# Replacing V6 brake discs and pads all round



## MT-V6 (Jan 11, 2015)

Over the weekend I renewed the discs and pads all round on my V6, although I believe the TTS has the same.

This is not meant to be a guide but a few notes for those willing to attempt it themselves, and no doubt I missed bits off. Do not attempt the job unless you are comfortable doing so, and make sure you are safe at all times when jacking and working on the car.

I used MTEC drilled discs and I think they look great. I didn't go for the coating option as I plan to paint the disc hubs black with Hammerite.

Remove a front wheel. The first thing to do is remove the pad retaining bracket, which can be levered off with a large flat screwdriver with a cloth on the end. Be careful you don't let it ping off, and be careful of any painted calipers (though they will definitely be scratched when refitting!). The passenger side has a pad wear sensor connector to disconnect.

Remove the plastic caps for the slider bolts:










Undo the slider bolts with a 7mm allen socket. They should be tight so spray some penetrating oil in there first. I also removed the vibration damper T30 torx bolt for better access to the bottom slider, though the brake line also makes access tight. A short wobble extension helps.



















Once removed wiggle the caliper off. This might be tight if the discs have a ridge, and I found I could just about get a G clamp on the edge of a pad and push back the cylinder a bit (loosen the brake fluid reservoir cap and ensure it doesn't overflow).

You will then end up with this:










Next are two very tight bolts holding the caliper carrier to the hub. You will need a breaker bar to get these undone with plenty of penetrating oil.










Once undone remove the carrier. Undo the brake disc retaining bolt with a torx bit (I used an impact driver to ensure it came out easily). At this stage the disc may or may not come off (mine did). If not, use a mallet and persuade it off.










Give everything a cleanup, especially the hub, making sure it is completely clean. Clean off any grease from the new discs and refit. I used a new retaining bolt (part number N10648301, £0.42) and tighten to 4Nm. Refit the carrier and torque the bolts to 200Nm. Push back the cylinder slowly all the way using a G clamp and ensure the reservoir doesn't overflow, extracting fluid if necessary.










Fit the new pads making sure to put CeraTec grease on all moving parts as well as their backs. Grease the smooth slider bolts with CeraTec grease, refit and torque to 30Nm. I used threadlock on the carrier and slider bolts. Refit the pad retaining bracket, plastic caps, vibration damper and pad wear connector (on the passenger side).



















You can now pump the brake pedal a few times, which will readjust the caliper. Repeat the process for the other side.

The rear is a different process. The slider bolts needs to be removed with a 13mm spanner while counter-holding the 15mm edge. Again this will be fairly tight so a hammer may help along with penetrating oil:










Now the caliper can be wiggled out with the help of a large screwdriver. Next the carrier needs to be removed. This was the hardest part of the job as the driveshaft makes access very tight. A splined M14 socket as well as a short bar is needed as well as a club hammer and penetrating oil, as there is not space for a breaker bar. You will need to give it a good whack until it loosens up and can be undone with a rachet.










Remove and refit the disc as before ensuring everything is cleaned up. I pulled out the slider pins and regreased using general purpose grease. Refit the carrier bolts and torque to 90Nm + 90º. Wind back the cylinder using a windback tool, again making sure the reservoir doesn't overflow. Refit the pad ensuring moving edges and pad backs are greased. Refit the caliper and torque the bolts to 35Nm.










Firmly pump the brake pedal a few times until it feels normal, and try the handbrake a few times. Make sure you refit the reservoir cap. Test the brakes before driving on the road and don't brake hard for 200 miles until everything beds in.


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## Roller Skate (May 18, 2015)

I've never understood Audi's skimping on coating the hubs. They look awful after a couple of years. :?

Great write up buddy. 8)


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## MT-V6 (Jan 11, 2015)

The ones taken off were original but looked like they had been painted by a previous owner. The new ones are MTEC but the coating is an extra

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk


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## AndreiV93 (Mar 29, 2017)

Great write up bud!

Done mine a few months back; those bolts on the rear carriers were a nightmare! I never understood why they just couldn't use the same bolts as the front carriers? :?: :?: also, painted mine silver with Hammerite


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## JohnnyFarmer (Aug 19, 2016)

Does anyone have front & rear disc & pad recommendation for a 2007 V6 roadster - for road use - occasionally spirited driving no track?

I've been watching these - https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/AUDI-TT-2-0T ... 2252704269

Can't see the disc manufacturer?

Also I understand groves help with clearing residue from rotors but what's the opinion on drilling them?


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## HAWKS (Mar 31, 2018)

I went for mintex dics and Red stuff pads all round, stops will with minimal dust.
Drilled discs can act like a cheese grater on your pads.

Your not thinking of drilling them yourself are you :-o :-o


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## JohnnyFarmer (Aug 19, 2016)

Agreed - I would have thought if you wanted a bit of metal to break sooner then you drill some holes in it then heat it up & cool it down again regularly. But I see so many drilled discs around - perhaps saving 50g a corner unsprung weight tops?


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## kerwinrobertson (Sep 3, 2018)

Great write up, only thing I would add is to use Ceratec rather than copper grease, especially on the slider pins. Copper grease dries up when heated and hardens, it also reacts with aluminium parts, is conductive and can shorten the life of rubber boots. 
Ceratec never dries out, doesn't react with metals or rubber and is non conductive. The garages I use switched over to these type of ceramic greases years ago.

https://mintex.com/copper-slip-vs-ceratec/?lang=en-gbr


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## kerwinrobertson (Sep 3, 2018)

JohnnyFarmer said:


> Agreed - I would have thought if you wanted a bit of metal to break sooner then you drill some holes in it then heat it up & cool it down again regularly. But I see so many drilled discs around - perhaps saving 50g a corner unsprung weight tops?


Drilled disks have gone out of favour in the past 5 years due to increased chances of cracking (due to people buying cheap disks with improper hole location and finishing) and the 'cheese grater' effect on the pads (increased wear, dust and noise). "J" hook and slotted are better for track and fast road use. Have a look at the types of brakes used during a track day, hardly any drilled, unless its OEM (Porsche cast their disks with the holes in them, rather than drilled after) you will see mostly slotted or J hook.

There was an argument that the holes helped with the outgassing of the pads when they were hot, but modern pad compounds don't outgass nearly as much. You lose friction contact area with drilled or slotted, but the pad surface is kept a little cleaner and water is cleared a little better.

If you stick to a well respected brand (Brembo, M-tech etc) then cracking will be minimised on drilled disks, and they do look really cool


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## DorianRed (Jul 6, 2021)

AndreiV93 said:


> Great write up bud!
> 
> Done mine a few months back; those bolts on the rear carriers were a nightmare! I never understood why they just couldn't use the same bolts as the front carriers? :?: :?: also, painted mine silver with Hammerite


This is a great write up, I did this job all round on my V6 last month. I found that it was just about possible to remove and replace the rear discs without trying to remove the rear calliper carriers. You do have to take a deep breath and use a little force though.


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## MT-V6 (Jan 11, 2015)

Glad it helped 👍 I've read similar before about not removing the carriers for the rear disks, though some have managed to remove the worn one but not fit the new thicker one


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## MT-V6 (Jan 11, 2015)

This time before swapping the pads I decided to get a long reach allen socket, as using a small one with extension presses against the hard line. This worked really well, so would recommend it as the best tool for the job


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