HELP: Rear Caliper Bolt Covered in Epoxy?!?!

[fayewong]

Well. You think what you like. It's good to replace all kinds of things. its good to have new stuff. But hes replacing a damaged caliper. Not a frozen one. And rears are much less prone to freezing that the fronts. And just because you think one will go bad down the road is no reason to replace it prematurely. Is it BEST practice to rpeace both calipers? Sure. Is it necessary. Not at all.

By your logic (they are part of the same hydraulic system) he should replace all four calipers. And what sense does that make? We don't drive race cars for a living. We drive 4x4 grocery getters to and front work and then on the weekends we turn wrenches to get our jollies. Don't over think it.

Think he means that it takes two to tango. just like changing one damaged tire, you should change the one on the opposite side as well to balance it out. for safety, security, and peace of mind.

Your logic is trying to save every dollar down to the penny unless the issue comes up when it should be done as preventive maintenance. Just like you change your oils in a timely manner before your engine decides to crap out, etc. You don't wait till there is a problem, especially your brakes. Common sense.

 

[nevada]

Well. You think what you like. It's good to replace all kinds of things. its good to have new stuff. But hes replacing a damaged caliper. Not a frozen one. And rears are much less prone to freezing that the fronts. And just because you think one will go bad down the road is no reason to replace it prematurely. Is it BEST practice to rpeace both calipers? Sure. Is it necessary. Not at all.

By your logic (they are part of the same hydraulic system) he should replace all four calipers. And what sense does that make? We don't drive race cars for a living. We drive 4x4 grocery getters to and front work and then on the weekends we turn wrenches to get our jollies. Don't over think it.

you're right, if you're doing the work yourself, on your own vehicle, you can do wtfever you want. its not the end of the world, and you may never notice an issue.

however, my experience tells me otherwise. to do only one caliper is doing a half ass hack job.
but, if that's the way you want to deal with YOUR brakes, by all means do so. but to encourage others to do shoddy work is pretty shitty.

we should be encouraging people to do the job correctly, ESPECIALLY with something as important as brakes.

 

[Morphyne]

Think he means that it takes two to tango. just like changing one damaged tire, you should change the one on the opposite side as well to balance it out. for safety, security, and peace of mind.

Your logic is trying to save every dollar down to the penny unless the issue comes up when it should be done as preventive maintenance. Just like you change your oils in a timely manner before your engine decides to crap out, etc. You don't wait till there is a problem, especially your brakes. Common sense.

the comparison of calipers and tires isn't even close. and I'm not trying to be cheap. Again by your logic. every time a caliper fails one should replace all four calipers. Changing one caliper bc the other one isn't broke is not a hack job its common sense.

 

[Morphyne]

you're right, if you're doing the work yourself, on your own vehicle, you can do wtfever you want. its not the end of the world, and you may never notice an issue.

however, my experience tells me otherwise. to do only one caliper is doing a half ass hack job.
but, if that's the way you want to deal with YOUR brakes, by all means do so. but to encourage others to do shoddy work is pretty shitty.

we should be encouraging people to do the job correctly, ESPECIALLY with something as important as brakes.

Look, the guy has a broken bolt. on a rear caliper. telling him to replace both calipers is just plain asinine. It's not shoddy, half-assed or otherwise. I would never recommend someone do something unsafe. Get a grip. move on.

Say anything back you want to. i will not argue anymore. i've made my recommendations and so have you. the OP can do what he likes.

 

[nevada]

the comparison of calipers and tires isn't even close. and I'm not trying to be cheap. Again by your logic. every time a caliper fails one should replace all four calipers. Changing one caliper bc the other one isn't broke is not a hack job its common sense.

nope, just the other one on the same axle.

much like shocks/struts. you don't replace just one side, you do them in pairs.

now the OP will have a new caliper with zero miles on one side, and one with how many miles? more than zero for sure. I can all but guarantee you, they will not work the same.

but again, he, you and anyone else can do whatever they like with their own vehicles. that doesn't make its the correct/proper way to do it.

 

[46runner]

This has become a fascinating thread - lol! I see the logic for both recommendations (replace both or just do the one caliper). Tires yes because if one is worn more than the other, the rotation of each tire on same axle will be slightly off. Brake pads yes because they're sold in pairs: four pads (two pairs). Shocks/struts/springs yes because otherwise the newer one will be stiffer than the older one. But the caliper is not a "wear" part. Pads, rotors, springs, etc are all wear parts that work in tandem on the same axle. The only argument you might make is that the piston or the pins might fail sooner on the older one. I can't see how performance would be an issue if you decided to just replaced one caliper, assuming the other was fine. I view the caliper closer in function to the wheel. Wheel is to tire as caliper is to pad. If you bent one wheel, you wouldn't replace both on same axle. Just my opinion

 

[nevada]

This has become a fascinating thread - lol! I see the logic for both recommendations (replace both pairs or just do the one caliper). Tires yes because if one is worn more than the other, the rotation of each tire on same axle will be slightly off. Brake pads yes because they're sold in pairs: four pads (two pairs). Shocks/struts/springs yes because otherwise the newer one will be stiffer than the older one. But the caliper is not a "wear" part. Pads, rotors, springs, etc are all wear parts that work in tandem on the same axle. The only argument you might make is that the piston or the pins might fail sooner on the older one. I can't see how performance would be an issue if you decided to just replaced one caliper, assuming the other was fine. I view the caliper closer in function to the wheel. Wheel is to tire as caliper is to pad. If you bent one wheel, you wouldn't replace both on same axle. Just my opinion

maybe not. but I have, and do see it often. especially when someone brings in a vehicle they, or someone else had DYI repaired...

