem to remember needing the caliper mount in addition to the other parts.  I junk yarded all the parts, then bought new rotors and pads (after all).  Sometimes you need to take a caliper apart and clean out the piston bores, as they can get residue build up.  This will cause a problem when the pistons are pushed back into the residue and make them stick.  Another upside to doing this is you will have clean fluid in the system.  Be sure to bleed teh old stuff out of the rear as well.

You will relly like the brakes then!

I have already bought the 2dr rotors and pads, but can easily take them back... What's main difference.. I'm assuming they're beefed up a little more for the extra weight of the 4dr..  I checked the caliper and the piston on the passenger side is stuck.  I just realized... if this was sticking in the braking position then this could effect the gas mileage right? I've been getting 21-22 mpg.  I also have a fuel filter to replace.

the rotors are vented and thicker and the caliper piston is a bit bigger in diameter and the pads are a bit larger also. makes a big differance - worth the few extra bucks. the calipers will bolt right too the original brackets also - you will only need to trim the backing plate a bit.

derek

4 door calipers will not bolt to the 2 door
mount brackets, you need the 4 door mounts
also, but the 4 door mounts bolt to the 2 door
knuckle no problem

I need to do this.. who is right from the two posts above.. anyone else?

Can I use my mounting brackets and trim the backing plate? or do I need 4 door brackets??

I need to know, as  I want to do this before the weekend..

To do the swap you need to replace the caliper and the slide. The caliper slide is held on by the 2 17mm bolts that attatch to the Knuckle. If you buy a set of loaded calipers it will come with the brackets and pads. They will want a core. I just throw the 2dr ones in the boxs and return them as cores. Nobody can tell the difference.

Mike

hmmm............ thanks wild. he is right about the brackets - i just have a bad memory. my calipers were loaded know that i think about it. i stand corrected

derek

Cool, thanks.. A pair of loaded 4 door Calipers is about $82 bucks at the zone.. and off to the junkyard to find the slides...

Cool, thanks.. A pair of loaded 4 door Calipers is about $82 bucks at the zone.. and off to the junkyard to find the slides...

A pair of loaded calipers will come with slides. No need to go to the junkyard.

Mike

Slides are part of the caliper, but the bracket is what they
bolt to, on my 89 I needed the brackets from the 4 door.
Later models might not need them I dunno