We are not the type of people who fix things just because it is getting time to fix them soon, and refresh wearable parts. We are the kind that fix problems as they present themselves, and even though that may run into some higher costs due to greater needs as worn parts wear out good ones, it is a chance we have to take. We are also not the kind to send the thing in to the shop to get it fixed if it can be done at home.
Last time the brakes presented themselves on the car, I replaced the pads on the front. There was no doing the back at that time because who wants to deal with the extra expense and work involved while I am using the car to earn money. So I did the front and wondered since just how bad the backs were. Meanwhile, they wore till today when they began to touch the rotor on the rear left with the metal back of the pad. That is definitely time to get the pads replaced! Do it before the wear on the rotor is too much! And why didn’t the pad wear indicators squeak? They may have, but it being summer and the temperatures being as hot as they have been, I have had the windows up and the AC blasting. I wouldn’t have heard them if they did go.
So, I cancelled going to work today and bought a set of rear brake pads and hurried home and put them on. In a hurry and not thinking well, I did not realize the trouble with that rear left brake was that the pin was stuck, but good, and when I drove the car away, it burned that brake up pretty good. I took it home again and checked it out, and no matter what I did, I could not get that pin to budge. I took it to O’Rielly’s Auto, and they can not even get the part to them till Mondy, and they cannot get the parts I need, but instead have to sell me the whole caliper. The store that has the part is in south Logan, so in order to get it sooner, I need to go down there tomorrow morning. then I will have to install it, and bleed the brakes, which I have not done since I was a kid, and was only assisting. So, there is that.
After considering the option of buying the whole caliper, I tried to separate the pin from the caliper, but in the end, even with loads of PB Blaster, I broke it. So…
It is off to South Logan in the truck tomorrow. I will hopefully get the part, put it right on, and bleed the brakes with no trouble at all. Might want to grease the other side, too. If I can get that done, then we can haul my wife’s sister off to the airport on Monday okay. If not, then it is either the truck, or our second oldest son, and I keep the kids in my watch while they go off to school.
My goodness. I mean, the bright side is, I know there was a problem with the brakes, which qualifies it as an instant safety issue, that needed identifying and fixing, and that would not have come to discovering without today’s events. So, we did not drive to Salt Lake on a bad brake. Though I am sure we did five weeks ago or so when we went to pick Sis up! Anyway. It is what it is. While I am not happy with myself for missing that problem when I put it together, and for not properly identifying the problem, at least I think it is still fixable before it gets way out of cost, and I am still on the DIY program. I guess that’s a good thing. It is a little concerning, since I need to get it sorted for work and to get Sis down to the airport. It is a little concerning because I would like to have done better than I did. But the whole thing is what it is. Let’s see how things go from here. hopefully much better!