Confession: Brakes are one of the things that I've never done on any of my cars. I figure that if I screw something up so that it won't run, that's better than if I screw something up and it won't stop in an emergency situation. So that is one of the things that I "farm out."

I last had the pads replaced at about 135K miles. Now have 177,000 and they're getting noisy (screeching). I notice that the pedal hasn't been as firm over the last 5,000 miles as it usually is. So, I'm assuming that at least the front pads need replacement, preferably ASAP. Looks like all I would need to do this job is something to push the pistons back into the calipers (screwdriver?). There appear to be a few pins holding the pads in, is this all? Do I need to bleed the system and refill with fresh brake fluid?

Rotors and calipers are original. The calipers don't leak, rotors look OK upon visual inspection so I assume that I should leave 'em alone for now?

Don't recall if the M.C. has ever been replaced either...how long do they usually last?

Thanks,

-Jim