Pads and rotor ground away but no stuck caliper?

My drivers side rear started grinding, lots of brake dust, noise and rust.

I figure it's a stuck caliper, buy new caliper, take it all apart (with the help of this forum) but i can push the caliper with a C clamp fine? Does that mean my caliper is ok?

My buddy is saying to get new rotors and pads (both rear wheels), clean up rust as best as possible, grease it all up and put it all back together, but i am worried it will chew up the new rotor and pads.

What went wrong, what made the pads and rotor make contact if it was not the caliper?

I am in Ontario and lots of road salt etc, there was quite a bit of rust too but not sure how much of that was the rotor and pads grinding.

Any advice would be appreciated, really don't want to lose $300 in brake parts again, plus its like -10c here.

2016 4Runner Limited.

Thanks Team,

 

Not all dragging pads are from stuck calipers. Many times the brake pad ears get stuck on the bracket and not slide in and out freely. I would make sure the grooves on the brackets are wire brushed and cleaned very well, also lubricated so you don't have this issue again. Could also be a collapsing break line.

 

Have someone press the brake pedal while you are outside looking at the piston.

If it retracts a little after they release the pedal you are fine. Just clean off any surface rust and lube up metal to metal spots.

Don't know your driving habits but I do a lot of city driving here and my pads don't last.

 

Being able to push the piston back in with a clamp doesnt mean it’s free enough to not wear out the pads. Without some obvious indication that everything else was rusted tight I would replace both calipers. Why not just a full brake job on the rear and be done with it for years?

 

Wouldn't hurt to change the brake line hose. I've had them get to where the fluid wouldn't flow freely and wear the pads, on older trucks not on a 4R though.

 

Also in Ontario, replaced all 4 corners, rotors and pads. for all 4 corners I had to sand off a bit of the tabs on the pads so that they slide better in the grooves on the brackets. I was able to force the pads in but they were almost impossible to move freely in the grooves. Once I sanded the tips added some lube and was able to make them slide nice and smooth.

 

I had this problem on a mazda. Even though I super cleaned the hardware where the ears slide, the caliper material underneath it was so swelled up with rust, that it made it impossible for the pads to slide. Had to take a file to it and open up that channel. I had to keep doing it fairly regularly too, it appeared to be a crappy pourous casting. Sometimes it’s better to replace the caliper if the corrosion looks bad.

 

Do yourself a favor if you're replacing calipers. Buy OEM Toyota calipers. I changed out calipers on the front of my '11 about a year ago. Replaced them with OEM "equivalent" calipers. Guess what? Ended up replacing them again due to leaking piston seals. Replaced with Toyota calipers as I should have done from the beginning. As for the OP's problem, are you sure all of the parts are there on your caliper? Meaning, the four little metal inserts that allow the pad to slide on the caliper. Are they rusted? Are they lubed? Are the pins rusted? Are they lubed? Just a few things to look at...

 

Took it apart, lots of rust and dont see much grease if any. Pads had zero movement.

At this point i will go ahead and clean it all up, add new rotor pads, grease, etc, but do it to my satisfaction. If issue persists then will replace caliper and hoses.

The last brake replacement was not done by me as i had that fear factor of it being a big truck and it might be complicated, however since doing my camry's brakes all round i am much more confident with it.

Catbrown357, yeah i think your right, will be returning unbranded caliper and go toyota if i go that way. If i change the caliper i will prob change out the hose too.

Will keep you all posted.

Thanks,

 

All the above and as mentioned, the calipers have to freely move on the pins to be able to release the pressure on the pads, if the pins are not clean and lubricated the pads will most likely drag on the rotor.

 

Watch this. Watch how much they stress cleaning and lubing the brackets where the pad ears slide.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qsozrTXfHoc&ab_channel=RoyaltyAutoService

 

Would recommend replacing both sides at once, using all oem parts….. just my 2 cents

 

Rear brakes on the 4Runner are very similar to front brakes on most Toyotas and Hondas. Clean up any rust buildup under the abutment clips with a Roloc cookie wheel. Put caliper grease under and over the abutment clips. Make sure there's some silicone grease in the slide pin boots.

I've had reliable service from Raybestos reman calipers if you need to replace them.

If you decide to replace the hose, be careful not to break the bracket holding the spring clip to the hard line. Grab the bracket with a second pair of pliers to counteract the flare nut wrench torque.

 

If you do end up doing this, MAKE SURE you have a really good understanding of brake bleeding and the procedures specific to the 4Runner. While you're at it, you might as well do a complete brake fluid flush, but again, and I can't stress it enough, MAKE SURE you do it correctly. Your life might depend on it. I mean this literally. It's not hard, but there's a procedure. I'm positive there are many good youtube videos out there.

