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AP big brakes - pad changing


davef

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I have a 2000 Superlight with the AP big brakes. The pads on these are nearing the wnd of their life and need replacing. Checking the archives most posts talk about loosening the caliper to allow the two pins to be knocked out. However my calipers appear to have a single cap head bolt through the middle of the back.

 

So a couple of questions:

 

- has the design of the AP big brakes changed sometime since 2000?

- is replacing the pads as simple as removing this bolt and removing th eold pads etc?

 

Dave

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*confused*

 

I've just replaced the pads on a set of big AP's ('96 model year) and they require the following procedure

 

1. Undo the two bolts fixing the caliper to the upright

 

2. Push pads back to push pistons bac into caliper.

 

3. Undo the 4 small allen bolts per caliper and remove, along with the little tabs.

 

4. Withdraw the old pads.

 

5. Fit new pads

 

6. Reverse of 3.

 

7. Reverse of 1

 

The pads on my 2001 big AP's are completed the same way. The pads used in the older versions are I think CP2340D43 pattern.

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I should have made it clear that my calipers don't have pins to knock out (at least as far as I can see). It does seem that the single bolt in the rear is the thing to remove and the pads pull out???

 

Having trawled the archives further, this thread seems to describe what I need to do.

 

Related to this I have a set of front pads from Caterham that I bought whwn I replaced the rears a while back - unfortunately they appear to be for the 'two pins' version of the caliper. So I need to find out the part number of the pads as well so I can buy the right ones.

 

Dave

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Caterham sold me pads for the AP 'big' brakes. The AP part number on the box is CP7600D46, which fit the AP caliper here - note the two pins. My calipers are more like these..

 

ets that I'm a little suprised Caterham didn't pick up on the different pads as I'm sure I told them the year etc. UnlessI have a non standard fitment *confused*

 

Dave

 

 

 

Edited by - davef on 7 Jul 2007 23:24:38

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Mav - could be. I'll need to pull a pad out to be sure, and of course I want to be sure I tackle that in the correct way *smile*

 

If I get a chance I'll take a couple of pics in the morning to show exactly my calipers are - otherwise I think a call to Caterham will be in order on Monday morning.

 

Dave

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The latest spec pads (with the 2 ears for the pins) will fit all 3 major variations of the caliper. HOWEVER, they do have a greater swept area than the older pads, so unless you're fitting new disks, expect bugger all braking for a while until the pads wear into the shape of the disk.

 

The only caliper you need to loosen in order to change the pads is the latest one with the 2 pins (the upper pin wants to go through the wingstay)- the others can remain on the upright.

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Its the later big brakes which you need to loosen the caliper bolt for as the pin can't come out past the wing stay and its easier to swing the caliper back than remove the wing stay. It is another example of piss poor design but hey we are apparently enthusiasts who put up with these things.

 

Thankfully its not something which needs to be done on a regular basis.

 

Simon Bell - Caterham 7 Duratec R

I`ve seen the future.....and it`s powered by duratec Check out the website here

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Finally managed to take a couple of photos here

 

Mav - having looked in more detail it looks like the pads come out as you describe. One Q - do you need to completely remove the caliper from the disk first, or can the pads come out without doing that?

 

Dave

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Mav - you should be able to get the retaining bolts out of the older ones without moving the caliper. It's been a few months since I've done them on a 2 bolt caliper, but I'm pretty sure they both clear. The single bolt caliper definitely clears.

 

Dave - you do not need to disturb the caliper at all. Remove the single retaining bolt, and the pads just pull out the back of the caliper.

 

 

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Having looked at mine, my preference would be to remove the caliper form the disc to complete the job, however I'm open to suggestions on how this cloud be completed other than removing the caliper...
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Yup, both the '96 I did recently and the ones on my 2001 car look very very similar, if not identical to yours.

 

Net time i have to do the brakes, I'm going to try Stuarts method, and if this fails, I'll remove the caliper - no hassle either way *thumbup*

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