I went to take the vette for a ride yesterday and my brakes were making some noise so I checked the fluid and noticed it was almost empty. So I filled it up and went up and down the driveway a few times, got out and saw that I had puddles of fluid up and down the driveway. Looked under the car and saw that my drivers side front tire was glistening with brake fluid. So I took the tire off and inspected the line which didn't seem to be leaking from the connection into the caliper. I was told there is a piston seal inside the caliper that probably dry rotted. I was wondering if anyone has any experience with this. Is it a hard job and can I just go to a part store and order new seals? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Have someone pump the pedal while you have the wheel off and you should be able to see the leak. If it's from inside the caliper, I would get a pair(L & R)of rebuilts from the catalog of your choice and not screw around. I'd replace the pads and turn the rotors too. There was a very comprehensive thread during the last week or two about brake bleeding which you should look over if you are not familiar with the process.

I'd like to just get a new set of calipers, but money is a very big issue right now so I really don't have the luxury of getting new calipers. The current equipment are rebuilt calipers and have been on for about 4 or 5 years, and since only one is leaking a new set would be a waste of money to me at the moment.

There are rebuild kits available, either the catalog places or NAPA should have them. There are 4 pistons per caliper, and some o-rings between the caliper halves that you will need. I got a bunch in GM boxes with my car, who knows how old they are. Joe

I have read a lot of posts about brake problems, and it almost always ends up that the people replace all 4 calipers. I know it is expensive, but in the long run I'm sure it will be the best fix. I got mine from Corvette central, and they came with a new master cyl, hoses, brake lines, and a manual from Stainless steel brake corp. The manual was worth its weight in gold. I learned a lot about relplacing calipers with it. Of course the total cost was over $400.00, but well worth it. There are other places to buy the calipers, and probably cheaper, but mine worked out really good. Knock on wood, I haven't had a minutes trouble with them since I changed them.. 2 years ago.....

Just remember when you replace a caliper...the rule of thumb is to replace BOTH sides even if only one is bad. I don't know why that is, but it was told to me by a restoration shop. I ended up having to replace all 4 calipers, 4 rotors, 4 sets of pads and my master cylinder before I was able to stop with any consistancy. Another thought...these cars were mean to be driven as year round vehicles. Problems like leaky seals will develope if they sit too long.

I believe that the leaky seals happen because of water in the brake fluid, sitting for a long period of time, and eventually they rust, and make little pot holes in the castings. When I removed mine, I tore them apart, ane everyone had rust, and little holes inside. My car only had 11500 original miles on it when this happened. It had only been driven for about 3600 miles in the previous 14 years. The previous owner saved all of the inspection papers, license applications, and all of the repair orders. He replaced all 4 tires 2 years before I bought it, and there was only 300-350 miles on them. They still had all of the little knobs on the tread. He said the old tires were dry rotted. He was afraid to drive on them. About the only place he drove it was to be inspected.

I started working on the leaky caliper last night. If I had the money I would get new calipers, but like I said, I don't. The calipers on the car right now are not very old either. I'm going to rebuild both my front calipers with a $10.50 kit from Zip Corvette, then get new brake pads for them. It doesn't look like it will be tough at all. There isn't much to them, just the cast, a spring, a seal, the piston, and the retaining boot. If it doesn't work, I'll have to try something else, but I think it will because I think I knew which seal went bad.

VTHokie,

Good luck with your caliper overhaul. If the inside of the caliper isn't rusted, or worn bad, it might just work. Mine were just too rusty. It sat too long in the same spot. If you can, try to change all of the brake fluid, too.

|UPDATED|6/4/2002 12:56:35 AM|/UPDATED|

By the way, were the calipers that weren't too old, Stainless Steel lined? If they were, the rebuild should work....