Jump to content

Welcome to RennTech.org Community, Guest

There are many great features available to you once you register at RennTech.org
You are free to view posts here, but you must log in to reply to existing posts, or to start your own new topic. Like most online communities, there are costs involved to maintain a site like this - so we encourage our members to donate. All donations go to the costs operating and maintaining this site. We prefer that guests take part in our community and we offer a lot in return to those willing to join our corner of the Porsche world. This site is 99 percent member supported (less than 1 percent comes from advertising) - so please consider an annual donation to keep this site running.

Here are some of the features available - once you register at RennTech.org

  • View Classified Ads
  • DIY Tutorials
  • Porsche TSB Listings (limited)
  • VIN Decoder
  • Special Offers
  • OBD II P-Codes
  • Paint Codes
  • Registry
  • Videos System
  • View Reviews
  • and get rid of this welcome message

It takes just a few minutes to register, and it's FREE

Contributing Members also get these additional benefits:
(you become a Contributing Member by donating money to the operation of this site)

  • No ads - advertisements are removed
  • Access the Contributors Only Forum
  • Contributing Members Only Downloads
  • Send attachments with PMs
  • All image/file storage limits are substantially increased for all Contributing Members
  • Option Codes Lookup
  • VIN Option Lookups (limited)

Breakpad Wear


Recommended Posts

I just purchased a CPO 2001 Boxster S....while inspecting the break pads, I noticed that part of the red caliper cover/ housing is VERY close to the rotor, like 3/16" (4mm or so),is this normal? or is it an indication of break pad wear? Please advise

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Moderators
I just purchased a CPO 2001 Boxster S....while inspecting the break pads, I noticed that part of the red caliper cover/ housing is VERY close to the rotor, like 3/16" (4mm or so),is this normal? or is it an indication of break pad wear? Please advise

This is normal. Porsche does not use a "floating caliper" design. The gap between the caliper and rotor is fixed and not dependant on pad wear. What you need to look at (you'll probably need a flashlight) is the amount of material left on the pad.

If you look at this picture, you should be able to make out the brake pistons, the pad backing material and the actual friction material. The pads in this pics are at the limit of their useablility IMHO (my car, my brakes - yes I changed them out).

PB240013.jpg

Unless someone has removed them (I have, they are not shown above) you have a pad wear sensor on all 8 pads on the car. When the pads wear to about the depth you see in the pic above, you will get a warning light on the dash. It will start to illuminate intermittantly at first, then stay on all the time. When it stays on, it;s time to order new brakes, of schedule your car for a brake job.

One last thing... :welcome:

Graeme

Link to comment
Share on other sites

THANKS!!! I see now that I have plenty of pad, so I didn't get ripped off,.... boy these Porsches put out a lot of brake dust! An hour and a half of spirited driving and I have to wash the car (I GET to wash the car :-) ...brake dust all around the back of the car.....anyway, thanks for the info....one more question, as the pads wears, is there a spring that keeps it close to the rotor, or does it gradually get farther from the rotor when brakes are not applied?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Moderators
THANKS!!! I see now that I have plenty of pad, so I didn't get ripped off,.... boy these Porsches put out a lot of brake dust! An hour and a half of spirited driving and I have to wash the car (I GET to wash the car :-) ...brake dust all around the back of the car.....anyway, thanks for the info....one more question, as the pads wears, is there a spring that keeps it close to the rotor, or does it gradually get farther from the rotor when brakes are not applied?

You are very welcome.

There is no spring that keeps the pads close to the rotor. When you release the brakes, the pads will stop there clamping force on the rotors but will stay just touching them. The rotor surface is not perfectly flat and kinda pushes the pads back just far enough that they do not bind. It's all self correcting so the pads always stay roughly the same distance from the rotor no matter how much the pads or rotor wear.

If you want to understand more about the principals behind disk brakes, check out this article:

How disk brakes work

It shows a "floating caliper" style of brake, but the basic principals are the same.

Have fun,

Graeme

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.