Brake Dilemma Please Help

[Imatk]

So I took my car in to get the brakes done.

Pads/Shoes replaced. I have a '91 GT.

Now they say I need a new axle because it's damaged. Also the pinion seal is leaking and the drums have to be replaced.

Anyway all this stuff is going to cost me around 1200 bucks.

So my question is... should I do a brake upgrade instead?

The upgrade would cost me 2300 for the kit from 50 Resto... plus I would get the PonyR 17-inch wheels and tires.

So I figure in all the upgrade will cost me around 3k.

Now that's quite a bit more than 1200 so my question is... is it worth it? Should I just bite the bullet and do the upgrade or replace my stock parts?

I have an '06 Mustang GT and the brakes are phenomenal compared to the '91 but that's not a fair comparison so I have no frame of reference as to how much better a new setup would be.

Thanks for any help.

 

[BK_CAULEY]

So I took my car in to get the brakes done.

Pads/Shoes replaced. I have a '91 GT.

Now they say I need a new axle because it's damaged. Also the pinion seal is leaking and the drums have to be replaced.

Anyway all this stuff is going to cost me around 1200 bucks.

So my question is... should I do a brake upgrade instead?

The upgrade would cost me 2300 for the kit from 50 Resto... plus I would get the PonyR 17-inch wheels and tires.

So I figure in all the upgrade will cost me around 3k.

Now that's quite a bit more than 1200 so my question is... is it worth it? Should I just bite the bullet and do the upgrade or replace my stock parts?

I have an '06 Mustang GT and the brakes are phenomenal compared to the '91 but that's not a fair comparison so I have no frame of reference as to how much better a new setup would be.

Thanks for any help.

why would it cost you 1200 to get two new drums, one axle and some new seals? you could buy a whoel nother rear end cheaper than that? and what are they saying is wrong with the axle? it might be jus tme but $1200 seems a little steep.

 

[Imatk]

I don't know dude... he said both axles were damaged and that the pinion seal was leaking and that it all should be replaced.

I always assume I'm getting screwed when I take my car in for work but at this point I don't know what else to do.

 

[jrichker]

Are you into doing mechanic work, and do you have the tools and place to do the work? If yes, then it is worth the effort.

If not, then sell the car to someone who is into the DIY fix up thing and enjoy your 06 GT.

 

[BK_CAULEY]

I don't know dude... he said both axles were damaged and that the pinion seal was leaking and that it all should be replaced.

I always assume I'm getting screwed when I take my car in for work but at this point I don't know what else to do.

how do they know the axles are damaged? did they remove them? you can change axles yourself in under 30 miutes. its not difficult at all. i can help walk you through it if you like? and the pinion seal is no biggie either. something just sound skinda fishy to me about the whole axle thing. are you feeling any harsh vibrations when driving the car? if so then it MIGHT clarify it. but you cant just up and say...your axles need replacing and not have a reason.

 

[Imatk]

They did pull the axles because of the leak I guess. After they pulled them they saw that they were damaged.

I haven't heard any vibrations... but I did notice a squeaking sound coming from the rear.

Also do you think I should stay with the stock brakes or is it worth it to do the upgrade?

Thanks for your help man.

 

[BK_CAULEY]

They did pull the axles because of the leak I guess. After they pulled them they saw that they were damaged.

is there a pick and pull near you? well heck look at this. this is a set of moser axles new bearings and everything you need. other than the pinion seal ($5) and its only $259. and it is seriously not that big of a deal to change them. the hardest part is jacking up the car.

 

[Imatk]

Are you into doing mechanic work, and do you have the tools and place to do the work? If yes, then it is worth the effort.

If not, then sell the car to someone who is into the DIY fix up thing and enjoy your 06 GT.

No I don't have a place to do the work I live in an apartment in Los Angeles.

I'm not going to sell the car... that's not the question. The question is should I upgrade the brakes to the 5-lug cobra brakes or stay with the stock brakes.

I just spent around 10k completely restoring the car, I bought it new in '91 and never intend on selling it... especially now.

 

[BK_CAULEY]

They did pull the axles because of the leak I guess. After they pulled them they saw that they were damaged.

I haven't heard any vibrations... but I did notice a squeaking sound coming from the rear.

Also do you think I should stay with the stock brakes or is it worth it to do the upgrade?

Thanks for your help man.

that depends on your budget. a rear upgrade is ok. but your front brakes do most of the stopping and in our cars i have founnd the stock brakes to be more than efficient on street car applications. unless you want it for asthetics.

