hey guys def need some help. i got a 93 civic dx, and for some reason my front left caliper seizes up on me after a while of braking. i replace the proprtioning valve, caliper(twice) and brake master. ill be able to drive for about 20 minutes or so then it starts to lock up(slowly). ill get out and bleed it then im good to go. any one else got this or had this problem please lend a hand. i was thinking it might be my abs but im not throwing any codes. help.

 

I've heard of this happening when the rubber brake hose deteriorates on the inside. If it happens just right (just wrong?) it can act like a check valve & hold the pressure in the brake caliper.

You may be able to check this out by trying to reverse-bleed that caliper. That is, try to pump brake fluid INTO the bleed screw.

 

hey man i def appreciate it. ill give it a try. thanks

 

your brake caliper problem will mostly be caused by a caliper piston or the
floating bolts (the two bolts used to hold caliper to bracket). A seized caliper will
continue to apply pressure to inner brake pad after you release the brake pedal. This will cause your inside brake pad to wear out faster and depending on severity your rotor can get hot spots or burnish color. Remove your caliper and inspect your piston, try pushing it evenly (there's a special tool for that but if you don't have it, use a flat surface and a rod or somethin to push the piston back in) Sometimes you can just use a rod and push against the center of the piston but if it happens to be uneven pressure, it can bind up.

If the piston in the caliper can't move, then replace the caliper. Sometimes it is kinda difficult to get the piston moving, to make it easier attach a vaccuum hose with a container to the bleeding screw. Open up the bleeding screw, then push the caliper. If it still doesn't move, then replace it.

To inspect the floating bolts, remove the caliper and push against the rubber seal where the two bolts were installed. They should move freely. If they have resistance or can't move, then they will have to be removed and cleaned up. They are a bitch to remove if they are seize and you can't use any type of grease either to lube them up. They must be greased before re-installing again.


Modified by 1fast4g63 at 4:40 PM 4/20/2007

 

hey man thanks but i have already replaced the caliper twice, just 3 days ago i went to get my second one and its still doing it. ill go ahead and check the 2 floating bolts, thanks for your help.