Prius C Brake Pads

What did you end up going with @Roxas125?

 

It's a 2013, probably hasn't had to change them yet.

 

My 2013 C just hit 140k and on last rotation my mechanic said front pads have about 6 months in them left. Anyone experienced stock pads 'biting' when wet? Looking at what AutoZone has to offer vs. OEM...

 

Piggy-backing off this threat; so it's a thing that the Prius does not use a lot of friction braking? Totally learned this today when I brought the C to have the brakes checked. 2012 with 95k miles. Brakes were still meaty "like new". But the service tech showed me the rotors in the garage bay, they're not bad, but they've obviously been exposed to the elements over time. We were concerned that with almost 100k miles the brakes have never been serviced(we did have the brake lines flushed past Winter only). Recommending us to maybe service them in 20-30k miles, depending on our driving habits.

How far has anyone gone on their factory brakes on their Prius?

 

yeah...i have...really bites when driving in rain for the first 10 stops...then seems to go away slowly after. I've learned to just go easy on the brake pedal at the outset when wet/raining so i don't get this hard grip/bite and head jerk when stopping. lol. No clue what the cause is with these cars doing that.

 

It doesn't have to actually be "wet", just high humidity while sitting for a while......like overnight.

The rotors get a light coating of "surface rust" which makes them grab.
If you can "drag" the brakes just a little after you first notice it, it should go away immediately.

 

Absolutely right, you should not use how long the pads last as a reason to neglect the brakes for that whole amount of time.

Your warranty and maintenance guide has a visual brake inspection specified every 5,000 miles or six months, and a more thorough hands-on one every 30,000 miles or 3 years.

I just combine mine with tire rotations. I have all the wheels off anyway, so I'm in there every 6,000 miles or so.

I check for any damage to the rubber protective boots, measure the lining thicknesses, and make sure the calipers move smoothly in and out on their slide pins. It only takes a few minutes.

Some people will go further and remove and regrease the pins. I only do that if it's needed (so far, never has been). The caliper will move a little bit stiffly at first, but the grease wakes up nicely from just pushing the caliper in and out a few times. But if the rubber boot shows any damage and salty water got in there, yup, disassemble and clean up and regrease with new boots. Same if the movement still feels stiff or rough after giving the grease a couple strokes to wake up.

Most of the time these inspections involve no replacement of anything, and $0 cost for parts. Keeping up with them is the best way to make sure you won't spend anything on pad or rotor replacement for 150k, 200k miles or more.

On the other hand, a small problem that you don't catch because of a neglected inspection can grow and eat your pads and rotors a hundred thousand miles early. In a Prius that's kind of embarrassing.

I like to buy the rubber kit (one for the rear, one for the front, each kit has all the rubber parts and other miscellaneous bits for rebuilds of both sides) just to have on hand. If I ever do an inspection and need to replace a boot that got torn, that boot will be in the kit. The kit also contains the right grease in case I need to regrease a pin. (The specified grease is a red stuff based on glycol, and is not the same as the silicones often found in auto parts stores.)

 

Does anyone have torque specs for 2014 prius c one brakes? I need front caliper sliding pin bolt torque and caliper bracket torque. A copy of the TIS PDF would be ideal, thanks!