I'm using DC ('94-01) Integra rear calipers on my Civic hatch, and have had that setup for the last four years or however long. In that time I've had them lockup to the point of requiring replacement three times now (piston FIRMLY locked in the caliper). The car is driven 98% of the time on track now, never in the snow, etc.

I'm starting to think I have something wrong with part of that system, but can't figure out what. Has anyone else had a problem with these calipers, or is it just something that needs to be replaced every year or two with race/track use? I've also considered losing my e-brake on the chance that somehow the cable is binding up or something.

 

That's interesting. I've never had that problem. In fact, on my old civic, I didn't even change the rear rotors all 3 years I ran it. THe next owner hasn't changed the rear rotor as well. That's 4 season of racing

 

Did your Civic originally have drum brakes? If so, are you still running the stock proportion valve?

 

Yeah, I hear about other guys going years without having to change anything out, and I've gone through 4 sets of pads, at least 3 sets of rotors, and the 3 pairs of calipers now.

My proportioning valve is the 4040 one. I've considered that as a possibility, but always thought that was "the right one to have." Front calipers are ITR units if it matters.

 

My rear ITR calipers have frozen a couple of times. As have my RSX R rear calipers.

 

Did you ever identify a cause? How long did they last before freezing up again?

 

Were they remanufactured calipers or new honda ones? just curious....
in for more info...

 

My ITR has stock calipers, front and rear. After 7500+ actual track miles, I'm on my 17th set of front pads and 5th set of rear pads. I've never had them lock up or replaced the calipers. I've rebuilt the front calipers once, due to melted/crispy piston boots.

 

All of the calipers were/are OEM Honda.

And Ken, that's the experience I've heard from so many others. Not sure why mine is different, when (to my knowledge) I'm using the same hardware as everyone else... I've had a front caliper lock up on me once, but I had gotten the pad down to the backing plate, so I think that had something to do with it.

 

are you lining the pins on the abck of the pad up correctly with the grooves in the piston?
ps-~70k on my rear rotors, one season of racing and at least 2 seasons of hpde. maybe more.

 

I friend of mine had one of his rears lock up on him in is Integra. We took the caliper off and just spun the piston back in and it was fine. He had to replace the rotor though because it was destroyed. Are your caliper pistons locking to the point where they wont move at all?

 

Learned the pin thing once years ago

The caliper pistons are absolutely locked in place, to the point that I'm "rounding off" the little ridges trying to get it to spin, in either direction.

 

are you greasing the back of the pads? Are you using the funky 4 prong tool?

 

No, I did not grease the backing plates. I've only ever seen a goop on there to stop squealing, is there something else that's done? What would the purpose be? I tried a screwdriver and the little box-tool thingy. Both failed.

 

Have you torn one of the calipers apart after it seized to determine the cause? May take some heat to do it, but if it's a moisture issue, you'll be able to tell easily. The 4-lug Teg rear brakes are the same ones used on the civics with rear disks all the way up through at least 00. Have you removed the dust covers that go over the caliper? Is the car stored outside? Do the calipers gradually get stiff and then seize, or is it a "worked yesterday, today it's frozen together" type of things?

 

I haven't been able to get the piston moving at all, and have limited tools at my disposal here (no air, no serious heat). Dust covers are gone (figured it would be a heat issue...), car is stored inside and outside, and it does seem to be a gradual thing, though I can't confirm that with certainty.

 

Tear down.. Use heat and an impact wrench with a brake caliper tool so you don't destroy the rest of the ridges..

 

I unfortunately don't have (sufficient) heat OR an impact wrench

 

So wait..... Let me see if I have this straight.
- You are not locking up the wheels, the pistons are seized or "locked up" in the bore of the caliper.
- You also have been going through rear pads and rotors at a rate much higher than expected.


Some thoughts....
If the parking brake assembly and cable is still attached I would look to see if maybe it is getting hung up on the chassis. This may apply the rear brakes during a track session. This would help explain the excessive brake use and heat. The piston may then get stuck in the bore as a result of the heat. If you have a custom sway bar or end link, this can also interfere with the parking brake. Doh.... I just re-read your original post and you already suggest this. Super easy to pull the pin on the Ebrake cable where it attached to the caliper as a test.

Are the pads wearing evenly? If not then this may be another reason for the pistons to get stuck in the bore. Maybe it is bent mounting bracket causing misalignment between the piston and the face of the pad. As the piston moves further out of the bore the chance that it will get "cocked" and seize is higher.

One thing to try without heat or air is to strike the face of the piston with a hammer to push it back in the bore. It won't move very far since the threaded rod of the parking brake assembly will stop it but it may re-align it with the bore and allow you to turn the piston again.

Good luck

Dave

 

Correct.


Pad wear is even, and at least once I've replaced the mounting brackets. I like the hammering idea though, thanks!

 

On my RSX S, I got out of my car at the gym and smelled brakes burning. I walk around to the right rear, and the roter is glowing orange. I replaced the caliper shortly there after. I believe I replaced the rotor too.

I think the replacement is a little sticky. When I back up, I hear a little squeak, squeak, squeak, like it's hanging up on a highpoint on the rotor, and the caliper is not sliding on it's pins. That wheel also gets more brake dust than the fronts! Without taking anything apart, the pads do not look to be wearning unevenly.

I've been meaning to check it out, but winter just ended here in the Northeast. I'll be looking it over soon.

On the ITR, it was the same right rear caliper. I could hear it dragging as I drove the car. The piston would not turn freely, and I utlimately replaced the caliper.

 

Did you install the dust shield?

 

I drive an integra and the problems that you stated sound very familiar to what had been happening to me over the last couple of years. My right rear piston would press up VERY firmly against the brake pads to a point that if I replaced the pads and started driving on them, they would start to smoke after 5 minutes on the road.

For months I did not know what the problem was and so I had to replace brand new pads on just that caliper with worn pads just so that the tire would be able to rotate freely on its own.

The problem:
After months of ignorance, I finally decided to check out what the problem was with that caliper, since I had planned to do some major track time.

I had found out that the rod which the caliper slides upon had seized up very hard and was only applying pressure on 1 of the 2 rods causing EXTREME uneven wear on my pads. If I remember correctly, it was on the side of the black rubber piece. The bracket of the caliper I guess you could say. There was no way for me to un-seize the rod at all.

Result:
I ended up purchasing a new caliper and everything has been fine ever since.

What I had checked:
-alignment of the trailing arm
-broken/damaged piston
-warped disc
-faulty pads
-entire rear brake assembly.

After the old caliper was out, I placed it in a vise and began hitting the seized rod as hard as I could multiple times to see if I could free it in anyway. The rod remained seized, and I threw it away immediately after that. Hope this helps.

Side note: New caliper was refurbished and purchased for 20 dollars from a local Honda dismantling shop.

If you lived anywhere near me, I would be more than willing to help you out in person, because this drove me absolutely off the wall when it happened to me.

 

Curious if you've checked the wheel bearings? Although I would think there would be other signs if that we're the case.

 

wenly, both dust shields on both sides have been removed.

jerbear, thanks for the offer of help , your problem definitely sounds more severe than mine though. I did check the slider pins, and while the one on the driver's side (the side with the locked up caliper) was worse, it was mostly functional.

Boost, I did also check the wheel bearings, which are fine.

As an update, I put the new calipers on today, and found something very interesting: the driver's side e-brake cable is shorter than the passenger side cable! Even to just mount it, a small amount of tension is put on the caliper spring (on that side). I'm guessing that the entire time I was running around with just a little bit of e-brake on all the time.

For now I'll just leave it disconnected.