 

[Imatk]

is there a pick and pull near you? well heck look at this. this is a set of moser axles new bearings and everything you need. other than the pinion seal ($5) and its only $259. and it is seriously not that big of a deal to change them. the hardest part is jacking up the car.

I can't do the work myself unfortunately... I live in an apartment and they don't allow it.

Those axles are 5-lug though not the stockers.

What would the stock 4-lug cost? I'm wondering if they're screwing me on the part price.

 

[Imatk]

that depends on your budget. a rear upgrade is ok. but your front brakes do most of the stopping and in our cars i have founnd the stock brakes to be more than efficient on street car applications. unless you want it for asthetics.

Thanks that's exactly what I was looking for. I think they're fine as well but I wondered if the upgrade would really make a difference... as far as the money goes.

I don't care about the looks so much since you can't really see the calipers behind the pony wheels anyway. And it wouldn't even matter to me that much if you could I'm more concerned with performance.

 

[BK_CAULEY]

I can't do the work myself unfortunately... I live in an apartment and they don't allow it.

Those axles are 5-lug though not the stockers.

What would the stock 4-lug cost? I'm wondering if they're screwing me on the part price.

http://store.summitracing.com/partd...4294908282+4294924641+400256+115&autoview=sku

and more than likely if you can find a good deal they will be cheaper than this. and there definatly screwing you somewhere. i think they might be screwing you on labor. just tell them you know how long it takes to do it, and you are not gonna pay that insane amount to get it done.

 

[jrichker]

Also do you think I should stay with the stock brakes or is it worth it to do the upgrade?

Thanks for your help man.

It all comes down to the "can you do the job?" question. The fact that you had someone else do pads and shoes seems to tell me no.

There are a lot of good brake upgrades that are junkyard and remanufactured parts and not terribly expensive. The catch is that you have to be able to do good mechanic work to make them happen. No commercial garage is going to do them (legal liability) and not charge you more than the car would sell for.

I have very good 4 wheel disk brakes that are all junkyard/remanufactured parts and it didn’t cost more than $600 with me doing the work. I have 10” rear disk brakes with a 3.55:1 rear axle from a 87 T-bird Turbo Coupe, 91 Lincoln 73 MM front calipers, and a 95 Mustang master cylinder. The brakes are easily a 5x improvement over the stock brakes.

See http://www.svo73mm.cjb.net/ for brake upgrade information. It is the best DIY Mustang brake site I have seen.

 

[Imatk]

It all comes down to the "can you do the job?" question. The fact that you had someone else do pads and shoes seems to tell me no.

There are a lot of good brake upgrades that are junkyard and remanufactured parts and not terribly expensive. The catch is that you have to be able to do good mechanic work to make them happen. No commercial garage is going to do them (legal liability) and not charge you more than the car would sell for.

I have very good 4 wheel disk brakes that are all junkyard/remanufactured parts and it didn’t cost more than $600 with me doing the work. I have 10” rear disk brakes with a 3.55:1 rear axle from a 87 T-bird Turbo Coupe, 91 Lincoln 73 MM front calipers, and a 95 Mustang master cylinder. The brakes are easily a 5x improvement over the stock brakes.

See http://www.svo73mm.cjb.net/ for brake upgrade information. It is the best DIY Mustang brake site I have seen.

I already said no. I live in an apartment in Los Angeles and I cannot work on the car in the building... they don't allow it which is totally understandable.

If I were to do an upgrade I would get the M2300 kit and just be done with it. Yes I know it costs more but like you said I can't do the work myself and no one is going to put used stuff on my car so that's what I'm left with.

 

[kbeefy]

They did pull the axles because of the leak I guess. After they pulled them they saw that they were damaged.

I haven't heard any vibrations... but I did notice a squeaking sound coming from the rear.

Also do you think I should stay with the stock brakes or is it worth it to do the upgrade?

Thanks for your help man.

I'd be really suprised if they actually pulled the axles, at that point they've done 90% of the work required to change the axle seals. Usually a bad axle shows up half-way through the job when you discover it while replacing a seal or bearing.

Paying for labor can be a b!t@h, $1200 isn't completely unreasonable, though a bit high. Good luck!

 

[Mustang5L5]

Mechanics are in it to make $$$. How else are they going to survive. Think about your own job. You aren't in it to save the customer every cent he can get. How are you going to make money??

replacement axles can be found easily. I beleive aftermarket 4-lug fox axles are $200/pair and the cost of seals and new shoes might make it $300 total in parts. The axles are easy to pull out and if you can't do the shoes you can easily do the seals and axles and then take it somewhere for the brake job.