Hi All

In need of a bit of advice on brake pad shims, hoping someone can help me out.

I started changing the front brake discs and pads yesterday evening on my Panda 1.2 Dynamic Dualogic as one disc is warped. I got to the point on the first wheel where I rotate the caliper down to hold the brake pads in place, but no matter what I did there was not enough space for the caliper to sit in it's correct position. With the brake pad shims removed the caliper falls back into place perfectly. I've pushed the piston back as far as I can, filed some of the roughness / grub off the piston mating face, wire brushed the caliper to remove all the caked on rubbish, but I still can't get the brake pads to fit with the shims.

My query is whether I actually need the shims at all? I've read that they are needed, others have said they have run without shims with no problem, I've heard they are good for heat transfer, but also heard their purpose is to silence the brakes.

I'd be grateful if some of you out there could give me your thoughts on what the shims are actually for, and whether it is safe for me to run the car without them. I could run the car for a while, wait for the brakes to wear down a bit first, then that'll give me the space needed to be able to fit them.

Many thanks in advance.