Left rear calliper sticking

[Libertine]

Noticed last night the car felt sluggish, and it was slowing down way too much on its own.. I wound down the windows and could smell something odd..

got it home and touched the disc's and almost sizzled my finger off.. it was extremely hot..

I've read a few things to do on here.. but if anyone who has had this problem before could point me into the best direction in what to do.. It would be appreciated..

Thanks

[MartinF]

http://www.imoc.co.uk/forums/search.php

[Libertine]

MartinF :
http://www.imoc.co.uk/forums/search.php

I have already used the search ( to which I stated on my first post ) .. I'm asking for anyone with experience as to what is the best option for me.

also.. try searching " calipers sticking" yourself and good luck trying to find a specific thread. the search is almost useless.

[Nic]

To cure the problem your options are:

1. Remove the calipers strip down and rebuild yourself (you will need a tool to compress the rear pistons, I have one if you need to borrow). http://biggred.co.uk/ sell rebuild kits.

2. Buy exchange rear calipers (do an eBay search)

3. Send the calipers to be refurbished (eg. http://biggred.co.uk/)

Whichever option you decide on, I would do the left and right calipers together, so you know both are working properly and you don't have bias on one side or the other.

[MartinF]

also.. try searching " calipers sticking" yourself and good luck trying to find a specific thread. the search is almost useless.

Try 'caliper rebuild' as 12 matches come up for me in the MK2 section alone.

Read your first post again as it doesn't say you searched, just that you'd 'read a few things to do on here'

[Gullzter]

Buy a rebuilt caliper from ebay with 1 year warranty.. Only £60 or so and u can trade in ur old one and get about £15 back

Thats what i did and have had no problems

[dexter]

Hi mate, I had a rear caliper seize on me 2 weeks ago. I was in a similar situation and for £50-£60, it was far easier to just get a new caliper. if money isn't a massive issue its an easy solution

[Libertine]

thanks for the reply guys.. would it be best to just get the 1 done.. or get the other done on the same side too ? cheers

[MartinF]

Whichever option you decide on, I would do the left and right calipers together, so you know both are working properly and you don't have bias on one side or the other.

[Nic]

thanks for the reply guys.. would it be best to just get the 1 done.. or get the other done on the same side too ? cheers

You could just fit one new brake caliper but if the caliper on the other side is in a similar condition you could end up with more brake bias on the new caliper.

My advice would be to do both, you then know both rear calipers are in good working order and brake bias is balanced left to right. At the very least I would check the other caliper to make sure the piston and slide pins are moving freely.

I'd also check the condition and function of the front calipers, assuming they are the same age and possibly in a similar condition.

Whatever you decide, to be sure the brakes are working safely you could go to an MOT garage and get them tested on the rollers.

Or you do what I'd do, find a clear, wide, dry, straight section of road and do a hard brake test from 60mph to zero. If you know what you're doing you'll be able to feel how each brake is working through the steering wheel and your backside

[Lefty1991]

I would just rebuild both rear calipers and possibly the fronts aswell, make sure you check out the discs as they can be warped by the excess heat from having the brake stuck on all the time.
Not a hard job to rebuild the calipers and cheap for the kits

[cvega666]

best option - buy a new caliper from one of the companies that offer exchange. Rebuild might be cheaper but won't last as long as a new one.

[Nic]

I would just rebuild both rear calipers and possibly the fronts aswell, make sure you check out the discs as they can be warped by the excess heat from having the brake stuck on all the time.

Good point the pads and disc on that side may be goosed if the caliper has been dragging. If this is the case then definitely change BOTH sides together

Not a hard job to rebuild the calipers and cheap for the kits

Not a hard job when you know what you're doing but stripping them down, painting and reassembling is time consuming. There were points in the process when I was wondering why tf didn't I just send them off to get rebuilt.

If I ever had to do mine again, I'd get the carriers and calipers media blasted and powder coated locally (the time consuming bits), then rebuild the calipers myself.

[Gullzter]

Im just wondering if many people have had success of rebuilding calipers themselves on here as i heard that they are easily messed up if never done them before? this is the reason i bought a rebuilt one.

I have a spare one at home (seized) which i am going to strip down and do a custom paint job to it then if its worth it ill rebuild myself

[Gullzter]

Btw is it a n/a or turbo u have because im sure turbo calipers are more expensive? Could be wrong

[Nic]

Btw is it a n/a or turbo u have because im sure turbo calipers are more expensive? Could be wrong

The rear calipers are the same on all SW20 MR2's. The Rev1 had different front calipers, all later revisions and models are the same front and rear.

[Nic]

Im just wondering if many people have had success of rebuilding calipers themselves on here as i heard that they are easily messed up if never done them before? this is the reason i bought a rebuilt one.

I have a spare one at home (seized) which i am going to strip down and do a custom paint job to it then if its worth it ill rebuild myself

The time consuming bit is stripping years of rust, brake dust, muck and paint off the calipers and carriers and then painting them.

Once you have all the parts it's not that difficult to do, each front caliper can be done in 10-15minutes if you know what you're doing. The rears are a bit trickier as you need to compress the piston with a special tool, so you can fit a circlip. Impossible to do without the tool, difficult the first time you do it with the tool, just a bit fiddly once you know how.

When I did mine I replaced practically every nut and bolt with new OEM parts. You'll also need a rebuild kit, this includes all new seals and spring clips for 2 calipers. You'll need molybdenum grease for the slide pins and red rubber grease for the seals. TBH when you add it all up you might as well buy a refurbed caliper or get them refurbed by someone like biggred.

[gnzyza]

To do the rear is it just a caliper rewind tool you need, I'm looking to do mine soon

[Lefty1991]

Yeah you need a windback tool as the piston is on a screw, you need to remove the piston to replace the internal seals and then use the tool to wind the piston all the way in to fit the dust seal.

[gnzyza]

Thanks I have one in my tool kit so need to purchase yet another tool