Infuriating Brake Job

Kai

Kai

That Limey Bastard
Staff member
May 18, 2006
3,138
2
36
42
Portslade, England
rationalrecipes.blogspot.com
Okay - so, my brakes are getting to the nearly dangerous point - and they squeal too. However, i have replacement discs and pads - unfortunately i take the wheel off and what do i see? A mass of brown surface rust and caked on 'goo'. Unfortunately, even with a long breaker bar, my feeble muscles couldnt shift the caliper bolts one inch, and the bottom one was near impossible to even fit a 17mm socket onto.

Are there any tricks that you guys use to change discs & pads, and how long on average does it take? Also, i may have mentioned this before, but the TSRM is incredibly vague about the brake fluid side of things. Definitive answers please - do you bleed the system, or do you do as it says and just push the piston back in without bleeding it?

Cheers and TIA
 
Clip

Clip

The Magnificent Seven
Oct 16, 2005
2,738
9
38
35
Virginia
the caliper bolts are pretty f'ing hard to get off. i had to do fair amount of huffing and puffing and cussing.

as for tricks, make sure youve got some anti-seize to put on the caliper slide bolts. as for bleeding the brakes, have a partner push the pedal while you bleed the right rear (passenger rear), then the left rear (driver rear), then the right front (passenger front), and finally the left front (driver front). itll go in order from farthest to closest. mine took 2 qts of fluid to get it completely clean. just make sure you watch your fluid levels and dont let more air get into the system.

make sure youve got the bleeder open when you push the piston in, too. itll also help to take off the brake lines (i put new ones on during my job just to save more work in the long run) and it lets almost all the old fluid out of the piston.

if you have a hard time reaching the sockets, try turning the steering wheel to give you better access to the bolts. all i can say for the stuck ones is wd40 or pb blaster. just spray the shit out of them morning, noon, and night, if possible.
 
Kai

Kai

That Limey Bastard
Staff member
May 18, 2006
3,138
2
36
42
Portslade, England
rationalrecipes.blogspot.com
I'm only doing the front brakes - so i assume i'm leaving out the rear brake bleeding bit?

The top caliper bolt eventually came off with my whole body weight on it (nigh on 20 stone), but i couldnt get anything onto the bottom one - so i torqued up the top one back to 36lb/ft like the TSRM says and i think i may end up letting a garage do the job - i just dont have the tools for it all - got a 1/4 inch socket set, and a 1/2 inch torque wrench (With an adapter) and a bag of assorted spanners. My axle stands have been rescued from a barn and are covered in surface rust. I do have a trolley jack, but its stuck underneath my old XR4x4 :aigo:

If i decide to have another go, i'll take all the advice on board - but it all has to be done within the next 12 hours, as the car is going bye bye :(
 
MA70Supra88

MA70Supra88

Boostless
Mar 31, 2005
423
0
16
Boerne, TX
The bottom bolt on mine also gave me hell when I was trying to replace my caliper last winter. I ended up heating the bolt up and eventually got it off after a lot beating on it and cursing at at. If you can get a good combo wrench on it instead of a ratchet you might have better luck.
 
MA70Supra88

MA70Supra88

Boostless
Mar 31, 2005
423
0
16
Boerne, TX
Just a wrench with an open end and a box end. It's what I used when I had to do mine.

KDT63322.jpg
 
J

JAWS

New Member
Apr 12, 2006
22
0
0
Aurora, CO
A 6 point socket and a big (18") breaker bar would be my choice.
The ratchet handles that come with most socket sets are just not long enough to give you enough leverage to break loose tough bolts.
 
Big Wang Bandit

Big Wang Bandit

You Can't Quit Me Baby
Feb 21, 2006
7,551
0
0
35
San Ramon, CA - 925!
Oh well. Do you know when the last brake job was done? Maybe they were just siezed up and will come out easy now. Maybe put her up again and put anti sieze on the bolts now just for good measure
 
T

thunderz

Restoring 1987
Jul 28, 2006
32
0
0
Indianapolis, Indiana
www.smithautomotiveartwork.com
Kai said:
$1850 :)

Unfortunately, the high cost of car ownership here, coupled with the lack of garages that wont rip you off, is a problem :(
Click to expand...

Not to change the subject too much, but I am trying to get my caliper off from the top slide...and it wont budge....I thought it was supposed to slide off. It is rusty and sticking...thats why I am taking it off, but is there something I am missing?:1zhelp:
 
Facime

Facime

Leather work expert
Jun 1, 2006
2,716
0
0
60
Corvallis OR
On both my supras Ive had that same problem. Once those slides get all gummed up they can be nearly impossible to get off the mount bracket.

Here is what I have done with some success. Take the caliper out of the car completely (dont forget to cap off the brake line so you dont drop all your fluid). While you have it out on the bench, pull back the rubber boot and spray some PbBlaster in there and let is soak in for a bit. "Unfold" the caliper from the bracket as far as it will go (it will almost go a full 180 degrees from the bracket). Hold the bracket in your hand and let the caliper hang down. Using a sledge hammer (I have a nice 6lb with a short handle) start beating on the caliper in the direction it needs to go slide it off the bushing. I recommend this method because while you are banging on the caliper pretty hard, the fact that its not clamped to anything means you arent likely to bend or break any of the parts (just dont hit the "fingers" of the caliper directly or you risk fracturing the cast itron.)

It may take a little while but it will eventually come off the bracket. Ive done this to at least 3 calipers and I was able to get all of them off eventually.

once you get them it off its just a matter of cleaning up the bushing and the sleave with some fine steel wool and light oil. Then relube and put everything back together.

Personally, I would rebuild the caliper while its out. The kits are only like 5 bucks each and the job only really requires an air compressor (to get the piston out)

PS, Im doing this today as well on my 89...so I know the pain!
 
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