Brake Problems

[mistermeena]

I'm changing my pads and having massive dramas now. The other side went perfectly well, and I'm now stuck on the front left.

I can't seem to compress one of the pistons at all. Is it possible for these to seize up or something? The other three pistons are pushed right back (I used a c clamp, as I have done with many cars in the past).

While I'm at it I also noticed brake fluid seeping from the crack where the two halves of the caliper join - Could this be resolved by tightening the bolts that join the two halves together or is that a no-no?

Thanks.

[533 RYC]

Yep one of your pistons sounds like its seized. There are a few things you can do:

1: Crack the bleeder nipple & try & compress it (temp fix till you fix the weep, see step 2).

2: Get a rebuild kit & overhaul both calipers

3: Get two GOOD second hand calipers & fit them.

[MrStabby]

Agree with the above. The leaking from the joint is uncommon. Typically you just do the piston seals during a rebuild as the other stuff doesnt tend to fail, and its better not to disturb it if you dont have too. Of course in this case you would have to split the calliper and replace those seals too.

Tightening the bolts may help a little as a bandaid, but since the pistons stuffed too you really need to give it some more attention

[mistermeena]

Yeah I suspected as much. That's a bummer.

I managed to get the old pads back in on that side. Car's not on the road yet so I'm not driving it anyway, but I guess that'll set me back a few weeks

Thanks for advice.

[533 RYC]

Anytime.

If you go with kitting them out & have never done it before, just post up here & we'll help you out.

[mistermeena]

Yeah I'll get a price from the brake shop first if it's reasonable I'll just get it done professionally.

I notice the rebuild kits on ebay only seem to cover the piston seals, and presumably wouldn't address the leaking join or seized piston?

[mistermeena]

So a local brake shop quoted anywhere from 180-220 per side, depending on condition of pistons. Looks like I'll be buying second hand :|

[34GeeTeeTee]

So a local brake shop quoted anywhere from 180-220 per side, depending on condition of pistons. Looks like I'll be buying second hand :|

Possible you end up with the same problem though! In saying that, if it was my car that calliper would be in the bin as you should never shortcut on brakes!

[mistermeena]

I'm sure they're repairable but in any case it's too expensive for me so I'll just have to try to find a decent used pair

[533 RYC]

If your located in a capital city, then I'd HIGHLY recommend a company named Hallite for the seals for the 2 halves that don't come in rebuild kits. They stock an enormous range of all compounds & sizes of seals, o-rings etc

www.hallite.com

And for different types of compounds (also for anyone reading this):

www.sealanddesign.com

[mistermeena]

I've found a used pair locally at a good price so I'll go inspect them this week and hopefully they're all good. I'll keep hallite in mind though as I might eventually rebuild my shit ones as spares anyway

[GTRPSI]

Its a simple as piss job to do yourself.

Seal kit... http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/NISSAN-Skyline-Sumitomo-4-Piston-BRAKE-SEAL-REBUILD-KIT-Front-Disc-Brake-Caliper-/131114109959?pt=AU_Car_Parts_Accessories&hash=item1e87028c07

Piston if needed.... http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/NISSAN-Skyline-300ZX-200SX-Sumitomo-4-Pot-BRAKE-PISTON-Front-Disc-Brake-Calipers-/131113002258?pt=AU_Car_Parts_Accessories&hash=item1e86f1a512

If its leaking from the join, did you seperate the 2 halves? There is supposed to be a oring in there and your not supposed to seperate the caliper halves.

The bolts that join them are torque to yeild and not supposed to be touched......you cannot get new bolts but you could source a oring from a general pursose pack of rings.

Edited March 8, 2014 by GTRPSI

[533 RYC]

Thats interesting Pete.

Being torque to yield bolts, that probably explains why they aren't in rebuild kits.

Are kits available through Nissan? I'd imagine the bolts would come in a genuine kit.

Any torque to yield bolts shouldn't be reused, as they are stretched to near breaking point the first time they are torqued. Try it a second time around & they will 'soften up' (lose tension as you get near the max torque) & fail.

USUALLY any bolt that has a torque requirement that is in degrees of rotation (angle torque) will be a torque to yield.

Those types of bolts are specially made for specific applications, & you won't find them aftermarket. If you knew the tensile strength, you'd get close though.....

[533 RYC]

Maybe reputable aftermarket brake manufacturers (Brembo, AP Racing etc...) might have something close.

[mistermeena]

Nah didn't try to separate the two halves, nor tighten the bolts that join them - I could tell that wouldn't stop the leak anyway. Once I noticed it was leaking I just left it alone and based on advice given above, decided to just grab a used pair. I would happily attempt a rebuild if it was just the seized piston but I don't want to deal with splitting them open and whatever. I'm a bit surprised they (both fronts) leaked there actually. Have worked on lots of older cars with this design and never seen leaks there but anyway.

Turns out r33 parts are plentiful...probably easier than sourcing parts for my gf's fairlane ghia actually

Edited March 9, 2014 by mistermeena

[Roy]

Where are you located? If in Melb PM me and I will rebuild the calipers for you. If you bring the seals and dust boots it will cost you nothing and you get to watch so you know for next time

[mistermeena]

Thanks for the offer Roy but I'm in Townsville QLD. Should be grabbing a used pair this week pretty cheap anyway as I need this sorted before roadworthy inspection