Brake Service - What do I actually need?

Hi Team, I'm doing a brake job on my 996 and have sourced new rotors, Endless M72 pads, new caliper carrier bolts, a GT3 master cylinder, new sensors, and braided lines. A mate who used to manage servicing on 996s when they were new told me I also need to replace the brake pad hardware kit, since it can't be reused: https://www.pelicanparts.com/cat/v_p...-retainer-kits He also mentioned brake pad shims and dampers, but I'm not clear on what each one does, whether they're actually needed, or whether the existing ones can be reused: https://www.pelicanparts.com/cat/v_p...ke-pad-dampers Finally, do I need to get new rotor screws? Any thoughts appreciated.

It depends on how "used" the old parts are. If they're 20 years old, yeah, get the hardware kit. A few people, myself included, delete the shims/dampers. They're a PITA if you ask me. If you want to keep the car at original spec and you can't let it sit around waiting for parts to arrive, get new ones. Rotor screws can be a bear to remove and might be damaged in the process. I use an impact hammer (which is NOT an air tool!) and have had good luck reusing them. Again it depends on the age and condition of what you have now. Impact hammer link for reference: https://www.fcpeuro.com/products/imp...er-lisle-30750

If you want it to look new get the hardware kit. I don't know how age could affect metal pins and springs. Would definitely have four rotor screws on hand. Be prepared to have a damper stuck in the piston. That will almost always require the piston to be removed from the caliper. Be careful opening the bleeder screws. One of mine was tightened to much. I went at it socket and broke it off. Now I only use a box wrench and use short taps with my palm. You'll need flare wrenches for the brake lines.

Brake fluid and a Motive Bleeder. Its one of the best tools i have invested in. There r some less expensive knock offs if u dont work in cars a lot.

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Spring tension can be lost over time, and the pins can get pretty crapped up and hard to insert/remove. Although I know someone who is still using spring clips from 1967 in their brakes... <---

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You can get the "rotor screws" at any good hardware store that has bins with nut, bolts, and stuff like that. It is a common size screw, take an old one with you to match thread and pitch, simple. You have to take the caliper off to get the old pads out cuz likely the silence shims are glued to the back of the brake pad. PITA. I think it is an 8mm Allen head bolt. They are different sizes, top/bottom, so pay attention to that. Also, have a couple of new ABS wire sensors. You "may" destroy one just by removing it and then you get ABS light. Unfortunate, even brand-new OEM P-sensors can be BAD out of the box, another PITA. They are only about $5 ea, so have a couple on hand. Bleeders - always use 6-point Flare nut wrenches. Use PB-blaster or something to help loosen them. Bad news if you round one off or break it. Not fun. Measure the thickness of rotors, there is a wear limit. Don't remember what it is, maybe 2mm?, look it up for your particular brakes. Replace rotors if needed. YMMV

There is some debate over the functionality of the OE shims, from what I recall the consensus was they prolong caliper life by distributing heat more evenly or something like that. Seems a lot of guys don�t run them and they�re just fine. If you choose to run the OEM shims, remove whatever shims come with the brake pads you purchased first obviously. The shims are attached to the back of the pad with a strong adhesive, so not really reusable. If you plan on swapping pads regularly, I wouldn�t run the OE shims, because you cannot get the pads out without either removing the caliper or using something to physically separate the glued shim from the back of the pad, so you can then slide the pads out without removing the caliper. I just did my brakes and decided to use them, because mine is just a street driven car and won�t need brakes for a long time now, so why not keep it OEM. Here is what I purchased for shims and the hardware kit from Pelican - this was for my C4S, not sure how it differed for a C2. I could have bought the cheaper brand but chose not to based on reviews of the company in general. The front pads each use 1 shim, each rear pad of mine uses 2 shims - one 28mm and one 30mm on each rear pad. That�s a total of 4 x front shims, 4 x 28mm and 4 x 30mm for the rear. I chose not to replace my sensors because the old ones work fine. Using Porsche parts, the shims and hardware kit alone cost me $450.

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If you order new caliper bolts the new ones are typically T55 torx head. Siberian is referring to the brake wear sensors, not the abs.They will trigger the brake wear light.

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I have these. I assume that what you're referring to?

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Thanks - This is for a C2 which think means my front is the same as your rear (in terms of pad shape). It seems my pads come with nothing but friction material

Like AeroF16 said, if you're not going to be swapping pads often, then I'd grab the OE sims and dampers. Those MX72 pads are extremely durable for street duty. Mine are two years old and the fronts still have about 30% of its pad remaining. Conversely, the Textars I was running previously only lasted 6 months before triggering the pad sensor. Those OE shims are pricey, and their single-use characteristic doesn't make it financially attractive to replace every 6 months; but it's tolerable for a two-year interval. I'm not using any shims with my MX72 pads and they squeak when they're cold, although I think it's solely due to the pad being outside the compound's operating temperature range. In hindsight, I do wish I had installed those shims because then I could confirm whether the cold squeaks were caused by the pad compound. Since it seems like you're practically overhauling the brakes, have you considered replacing the caliper bleed screws? They're fairly inexpensive and are cheap insurance against seizing-up within the caliper. And also, maybe even replacing the caliper's dust boots and piston seals?

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Interesting - I�m not sure the OEM shims would stick to that surface. They just have adhesive on one side that sticks to the back of the brake pad, but the OEM pads (and the PMB ones I used) had a metal backing on the pad, which I cleaned with alcohol before install. Here is a pic of my old pads (one front, one rear). Also the shims I removed from the PMB pads to install the OEM shims.

If you want some shims to use I�ll send you the ones I removed from my PMB pads - I don�t need them. You're gonna need some kind of shim I�d assume to use in order to apply some grease and reduce noise.

They used to sell this stuff called "disk brake quiet" in little bottles. It's some kind of high temp rtv/glue that does 2 things. It damps the pad resonance which is what causes the squealing and it sticks the pad to the caliper piston so the pads don't drag on the disk. It is very effective and costs like $5 per bottle.

I just did a complete brake job. My brand new OEM caliper bolts aren't torx so there seems plenty of old stock floating about (and I live 20 minutes from Stuttgart...) I had to cut the metal pin to remove on two calipers. Expect to have to do it, and congrats if you don't. But again, German road salting was clearly to blame here I think. While braided lines are always popular (and I did that too) consider the hard brake lines from the calipers to the braided line. Mine looked corroded enough that simply sanding and painting didn't feel good enough. Good idea changing the bleeders. In my case, someone else overtorqued the LR caliper bleeder, resulting in a leak, and I had to get a set of rear calipers. Be prepared (mentally, if nothing else) in case that goes sideways too.

I switched to stainless steel studs from Tarrett . Eventually the bolt holes in the uprights can strip, these replace the bolts permanently.

The shims and dampers are completely unnecessary. I've been running without them for ~10 years on both street and track. I actually kind of forgot those parts even exist until reading this thread. Eliminating them makes pad changes a breeze. Very few tools needed, and I can do each corner of the car in about 5-10 minutes, with most of that time being to jack the corner up and remove and replace the wheel.