My 2014 Sport has around 45K miles (I bought it at 23Kmiles a couple of years ago) and it was getting close to being time to do the front pads. I’ve driven a Ridge since 2005 and the stock GenI Ridgeline brakes have always disappointed me in terms of overall stopping distances and the feel and amount of pedal pressure required. With this in mind, I decided it was a good time to do a brake upgrade project using Acura MDX components up front and more aggressive pads and rotors on all four corners.
Front: 2007-2013 Acura MDX components.
EBC S5KF1450 Rotor and Pad kit (both sides). This includes EBC's GD Series rotors that are dimpled and slotted with their Yellowstuff street / track brake pads . . .About $380
Cardone 19P3278&19P3279 Rebuilt "Premium" coated front brake calipers, hangers and hardware About $270 for the pair. I think the core charge is about $70 each but I don’t have an MDX core to return . . .
Rear: OEM Honda Ridgeline
EBC GD7331 Dimpled slotted rotors. . . $70 (must have been a price screw up on Amazon prime; lucky me. . .Expect to pay closer to $200)
EBC DP4175R Yellowstuff brake pads. . .$45
Install thoughts:
Tools:
I used cordless impact wrenches to do the work and it REALLY makes it easy with no muscle strains or skinned knuckles. My large (20v) 1/2 Dewalt impact takes off the wheel lugs and breaks the caliper hanger bolts loose in seconds.
I used my smaller (20v) 3/8 Dewalt impact with a #3 Phillips tip to reliably loosen the rotor retainer screws.
For brake bleeding I use a vacuum bleeder that is powered by compressed air. This sure beats hand pumping a bleeder like old school MityVac type. If you own a decent size air compressor then this type of tool is a no brainer . . .
https://www.amazon.com/8milelake-Pn...matic+brake+fluid+bleeder&qid=1557682317&s=gateway&sprefix=8mile,aps,120&sr=8-3
Rotors:
Take off the rotor retainer screws with the correct #3 Phillips tip. It might technically be a JIS screw but the #3 Phillips fits it perfectly. Best to use an impact tool to remove them. If you don’t have the powered tool, use the manual type that you whap with a hammer. Basically you want to avoid the PIA of having to chisel or drill out the screws.
It can take some effort to knock loose the rotors, particularly in high mileage / rust zone vehicles. Use a mallet and work your way around. Once the old rotors are off, spend some time cleaning the mounting surface on the hub. You don’t want ANY rust build up to put the rotors out of alignment. Once clean put a small amount of anti seize on the hub surface to make the next rotor removal a piece of cake.
The EBC drilled / slotted rotors are directional. The slots are angled / curved so that in theory gases / water escapes as they spin. They are marked left and right or you can just use common sense thinking about the way they will spin.
Calipers / pads:
As I was completely removing the stock front calipers and hangers (to make way for the MDX parts) I wanted to minimize the brake fluid loss / air infiltration while the calipers were off. Ahead of time I found a solid bolt, nut, and compression washers that was the same size as the banjo bolt. As soon as I disconnected the stock caliper, I sealed off the hose with the solid bolt. I still lost a bit of fluid and a bunch of air got in but at least it was somewhat minimized.
Make sure to pay some attention to the caliper slide pins that fit into the bores in the hangers. First off it is best to use a quality grease made for the purpose like Sil-Glyde silicone based grease. I found that its best to remove the hangers and completely clean out the bores and the pins.
On the OEM rear caliper, the upper and lower pins are different. The upper pin is the one with the flats on it. Don't reverse the order. My pins looked as new but these are relatively cheap parts that are available aftermarket so if yours are corroded or worn at all, replace them.
On the MDX front calipers, the upper and lower pins are also different. One pin has a rubber bushing installed in a groove at the end and it goes in the TOP bore. My Cardone calipers came with the pins in the wrong location (I looked it up both in the Acura parts diagram and in the Acura factory repair manual) It is especially important to use correct grease like Sil-Glyde on pins with the rubber bushings as there are ample reports of issues with the bushings swelling and seizing up due to improper grease. I didn't trust Cardone to do it right so I cleaned the bores and pins and re-greased with the Sil-Glyde
Honda specs a small amount of their M77 assembly paste to be used underneath and on top of the stainless plates (they clip onto the hangers) that the brake pads ride on so that's what I did. The Yellowstuff pads fit easily into place and moved freely. EBC gives you a pair of piston inserts for the rear calipers that are designed to prevent squealing. They push into the open end of the caliper piston. No silencing shims are needed with them. For the fronts they didn’t provide any inserts but the pads came with silencing shims attached.
