I'm going to turn my front rotors(again ), and while taking off the right front brake caliper, I noticed that the rubber seal/boot on the piston has about a half inch tear in it. The piece of rubber was actually inside the piston cavity.

It looks like it just got brittle due to heat and kind of crumbled since it has an orange tint to it and isn't nearly as pliable as the rest of the seal seems to be.


So should I worry about this? I don't have the time nor money to replace the caliper, and it doesn't look like there is much sand/crap in there. Anything I can ghetto rig up to semi-seal it for the time being?


Thanks for any replies.

 

You can replace just the seal and boot. Just a few $$$ from Honda.

 

You can replace it, but really it is not that big though, just replace it sometime in the future. The seals(or in this case I believe you mean the dust boots/seals, its the only visible part around the edge of the caliper piston) just keep dirt and grime from getting between the piston and the piston bore wall, it takes a little while for dirt and grime to build up to even get in there, but after about maybe 6months or so it more than likely will, it 'could' start to affect brake reaction/performance, but the time it takes for this to happen is purely gueswork, but I would replace 'em soon, why not, while you're at it. Remember, a lot(most all) of aftermarket calipers(those real nice 4, 6+ piston ones for Wildwood, Brembo, Spoon, etc.) DO NOT even come with dust boots/seals, so this is why they are not as feasible for the street, they need to (or should) be 'rebuit' like once or twice a year, of course depending on the use and conditions, remember they were intended for track use, and they are great for that. Enjoy