Sliding caliper seized

[the_weaver]

Hi folks

The sliding caliper is siezed on my ZX's front n/s disc brake. It's a Bendix model with two bolts and sliding assemblies. I can see that one of the rubber gaiters is split.

I'm going out to look for a repair kit tomorrow. Can anybody tell me what's involved in fitting the kit. I assume you get new rubber gaiters and grease. Do you also get new bolts or new sleeves? Is it ok to clean up the old sleeves/bolts with a wire brush and emery cloth and then regrease and fit new gaiters, or is it a case of replacing everything with new components if the old ones are rusty.

Is it possible to fit the repair kit without disconnecting the hydraulic brake hose? If I do have to disconnect it what are the chances of being able to remove the hose and bleed nipple without breaking them on a 16 year old car?

Do I need any special tools to install the sleeves e.g. a press, a vice or bolts to pull the sleeves into the caliper body?

Do I need to use Loctite on the caliper mounting bolts? Can I reuse the existing bolts?

Are the parts common between a ZX and a Pug 205/405? My local motor factor has a repair kit for a 205 in stock and he thinks it might be the same.

The car is a Citroen ZX 1.9D Reflex, 1993. Normally aspirated. No ABS.

Thanks

Paul

[uncle buck]

Is it ok to clean up the old sleeves/bolts with a wire brush and emery cloth and then regrease and fit new gaiters....

That's what I would do....clean any dried / hardened grease off then if they they are rusty rub them up with emery cloth....re grease & re fit.

Is it possible to fit the repair kit without disconnecting the hydraulic brake hose?

I'm pretty sure it will be ...it is with the girling system.

Do I need to use Loctite on the caliper mounting bolts? Can I reuse the existing bolts?

Officially yes, the bolts should be Loctited & the manual says you should use new bolts....In reality I had the same bolts in the calipers of my ZX for years....I think they were the original ones from when the car was made....put a touch of Loctite on the original bolts & I'm sure they will be fine.

Are the parts common between a ZX and a Pug 205/405? My local motor factor has a repair kit for a 205 in stock and he thinks it might be the same.

The ZX shares most components with the Pug 306 but most running gear, brake components etc are common across the whole Pug / Citroen range.

From experience I can tell you that with seized calipers most of the time the sliding mechanism just needs a good clean & re grease....I would strip the sliding mechanism down before spending money on a repair kit as with a good clean / rub up all the bits should be perfectly servicable...the only bit you may be stuck for is the small gaiter that is split....this may only be available in the repair kit & not on its own. Even if you use the split gaiter, with fresh grease & cleaned up parts the slider should be fine for a couple of months if not longer...this would buy you enough time to make a trip to the scrappy that I'm sure would prove more fruitful than buying a repair kit...especially now as the weather has got a bit colder so you don't look out of place with a big coat on !

Cheers.

[the_weaver]

Thanks for the answers Uncle Buck.

What type of grease do I need? Is it just normal Castrol LM or copper grease or something else?

Paul

[uncle buck]

Hi,
Molly grease has a higher melting point so would be best...however if you have LM grease I would personally just use that....I would probably make a grease cocktail with copper grease & some LM mixed together.

Cheers.

[addo]

Wurth "CU800" has a stupidly high melting point and excellent durability. It's also dear as poison.

Cadging a dessertspoonful from your local specialist mechanic, might be one option - keep the leftover in a vitamin pill bottle.

ETA: I see those in the UK have an option of 100 gram tubes. We have only the 1 kilogram or 5 kilogram options!

[Xantidote]

I've just had my Xantia's caliper apart, including the sliding part - not sure how similar to the ZX. Mine only had minor play in sliding mechanism.

I go along with Uncle Buck, in that you could basically do an interim clean up and regrease to buy time. Clean up/derust the bolt, but try not to remove good metal, so as to minimise play in the sliding mechanism. I'd guess the bush(es) in the caliper part are none ferrous, so shouldn't need more than a clean with solvent. I'd avoid using emery on them, though if you must, then very fine wet & dry (1000 grade?). Replacement bushes may not come in the overhaul kit. If you did manage to fit them, would they need reaming?

