RR caliper sticks big time - Why??

[PSeyle]

about a year ago I was on a road trip (Maine to California) and had the rear claipers replaced with genuine VW parts on my 96 Passat Sedan.

Now the caliper in the right rear is doing it again, but worse! supposedly the guy flushed my break line with new fluid, but I'm about to go through the system myself (usually what you have to do if you want things done right)

What would cause a caliper to stick shut?
the E-brake is not sticking.
the caliper is about one year old (30K miles).
weird stuff. Anyone have the answer I need??

TIA
-Preston
96 Passat TDI Sedan

[ January 29, 2003, 11:40: Message edited by: PSeyle ]

 

[Metalnerd]

I had the same event on my 96 passat. Same side. My guess was that the caliper cable return lever has a relatively weak spring and corrosion causes it to hang up.

 

[Lug_Nut]

Another 96 Passat, another stuck rr caliper.
I'm suspecting that mine is due in part to a torn boot around the piston. Some rust has formed on the outer surface of the piston. This may be preventing the piston seal from relaxing and pulling the piston back when fluid pressure is released.
The piston within the slave cylinder is perfect, only the exposed portion is less than ideal. The piston will require replacement with the next pad change.
The self adjusting parking brake mechanism reacts as if the pad had worn and takes up the excess slack. Make sure that the parking brake mechanism and helix are well and properly lubricated to prevent excessive or unwanted self adjustment.

 

[Lug_Nut]

Oh,
I see the problem. Your car is aging much too quickly. On another post you have a 96. On this one it is three years older!

 

[Rick P.]

That's what I thought when I tore into mine last month. Once I pulled everything apart I found that what looked like rust was just caked-on grime and rubber gunk. It cleaned off easily and I reused the original piston. Just be careful not to scratch the surface when taking it out.

Regarding the original question, if the caliper is sticking I wouldn't think it should matter whether the brake is engaged using the brake pedal or the parking brake lever. Makes me wonder whether the tech who did your last brake job re-adjusted your parking brake when he installed the new caliper. Are you sure that the RR caliper is actually working when you apply the parking brake?

As you suggested, your best bet (cheapest anyway) is probably to pull it apart yourself and see what's happening.

Rick

Originally posted by Jonathan Bartlett:
I'm suspecting that mine is due in part to a torn boot around the piston. Some rust has formed on the outer surface of the pisto ...

The piston within the slave cylinder is perfect, only the exposed portion is less than ideal. The piston will require replacement with the next pad change.

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[jag60mk2]

PSeyle,

Take a look at this post: http://forums.tdiclub.com/NonCGI/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=42;t=000087 .

This has been discussed for the Passat previous to the above post also. My 97 had the LR stick. It happened after driving in the rain and putting the parking brake on. The next morning, it stuck. Since then, I have only used the parking brake when absolutely necessary. I also found that the brake works quite well when pulled up ONLY ONE click. I had been pulling up to get a couple of clicks.

Matt Ross
1997 Passat TDI 92K miles
1960 Jaguar MK2