Re: Abnormal 03 Boxster break pad wear

03 986S--original owner.
"Brake wear" warning light comes on, goes off
Car has 96K miles
Replaced F/R pads at 70K miles
Current pads have 26K miles (96-70)
LF pad has twice the wear as RF
LR/RR/RF pads are good
Both front calipers have .5 mm of wear
What would cause LF pad to have this abnormal wear?

The intermittent brake wear light could be a loose or bad sensor.

If he LF has twice the wear as the RF:
a) the LF pads are dragging (dirty/damaged pistons not returning home). You should hear the brake dragging when doing 3-5 mph.
b) the RF pistons are not working correctly (you would feel the car pull left when you brake hard).

Happy Boxstering,
Pedro

Pedro Bonilla
1998 Boxster 986 - 311,000+ miles: [www.PedrosGarage.com]
PCA National Club Racing Scrutineer - PCA National HPDE Instructor - PCA Technical Committee (Boxster/Cayman)

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"If you wait, all that happens is that you get older"... Mario Andretti

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Thanks Pedro---I am going to exercise the LF pistons (pushing in/out) several times and replace the LF pads with the 70K mile pads which I saved.
Then see where I am at.

I like to take out the pads,and "fully" extend the pistons (put something in to prevent them from popping out, maybe a worn-out pad or backing plate). Then clean with brake cleaner on all moving surfaces. Then i apply some brake fluid as lubricant and further solvent. In and out. Ought to be good. Eventual with enough age you might need to rebuild with new dust covers & seals. Check that the rubber/silicone dusto covers are intact

G

Grant

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