Which Brake Calipers

[bh3chevy]

Hello - new to the site. Both my front calipers are leaking. Any advice on which way to go as far as replacement hardware ? I priced them at ZIP and Mid-America - a bit pricey. My local Autozone has a life time warranty rebuild - supposedly stainless steel sleeves for about $65 plus core.

 

[Bob Chadwick]

Make sure you get the updated seals. O-ring v. the old lip seal if I recall. The Last Detail and Vette Brakes and Products have good prices as well.

 

[jz7p6t]

bh3chevy, I recommend VBP - Vette Brakes and Products, here is link http://www.vbandp.com to their website. Spend the money and buy their complete kit with Master Cylinder and all 4 Calipers, kit # 22200I. These people are great to deal with and products are first rate. I bought all new brakes and suspension parts from them for my '80 Vette. I had a '73 454 that had leaky brakes and tried the cheap way out for awhile (rebuilt them, bought oem type rebuilt calipers, etc) then ended up buying the good calipers anyway, save yourself a lot of trouble and do it right the first time. I also had an '82 Wht/red interior. Good Luck.

 

[bh3chevy]

JZ, That's kinda what I was thinking - fix 'em once the right way and be done with it - just made me wonder if the extra cash ($500+ for the vette brakes vs. $250 for the Auto Zone life time warranty stainless sleveed) was worth it. I guess it is a matter of how many times I want to do this again. Sounds like the non-O-ring stainless sleeved still leak after a while.

 

[jz7p6t]

bh3chevy, with the VBP kit, you are also getting new Master Cylinder, Brake Lines, Pads, etc. I can't remember if Calipers I bought were O-ring or not, I got them about 8-9 years ago and no leaks yet. I replaced everything in the brake system, including the Master Cylinder and Rotors.
See if Autozone will let you look at the Calipers to make sure they are SS Sleeved. And do they come with Pads? If Brake Hoses are original, I'd replace them also.

Make sure that you flush the brake system Before you install the Calipers, flush until clean fluid.

 

[Chris Kennedy]

I would go with a company called "Lone Star Calipers" near Dallas, Texas. They have a website. I tried Vette Brakes, and they've lasted awhile and then leaked again. Lots of mechanics here in Texas swear by Lone Star Calipers, and I have two front ones on my car (to replace leaking ones from Vette Brakes), and they are working well.
Apparently, not all stainless steel lined calipers are created equal----one of the BEST suggestions I can give you is that, regardless of what calipers you buy, frequently bleed the brakes (at least once a year, maybe less). This will go a long way towards increasing brake efficiency and avoiding that awful feeling of a low pedal.

 

[bh3chevy]

It almost sounds like no matter what I put on it - they are going to leak again -

 

[norvalwilhelm]

I think besides looking for stainless sleeves is rotor runout. The original lip seal is designed for .010 runout maximum, this includes bearing play. For the front the wheel bearings must be properly adjusted, and this does not involve tightening the castle nut and backing off to the nearest cotter pin hole, this is wrong.
You need to start with a true rotor, use a dial indicator and set it up for under .003 runout by using shims that can be made from even pop cans.
I limit my bearing play plus rotor runout to .002 or under and never have a problem with the lip seal style. I just shop for the best price on stainless sleeved calipers.
The rear end play is another big problem and I set my bearing play to .001 before dialing in the rotors.
Good luck but just slapping new calipers on old rotors with runout and bearing play will just lead to problems down the road.

 

[Vettehead Mikey]

I've had standard garloc/lip style seals on my calipers since 1991 and have yet to have leak. There again, I have no rotor runout issues to deal with.

 

[bh3chevy]

One more question - the brake pads are practically new on the car but are now soaked in brake fluid. Do they need replaced once they are contaminated witrh brake fluid or will they be ok ?

 

[Stingray6974]

Check out our supporting vendor:
www.fastcorvette.com
They currently have a brake special going on right now.
Mike