E36 M3 Evo - Ceased Brake Caliper

[bazzer79]

My E36 m3 was parked up over Christmas and New Year for about 5 weeks. Since then it has only been driven 3 times and for distances of 20m or so. I noticed some vibrations coming through the steering wheel, these got worse and could then be felt through the brake pedal.

The Nearside Front caliper seems to have ceased. What causes this to happen? Is it simple to rectify by disassembling the caliper and servicing it. Will I need to replace the discs and pads once this has been done?

Any advice would be much appreciated?

[M7RT V]

I've had 2 ceased rear calipers on my M3 Evo, with the first one I bought a new one from ECP but the second one I refurbed using a new seal kit from BMW which costs around 15 quid.

The calipers tend to start sticking once dirt has got in through the rubber seals. As long as the cylinder has no visible damage or corrosion a refurb should be as good as buying a new one.

Edited by M7RT V on Monday 11th February 11:19

[Neil.D]

Start with the seal kit. take the caliper apart and if the brake piston is scored you will have to replace it. If not, pop on the new seal and bleed the brakes and all should be well. Just get in some more brake fluid and it will drop a load as the piston comes out. If you take it anywhere to a garage I expect they would simply replace it which is not always necessary.

[S65]

I SAY GET RID OF THE STANDARD BRAKING AND UPGRADE TO BREMBO OR AP,THE CAR IS TOTALLY
TRANSFORMED,NOW YOU CAN GET THE MOST OF M3,LETS FACE IT THE STANDARD BRAKES ARE POO!

[oola]

S65 said:

I SAY GET RID OF THE STANDARD BRAKING AND UPGRADE TO BREMBO OR AP,THE CAR IS TOTALLY
TRANSFORMED,NOW YOU CAN GET THE MOST OF M3,LETS FACE IT THE STANDARD BRAKES ARE POO!

What a load of garbage. The standard brakes are fine for normal road use and spending upwards of £2k isnt worth it when a decent pad, fluid and hose upgrade will perform almost as well, even when driven hard on track.

[bazzer79]

Thanks for all of your suggestions. I won't be upgrading the brakes, as I will be selling the car in a couple of months. I've never carried out any maintenance work to my car before, because I haven't been able to diagnose the faults correctly. As I've managed to this time round I'm keen to have a crack myself. I've done a bit of research on the net and stripping down the brake setup doesn't look like the hardest job in the world????

Any further tips for when I carry out the work?

[Zead]

This may seem like a bit of an over reaction, ie imagining the worst, when it may be just a bit of rust build up on the disc and sum gumming up of the seals. I dont drive my M coupe for a few weeks, then when I first take it out it feels like it wanders all over the place when braking and they feel spongy. After it has done a few miles and warmed up and generated some heat in the brakes and tyres it feels fine again. I am not saying it's not seized but could just be not so serious
Z

[bazzer79]

Zead,

I have driven it a couple of times and the vibrations were getting worse each time. The penny finally dropped the other day when I started to wash it after a short spin. After running the hose over the car there was loads of steam coming from the whhel arch. I jacked up the front end and removed the brake but the NSF wheel would only rotate very reluctantly. I fear that I may have warped the disc which might explain the vibrations??

[Zead]

oh, not over reaction then, I take it back.

This tip may help. Remove calipers from strut, but leave hose connected. Gently squeeze brake pedal to expose as much piston as poss without pushing it out. The seized piston will be hard to move so a piece of wood between the pistons should stop the pistons flying out. Clamp the hoses, if not braided, before removing hose. The pistons should then be easier to grip in a rubber faced vice or similar. Clean up calipers, fit seals, remember to lubricate seals with brake fluid, refit and bleed. You may need new discs and pads. I would recommend a system fluid flush by your indi.

Z

[bazzer79]

Zead,

Thanks for your help, I'll let you know how I get on. Will it be obvious if the disc need replacing? Suppose the best bet is to remove the OSF disc and compare?

[Zead]

Warping is not always obvious, unless it is really stuffed. Spin disc on the hub with no pads in and see if there is run out.
As you may sell soon it might be worth just putting it back together and driving it, gently at first, and get a feel for the brakes. A warped disc should give you the feeling in the brake pedal of pulsing, worse when hot, a bit like the ABS cutting in, as the disc pushes the piston back and forth. Give it a go. At worse, new discs and pads make a good selling point

Z

[bazzer79]

What you describe is the feeling I got through the brake pedal the other day. If I need to replace the discs & pads I assume I have to do both sides? Which would you recommend OE parts or other?

[M7RT V]

Yup, replace both discs, discs from GSF / ECP (ATE/Textar) are fine.

[Zead]

OE, but source them from specialist not Stealer. Zimmerman for eg. supply BMW with brakes. Where are you based? C3 in SE19 London, specialise in M car parts.

http://www.c3bmw.co.uk/

Z

Edited by Zead on Tuesday 12th February 12:50

[PeterGreen]

Mine recently had a seized caliper, which I drove with for easily a couple of hundred miles. All that was needed was a caliper refurb, no discs or pads.

[Larryk]

oola said:

S65 said:

I SAY GET RID OF THE STANDARD BRAKING AND UPGRADE TO BREMBO OR AP,THE CAR IS TOTALLY
TRANSFORMED,NOW YOU CAN GET THE MOST OF M3,LETS FACE IT THE STANDARD BRAKES ARE POO!

What a load of garbage. The standard brakes are fine for normal road use and spending upwards of £2k isnt worth it when a decent pad, fluid and hose upgrade will perform almost as well, even when driven hard on track.

Have to agree, i have an M3 Evo, and brakes are great on it for road use. I warped the front discs on a track day alright, but they were fairly worn before the track day anyway. Standard brakes do the job, definately not worth spending £2K + for brakes that will only wreak your head with the squeeling, and only work properly when they are hot!

[bazzer79]

Ok, so I picked up all the bits and bobs that I need to carry out the caliper refurb. I also picked up a Haynes manual. It doesn't cover the M3 but I'm guessing that the process is pretty much the same for a 328i????

The Haynes manual rates the job as 4/5 stars for difficulty, indicating that it is a job for an experienced DIY car maintenance person. To be honest I'm pretty in-experienced when it comes to car maintenance, although I'm practically minded. I'm starting to wonder if I should leave it and take it to Birds who usually service the car? Interested on what peoples opinions are on the difficulty of the job????

[Neil.D]

for a job like brakes, if youre not sure then probably best to leave alone. yes the proceedure will be the same as the 328 as they all have single piston calipers.
To do a caliper refurb I would take it to an specialist. Only about an hours work and labour will be half what the MD would charge. (Is birds a specialist? I dont know)

Neil

[bazzer79]

Neil,

Thanks for your response. Birds are the official UK Hartge tuning shop. They were recommended by a friend and both the service and expertise are excellent. If you ever find yourself in the Heathrow area and require some work they are highly recommended!

[Neil.D]

Let us know what they say dude.