When your nose detects some burning acrid smells, or you sense that your automobile leans to one side, there is a high chance you are struggling with a stuck piston brake caliper.
What led to this circumstance, and what can you do to deal with it?
Here comes the good news: It is simple to unstick the seized caliper piston.
So be at ease! Continue reading, and we’ll assist you in not only finding the root of the problem but also racking up the best remedies available!
Signs of Stuck Piston Brake Caliper
Your Car Was Sitting Idle For A While
The first sign of a stuck caliper piston you must lay eyes on is perhaps the long-term idle of your vehicle.
If that’s the case, when you attempt to activate the engine back, it won’t be easy to get the brake working. The possibility your car shall not initiate, even a little bit, is also on the high peak.
Your Pad Or Piston May Be Lodged Within The Caliper
Another concrete indicator is your automobile’s operation becoming less powerful, much like when the parking brake pedal is engaged.
Additionally, you could continually sense that your automobile keeps pulling to one side.
That’s when you know something is getting stuck and that something is nothing else but your brake caliper stuck piston.
The Caliper Slide Pins On Your Brakes Have Jammed
When there’s nothing visually wrong on the outside, except for the pads constantly getting hit against the disc from the side of the piston, then you can know where the sticking problem is.
This lessens the wheel’s ability to stop and causes the pad to wear down way sooner in advance of its due date.
Under such a circumstance, hitting the brakes can also lead your automobile to pull to the opposite side.
The Mechanism Or Wire For The Handbrake Is Hung Up
Due to a lack of lubrication, the handbrake cable or mechanism can risk becoming stuck.
The clearest sign to determine so is the cable or wire unable to move as normal, especially when the foot brake or handbrake is disengaged, causing the brakes to stay active.
Your One-Wheel Brakes Become Tangled
Many may not even heed this sign until they fail to stop the automobile straightly during their national annual safety check-up.
Unfortunately, this specific test is not that popular; your state can be among the ones that do not administer it.
What should you do then? Here it goes again, the pulling occurrence. Just perceive whether or not your car is dragging to one side, especially right after the alignment, and you will have your answer.
What Causes The Stuck Piston Brake Caliper?
When it comes to the piston brake caliper getting stuck, the possible culprit to address must be due to corrosion, inappropriate wind back technique, worn boot or seals, and collapsed brake hose.
Check out further to come up with better solutions for your current nuisance!
Worn Boot or Seals
Little did you know, the piston seals will eventually deteriorate with time. As such, the seals shall stop functioning, keeping the piston from moving.
It is not yet to mention the run-down of the rubber boot, whose main duty is to safeguard and lubricate the piston.
Saying so means that once this component wears out or rips, nothing will be left to prevent water from entering the piston, leading it to lock up.
Corrosion
This problem frequently arises due to internal corrosion caused by long-time inactivity or outside parking.
Such deserted conditions will create a great place for rust to develop on the discs, caliper pistons, single-piston calipers, sliders, or pads, preventing the system from functioning properly.
One way to avoid the issue is to drive more often.
However, we could not say anything for sure since corrosion might also be the result of idleness and running on salted or wet roads while getting the insignificant damaged boot.
Inappropriate Wind Back Technique
There is a high likelihood that you aren’t modeling the servicing procedure’s brake manual book if the issue involves the rear caliper.
This is because the front and rear calipers execute differently. Rear calipers cannot be easily pushed back in.
You must simultaneously rotate and press them at the beginning so they can operate in the right order.
Use a wind-back if you need more effortless access to the rear caliper pistons. Remember that when your parking brake is electronic, rewinding it could require a diagnostic instrument.
So unless you follow the proper procedures provided by manufacturers, there’s no way you could compress them and put the car in the correct motion.
Collapsed Brake Hose
The collapsed brake hose is a typical source of a frozen caliper piston or both front brake calipers not releasing.
Without the hose proceeding accordingly (which means fracture or break), brake fluid will leak onto the piston, resulting in the frozen brake caliper since it can’t return to the master cylinder as it should.
Yet, don’t forget the possibility that the caliper isn’t truly jammed. Due to the circumstance of the broken hose, the rear brakes might occasionally just feel the same.
In that case, all you need to do is merely investigate to find the source of the brake issues.
How To Fix A Stuck Piston Brake Caliper: The Ultimate Guide
Channel Locks
How to free a stuck brake caliper piston? Channel locks are one of the most feasible approaches you can employ to get rid of the stuck brake caliper piston.
To do so, this component should be installed with one end behind the pad and the other behind the caliper. The brake pad and caliper should be then placed midway between the grips.
When the channel gets squeezed properly, it locks together, compressing the piston as well. You should apply a little brake pressure at first and build it up as necessary.
C-Clamp
Place the C-clamp above the sticking caliper and up to the piston’s end. On the top, you will find a screw that has to be carefully tightened.
Don’t forget to protect the piston surface from abrasion using wood.
The piston will then get compressed when the pressure rises as the screw turns. Adjust this until the bad caliper is crushed to the proper level.
Screwdriver
Compressing a caliper piston on brake caliper stuck usually doesn’t require any special equipment. Just grab your everyday screwdriver, and you are already ready to complete the task.
First, enter the caliper window with your screwdriver. As you insert it into the holes, ensure you have a firm grasp of it.
The screwdriver must be lowered until the forces are evenly distributed. The entire brake piston should pull back somewhat due to the pulling motion.
Then, pull back a little bit after inserting the screwdriver. Firm hydraulic pressure applied to the pad in an outward direction would be what you desire for the procedure to be successful.
Insert your screwdriver between the piston and the brake pad. From this point, try pressing the piston back gently, and there you go to have the problem solved!
Piston Compression Tool
Your task will be simpler if you have a unique compression tool for use with the pistons in this task. First, you need to set up the compressor correctly. The push bar shouldn’t be left loosening outside.
From the pad, looking forward, position the caliper compressor near the caliper. Depress the compressor tool as the brake pad is compressed by the push bar.
The pad pressing on the piston should allow it to retract.
Can You Drive Safely With A Stuck Brake Caliper?
Is it safe to keep driving with a sticky caliper piston? In a nutshell, no. A brake caliper that has been damaged cannot be used to drive.
This may be quite risky for your car and your safety and the safety of other drivers and passengers on the road.
Driving on might harm your brake pads more once you decide to keep going.
As the brake pads’ substance wears out, the base of the pads will eventually dig into the brake disc, resulting in hazardous and irreversible damage such as the car shutting off when brakes are pressed.
This might generate a high degree of heat that could destroy nearby car parts, perhaps cause your brake rotors to start burning or even trigger a fire.
How Much Does It Cost To Fix A Stuck Piston Brake Caliper?
If you can use one of our suggestions to compress the caliper, you might cost yourself nothing since there will be no replacement needed in the scene.
You can also catch a good fortune where the brake hose problem might lead to the same symptoms. If that’s the case, the caliper piston could still work wonders.
However, you could expect to pay from $250 to $500 if replacing the brake caliper is a must. The cost of the labor might range from $150 to $200, whereas the parts charge you between $100 and $300.
The kind of automobile you drive and the cost of labor in your area will also be decisive factors that influence the price.
Even when you choose to get the work done on your own to save money, the part will still cost you pretty much an expense.
Conclusion
The stuck piston brake caliper is indeed a headache-causing problem to struggle with. However, with our in-depth instructions to guide you from top to bottom, hopefully, it can no longer be bothersome.
Now you’ve got decent knowledge about the reasons why and what to do to remedy it, it’s time to grab your tool and get the procedure started! See you then!