DIY: Rear Drum Brakes to Rear Disc Brakes

[RHCP0801]

ok first off this is not an easy mod, you need to know what you are doing and do it very carefully, you are working with a part of your car that helps you stop and if not done correctly this can be a disaster

now on to the info

The parts you are going to need are a set of EP3 rear discs (02-03 Honda Civic Si) if you wanna get it all seperate which i dont suggest doing since it will be a pain and cost a lot more. I picked up my set that came with everything (EP3 ebrake cables, rear calipers, rotors, brake lines, master cylinder and proportioning valve(optional but suggested) spindle's(knuckle) and various clips and what not for $220 shipped. Go to a junkyard and ask for a rear disc setup off an 02-03 civic si and thats what you will need right there but make sure it comes with everything

1. Remove your wheels and remove the brake line in the upper corner of the wheel well, no need to remove the bracket, just remove the brake line with a 10mm wrench, now i used a line wrench to do this which made this much easier but be very careful cause the nut can strip easily.



2. Go into the car and take apart the center console until you reach your ebrake cables, loosen the adjustment nut and pull out the old ebrake cables and unbolt the 3 bolts that hold it to the underside of the car. Not all the mounting brackets on the si cables will match up so you will have to either drill a new hole and screw it in or zip tie it up under the car. The new cables are also shorter and its tough getting them to fit in the carriage so you will need some muscle to get them in but they do fit, remember attach them to the caliper first



3. Now your gonna want to remove the drum so you can see inside the brake assembly, remove the bolts on the back of the drum that hold the ebrake cable and brake lines, i believe they are 10 and 12mm bolts, its just about 5 or so, once all those bolts are out its time to remove the wheel sensor, spray a lot of rust penetrant or pb blaster on this thing cause they did not budge on my car and i ended up breaking one and it costs $40 from the dealer, if you dont replace them your abs light will be on and of course...you wont have abs in the car at all....once the abs light is on it affects the whole system. The sensor looks like this, this would be the part facing you when you remove the drum, it fits in a hole right in the middle of the drum behind the hub

this is it broken, its a magnet basically




and this is where it plugs into just incase yours breaks and you need to replace it, the ones that come with the spindles from the si dont work



4. Remove the 3 bolts that hold the knuckle to the car, they are all 17mm i believe and its easy, just use a ratchet and take them out, support the knuckle with a jack so when you take the bolts out it doesnt fall. The one bolt has a cam nut on it for alignment, that doesnt need to be spun off, just pull it off

5. install everything back on the car in reverse order, brakes lines, brackets calipers, pads, rotors...etc etc

6. Install the ebrake cables, feed them through the floor and bolt them to the floor pan, pull the line under the knuckle and attach to the spring like device on the caliper, its a lot easier to install them if you attach them to the caliper first than to the handle just make sure you loosened the adjustment nut as much as possible cause it wont be easy. Connect the left cable first than the right one

here is a picture of the caliper with the ebrake cables installed, feed them through the bracket with the hole in it first and than up to the spring with the lever on it



7. Make sure everthing is tight and no brake fluid is leaking, bleed them and take it for a drive, go easy at first and gradually get harder on them

this took me about 2 hours or maybe a little less to do with air tools and a lift but it shouldnt take more than 4 or so without them, hardest thing to do was the ebrake cables

8. all done :woot:





QUICK TIP - DRAW A LINE WITH MARKER AROUND THE ROTOR TO SEE IF THE PADS ENGAGE, DRIVE IT AND IF THE MARKER IS GONE THAN THEY DID, IF NOT THAN YOU HAVE A PROBLEM

I ALSO SUGGEST YOU CHANGE OVER YOUR MASTER CYLINDER AND PROPORTIONING VALVE AS DISC BRAKES NEED MORE PSI TO ENGAGE THAN DRUM BRAKES. DRUM BRAKES USE ABOUT 500 PSI AND DISC BRAKES USE ABOUT 1200PSI. THE MASTER AND PRO VALVE SWAP RIGHT OVER, JUST MAKE SURE YOU BLEED YOUR BRAKES WELL AFTER DOING SO. THE PARTS ARE ALSO CHEAP BRAND NEW.

MASTER AND PROPORTIONING VALVE ARE NOT NEEDED BUT THEY HELP IN PEDAL FIRMNESS AND PREVENTING FRONT WHEEL LOCKUP

any questions just let me know

[TransformedBG]

This is how diys should be.. vs links.. as we do things make new ones

[CHRIS]

^yeah well untl we make new ones we have to use links...not my doing

nice write up adam

[civicman1988]

sweet did u get everything brand new? If so where?

[RHCP0801]

na i got it all used, all from ephatch.com

if you want this stuff brand new i hope you have money, dealer charges like $200 just for the knuckle...it would probably cost over a grand if you bought it all new...no point in that, just go to a junkyard

[ant206]

im guessing this was done on an ex? since you got abs. anything differnt since the lx dont got abs?

[CHRIS]

how big of a difference do u notice?

[Punkingcivic]

yeah all new it is like 600+ for the setup I think

[civicman1988]

i am looking right now for them. Also did u know a big difference?

[Suzy Q]

Originally Posted by ant206

im guessing this was done on an ex? since you got abs. anything differnt since the lx dont got abs?

there is a difference for those w/o abs (i don't know what exactly)
but i seen a thread about it on civicforums