Brake Caliper Seized?

[jesus]

My N/S front brake seems to be very much stuck on, so much so that when I change gear the car actually slows down and I can also come to a stop without touching anything.

I had it all apart earlier, the pin things with the rubbers on move freely and as they should so it can't be those.

What could it be? New caliper time or something else?

I'm not clued up on brakes as you may be able to tell!

 

[Matt Cup]

Seized piston maybe?

 

[Dr HMS Derv Destroyer]

i would say piston seized to.

take the caliper of and work it back in, then pump the brakes again. might be able to free it back up.

 

[jesus]

Would a seized piston mean a new caliper is needed or can that be sorted?

 

[Dr HMS Derv Destroyer]

depends on how bad, some need changing - ie new caliper or yours refurbed

then the odd few can be worked back in and out to free them up again, depending on if the piston leaks through its seals or not

 

[Matt Cup]

Try what Raz said, work it in and out with some wd40 and see it that sorts it.

 

[jesus]

Cheers lads, do I do that by pushing in the brake pedal with the caliper off and apart?

 

[Sam@NP]

Cheers lads, do I do that by pushing in the brake pedal with the caliper off and apart?

DO NOT DO THIS!

 

[Matt Cup]

^^ is that because of the ABS?

 

[Sam@NP]

^^ is that because of the ABS?

Nope its because the piston can move too far out and piss the fluid everywhere.

 

[Matt Cup]

Good point! I've only ever wound mine in when changing pads then pushed it back out with the pads/caliper back in place.

 

[jesus]

What do I do then?

The pads have a small crack down the middle, presumably from being stuck on. I'll be getting new ones but I don't want to fit them and the same thing happens because of the caliper!

 

[MRBILLYUK]

Get someone to help you ( watching how far the piston comes out ) , take the wheel and brake disc off . Push the brake pedal very gently so the piston almost pops right out , grease it then push it back in . If it does pop out it's a bugger to get back in lol . I had a caliper a bit like this on my 172 and failed it's MOT . It passed after i greased it and never caused a problem again If your brake caliper is fcuked , then you've nothing to lose giving it a try eh !

 

[Alex H]

DO NOT DO THIS!

I did this with about 40psi of compressed air in the garage and it fired the piston across the garage.

 

[jesus]

Think I found the problem!

What do you guys reckon, new caliper? Refurb?

 

[Dan519]

have you had that on fire on a track day? Easy option is a new/refurbed caliper. That one is pretty shot by the looks of it

 

[Poopensharten]

Ouch!

 

[Dave..]

Thats dead.

Like properly dead.

 

[jesus]

It's lived on a track for 90% of it's entire life! Can it be refurbed then or is that a silly question and new caliper time?

 

[Dan519]

for the time and cost, I would replace. Anything can be repaired usually, but that doesn't look worth it

 

[jesus]

Haha thought so. Cheers all :approve:

It's caused this to happen to the pads too:

How urgently do they need replacing?

 

[Poopensharten]

I'd do it straight away if it's a daily mate, you really don't want that to fail on you at a crucial moment!

 

[jesus]

Thought so. Expensive week ahead then!

 

[slob]

I would get those pads done asap. For the caliper get one of renparts. When my rear one went instead of messing around I replaced it for £30. Don't know what a front would be,

 

[jesus]

Looking on eBay they're around the same price. I won't be using Renparts though.

 

[slob]

I had total brake failure when my pads fell out and the fluid pissed out the piston. I was very lucky I never had a big crash. Don't take the chance mate.

 

[Poopensharten]

I wouldn't use Renparts either, even if Renault doubled in price and i had to suck off a tramp to wait four weeks for an oil filter.

 

[jesus]

I'll need to do a full fluid change as well won't I?

 

[slob]

I wouldn't use Renparts either, even if Renault doubled in price and i had to suck off a tramp to wait four weeks for an oil filter.

Ha Ha, I only dealt with them this once and was chuffed I fixed my car for £30 lol

 

[JackJack]

I'll need to do a full fluid change as well won't I?

Yes.

 

[slob]

I'll need to do a full fluid change as well won't I?

You could just put a G clamp on the hose, I have done that before, saves alot of hassle, if you just want back on the road.

 

[Jonff]

He's got braided brake hoses, so not sure that'd be the best idea lol. It's really easy to change the brake fluid anyways.

 

[slob]

He's got braided brake hoses, so not sure that'd be the best idea lol. It's really easy to change the brake fluid anyways.

Yeah wouldn't be good then. It's not the best on the standard hoses either cause it squashes them a bit. When You are in a hurry bleeding brakes isn't always the best thing.

 

[ripp]

8 years bump!
I had the front calipers rebuilt with new pistons and seals, guide pins etc a year ago. Now the front left one is sticking. Pads are move freely in there so they re not stuck.
What else can cause a caliper to freeze? I heard that the brake lines can clog up or the abs pump can be at fault and keep fluid pressure on a certain caliper.
What to do?

 

[ripp]

Bought a new front caliper along with flexi rubber hoses, will do a thorough re-bleed also.
Anything else that could cause a sticky caliper? wouldn't wanna ruin the new brembo max and Ds performance pads that I fitted..

 

[MLB]

Not much help but I had a similar issue with a front caliper, kept sticking, even after rebuilding it, cleaning, grease, file pad corners down and bleeding multiple times.

In the end I replaced it, simply bolted everything up, bled and it was sorted.

 

[npt]

Remember to check the piston coating, big red ones have a coating on them that fails very quickly at the outer part where the dust seal sits causing them to stick....Renault ones don't have this coating and will do 100k with ease, that's from my experience