Brembo rebuild time
Discussion
Hi
I need to bite the bullet and send my front Brembo calipers off for refurb. I've got terrible plate lift and the brakes are sticking and overheating.
I'm looking for recommendations for UK companies that have a good reputation for rebuilding and repainting. I know they need total refurb so what costs should I be expecting to pay.
Many thanks
I need to bite the bullet and send my front Brembo calipers off for refurb. I've got terrible plate lift and the brakes are sticking and overheating.
I'm looking for recommendations for UK companies that have a good reputation for rebuilding and repainting. I know they need total refurb so what costs should I be expecting to pay.
Many thanks
IMI A said:
They do look good, and reasonable. Have you any experience of them?IMI A said:
Saved that away for future reference.Looks like a pair of 4 piston calipers including new seals is £350 + Vat. Their pricing for genuine Brembo seals is less than a DIY'er can get them for.
Not used but maybe useful for comparison purposes at least...
https://www.bcs-automotive.co.uk/brake-caliper-ref...
https://www.bcs-automotive.co.uk/brake-caliper-ref...
LPAK said:
Is that on the track or regular driving? What does that feel like?
How many miles is this? Luckily, never had this problem before.
In the caliper there's plates (stainless steel I believe) that support the pads in place and assist the position and movement. Over time you can get galvanic corrosion between plate and caliper body which pushes the plates out, clamping the pads. The first I noticed was that someone had ground down the pads so they would actually fit in the caliper. They need stripping down and refurbing. How many miles is this? Luckily, never had this problem before.
My 944 is 30 years old with over 200k miles and I've no invoices for caliper work so there's a chance they're original. I believe later porsche brembos did not use the plate system.
^^^ I was wondering what they meant by 'plates' on their website. I thought they were termed 'anti-vibration shims' but maybe I'd watched too many American DIY videos.
Here's one that got rusted into the piston recess on my old Cayman. If I'd known now what a s
t they are to fix time wise I'd have just sent the calipers off to be totally refurbished.
Here's one that got rusted into the piston recess on my old Cayman. If I'd known now what a s
t they are to fix time wise I'd have just sent the calipers off to be totally refurbished.IMI A said:
Another vote for Thomas.Just had my 8 piston Brembos rebuilt just prior to Christmas by pro-calipers.
They had done 17 years and over 350,000 miles on various Lightnings.
Andyoz said:
^^^ I was wondering what they meant by 'plates' on their website. I thought they were termed 'anti-vibration shims' but maybe I'd watched too many American DIY videos.
I think the plates they are referring to relate to the earlier calipers in the 80s/90s cars. I had the dreaded "plate lift" on some of my 944 and 968 cars. The plates were stainless steel guide plates that were attached to the calipers by screws. The backing plates on the pads located in the guide plates.The caliper bodies corroded where they were in contact with the plates and the corrosion forced the plates to distort slightly which caused the pads to bind. Easy enough fix if you could get the screws out that secure the plates to the calipers. I had to Mig weld nuts to the screw heads to get them out.
A popular bodge was to grind the backing plates of the pads down to get them to fit without binding. Found this on one of mine.
...just to help you visualise Doctor H's excellent point above....
The shims, or backing plates that fit into the pistons (with spiders) are easily replaceable and do not form part of the caliper.
(That sounded a bit like an episode of Father Ted.... anyway...)
The problem normally called caliper 'plate lift' is caused by the stainless steel plates that are screwed into the ends of the caliper, sitting 90 degrees from the backing plate - as said above, bimetallic? corrosion causes the alloy caliper body to swell and push the steel plate inwards.
This then pinches the ends of the pad, and causes it to jam. This effect probably reduces braking force a bit, but also leaves the pad against the disc - hence the overheating and or fast wear.
Here are some photos.
Here one screw is out, but plate still in the caliper.....
here you can see the plates.
The shims, or backing plates that fit into the pistons (with spiders) are easily replaceable and do not form part of the caliper.
(That sounded a bit like an episode of Father Ted.... anyway...)
The problem normally called caliper 'plate lift' is caused by the stainless steel plates that are screwed into the ends of the caliper, sitting 90 degrees from the backing plate - as said above, bimetallic? corrosion causes the alloy caliper body to swell and push the steel plate inwards.
This then pinches the ends of the pad, and causes it to jam. This effect probably reduces braking force a bit, but also leaves the pad against the disc - hence the overheating and or fast wear.
Here are some photos.
Here one screw is out, but plate still in the caliper.....
here you can see the plates.
Edited by Orangecurry on Saturday 16th January 19:33
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