Rear Calliper Replacement
- Thread starter smoggiecupratdi
- Start date
If you have all the right tools then yes it's quite easy. The only issue I had was not getting a new rubber washer with the calipers from ecp and one side had a tiny leak, I expect you would be able to get these on ebay.
I think mine came to £67, that was 2 remanafuctured calipers and the dot4 fluid. I already had the pressure bleeder which was about £20.
Note that Seat used different rear calipers across their range of mk1 models, so double check before buying new / refurb / refurb kit.
Opinions differ regarding clamping the brake hose that needs to be disconnected from the caliper - I don't do it because I'm concerned it would weaken the hose, but I've seen garages do it. Ideally that last section would be replaced with new because of wear and tear and, on my LCR at least, there were trapped copper washers on the top and bottom of the banjo bolt that should be replaced if you want a better chance of avoiding leaks. You will want to avoid losing so much fluid that you get air into the anti-lock brake valve either from not topping up the reservoir or letting it pour out of the disconnected brake line. You'll need a VCDS to pump it through if that happens. As mentioned in an earlier reply, it's best to use a brake fluid pump to replace the fluid. If the brake pedal is pressed beyond its normal range the seals in the master cylinder may travel over a 'rough bit' and mean you may need a new master cylinder. Having said all that it is, with sensible precautions, a relatively easy thing to replace the rear calipers.
Opinions differ regarding clamping the brake hose that needs to be disconnected from the caliper - I don't do it because I'm concerned it would weaken the hose, but I've seen garages do it. Ideally that last section would be replaced with new because of wear and tear and, on my LCR at least, there were trapped copper washers on the top and bottom of the banjo bolt that should be replaced if you want a better chance of avoiding leaks. You will want to avoid losing so much fluid that you get air into the anti-lock brake valve either from not topping up the reservoir or letting it pour out of the disconnected brake line. You'll need a VCDS to pump it through if that happens. As mentioned in an earlier reply, it's best to use a brake fluid pump to replace the fluid. If the brake pedal is pressed beyond its normal range the seals in the master cylinder may travel over a 'rough bit' and mean you may need a new master cylinder. Having said all that it is, with sensible precautions, a relatively easy thing to replace the rear calipers.
In terms of upgrades, adding handbrake assist springs is a good idea as without them the handbrake portion of the caliper appears to seize up sooner. If you're asking about bigger discs, different compound brake pads, etc. then I will risk dividing opinion here and say that in my view the front and rear brakes should be balanced so that the fronts and rears together will stop the car to the same PROPORTIONS as original, so if the fronts are upgraded in any way (even with different pad compounds) then I would do the same to the rears. There are many who will disagree with me on this so it's up to you!
You don't need to clamp the hoses, once you get 1 caliper off. Push the brake pedal to the floor, wedge a piece of wood against the seat to hold it on the floor and the vacuum in the system holds all the fluid in place. I was was sceptical when I read about this but it 100% works. The part number for the caliper is stamped into the bottom of the caliper.
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