I reassembled with Castrol LM, simply because it is HMP, and I have a tin, but the white grease remaining in the caliper was thicker, & white in colour. It seemed to me on stripping, that the original rubber gaitors of the sliding bolt were bonded into caliper. Initially I just re-assembled with lots of grease, but the gaitors just squeezed out, so degreased their housings, used a bit of sealant type adhesive to rebond them into place - remains to be seen whether this works long term but OK a week later.

I re-used the original bolt, with Loctite Threadlock

If it's all too much hassle, then a replacement caliper from scrappy worth considering.

Cheers - Martin

[the_weaver]

Thanks for the replies.

I've picked up a caliper slide repair kit for a Peugeot 205/405 from my local motor factor. It's got two slides and four gaiters in there, also grease and Loctite.

It's an aftermarket kit with the reference number SWP 166. It says it replaces OE part number 4439 05.

The Citroen part number that I actually want is 4439 03. These are very similar part numbers but I don't know if they are compatible. I can't find any reference to 4439 05 on the Citroen Service site. I'm not signed up to the Peugeot service site. Perhaps somebody with a Peugeot account can get the info on part number 4439 05 and confirm if they're compatible. I think the difference might be that the kit I've got is for two slides and maybe the Citroen kit is for one slide.

The kit from a Citroen main dealer is very expensive at around 75 pounds.

I'm going to dissassemble the seized slide, then I can compare the gaiters and slides. Hopefully I can clean up the old slides and use the new gaiters. If I have to replace the slides then I suppose I can measure the slides with a Vernier caliper so see if they're the same size. I would feel happier if somebody could confirm that they are the same however.

Thanks

Paul

[the_weaver]

I've disassembled the lower slide assembly. That's the only one that was seized. One of the gaiters has completely gone, the other's ok. The sliding sleeve was rusty at one end which I've cleaned up but there's rust in the groove which stops the new gaiter from going in properly.

The kit for the 205/405 appears to be ok for my ZX. It's looks the same to me anyway. I'll probably use one gaiter and one sleeve from the kit.

I'm having some trouble getting the gaiter in. It's got a flat washer moulded into the rubber, which is plastic with a metal insert. I think you're supposed to tap it into the hole (as with a driveshaft oil seal) but it's very difficult to get in. The gaiter is in the way for a start. I tried turning it inside out but it's not going in. It keeps jumping out. I need some sort of washer or socket which is very thin and exactly the right size to fit the gaiter. Maybe I can pull it in with a nut and bolt. I've already split one of the new gaiters trying to get it in. It looked like there was glue or sealant on the old gaiter.

Paul

[citronut]

i cant think off have what the ZX slide/boot is like, but an AX has a rubber tube with a nylon insert half way through it (in the middle) so it is rubber at both end,

when fitted the rubber ends pratrude out of each side of the calliper eye,

what heppens with the old one is corosion builds up between the eye of the calliper and compresses the nylon, in turn restricts the slide

regards malcolm

[evilally]

Google Big Red, I got a set of recon sliders and new boots from them for my 405, didn't cost very much.

[the_weaver]

I managed to get the gaiter in eventually. It just needed the right sized tube to bear on the washer part properly and allow me to tap it in with a hammer. I ended up using a brass B.C. Lampholder minus the insides. It was a perfect fit.

I cleaned the rust from the groove in the old slide using a needle file with the slide spinning in a drill.

It's all back together now and the caliper seems to be sliding ok. A pretty good job considering that the repair kit only cost me five pounds. I had it cheap because it had been opened and it was an old one that the chap had had it in the stores for years.

I just need to do the final loctiting and torquing. Looking at the Haynes manual it's not really clear but it does give a figure of 120Nm for "Mounting bracket to swivel hub bolts". Does 120Nm sound right? The only other figure is 35 Nm for the Girling caliper "Guide Pin Bolts". I'm wondering why there's such a big difference between the two types.

Paul

[uncle buck]

....Looking at the Haynes manual it's not really clear but it does give a figure of 120Nm for "Mounting bracket to swivel hub bolts". Does 120Nm sound right? The only other figure is 35 Nm for the Girling caliper "Guide Pin Bolts". I'm wondering why there's such a big difference between the two types.

Paul

Hi,
The "Mounting bracket to swivel hub bolts" will be the big 19mm (or are they 17mm?) bolts that hold the the mounting to the swivel hub.

The Girling caliper "Guide Pin Bolts" are the 13mm bolts that hold the caliper to the sliders.

Glad you' got it sorted....a good result


Cheers.