One thing that seems a bit odd about the MDX front setup is that the brake pads do not contact the inner most ½” of the flat surface of the rotor. This appears even more strange with the EBC rotors since the rotor is plated black, and the slots and dimples start at the beginning of the flat rotor surface. I was worried that something was wrong initially but after some searching on line, I found a youtube video of someone doing a front brake service on the 07-13 MDX and there were some good shots of the old rotor next to the new one. You could clearly see that the pads never contacted the innermost portion of the rotor flat.
Parking / Emergency Brake:
When you replace the rear brake rotor you need to deal with the parking brake. I followed the manuals specs for doing the major adjustment at the rear parking brake drum. To me this method seems to be pretty imprecise. . .It’s hard to gauge when the parking brake is “locked” up (vs being mostly locked up or just a bit locked up etc). Also, backing of the adjuster “10 clicks” proves to be a challenge because you can’t actually see to confirm that the adjuster has moved on a step or just returned back. Either way you still hear a click. My solution was to:
Initially do the best I could at the rear
Adjust the pedal up front according to manual
Apply just enough pedal for slight resistance on at least one side at the rear
Adjust the other side at the drum until its resistance was exactly the same
This is PIA and requires having both rear wheels removed. It works however . . . I guess most people probably don’t even use their parking brake but my OCD wanted this done right. In an emergency (main brake pedal not working), the drum brakes should apply with roughly the same force.
Brake Bleeding:
I have now removed the calipers on both my 06 and 14 Ridgelines. In both instances I found that I was not able to remove all the air in the system by using the vacuum bleeder alone. Initially I pulled a good pint worth of fluid though the front calipers only to be left with a soft pedal. The solution was to have a helper press the brake pedal while I opened and applied vacuum to the bleeder valves at the front calipers. I did this 5-6 times per side and the pedal became nice and firm.
The vacuum bleeders are still useful tools not only for aiding the pedal method, but also for doing a routine brake fluid exchange. They will also get dry brake lines and calipers full of fluid and ready for a final bleed by the pedal method.
In short, plan on having a helper available to assist with brake bleeding if you have introduced air into the system by changing calipers, brake lines or the master cylinder etc.
Performance:
Here’s some info that Smufguy supplied in another thread:
quote
'10 MDX Caliper: 50.8mm | 2 Piston caliper | 4051.60 sq.mm | 330mm Front rotors
'10 Pilot caliper: 47.5mm | 2 Piston Caliper | 3542.31 sq.mm | 330mm Front rotors
'10 Ody caliper: 45.5mm | 2 Piston Caliper | 3250.29 sq.mm | 296mm Front rotors
'10 Ridgeline Caliper: 44.0mm | 2 Piston Caliper | 3039.52 sq.mm | 320mm
Front rotors.
end quote
MDX front brakes are a similar overall design to the OEM Ridgeline ones. Most importantly, the caliper hangers and the rotors are perfectly compatible with the Ridgeline hub. They MDX setup uses a larger rotor and a larger caliper with larger pistons. The brake pads themselves however are essentially the same size.
For the caliper (in theory). . .The larger pistons will increase pedal travel for a given amount of piston movement. At the same time it will also increase pressure on the pads and brake torque for a given amount of pedal pressure. The pistons also contact a larger portion of the back of the pad so pressure should be applied more evenly.
For the rotor (in theory). . .The larger diameter of the MDX rotor means that for one rotation of the front wheel the brake pads travel a longer distance in contact with the rotor. The pads themselves aren’t any larger so its this extra contact per revolution that will increase brake force. In addition, this extra contact is applied farther away from the axle so the mechanical advantage is also increased with the larger rotors. The EBC rotors are dimpled and slotted which in theory will allow gas, particulates and water to escape during braking.
