After jacking & removing the wheel, take a large screwdriver & slowly pry between the caliper & the leading edge of the rotor. This will compress the piston all the way back into the caliper so you can remove the caliper & change the rotor/pads. This is a "full floating" caliper design so when you pry, the caliper moves along some guide pins.
http://www.scionlife.com/tech/images/brake_rotor_xa/rotor11rk.jpg

http://www.scionlife.com/tech/images/brake_rotor_xa/rotor20vh.jpg

As you compress the pistons be sure to keep an eye on your brake fluid level. You may need to take a turkey baster or something to remove some of the excess fluid as the level rises.

http://www.scionlife.com/tech/images/brake_rotor_xa/rotor34ty.jpg

Once the piston is compressed, remove the two 17mm caliper retaining bolts.

http://www.scionlife.com/tech/images/brake_rotor_xa/rotor45vh.jpg


With the bolts removed use a piece of wire or something to suspend the caliper from the spring. Just don't let the caliper hang by its own weight - you might damage the hose!
http://www.scionlife.com/tech/images/brake_rotor_xa/rotor58si.jpg

At this point the rotor will simply pull off by hand. This is a good time to clean up that backing plate and get rid of that yellow paint mark left by the factory. I used Prep All to clean it and VHT brake paint (black) to refinish.

http://www.scionlife.com/tech/images/brake_rotor_xa/rotor65vw.jpg

http://www.scionlife.com/tech/images/brake_rotor_xa/rotor77zf.jpg

Now just slap on the new rotor.

http://www.scionlife.com/tech/images/brake_rotor_xa/rotor85or.jpg

Then, bolt the caliper back on. I was unsure of the torque specs & they were not that tight to begin with, so I torqued them to 80ftlbs.

http://www.scionlife.com/tech/images/brake_rotor_xa/rotor91vi.jpg

To finish off - three coats of G2 Caliper paint!

http://www.scionlife.com/tech/images/brake_rotor_xa/rotor104er.jpg

Ain't they purty!? :love:

http://www.scionlife.com/tech/images/brake_rotor_xa/rotor115ys.jpg

PS- There are plenty of aftermarket rotors out there, but these were from Race Concepts. They're slotted & dimpled. You can find Race Concepts on the web & Ebay. They work GREAT!

test successful

Looks great. Did you repaint the whole backing plate, or just the top part where that yellow paint was? I think I'm gonna do that to mine, I have some high-temp black paint just laying around here...

I just repainted the whole thing since the VHT paint was gloss and the factory was satin.

Thanks!

Good work! How much that set you back? Oh, and (you may not know this), but is there a way to put discs on the back?

Looks good! Added to the tech section. I'll add it to the FAQ forum in a few days.

nice ...

nice job..well detailed

Very nice!!

You made it look fairly simple too.

Good write up! :clap:

-THE DON

Looks really good! I love all the details you hit like painting
the caliper on the way out.

Now we just need good rear disc brake setups for our cars!!!

Good work! How much that set you back? Oh, and (you may not know this), but is there a way to put discs on the back?

The rotors were about 125 & the G2 paint about 30. All in all, a pretty inexpensive and easy mod to do.

Thanks everyone!

David -

PS - Haven't seen any rear disc's worth installing yet.

To put discs in the rear, you need to get a "kit" that sells for around anywhere of $650 to $980....This will give you rear discs with rotors...I have to save up or wait till they come down in $...

bump for a good install w/ pictures.

Very nicely done, one of my future things to do in the off season

looks sexy..the fuji likes.

Hi,

Do the new rotors increase brakin efficieny at all?? Did you also slap some new brake pads in there ??

Dave

Hi,

Do the new rotors increase brakin efficieny at all?? Did you also slap some new brake pads in there ??

Dave

There was a definate increase in braking power. I noticed it right away. I only have about 475 miles on the car, so I did not bother with changing the pads. When I do change them, I'll go with Hawke.

Thanks,
David -

PS - There's another benefit aside from performance & looks to consider when changing the rotors. I noticed that the stock rotors will rust around the hub area and when they get wet, like from washing, sometimes rusty water will leak out from the center cap area on your wheels and get messy. These rotors are zinc plated and I have not had this problem since.

fuji not only does that look sexy, but he can brake even better now.

Did the same thing same co. works great and looks awsome.

:nope: i tried the same thing that you did but im still having a hard time pulling my rotors of do i have to take that nut in the midlle.please i hope some one can help me out thank you.

no you dont have to pull the nut just take off the 2 bolts that hold on the caliper and the rotor falls off

Hey es65notch, I have the EXACT same problem as 2unique. I am basically onpicture #5 of the tutorial. The caliper and the bracket are off...there is nothing bolted to the rotor. However, I CANNOT get the darn thing off! I did look up on the service manual and it mentioned that you needed to line up the Matchmarks in order to pull the rotor off. Could it be that yours was already lined up therefore you didn't need to adjust the middle nut? Any help in on this would be appreciated! Thanks.

Wow thats crazy I mean there is nothing that holds it on there but the caliper
I mean nothing thats strange did you wiggle it because it doesnt even touch the
the bolt in the center it fits around that ring on the out side of the bolt maybe its just a super tight fit on that lip or maybe it has a lip or burr on the ring around the nut other then that Im not sure guys sorry Im not more help. good luck keep me informed and If I get anymore info I will post it

To correct what I said in my earlier post. The service manual does NOT say to "line up" the matchmarks to pull the rotor ...it says to just simply make a note as to where the matchmarks line up as an orientation for when the new rotor gets put back on.