the old caliper will not react the same as a new one. the O-ring will be different, as its older. it wont release the same as a new one. typically this will cause more wear on one side. sometimes it will cause the vehicle to pull as well.
after 2-3 years, and one side is worn down, and the other isn't, what do you do? just change pads again, and leave the old caliper alone?

in my 15+ years doing this, we have only installed a single caliper on a customers car 2-3 times, and every time it was done as a NO WARRANTY deal. that's just a headache we want no part of.

 

[AuSeeker]

I believe the advice and opinions for the OP has gotten to the point of :deadhorse:, anything more is just a pissing contest and ego battles, the OP has I'm sure read all of the advice and opinions and will do as he sees fit and what works best for him.

Not posting towards anyone in particular just my 2 cents.

 

[fayewong]

I believe the advice and opinions for the OP has gotten to the point of :deadhorse:, anything more is just a pissing contest and ego battles, the OP has I'm sure read all of the advice and opinions and will do as he sees fit and what works best for him.

Not posting towards anyone in particular just my 2 cents.

:iagree::withstupid::closed_2:

 

[JGardner]

Hey All! Thanks for all the input and opinions. Ya'll will laugh but I made an appointment for the shop to change out the caliper - I'm pretty decent at doing things myself but between the bolt being epoxied on and needing to bleed the brake I figured my time would be better spent elsewhere.

I guess we'll get another opinion form the shop as to whether to do one caliper or both... I'll update with what they say:nod:

 

[shahsmerdis]

with how rusted those are, and how crappy 4gen calipers are.

you need at the minimum to remove all the rust from the caliper mounting points or you will be doing this job again, ask me how i know. and at that point you might as well just change the caliper as well. its cheaper than time cleaning it up.

 

[keakar]

calipers don't need to be replaced in pairs unless the reason for replacing one was from a sticking caliper piston or some sort of rust related issue.

people go all crazy with "always change both sides" because they want to seem smart when giving out advice while not "really" knowing what they are talking about when they parrot things they read somewhere.

here are the important things to consider about changing brake related items:

always change pads, discs, and brake hoses in pairs

always suck old fluid from master cylinder reservoir and purge the old brake fluid from the lines and replace with all new fresh fluid whenever replacing calipers or the master cylinder.

now this is the correct way things are done for proper and safe repair practices.

you need to change calipers in pairs "only" if you determine the failure was related to rust or sticking pistons, or the overall condition of the caliper is very rusty even if rust hasn't yet caused a problem. a situation like this means it is most likely both calipers are suffering from similar conditions and only one failed but the other is soon to suffer the same failure issues.

another consideration is the overall cost of the part, if you are only talking about spending an extra $25-$30 for another caliper or brake rotor or drum, you may as well change them both just because it is cheap enough to make this a good idea since the brake lines need to be opened and bleed anyway so the fact that something is so inexpensive to do, sometimes trumps weather its really "needed" to be replaced. this is why its almost a universal practice to replace pads and rotors as a set, because "for the most part" the cost is minimal to do so and it ensures even brake pad wear and life, not because its really a "mechanical" or "safety" reason to do it.

 

[JGardner]

Well Folks, the shop has just replaced one caliper with no fuss given. I even asked and he said they looked at the other and found no need to replace it.

So I guess that either means he's reasonable from a cost perspective or totally irresponsible... it all depends on your perspective. All I know is that I'm happy to have missed out on the joy of getting that bolt out and bleeding brakes.

Thanks for all your input along the way:tea:

 

[keakar]

always change pads, discs, and brake hoses in pairs.

sorry, I just noticed I made a mistake there, it should read:

always change pads, shoes, and brake hoses in pairs

rotors and drums only "need" replacing on an individual singular "as needed" basis

Well Folks, the shop has just replaced one rotor with no fuss given. I even asked and he said they looked at the other and found no need to replace it.

So I guess that either means he's reasonable from a cost perspective or totally irresponsible... it all depends on your perspective. All I know is that I'm happy to have missed out on the joy of getting that bolt out and bleeding brakes.

Thanks for all your input along the way:tea:

sounds like you have a good and fair mechanic there, he is replacing what is needed without trying to replace things you don't need just to make more money. sounds like a very good shop to give your business to

 

[AuSeeker]

Well Folks, the shop has just replaced one rotor with no fuss given. I even asked and he said they looked at the other and found no need to replace it.

So I guess that either means he's reasonable from a cost perspective or totally irresponsible... it all depends on your perspective. All I know is that I'm happy to have missed out on the joy of getting that bolt out and bleeding brakes.

Thanks for all your input along the way:tea:

Just to clarify, throughout this topic the discussion was about replacing a single caliper because of the bolt...did your mechanic replace the caliper or as you stated a rotor?

 

[JGardner]

Just to clarify, throughout this topic the discussion was about replacing a single caliper because of the bolt...did your mechanic replace the caliper or as you stated a rotor?

Total brain fart... He replaced a caliper. Rotor was fine.