How do you repair the rear brakes and parking brake of a 1988 Honda Accord 2.0?

Answer 1

I assume you mean "replace" the brake pads instead of "repair". If that's so, then here's how to do it.

The piston will not compress with a clamp (like others) because of the internal parking brake setup. Remove the two caliper attachmnent bolts from the inside of the wheel assembly with a 14mm wrench (socket wrench makes it easier for the upper bolts). You might need to pry a little with a large screwdriver if the pads are tight on the rotor.

Remove the lid from the brake reservoir and if it is full of fluid, you might want to remove some of it because when you compress the piston, the fluid backs up into the reservoir and may overfill it. The fluid is an excellent paint remover, so be careful. A turkey baster works perfectlly.

The old pads should be removable by hand with a little jiggling. Pay attention to the way they were installed so that you can put new pads in the same way (in reverse). The piston must be retracted in order to allow for the thickness of new pads. Turn the piston clockwise and it will screw in to the retract position. It may be stiff at first, but after a revolution or so, it should turn easily. Watch that the boot does not get deformed or damaged. If it does not go in properly, you can help it with your finger. Be careful not to puncture it. To turn the piston, you need something like a very large screwdriver. I used the end of a bricklayer's hammer, which has a chisel on it about 1" across. The slot is about 1" long (diameter of the piston) and about 3/16" wide and I never heard of a screwdriver that big. Whatever you use, make sure it doesn't extend beyond the diameter of the piston or it may damage the boot. Screw the piston in until it is flush with the housing, and then back it out to align the slot so it is vertical (one of the protrusions on the inner pad rides in the slot). Check to see that the boot is uniformly retracted. If it isn't, carefully work it with a small (dull) tool to get it properly retracted. You might have to back the piston out a turn or two, and then turn it back in.

Apply anti-squeal to the face of the piston and the back of the pad, and insert the pad. You have to slide the outer housing so that the pad is all the ways back in order to install the outer pad. Apply anti-squeal to the steel side of the outer pad and install into the assembly the same way the old ones came out. You have to be patient and carefully compress the little spring clips to get them in; however, they will go in without force if you do it right. (It's easier if you have a helper to hold the caliper assembly while you install the pads).

Then, slide the complete caliper assembly over the rotor and replace the 14mm attachment bolts. I recommend that you do the brakes one side at a time. That way you won't get the inner pads mixed up and you will have a model to check if you get confused on how they should look assembled. The left and right inner pads are different because the brake wear indicator ( a steel strip) is located differently on the left and right.

Incidently, this works on all late Honda Accords with rear disks. I have a '92 and an '01 and they are essentially the same. They even use the same brake pad part numbers.