I was putting the driver's side steering/suspension/brakes on my '89 LS 3-door back together and for some reason, the lower caliper mounting bolt tube will not clear the caliper mounting bracket. I found this thread here https://honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=797728 and I tried to do what x743x advised, but the tube won't move. Anybody know if I should just keep tugging with pliers till it breaks lose or do I need to pull the boots off because they don't look like they're going to go back on very easily or what else?

 

did you try vice grips? they stay clamped unlike pliers so you can get better leverage. bust it loose and replace it and make sure you use caliper grease so it doesnt seize up.

 

spin the "bolt tube"
it has to line with a parth that is inside, and then the "tube" will move more freely

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Dan GSR &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">spin the "bolt tube"
it has to line with a parth that is inside, and then the "tube" will move more freely</TD></TR></TABLE>

 

You need a tool to do it the right way. Its only 5 bucks at kragen also when you press the piston back in open the cap on the brake master cylinder to help releave pressure. If you unsrew the valve on the calipair than you need to rebleed you brakes.

 

looks to me as though the caliper is already pressed back

 

The piston is pushed all the way back in, the pads are installed, everything was and is ready to go in, I just can't get that tube to push back out. Someone asked me how is it that it was in position before I touched it and now it isn't and I don't know. I was thinking that maybe if I let the piston come back out, it might make the tube easier to get out, but that didn't work either. Also, what is this line with a path? Where is it supposed to be? I see a ridge on the outside of the caliper, but where is it on the tube? Does it just have to line up or does it click?

 

Are you talking about the part that has that little rubber boot?

I think you are. Anyway, that piece should slide freely in and out. It's probably just siezed up. Put some anti-sieze/Liquid Wrench on it and get some pliers in there and just squeeze. It should move very easily. When it gets loose, just press it in with your fingers and slide it onto the bracket.

Hard to explain, I know.

 

Are you sure you've been working on your car? Hands sure do look clean.

That's a bit different than later model brakes, which have the slide pins and boots on the mounting brackets themselves. I recently replace my rear brake pads and regreased the slide pins, and the boots came off and went back on the pins quite easily, even with 165K miles (probably the first time the rear caliper pins had been greased on my car).

 

heh, other people I showed those pictures to asked me where the magic wand is to work on the brakes with. What had really happened was I had been working on the car, got pissed off at it, went inside to grab my camera, didn't want to get it all nasty with oil and other miscellaneous stains, so I washed my hands and came back out to take pictures. It's all said and done now with a new caliper.