If you have not done your rear pads then before you do you might want to go buy one of these ($12.95 at the local parts store).  You will need it for the rear brakes. They have threaded pistons, no matter how hard you try to force the piston back into the caliper it will not budge, and you may cause damage if you do manage to squeeze it back in! Be warned the piston will recede all the way back in...just takes a LONG time... 3/8 ratchet directly to the tool worked best U joints, and extenders were no help for me.

The emergency brake was VERY loose afterwards. Even at the full upright position the car was able to roll...an old trick I learned worked!  Backed up and yanked on the e-brake/hand brake 4 - 6 times... all is well now.

Vehicle Utilization

Everyone drives differently, and the old adage "Your Mileage May Vary" definitely applies to brakes and tires.  I drive 80 miles round trip to work every day, autocross about 15-20 events each year, and probably run 1000-1200 miles on track events each year.  My brake system is 100% stock, except for the brake fluid.

Brake Fluid

I replace the brake fluid every 3 months with Valvoline Synthetic brake fluid - any 600 degree brake fluid will do.  I also bleed the brakes before EVERY track event and bring three bottles of fluid with me "just in case".  I replace the brake fluid so often because of the high humidity in Florida.  Any moisture in the brake system that makes it's way to the calipers can cause two problems - the most evident is reduction in boiling temperature of the brake fluid with moisture present.  What good is 600 degree fluid if water begins to boil at 212?  Moisture is probably the #1 cause of brake fade - period.  The second is rust.  Excessive moisture in the system can allow rust to form around the pistons (and bores if steel calipers).  Any rust around sliding components means increased wear and eventual failure of the caliper seals.  It usually takes MANY years for this to happen (as in more than ten) but it is still a consideration.  When I replace the fluid, I suck out the resevoir, then open a new sealed bottle of fluid, refill the resevoir, then bleed the brakes.

There are basically three ways to bleed the brake system:

1. Two people - one at the caliper and one pumping the brakes.
2. One person with speed bleeders - one way valves that replace the stock bleeders on each caliper.  Open the bleeder, pump the brakes, close the bleeder.
3. One person with forced pressure - I run 5 PSI dry shop air into a fitting in a spare resevoir cap and just use the stock bleeders.

I use method 3 and it takes about 10 minutes plus the time to remove and replace the tires.  I go through about 1/2 bottle of fluid when bleeding and 2 bottles when replacing fluid.

Front Brakes

Extrapolating from the past service history of my first Spyder, I would estimate that my front rotors will last about 100,000 miles.  I replace the front brake pads at about 35,000 mile intervals and have the stock rotors turned each time.  The stock pads are about $40 and turning two rotors costs me $30.  The stock rotors are 20mm wide, and each turning takes up about 1/2mm from each surface.  The BGB specifies 18 mm as the minimum rotor thickness for safe use.  So that means you should be able to get two turnings out of a set of rotors, or about 100,000 miles if you drive similarly to me.  If you drive like a pussycat, you could probably extend that to well over 200,000 - 300,000 miles.  I replace the pads before the center cut mark is completely worn to - usually at least 1 mm from the squeal tabs from reaching the rotor.

I tried painting the rotor hubs with standard wheel paint when the car was fairly new, but the paint did not hold up well to the heat and was burned off within about 10,000 miles.  I have not bothered to try a high temperature paint - I have become good pals with the rotor rust by now and would be sad to see it go.

The pads are a breeze to replace - I put a dab of high temperature silicone at the slotted section of the shims when reassembling.  The silicone grease helps keep the pads against the caliper and not pressing against the rotor and helps to eliminate brake noise.  It probably extends the life of the pads and rotors, too.  You'll see where the factory puts the goo when you disassemble the pads, so it's easy to figure out where to put it.  A small tube of about 1 oz of grease is a few dollars at the auto parts store - look in the silicone sealer section.

The shims are pretty durable, and I tend to reuse them as long as possible.  After the last pad replacement at 70,000 miles, it looks like dirt and grime are finally distorting the shims and I will replace them on the next pad change along with new rotors.

Rear Brakes

The rear brakes are another story altogether.  I am still on the original set of pads and rotor and there is still plenty of life left.  I may go ahead and replace the pads at 100,000 miles just out of sheer boredom, but I'm sure they will still be fine.  I have a Toyota truck with about 230,000 miles that is still on it's original rear brakes.

As Whelp mentioned above, when replacing the rear pads, the pistons don't just press in like the front calipers.  They actually are threaded into the caliper and have to be screwed back into the caliper.  I have never had any problems screwing the pistons in by hand, but you never know....

Conclusion