Alright... I've had this 4Runner about a year and the brakes are about due for some work!

What pads should I use?
What is the best place to buy them from?

How easy is it doing the front brakes?
Time involved?

I've done motorcycle brakes before, and I'm sure its pretty much the same thing, just more time consuming....

Thanks!

 

Some more info would help (I'm guessing 2nd gen), but as a general rule...I like ceramics on the front and regular metallic on the back. Buy Premium pads and shoes, don't skimp on the brakes. Any parts store will carry them.

To have the best results, have your rotors and drums turned by a shop/store. They will work, sound, and feel better than if you skip that step.

Without having the rotors turned, I'd say 1/2 hour per wheel. With having the rotors turned, that's a half day project with waiting on the shop. Scale of 1-10, i'd say a 4.75

 

I've found it's best to buy OEM Toyota rotors; they stay true when others warp. I've gotten over 100k miles out of mine; I'll just replace them instead of turning them when they go. I usually buy NAPA Premium or Toyota pads.

 

ceramic pads eat up rotors, so if you're gonna go with that, upgrade the rotors

 

Go to napa if you have one. I always get at least middle of the line and its way better then autozone.

There are these pins on the calipars, 2 on each
Pull the pins and clips
Pull the pads out
Push piston back in
New pads Put back the pins and clips
Bleed system.

 

I slapped on some Wearever brand Gold series from Advance Auto Parts when I was doing my front wheel bearings and rebuilding my hubs (partly because of the fact that I use to work there, and I can still get killer discounts if I deal with the right people in the stores )

Their not the cheapo ones, but their not top of the line either; just middle-of-the-road semi metallics

But their nice; great stopping power with OEM discs and calipers, no noise, and virtually no brake dust




and the process is fairly easy; the most agrivating part about the whole thing is the fact that the fluid line connecting to the caliper is a steel line, and you have to remove it to lift the caliper up to get the pads out... which means you have to bleed the brakes when your done... I had my entire hub assymbely off when I did mine, so my calipers were already off

but I wouldn't even rate it a 4.5 on a scale of 10, maybe a 2.5 or a 3; it's a pretty straight forward job... but then again, I've done a LOT of brake jobs