urgent help - are all brake pads the same??

ocalllo

hi
can anyone tell me - are brake pads the same for ALL vehicles?
can i just go buy a brake pad or are they different size/width depending on size of vehicle?

possibly a stupid question but would appreciate an answer.
thanks

Weird_Nev

There's no such thing as a stupid question.
Only stupid people.

Go to a garage and get them to fix your brakes. There's a good chance they'll get it right.

johnnyreggae

Almost every car has a different brake pad in size and shape - it can also change according to the model within the range and the year of manufacture

ocalllo

johnnyreggae - THANK YOU

have been trying to find the answer for a few days now.

We are in India and it sounds like one of our brake pads has gone/is going on our campervan!

from what you said it is unlikely we will find the part here - how far is safe to drive once u start hearing the grinding noise?

we about to ship home, so wondering if we can wait til we get home to fix, its only on 1 wheel.

thks

johnnyreggae

It sounds like your brakes will be in better condition than most of the other cars on the road there....you are probably damaging the disc/drum too - if it worries you get it seen too there by a van brand dealer (eg Merc VW Fiat if any) - if its a couple of hundred leisurely miles to go then decide (as Clint said) 'tell me punk do you feel lucky' or words to that effect

ocalllo

yes probably they are, eventho its a 20yr old camper!

simple things here are NOT simple!!!!
so unless critical we would rather wait til we got home......they LOVE to rip of tourists here, especially ones who dont really know what they are talking about in the first place!

altho having said all that - there are alot of 20/30/40 yr old trucks on the roads and the mechanics seam to do a good job of keeping them going.

Weird_Nev

You didn't explain that bit!!!

I would say this: Get a roadside mechanic to sort it out. They will probably be able to fabricate something there and then to keep you moving. They are used to dealing with all sorts and for what will be a princely sum to them but a pittance to you they will get you on the move. Just haggle hard!

If it's a disc brake you can get away with using the brake very sparingly - metal on metal contact still slows you down but will overheat very fast and shower sparks everywhere.
If it's a drum brake, it's really not safe, because of the way they work once the shoe material is gone, the metal backing can jam onto the inner surface of the drum, causing the wheel to lock, and causing you to crash. Not good!

ocalllo

weird_nev wrote: »

you didn't explain that bit!!!



If it's a disc brake you can get away with using the brake very sparingly - metal on metal contact still slows you down but will overheat very fast and shower sparks everywhere.
If it's a drum brake, it's really not safe, because of the way they work once the shoe material is gone, the metal backing can jam onto the inner surface of the drum, causing the wheel to lock, and causing you to crash. Not good!

how do you know if its a disc brake or a drum brake - there are no sparks just a horrible noise when really press hard on brakes...slow braking not really any difference.

marlot

A disc brake has the mechanism exposed: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disc_brake

If you can't see the disc, then its a drum brake (all the mechanism is behind the drum).

If you've not wrecked the disc, then its 'just' a matter of bonding a new piece of friction material to your existing pads to give you a temporary fix. Or cutting down a pad from a different model so its the same size as your pads. I'm amazed at some of the things that local mechs can do in India - I'm sure that this is one of the easier tasks. But haggle hard!

Road_Hog

ocalllo wrote: »

how do you know if its a disc brake or a drum brake - there are no sparks just a horrible noise when really press hard on brakes...slow braking not really any difference.

If you are hearing a grinding noise, then it is highly likely that you have disc brakes.

mikey72

A roadside repair would be a larger pad ground down to the right shape.
If you take it to a garage, you'll have to be careful you don't end up with a piece of wood cut to the right shape instead though.