Brake discs and pads

[garrydog]

I have to buy front brake discs and pads for my C5 2.0l HDI 2004 the discs are ventilated ,can anyone please tell me the best place to buy them. Also will I need a tool for backing the brakes off .

Thanks .

[SaabC5]

Various places for the discs & pads, try Eurocarparts, German Swedish French (GSF) and also eBay where they do disc/pad packages. You can use a G cramp with small blocks of wood to back the pistons off.

[Citroenmad]

I have got them from Wida Components in the past, usually a good price and top quality brands.

[HDI]

Recently I did the front discs and pads on my Xantia HDi. I got Pagid from Carparts4less, excellent parts at an excellent price and very good service, they were cheaper than anywhere else I looked, including GSF. They should have what you need for a C5.

[Lighty]

Various places for the discs & pads, try Eurocarparts, German Swedish French (GSF) and also eBay where they do disc/pad packages. You can use a G cramp with small blocks of wood to back the pistons off.

You cannot just squeeze the pistons back with a G clamp
The pistons need to be screwed in , due to the handbrake mechanism on the front calipers, and the Drivers side one (right)is a left hand thread, so technically you need two different tools , one for the left and one for the right.
It can be done with a smallish flat bar, where you turn the piston, and then push it in a bit, takes a while but can be done.

[HDI]

Useful trick to screw in the pistons is to use the square end of a 3/8" drive extention bar in the recess around the edge of the piston, drive it with a ratchet and it's quite easy.

[SaabC5]

Various places for the discs & pads, try Eurocarparts, German Swedish French (GSF) and also eBay where they do disc/pad packages. You can use a G cramp with small blocks of wood to back the pistons off.

You cannot just squeeze the pistons back with a G clamp
The pistons need to be screwed in , due to the handbrake mechanism on the front calipers, and the Drivers side one (right)is a left hand thread, so technically you need two different tools , one for the left and one for the right.
It can be done with a smallish flat bar, where you turn the piston, and then push it in a bit, takes a while but can be done.

Ah my bad, never done a C5. (forgot about the novel front handbrake system)

[Badge 714]

Good evening everyone. This is my first post so please bare with me and yes I have tried the search function.

I have just attempted the same procedure unfortunately the information I had from elsewhere on the net said right hand thread right-side and left hand thread on the left hand side. The result is that the car now has a piston in the offside front calliper which feels decidedly loose and almost fully extended.

My question is can this be remedied easily by winding it carefully back in? (It's now dark so I haven't attempted this yet.)

Or is it a new calliper that is required?

If seals have been damaged or compromised, then how much of a job is it to strip and rebuild the calliper with a rebuild it with a repair kit like this: (http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Citroen-C5-Br ... 4843e6fb8e" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;)

Does anyone know if there is an exploded diagram of the calliper internals anywhere.

Pretty desperate, our only car is now off the road.

Thanks for any help

[HDI]

All I can say is that I've always screwed the pistons in both calipers back in clockwise, it's always worked for me. If you have a loose piston it has been unscrewed, just screw it back in clockwise..

[Lighty]

All I can say is that I've always screwed the pistons in both calipers back in clockwise, it's always worked for me. If you have a loose piston it has been unscrewed, just screw it back in clockwise..

Well you certainly cant do that on a C5, they are not the same as a Xantia.
As already said, the drivers caliper is screwed in ANTI clockwise, and the Passenger side is CLOCKWISE.

[HDI]

You live and learn.

[HDI]

I have just attempted the same procedure unfortunately the information I had from elsewhere on the net said right hand thread right-side and left hand thread on the left hand side. The result is that the car now has a piston in the offside front calliper which feels decidedly loose and almost fully extended.

My question is can this be remedied easily by winding it carefully back in? (It's now dark so I haven't attempted this yet.)



Thanks for any help

It should be ok, if no fluid has leaked. If that is the case just wind it back in the opposite direction to that which it unscrewed. Be careful to engage the thread properly when starting it, if it crosses you are in trouble.

[Estately]

May I suggest a good practice previously written in this esteemed portal would be to clamp the flexible hose and open the bleed nipple then LDS can be emptied as the piston is screwed back into the calliper.
This would be better than pushing the fluid it back through the ABS. Finish by bleeding the system.

Does anyone have a diagram of the C5 front caliper arrangement?

[addo]

I have not dismantled a C5 caliper.

Earlier "screw" type calipers on PSA cars had a quad helix piloting spindle up the centre of the piston's bore. About 3/8" in diameter and looking rather like a four flute straight milling cutter, it was rotated by the handbrake lever. You removed the caliper's piston by repeatedly flipping the handbrake lever on the caliper's upper rear end.

At rear of the piston proper, the female helical bore was circlipped in and ran on tiny bearings, complete with thrust washers and spacers. This allowed for differential rates of movement between applied rotation and inwards/outwards motion. If one were gentle, I reckon it's almost possible to press a piston straight back. Opening of the bleed screw being a given!

[Badge 714]

I'll try winding it back in with the bleed nipple open and the hose clamped as suggested by Estately. I must admit to trying to avoid the bleed nipple where possible as I've had one sheer off in the past on a Fiat. I'll try Lightly's suggestion first, as to direction of the wind Anti Clockwise. There looks to be a small film of fluid around the boot and piston this morning, does anyone know if this points to a damaged seal inside he caliper?

Thanks very much for the advice so far.