 

Had to replace the gf's 2016 calipers when we bought her 4runner. 2 of them were completely seized, almost broke a C clamp trying to depress the pistons. Ended up finding 4 OEM new calipers for cheaper than any reman/rebuilds or aftermarket which was great.

Having not been in a Toyota since I owned my 99 Tacoma, I looked up if there was anything special with the bleed procedure. It turned out to be even easier than any other vehicle I've done. Was able to use the ABS pump technique on all 4 corners (I was working solo) and got a great bleed, didn't have to come back and do anything over. She's probably got over 10k on the new calipers, rotors, pads and no issues.

Agreed with above though, a lot of the times it's the grooves of the pads that hang up on the brackets due to the coating being too thick. I always make sure the surfaces in contact I take a file to, or wire wheel to remove any of the coating the companies like to put on the pad backing where it rides on the rails. The last time I neglected to do this (on a couple other vehicles) the pads would catch/lodge and actually I could see them smoking. Wasn't the calipers or pins, took a bit of troubleshooting to figure out that the pads were hanging up.

 

Update:

Got the brackets off, go to check the sliding pins and there is hardly any up / down movement, just like 5mm on both sides (even the wheel that was not sticking), is 5mm enough or should it be more?

One of them is also leaking grease.

I notice Amazon sells "Carlson 16005 pin boot kit".

What are my next steps?

Was thinking to pull out all the old rubber, get a bore brush and clean out sliding pin holes, get the new kit, grease and re-install? Or is my bracket done? Anyone know other than Amazon in Ontario that might sell replacement rubber i could pick up tomorrow as Amazon cant deliver until Sunday.

Thanks,

 

Pictures might be helpful to see just exactly what you're looking at.

 

Sure, here it is, circled in red, those pins on both wheels have very little movement:

 

I'm confused how come both wheels are like that, that's what makes me think if its normal?

 

Those things are definitely crusty. I would try to clean them up with a wire wheel, wire brush, bore brush, etc. to see if you can get things to loosen up. There is really not much movement in those. But, it should be free and smooth. The rubber doesn't look too bad, unless is seems brittle to the touch.

 

Pull the pins out and see what's inside. Maybe there's dirt, maybe there's a lot of dried grease obstructing the pins. It's also possible to trap air inside, preventing the pins from going all the way in. If there are no obstructions, just smear some

$12 Super Lube 92003 Silicone Lubricating Grease with PTFE, 3 oz Tube, Translucent White

silicone lube on the pins and reinstall. Burb the boots with a pocket screwdriver. In Canadian winters you basically have to clean and lubricate the calipers every two years or so, so grease leakage isn't a big deal.

I just installed reman calipers earlier last year to avoid dealing with these issues (and a potentially seized rusted bleeder screw). Still had to lube the slider pins though. Make sure you have a new banjo bolt and copper washers if the caliper doesn't come with them. I ordered Carlson H95042 (listed on Rock Auto as for a 2010 Camry).

Parts I used for the driver's rear brakes: https://www.4runners.com/posts/469512/

 

Any ideas how i cam get the brake dust rust off the frame?

 

See upwards 2 posts. +Brake Cleaner.

 

I fully agree with everyone who has said that you need to completely clean all of the surfaces and contact points. After cleaning, proper lubrication is also important. And an important part of "proper" is using the proper lubricants. Just and grease will not work. In fact, some lubricants will actually cause all sorts of problems.

What do my son (a Certified Toyota Service Technician) use? See below.

 

Cleaned up rust, used Sil-glyde grease, put all back together with new rotors and pads. All good.

i cant seem to get all the rust from the binding brake pads off the wheel or frame. Is it critical? Will it cause frame to rust early?

 

^Yes, though on an 8 year-old truck you may not be able to distinguish accelerated rust vs. normal rust

Use a foaming wheel cleaner and a scrubbing brush. Wheel cleaners are more or less specifically formulated to clean brake dust.

 

Brake dust on the frame? Ceramic pads do better in that regard for discolored rims. I'm a retired auto mechanic in Ontario as well. Rust belt areas suck. I curse every time I see the city salt truck. All I think of is that I'm paying for idiots who can't drive according to existing weather conditions. I long ago learned that rust belt brakes are a yearly maintenace item meaning rusted slider pins or brake pads that can't freely move in the brake adapter. Calipers seem to do pretty good overall. I do all my own work and that goes a long ways price wise but if I didn't I would be changing my rust belt brakes 2 to 3 times as often.