After studying the pictures in the tutorial, your right, the rotor should pratically fall off. My Xb came from up north and I noticed a little surface rust here and there so maybe the rotor has adhered to the hub somehow. Just enough to make the rotor stubborn to get off. If you look really close at the original rotor you'll see two screw holes. I assume that if you were to find the right size screw to thread in there then it would "push" the rotor from the hub. I will be trying that this weekend and I will report back as to how it went.

I would use a rubber mallet to give it a jolt and it should come loose. If you dont have a rubber mallet try a hammer and a piece of 2x4 or a piece of wood to protect the rotor. Not too hard of a hit but enough to knock it loose.

Mike

I would use a rubber mallet to give it a jolt and it should come loose. If you dont have a rubber mallet try a hammer and a piece of 2x4 or a piece of wood to protect the rotor. Not too hard of a hit but enough to knock it loose.

Mike
Ditto.

I've changed a few rotors in my day (various vehicles) and while there's nothing technically holding them on, sometimes a little tap is necessary to knock any possible rust or debris loose. I've even knocked a couple loose with just the heal of my palm, but a rubber mallet is the best way.

cool im about to do it to mine

does anyone have pics of theirs after the pretty coating is worn off and they are good and broke in

Just for peoples information, here is the torque information for the calipers and others. This is just a site that I found on the internet so I don't know how accurate it is.

http://www.autodatapubs.com/downloads/tdmi_sample.pdf

Hope it helps

The easiest way to remove a rusted on rotor is to find a bolt that fits the two smaller holes in the rotor. Tighten the bolt in with a ratchet and this should pop them right off

:nope: i tried the same thing that you did but im still having a hard time pulling my rotors of do i have to take that nut in the midlle.please i hope some one can help me out thank you.
If the rotor won't come off, place bolts in the 2 threaded holes in the rotor-hat. Alternately tighten the bolts and walk the rotor off the hub.

EDIT: Oops...someone beat me to it. :doh:

After you bolt everything back down are you supposed to just pump the brakes to seat the piston?

After you bolt everything back down are you supposed to just pump the brakes to seat the piston?

Yup

hey used this tech diy to do my own rotors went very well , i think someone needs to add a very complete "how to life and jackstand your car" diy also for those of us that have never done it before. either way it went well, took about 2 hours , the brakes do make a little bit of noise while they break in , wasnty sure about the shims so i put them both on the new pads.

oh yeah the OEM rotors where stuck on there but i just sprayed some WD-40 and let it sit of a minute and then tapped with the back of a screw driver and it came off easy.

bought the same rotors as in the pics good and cheap 120 shipped dont think they need the slots though drilled is really all you need.

Does anybody here have updated rotors we should be looking at? Best brake pads?

Thanks

i think the rotora kit from newscionparts .com is very good but i hear that slotting isnt that usefull, ,like i said mine are slotted and drilled with pads cost 120 and they feel exactlly like oem , no real difference at all . so its kinda up to you i think for price their a good deal.

i think the rotora kit from newscionparts .com is very good but i hear that slotting isnt that usefull, ,like i said mine are slotted and drilled with pads cost 120 and they feel exactlly like oem , no real difference at all . so its kinda up to you i think for price their a good deal.

We will have to see if I can get some NICE brake pads. I think that would help make a sizable difference with upgraded rotors. We will see!

I feel you guys with the stuck rotors. I took a hammer to the rotors (safely of course). That loosened up the rust enough to shimmy the rotor off.
Awesome write up.

beautiful!

i didnt want to hammer mine just cause i was using the scion car jack and i couldnt get the car high enought to jack stands under it. but yeah there pretty easy to remove after you give it a couple light wacks, i think Hawk pads or any other pads then what they came with would be better

I know this has been a while since this post was brought up, but as I was looking through it, I didn't see anyone mention that in order to prep the rotors for use, you first need to wipe the faces of the rotors with brake cleaner to get the film that is sprayed on before shipping. This is usually a must because it can glaze your pads and cause brake failure.

just guessing but all scion brakes are about the same not matter whether tc, xb, xd, xa correct?

I know this has been a while since this post was brought up, but as I was looking through it, I didn't see anyone mention that in order to prep the rotors for use, you first need to wipe the faces of the rotors with brake cleaner to get the film that is sprayed on before shipping. This is usually a must because it can glaze your pads and cause brake failure.

Cleaning the rotors is always a good idea, use some anti sieze on the lugs and follow the bed-in procedures from the pad manufacture, failure to do that will not give you maximum stopability.

Good writeup-- I just replaced my pads and rotors (no upgrades or painting, though), and this was a huge help. Thanks, Scionlife!

A tip I stumbled upon-- the pads I bought came with new 14mm caliper bolts, so I used the old ones to push/pry off the rotor-- it seems to be that way by design. They're threaded for those bolts.

I really like the caliper design on these cars -- it makes brake service very easy.

Good writeup-- I just replaced my pads and rotors (no upgrades or painting, though), and this was a huge help. Thanks, Scionlife!

A tip I stumbled upon-- the pads I bought came with new 14mm caliper bolts, so I used the old ones to push/pry off the rotor-- it seems to be that way by design. They're threaded for those bolts.

I really like the caliper design on these cars -- it makes brake service very easy.

I REALLY DO LIKE UR MOON EYES , CAN U TELL ME WHERE AND WHATS THE PART NUMBER OF THE MOON EYES ID LIKE TO GET THEM FOR MY 2006 BOX

Thanks for the great write up

Whats strut and spring combination are you using blue strut and red spring? who make them