For the pads (in theory); EBC’s Yellowstuff pads are a higher friction pad than OEM Ridgeline or MDX brake pads. For a given amount of pressure applied to them, they should generate more brake torque than OEM pads.
Front: 2007-2013 Acura MDX components.
EBC S5KF1450 Rotor and Pad kit (both sides). This includes EBC's GD Series rotors that are dimpled and slotted with their Yellowstuff street / track brake pads . . .About $380
Cardone 19P3278&19P3279 Rebuilt "Premium" coated front brake calipers, hangers and hardware About $270 for the pair. I think the core charge is about $70 each but I don’t have an MDX core to return . . .
Rear: OEM Honda Ridgeline
EBC GD7331 Dimpled slotted rotors. . . $70 (must have been a price screw up on Amazon prime; lucky me. . .Expect to pay closer to $200)
EBC DP4175R Yellowstuff brake pads. . .$45
Install thoughts:
Tools:
I used cordless impact wrenches to do the work and it REALLY makes it easy with no muscle strains or skinned knuckles. My large (20v) 1/2 Dewalt impact takes off the wheel lugs and breaks the caliper hanger bolts loose in seconds.
I used my smaller (20v) 3/8 Dewalt impact with a #3 Phillips tip to reliably loosen the rotor retainer screws.
For brake bleeding I use a vacuum bleeder that is powered by compressed air. This sure beats hand pumping a bleeder like old school MityVac type. If you own a decent size air compressor then this type of tool is a no brainer . . .
https://www.amazon.com/8milelake-Pn...matic+brake+fluid+bleeder&qid=1557682317&s=gateway&sprefix=8mile,aps,120&sr=8-3
Rotors:
Take off the rotor retainer screws with the correct #3 Phillips tip. It might technically be a JIS screw but the #3 Phillips fits it perfectly. Best to use an impact tool to remove them. If you don’t have the powered tool, use the manual type that you whap with a hammer. Basically you want to avoid the PIA of having to chisel or drill out the screws.
It can take some effort to knock loose the rotors, particularly in high mileage / rust zone vehicles. Use a mallet and work your way around. Once the old rotors are off, spend some time cleaning the mounting surface on the hub. You don’t want ANY rust build up to put the rotors out of alignment. Once clean put a small amount of anti seize on the hub surface to make the next rotor removal a piece of cake.
The EBC drilled / slotted rotors are directional. The slots are angled / curved so that in theory gases / water escapes as they spin. They are marked left and right or you can just use common sense thinking about the way they will spin.
Calipers / pads:
As I was completely removing the stock front calipers and hangers (to make way for the MDX parts) I wanted to minimize the brake fluid loss / air infiltration while the calipers were off. Ahead of time I found a solid bolt, nut, and compression washers that was the same size as the banjo bolt. As soon as I disconnected the stock caliper, I sealed off the hose with the solid bolt. I still lost a bit of fluid and a bunch of air got in but at least it was somewhat minimized.
Make sure to pay some attention to the caliper slide pins that fit into the bores in the hangers. First off it is best to use a quality grease made for the purpose like Sil-Glyde silicone based grease. I found that its best to remove the hangers and completely clean out the bores and the pins.
On the OEM rear caliper, the upper and lower pins are different. The upper pin is the one with the flats on it. Don't reverse the order. My pins looked as new but these are relatively cheap parts that are available aftermarket so if yours are corroded or worn at all, replace them.
On the MDX front calipers, the upper and lower pins are also different. One pin has a rubber bushing installed in a groove at the end and it goes in the TOP bore. My Cardone calipers came with the pins in the wrong location (I looked it up both in the Acura parts diagram and in the Acura factory repair manual) It is especially important to use correct grease like Sil-Glyde on pins with the rubber bushings as there are ample reports of issues with the bushings swelling and seizing up due to improper grease. I didn't trust Cardone to do it right so I cleaned the bores and pins and re-greased with the Sil-Glyde
Honda specs a small amount of their M77 assembly paste to be used underneath and on top of the stainless plates (they clip onto the hangers) that the brake pads ride on so that's what I did. The Yellowstuff pads fit easily into place and moved freely. EBC gives you a pair of piston inserts for the rear calipers that are designed to prevent squealing. They push into the open end of the caliper piston. No silencing shims are needed with them. For the fronts they didn’t provide any inserts but the pads came with silencing shims attached.
