Right rear caliper seizing

[Mr. Man]

Went for a long toot yesterday just for the heck of it. Car worked fine all day, mostly back roads, till I needed to stop and back up to read some guys rant plywood sign on the evils of Trump. When I hit the brake this time I got the positive whiff of burning brake pads. Lots of stopping previously in the day with no malodorous air of brake. Drove home which was at that point only a couple of slow miles. Went around the car feeling the wheels to see which one was hot and of course the right rear was the culprit. Every Ford product I've ever owned has had the right rear caliper freeze up, Why? I imagine the slides are pitted and starting to rust so a new caliper is in my future. Might just get all four and G2 them. Anyone have any idea what goes wrong with calipers that they seize suddenly? What kind of preventive maintenance do you guys do to keep the brakes working like new?

Thanks for any advice.:)

PS: Which piston is better, metal or phenolic?

[justbob]

I just finished rebuilding my rears for the heck of it. Cheaper, and no core to return. All I can say is plenty of anti seize!


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[offroadkarter]

Doesn't your car sit a lot and outside? I know its low mile, part of that could contribute to a caliper sticking.

Factory calipers have phenolic pistons, either choice realistically will work fine.

[justbob]

I’ve also heard of the parking brake shoe hardware coming apart inside.


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[Grimrepairman]

9 out of 10 times the pads are frozen in the slides due to rust buildup, especially when things sit. When installing the pads I do a dry test fit with the pads and shims in the bracket to make sure they slide freely. Quite regularly new pads aren't stamped perfectly or have excess paint on the ears. After any necessary trimming during the dry run liberally apply a quality brake grease under and on top of the shims.

Regarding calipers seizing it seems to happen more often these days. I haven't really investigated the causes, generally assumed there was corrosion inside the caliper preventing the piston from sliding back in. The braking system generates lots of pressure to push the pistons out while the rotor generates minimal pressure to go back in.

Also fairly common these days is brake hose failure. The rubber hose swells inside causing a restriction and effectively turning into a check valve.

[Mr. Man]

I wouldn't be surprised if it was a rust issue. Just seems weird it always seems to be the right rear, and why would it suddenly seize after driving around for a couple hours?

Probably going to get some new ones and G2 them if I can figure out what color I want.

[burt ragio]

Multiple things to check when signs of brake caliper failure. Always good maintenance.
1)Flush brake fluid every two years. Use quality dot 3 brake fluid.
2) Emergency brake. See if operable & free.
3) Pinched or collapsed brake line. Check brake fluid flows freely.
4) Frozen calipers pistons. Both pistons move freely & even pad wear.
5) Pads to tight pitted bent or gunked up slides with dirt sand.





I wouldn't be surprised if it was a rust issue. Just seems weird it always seems to be the right rear, and why would it suddenly seize after driving around for a couple hours?

Probably going to get some new ones and G2 them if I can figure out what color I want.

[Grimrepairman]

Coincidentally I was helping a friend with his truck yesterday. As luck would have it, the right rear brakes were hanging up and wore the inside pad to the metal.
2002 F250, the brakes were supposedly about a year old.
One of the caliper pins was rusted absolutely solid in the caliper bracket. There was no visible issues with the rubber boot. Was unable to get the pin out with heat and penetrating oil. Replaced the bracket, pins and boots in addition to the pads and rotors.

Caliper pin /slider https://imgur.com/gallery/xQOanzs

[MyBlackBeasts]

Went for a long toot yesterday just for the heck of it. Car worked fine all day, mostly back roads, till I needed to stop and back up to read some guys rant plywood sign on the evils of Trump. When I hit the brake this time I got the positive whiff of burning brake pads. Lots of stopping previously in the day with no malodorous air of brake. Drove home which was at that point only a couple of slow miles. Went around the car feeling the wheels to see which one was hot and of course the right rear was the culprit. Every Ford product I've ever owned has had the right rear caliper freeze up, Why? I imagine the slides are pitted and starting to rust so a new caliper is in my future. Might just get all four and G2 them. Anyone have any idea what goes wrong with calipers that they seize suddenly? What kind of preventive maintenance do you guys do to keep the brakes working like new?

Thanks for any advice.:)

PS: Which piston is better, metal or phenolic?

G2 them? what's that mean? Never heard it before.

[justbob]

G2 them? what's that mean? Never heard it before.

G2 paint


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[a_d_a_m]

Of the Panthers I’ve owned that have had rust, they have all rusted worse on the passenger side near the rear wheels than the driver’s side. No idea why. But maybe that phenomenon is leading to that caliper failing?

(probably not, idunno)

[justbob]

In salting states the melted and unbroken chunks all collect on the side of the road. That has always been my theory.


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[MyBlackBeasts]

G2 paint


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Thanks Bob! Had me going, thought I missed some sort of brake mod! ;):D