I bought a set of pads, rotors and calipers for the rear end of my 1995 940. It failed state inspection because apparently the calipers were rusted pretty severely. I bought rebuilt calipers from fcp groton that had pads already installed in them, as well as rotors. Total $240, 140 once i return the original calipers; pretty sweet deal if you ask me.

Anyway, since the pads are already loaded (FCP Reference Number 079-0705 if anyone wants to check them out), I was wondering if I needed any special tools to do the install? I browsed matthew's site and this one, but couldn't find a decent rear brake install thread. I would assume that it's bolt-off bolt-on. I'd rather not pay out the rear for a job I could do myself.

Any advice?
By the way, I'm no car expert, but I'm starting to like working on it myself. Seems like every weekend, something needs to be done.

 

Yup, there's always something to do until you can get 'em back to stage zero. Then, you get a reprieve until the first parts you replaced start failing! Rear brakes are as straight forward as the fronts. Buying loaded calipers is a time saver for sure and FCP always has super prices. Especially w/ their 15% off and free shipping right now. The only thing that may throw you a curve is the loaded caliper not sliding over the rotor; that's just a matter of opening the bleed nipples and prying it open. I like working on my cars too...not only are RWD Volvos very user friendly, knowing how things go together helps when they start giving off warning symptoms in the future.

 

My join date is about 2 weeks after I got the car, and I have been a neglectful owner, I'll admit. Now its starting to come back to bite me, but for what I paid for the car, I'm in good shape. As far as "the loaded caliper not sliding over the rotor; that's just a matter of opening the bleed nipples and prying it open", what do i need to do that? Socket, pliers, dynamite? As much as I would like to be able to let it sit on blocks while I chip away at it, my fiancee depends on the car to commute (only 5 miles, but still) and I can't be around during the week.
I assume that I can expect to get messy, since I will be disconnecting brake lines. No big, I will pick up some brake fluid, I'm sure.
As long as there isn't any special Volvo tools I need, I'm happy. I just hate stopping in the middle of a job to buy another tool.

 

I forget the size of the brake nipple...8mm? 7mm? 6mm? just take a box end wrench and unscrew it a bit...it's the same nipples you use to bleed the system when you're finished. You open the nipple a turn or two and then pry the caliper open with a srewdriver. Some people even use a mini scissors jack specially designed for the purpose. You won't need any special tools. Cold beer helps...

 

Sweet I'm planning to do this tomorrow. Ill post how it goes

 

I'd suggest using a 6 point socket to undo the bleeders- not sure of the size-
a little never seize on the threads of the bleeder will make that job easier next time

hank

 

It went well. The next time I do it probably won't take as long. Hopefully. But for my first major self-service, I'm happy with the way things turned out. Turns out the rear calipers were pretty gnarly and the pads were pretty much non-existent. Definitely happy with the fcp parts. Shipped fast and pretty darn cheap.