how can you check front calipers

[montana]

i think ive got a dogy caliper at the front as sometimes when braking the pedal will almost travel to the floor before biting and if you keep the pressure on the pedal it makes a squeeling noise and sounds pretty nasty...i thought it was the master cylinder at first but when i discovered it making this noise when keeping the pressure on the pedal makes me think not.

so if i take my claipers off to have a look at em what should i be looking for? also is it easier to repair the seals etc or get some 2nd hand ones (with no guarantee that they will be fine)



thanks alot

 

[dezRT]

Theres not a fat lot you can look at on a caliper, its just a big metal thing. Best to check your brake hoses as well as the master cylinder, you might also wanna check your pads arent dead and that squealing is metal rubbing on metal.

 

[montana]

yeah i was thinking to check the brake hoses, my pads should be fine i replaced them about 6 months ago and they seem like theyve got loads left on em!



its the fact that they do it intermittently thats worrying!

 

[montana]

bump

 

[crono33]

check ur front wheel bearings too. if they are bad, they might have developed play, therefore the disk will move inside the caliper and kick back the pistons. next time u will brake there will be a lot of travel in the pedal.

a test is to drive a little back and forth from standstill , or turn left and right the steering a few times, then try to brake. if the pedal goes down the fist time and doesnt the follwoign times u might have a bad bearing



Quote: Originally posted by clio_rt on 10 February 2004
i think ive got  a dogy caliper at  the front as sometimes when braking the pedal will almost travel to the floor before biting and if you keep the pressure on the pedal it makes a squeeling noise and sounds pretty nasty...i thought it was the master cylinder at first but when i discovered it making this noise when keeping the pressure on the pedal makes me think not.so if i take my claipers off to have a look at em what should i be looking for? also is it easier to repair the seals etc or get some 2nd hand ones (with no guarantee that they will be fine) thanks alot

 

[montana]

ok thanks i will try that, thinking about it there is a slight whiiirrring noise on cornering

 

[JAY172]

the only checks you can do on the front brakes are a brake roller efficiency test,inspect for leaks,check all caliper slides are free and check that the pads are free in the pad carrier.

 

[montana]

thanks mate, i havent checked the calipers yet but the n/s wheel bearing looks shagged cos theres a few mil of movement....are these hard to replace?

 

[crono33]

usually a press is required. also not sure what sort of socket is needed to loose the propshaft nut from the hub. given the right equipment is a fairly quick job.

gm

Quote: Originally posted by clio_rt on 12 February 2004
thanks mate, i havent checked the calipers yet but the n/s wheel bearing looks shagged cos theres a few mil of movement....are these hard to replace?

 

[BenS_172]

Sounds like a master cylinder problem to me matey..

 

[JAY172]

Quote: Originally posted by clio_rt on 12 February 2004

thanks mate, i havent checked the calipers yet but the n/s wheel bearing looks shagged cos theres a few mil of movement....are these hard to replace?

easy to change but you need a press to remove/refit the bearing.if you try and hammer the bearing in you will damage it.

 

[BenR]

Look at the caliper slide bolts, often one corrodes (the front one) and the pad isnt applied evenly.

But a bust bearing wont help.

Not a hard job, but can get fiddly with old bolts and corrosion making things a pain.

 

[JAY172]

are the pads held in place by slides as it is an old clio(there are two types of caliper-slide type and bolt on).the slides etc corrode and the pads start sticking.the caliper mounting slides are commen for seizing as well(applicable to both the slide type and bolt on caliper types)