John Pal...

i spent a good chunk of the weekend replacing my '97 1.8TQ's front brake pads and rotors w/ ATE Power Discs and Rofren pads. No prob there...easy job aside from getting the driver's side rotor off since it was severely stuck on there. The brake pads came with wiring that i assume is to ping the brake warning light when they wear down. I just clipped off the leads since I don't have that sensor (do any A4s?)

anyhow, my woes started with the rears. i found out the hard way that having a caliper piston tool is INVALUABLE when doing this job. i tried needlenose pliers for a while, and i also tried a c-clamp and a pair of channel locks. both methods were barely adequate for the driver's side. when i got to the passenger's side, there was no way to use either of those methods since i'm right-handed. well, maybe if i were REALLY patient...
based on some posts I found and picked up the caliper piston tool at Harbor Freight. it turned the nightmare into a pleasure. if you ever plan on doing the rear brakes, please do yourself a favor and get the tool.

now that they're all done, i have two issues to deal with.
first, my parking brake light is on. i checked the cable, and it's tightening and releasing ok. what could i have screwed up to cause that?
second, both rear wheels are slightly hard to turn when they're off the ground. i expected them to turn effortlessly. could the caliper pistons be toast? i'm guessing that whatever the problem is, that it's also causing the parking brake light too...

anyone run into this same issue, or have any suggestions? TIA for any help!<ul><li><a href="http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=40732">Caliper Toolset from Harbor Freight</a></li></ul>

A4ORCE1

The parking brake light will come on if the brake fluid is low. You could have pushed alot of fluid over the res if you had to wind back the rear piston alot. If that isn't it check the E-brake cable in the rear.