okay i was changing my break pads when i noticed that the thing (sorry i dont know the name) that the 2 bolts are connected on the caliper with the rubber boots..(the lower rubber boot). one of them doesnt move. at all. in or out. but the top one flows freely. worst of all when i break at high speeds (80mph or so) the car pulls to the right. (btw the problem is on the drivers side caliper). im thinking that because its not moving in or out its not touching the pad at all, and so when i break hard, only the right side is breaking and its causing the car to pull that way..


UPDATED / EDIT:
so i guess its one of the 2 pins that hold the caliper up is stick and wont move in or out.. can i fix this myself? do i need to get a whole new caliper?

 

Have the dealer rebuilt the calipers. There are kit to do it yourself but ...

 

maybe im just being paranoid? does it matter if this peice moves in and out at all? how much is it to rebuild caliper or do it yourself?

 

EVERYTHING on this car matters. That pin is especially important. Get it fixed or fix it yourself very soon. The rebuild kit is a couple bucks or so.

 

The reason for that pin is because the front brake calipers only have pistons on one side. It is called a floating caliper design. This is so the pads can line up evenly on both sides of the rotor. As the pad wears down (and the rotor) the piston in the caliper comes out more, and the whole caliper slides closer to the bracket it is attached to. If the car had Brembos on it, there would likely be 4 pistons in each caliper and the caliper would be fixed to a bracket. The pistons on each side of the rotor would adjust so they would line the pads up nice and evenly.

Considering the load this piece is controlling, if it breaks you are seriously going to have some problems. I would take it to the dealer ASAP. When you get the car back, you may need to break the new pads in, if the replace them. Also, ask them if they bleed the brakes, which is a no brainer but you do not want air bubbles in that caliper. Then you brake pedal will be mushy.

 

so where can i get a rebuild kit?

 

so the fact that one of these 2 pins isnt moving when i try to pull on it is very bad?

well i found a rebuild kit online.. only 16 bucks... so that should work?

 

Yes.

You still have to get the stuck pin unstuck. That might take a bit of work.

 

any ideas? do i need a whole new caliper or can i just do this myself?>

 

Unbolt the caliper and yank/pull/tug/beat/hammer on the edge of the pin. If the pins comes out, clean up the corrosion on the pin and inside the caliper. Then relube with high temp caliper pin grease.