Lexus owners enjoy the best in automotive engineering, and proper maintenance will guarantee that you get the legendary Lexus experience for years to come. Besides being an essential area of maintenance, changing the brake pads will ensure that the Toyota anti-lock braking system performs well when needed. You can choose to have an auto mechanic perform the brake pad replacement, or you can swap the old pads for new ones and save the cost of labor.
Park the Lexus away from a curb to allow access to both sides of the vehicle for work. Make sure the vehicle is in "park" with the parking brake applied. Place the tire blocks around the rear tires to prevent the Lexus from rolling backward.
Loosen the lug nuts on the wheels of the Lexus with the socketed end of the tire iron. Before lifting the vehicle, loosen the lug nuts on either side using the weight of the Lexus to hold the tires and wheels in place.
Lift the Lexus using the jack. You need to lift the vehicle until the tire is clear of the ground. This will enable you to take the tire completely off. Lift one side, then the other.
Place a jack stand under the the frame of the Lexus on either side once lifted. Lower the vehicle onto the jack stand. While supported by the jack stand, the Lexus tires should still be at least 1 inch off the ground.
Finish removing the lug nuts. Remove the wheels by pulling them from the lug nut bolts.
Remove the brake calipers. The calipers surround three sides of the rotors and contain the brake pads. Use a 13mm socket and ratchet to remove the two bolts holding the caliper to the rotor. The two bolts are located at the top and bottom of the caliper, on the side nearest the wheel well. Pull the entire caliper group from the rotor. The caliper will be still connected via the brake line.
Remove the old brake pads from the brake caliper. The brake pads are connected to the caliper by metal clips, and you can simply slide them from the caliper by hand with a moderate amount of force. If the brakes have rusted, you will need to use a flat screwdriver to pry the metal clips loose to slide the pads off. Do not worry about bending or otherwise damaging the metal clips; the new pads will have clips attached.
Squeeze the caliper piston open. The caliper piston is the ring on the inner wall of the caliper. As the brake pads wear, the caliper piston will push forward to make sure that the pads are closer to the rotor. When adding new pads, you will need to reset the piston's starting position (because the new pads will take up more space than the worn pads they are replacing). Use locking pliers to squeeze the piston against the inner side of the caliper. Once opened, the piston will remain in its position until the brake is applied.
Slide the new brake pads onto the caliper. The new pads will slide onto either inner side of the caliper. The proper position of the pads is when the top of the pad is curved outward at the edge of the caliper (convexed) and the pad side is facing inward.
Replace the caliper with the new pads installed around the rotor. Replace the bolts holding the caliper to the rotor using the 13mm socket and ratchet.
Replace the wheels and their lug nuts. Lift the Lexus to remove the jack stands. Tighten the lug nuts fully after you have removed the jack stands and placed the tires back on the ground.
Apply the brake to reset the caliper before driving. The first time you depress the brake it will feel loose; the pedal will go farther forward than you have ever experienced before. After pressing two or three times you will notice a more normal response.
