opata

Hello,
Its been a couple years since I last posted. The 68 vette was put on hold due to other projects. The LR was leaking so I am replacing both the calipers on the rear. The LR won't seem to line up....the inner pad has a lot of wiggle room and the outer pad will barely slip in and fit. After test driving, the pads on the LR were smoking. I took the LR caliper back to autozone and got another thinking the caliper was sticking. This is when I discovered the alignment issue. Is this common. After the pads wear down some will it be ok. Is this a, rotor, spindle or suspension issue? I'll try to take a pic after work.....Any info would be greatly appreciated

Thanks!
Alan

Timsride

Assuming that it is the proper caliper for that side? Was the rotor replaced? it could be a front rotor on the rear wont line up. If it doesnt have the holes for the e-brake spring access, then it probably is a front rotor.

opata

Hello,
Thank you! I'll check it out when I get off work. I double check to make sure it was the correct caliper. I suspected it to be the wrong caliper or the caliper was binding up. Yes the PO changed the rotors they look pretty new.....Hopefully, its just the rotor and not anything more complicated
thanks again!
Alan

Jim Martley2

If that side trailing arm has had the wheel bearings replaced in the past, the caliper mounting bracket may have been bent. I have sen this happen when a "mechanic" gets a little overzelious when using a "bolt on spindle press" that is the customary tool used to press the spindle/axle out of the trailing arm. It would be VERY tough to properly bend the mount back into the correct position with everything assembeled. My suggestion, if you want to save some money, would be to sand down/grind the outboard brake pad material until you can slip the pad in and out freely. Otherwise, you need to completely disassemble the trailing arm and replace thr mounting bracket.

Jim

opata

Hi Jim, thanks for the reply! I ran home and checked to see if the rotor was the correct one. It appears to be a rear rotor with holes for parking break adj..... However, I have compared pics of rotors online and from the pics it looks the same as the front with a bunch of holes in addition to the holes for the studs??? I'm going to stop by the parts store on my way home from work and get another rotor. If that doesn't work I'll do as you suggested. Id say its only off a centimeter if that....I hope it's not as you suggested but I wouldn't be surprised.
thanks again!
Alan

opata

Got the new rotor put on. Only makes about a 1mm difference. So I guess thats not the problem. I'm going to grind some of the brake pad off on the outer side and call it good. Oh well....can't drive it this eve b/c its raining like crazy outside. I'll give it a go tomorrow and see if the caliper still locks up and the pad starts to smoke......

Thanks!
Alan

muskegonbrake

Did you check the bracket to see if it has been bent? That can happen...

opata

Hello, I looked and it doesn't appear to be bent...but that will be my next fix if the problem persists......
thanks!
Alan

my 76 ray

I think I remember someone having this problem and it ended up that the caliper mounting bolts were bottoming out before the caliper was tight or they wouldn't tighten fully because or rust in the threads. I'm not sure why the caliper wouldn't just push the mounting bolts out a bit to allow the caliper to float where it needed to be, but that didn't happen. You might want to take a look at that.

7T1vette

If the caliper is 'new', it could just be machined incorrectly. See if you can make some measurements on critical dimensions from an existing caliper to the new one, looking for a significant difference.

opata

Hello,
Thank you for the replies! The problem seems to have been fixed. Here is what I did. I took the new caliper back and exchange it with another one, ground down the pad on the outside pad and all seems to be fine. There still is more wiggle room for the inner pad but the caliper is not locking up causing the pad to get hot and smoke Hopefully, this is a permanent fix. thanks again for the help!!!!!
Alan

gkull

Something is not right The caliper and rotor assembly was centered when built at the factory

opata

Hello,
yea, I agree something is off. I think its the caliper mounting bracket. I'm not driving the car much as I have to do some body work on it. I plan on replacing the bracket b/f I do alot of driving
Thanks!
Alan

gkull

The steel that the caliper mounts on is pretty tough stuff. But is it straight and does it look like the other side that doesn't have a problem?

opata

The bracket looks ok but the forward part of the caliper is closer to the rotor than the back. I'd say its only a few mm off. I tried a different rotor and it had no affect. I wouldn't even have noticed this except for the fact that the brake pad started smoking on that side.....
thanks!
Alan

Roco71

I am the guy… The new bolts that I bought were 1/8th of a inch longer than the ones that were on the car. Rust had formed at the end of the holes in the bracket and would not allow the bolt go through and draw the caliper tight against the bracket . I removed the caliper and cleaned the corrosion out of the hole with PB Blaster and a wire brush. Problem solved.

Another thought… is your rotor seated against the hub?

opata

Yes, the rotor seems to be held tight....I'll do some more over turkey day. I'll clean the bolt area and see if the caliper gets closer. Thanks again for the help
Alan

Roco71

I tested mine by adding a extra lock washer to see if that would cure the problem. It did so I then removed the calipar and cleaned the hole.