One thing that seems a bit odd about the MDX front setup is that the brake pads do not contact the inner most ½” of the flat surface of the rotor. This appears even more strange with the EBC rotors since the rotor is plated black, and the slots and dimples start at the beginning of the flat rotor surface. I was worried that something was wrong initially but after some searching on line, I found a youtube video of someone doing a front brake service on the 07-13 MDX and there were some good shots of the old rotor next to the new one. You could clearly see that the pads never contacted the innermost portion of the rotor flat.
Parking / Emergency Brake:
When you replace the rear brake rotor you need to deal with the parking brake. I followed the manuals specs for doing the major adjustment at the rear parking brake drum. To me this method seems to be pretty imprecise. . .It’s hard to gauge when the parking brake is “locked” up (vs being mostly locked up or just a bit locked up etc). Also, backing of the adjuster “10 clicks” proves to be a challenge because you can’t actually see to confirm that the adjuster has moved on a step or just returned back. Either way you still hear a click. My solution was to:
Initially do the best I could at the rear
Adjust the pedal up front according to manual
Apply just enough pedal for slight resistance on at least one side at the rear
Adjust the other side at the drum until its resistance was exactly the same
This is PIA and requires having both rear wheels removed. It works however . . . I guess most people probably don’t even use their parking brake but my OCD wanted this done right. In an emergency (main brake pedal not working), the drum brakes should apply with roughly the same force.
Brake Bleeding:
I have now removed the calipers on both my 06 and 14 Ridgelines. In both instances I found that I was not able to remove all the air in the system by using the vacuum bleeder alone. Initially I pulled a good pint worth of fluid though the front calipers only to be left with a soft pedal. The solution was to have a helper press the brake pedal while I opened and applied vacuum to the bleeder valves at the front calipers. I did this 5-6 times per side and the pedal became nice and firm.
The vacuum bleeders are still useful tools not only for aiding the pedal method, but also for doing a routine brake fluid exchange. They will also get dry brake lines and calipers full of fluid and ready for a final bleed by the pedal method.
In short, plan on having a helper available to assist with brake bleeding if you have introduced air into the system by changing calipers, brake lines or the master cylinder etc.
Performance:
Here’s some info that Smufguy supplied in another thread:
quote
'10 MDX Caliper: 50.8mm | 2 Piston caliper | 4051.60 sq.mm | 330mm Front rotors
'10 Pilot caliper: 47.5mm | 2 Piston Caliper | 3542.31 sq.mm | 330mm Front rotors
'10 Ody caliper: 45.5mm | 2 Piston Caliper | 3250.29 sq.mm | 296mm Front rotors
'10 Ridgeline Caliper: 44.0mm | 2 Piston Caliper | 3039.52 sq.mm | 320mm
Front rotors.
end quote
MDX front brakes are a similar overall design to the OEM Ridgeline ones. Most importantly, the caliper hangers and the rotors are perfectly compatible with the Ridgeline hub. They MDX setup uses a larger rotor and a larger caliper with larger pistons. The brake pads themselves however are essentially the same size.
For the caliper (in theory). . .The larger pistons will increase pedal travel for a given amount of piston movement. At the same time it will also increase pressure on the pads and brake torque for a given amount of pedal pressure. The pistons also contact a larger portion of the back of the pad so pressure should be applied more evenly.
For the rotor (in theory). . .The larger diameter of the MDX rotor means that for one rotation of the front wheel the brake pads travel a longer distance in contact with the rotor. The pads themselves aren’t any larger so its this extra contact per revolution that will increase brake force. In addition, this extra contact is applied farther away from the axle so the mechanical advantage is also increased with the larger rotors. The EBC rotors are dimpled and slotted which in theory will allow gas, particulates and water to escape during braking.
For the pads (in theory); EBC’s Yellowstuff pads are a higher friction pad than OEM Ridgeline or MDX brake pads. For a given amount of pressure applied to them, they should generate more brake torque than OEM pads.
