[magnetic1]

Hey guys, have an issue here.

THe brakes are sticking which caused my rotor to get warped. But here is where it gets tricky.

I replaced the caliper and bled the brakes, but it still sticks. I greased up the pins and bled the brakes and it still sticks. It is only a slight stick, but enough to keep the car rolling if youre stopped and you put it into neutral.

on top of that, it is oNLY the left side, which rules out my initial theory of a bad brake booster (b/c then both sides would stick).

Any ideas?

 

[Furious05]

Well it is natural for there to be some drag. What wheel is this on? Have you replaced the warped rotor? If it is severely warped it could be causing the brakes to drag.

Was this a used caliper or a new/rebuilt one?

 

[95SilverBullet]

I work at a parts store, and i can say, that the parts we sell are NOT NEAR OEM Quality..... Ive seen people go thru 2-3 alternators or starters before getting a good one. Ive had a brake caliper come back 3 times before getting a good one. Im not sure who does the remanufacturing on all the parts, but its definitely nowhere near the quality/reliabilty you would expect/should receive. Although, i guess thats why they give it the lifetime warranty, but after 2 times, it gets to be a pain in the ass.

 

[lsvteg]

agree with chris, it is natural to have slight drag when the pedal is not pressed, it is characteristic of disc brakes. also if your rotor was warped it would be a good idea to replace it, it could be causing your caliper to hang up and also will cause vibration when braking at high speeds and if the warp is severe enough vibration under normal driving at high speeds. are you saying your car doesnt roll when it is placed in neutral? was the ground flat? did u push it?

 

[magnetic1]

I have 2 Integras. I tested both at a light... (one is a manual, the one with the suspect brakes is auto), the manual would roll slowly, while the auto just sat there.

A lot of times, you can feel the car slightly roll, then "stop"... as if the brake was slightly depressed. This leads me to think that the caliper or SOMETHING is causing the pads to contact or stick to the rotor. Also, if I dont use the brakes for a while and throw it into neutral, it rolls fine.. but as soon as I touch the brakes, it does the sticking thing again.

I got a rebuilt caliper from AutoZone :/ I did not yet replace the caliper for fear or warping another w/ this problem...

At highway speeds... the car has slight vibration at 65+MPH. but as soon as I tap the brakes and let go, it vibrates much more violently (partially due to the warped rotor and partially due to the pads making contact).... if I drive without hitting the brakes for about 2-3 min.. the vibration gets less and less....


This is on either the steel wheels or the hammerhead wheels I got....

 

[magnetic1]

Also, the Helms manual says to replace the pins when replacing the calipers... but I do not think the pins "go bad".... just trying to cover all my bases before putting on another new rotor (3rd now).

It also seems like it doesnt stick enough to pull the car to one side while driving.... bleh.

 

[Furious05]

Then my guess is that caliper is bad as well. Or you may have another bad caliper on another wheel. Calipers suck on these cars.

Here is my hate post on it.

 

[allb18b]

my car did the exact same thing..feel the rim where u suspect the brakes are sticking i bet its hot as hell,like mines was,replaced that caliper with a remanufactured one and all has been good so far..

 

[magnetic1]

Furious,... I saw your post when I researched this earlier

I guess I'll replace the caliper on the right side and redo the left one again.... argh, its just a pain in the ass to do... not hard to do.. just a pain with all the bleeding and crap.

allb18b, the wheel is actually not that hot... but that might be because its so FREAKIN cold here lately... a visual inspection of the brake pads shows almost even wear between the two sides with a tad more on the left....

I guess I'll hit AutoZone and get another set of calipers and see what happens ....

What kind of brake lubricant did you use for the pins? I used Synthetic Grease... but that might be too heavy/thick for this application?

 

[Furious05]

I never used grease cuz it came full assembled, but I would think any wheel bearing grease would be good.

It is definatly easy to do, but the bleeding is annying.

 

[magnetic1]

ok.. I just picked up new guide pins, calipers and rotors.. I'll report back on the situation tomorrow

Thanks for the help guys.

 

[Furious05]

Good luck and keep us posted.

 

[magnetic1]

ok.. I changed the calipers again on both sides, changed the guide pins and changed the bolts. Fully greased and problem is gone. Must have been a faulty caliper or maybe the other side was bad too.... at least it is fixed now!

I'll change out the calipers later... I couldn't get those damn philips head screws off and I didnt wanna strip them... so I'll have to put a blowtorch to the screws to loosen em up....

 

[jdm95ls]

yes i have the same problem with my front right. my rim is hot as HELL and it smells too. sould i just replace the right caliper with autozone remanufactured stuff or replace both the front calipers? or the whole car? also what about rotors? thanks

 

[magnetic1]

id just change both at the same time and save the frustration of doing the other side later on....

you dont have to do rotors.. but my guess is that if the caliper is sticking, that rotor will be worn way more than the other side... rotors are cheap ($18 or so) so it wouldnt hurt either... just be sure not to strip that phillips head screw holding it on!