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Hey all...The Vert and I been hibernating here in Michigan but with spring just around the corner I have ordered in new Centric remanned calipers, speed bleeders, rotors with ceramic pads, Wilwood stainless braided hoses, new emergency cables and since I will have it all apart putting in new hub assemblies all around too. I have never undertaken a project of this magnitude but have my trusty service manual and a son in-law mechanic as a back up if I get in trouble. It all seems like a pretty straight forward unbolt rebolt kind of a job. Any tips or tricks of the trades would be appreciated though. Of course I'll drain and refill with fresh fluid. Aside from all this stuff being all original and 26 yrs old now it is also driven by me wanting a nicer view behind my new 18" wheel and tire package from OE Wheels for the icing on my cake. My other option is to take it all to a real shop and have them install it at a cost I shudder to think of. What da ya's think?
For those rear hubs you will want a GOOD 1/2" T55 long driver bit and a 1/2 inch breaker bar along with lots of WD-40 or PB Blaster and arms like Popeye. The rear hubs are usually corroded tightly in place due to dissimilar metals, steel & aluminium, and even good 3/8" T55 bits will often break before the bolts come out. There are three of these bolts on each side. You may find it easier to take the suspension apart and remove the hubs on the bench!
For those rear hubs you will want a GOOD 1/2" T55 long driver bit and a 1/2 inch breaker bar along with lots of WD-40 or PB Blaster and arms like Popeye. The rear hubs are usually corroded tightly in place due to dissimilar metals, steel & aluminium, and even good 3/8" T55 bits will often break before the bolts come out. There are three of these bolts on each side. You may find it easier to take the suspension apart and remove the hubs on the bench!
I just ordered a Ingersol Rand impact wrench with 300 ft lbs reverse. With PB blaster liberally applied do think that will work? And thanks for reply...just the sort of info I'm lookin for!!
For the caliper/rotor R&R, you can re-use all of the bolts. The bolts that hold the caliper bracket to the front spindle are torqued to something like 150-165 ft-lbs. IIRC, the bolt is a 21mm (maybe 22mm??) so you need the socket, a 4-6" extension and a breaker bar that's a good 2' long. You could use an impact wrench, but it may be difficult to get it in there and keep the socket square to the bolt.
Once the bolts are out, clean the threads of all the old threadlocker using a wire wheel brush. The female threads on the bracket can be cleaned with some brake parts cleaner and a bronze brush for a 12 gauge shotgun. While the small bolts can be re-used, they are a common size and can be purchased at a hardware store. Just make sure you get the correct length and metric grade of 8.8
Once the rotors are slid onto the hub, mount the caliper bracket by applying some blue Loctite to the big bolts and torque to spec in two steps. On my '87, I use 150 ft-lbs. The only reason GM says to toss the bracket bolts is that the replacement GM bolts already have a threadlocker applied. I have re-use the original bolts on my car a good 6-8 times and never had a problem.
The bolts for the rear caliper brackets don't have anywhere near as much torque to the bolts. I believe the figure is 70 ft-lbs. Just do the same with those bolts. Clean the bolt threads and the bracket threads, apply new blue Loctite and re-assemble.
For those brake lines, the stockers and even most aftermarket lines will use banjo fittings on the caliper end. That way you only have to re-use the banjo bolt and new crush washers. The Wildwood lines look like they have an AN-style adapter that attaches to the caliper and also to the hard line end. Just make sure they are tightened up properly.
You didn't say anything about brake fluid but for general street use, a good quality DOT3 fluid will work fine. Castrol LMA would be a good choice as would the Ford HD Motorsports fluid. With Speed Bleeders, a fluid flush can easily be done by yourself.
Sounds like everybody just about covered everything else. You can put your "PB blaster" or other 'knocker-loose' bolt loosening product on now if you want and let it soak. Another application a day or so away from your project day will make things come apart a LOT easier.
You'll love using the speed bleeders too. I do both front and back on one side at the same time. It lets the master cyl take a full stroke on both the front and rear master cyl chambers without one or the other pressurizing and restricting the flow of the other. Makes the brake bleeding go twice as fast too. Just be gentle with your bleeding stroke on the pedal and don't bottom out hard. Keep a close eye on the fluid level. You don't want to run it dry and pump a big air bubble through there.
I really like those wheels, Style and color both! Good luck on your project.
I just ordered a Ingersol Rand impact wrench with 300 ft lbs reverse. With PB blaster liberally applied do think that will work? And thanks for reply...just the sort of info I'm lookin for!!
My experience was that the impact tool broke the Torx bits before it removed the bolts They were Snap On bits! I finally took the suspension apart and did the work on my bench.
My experience was that the impact tool broke the Torx bits before it removed the bolts They were Snap On bits! I finally took the suspension apart and did the work on my bench.
I watched the video... Kinda scared me off the hub job. I'm a real amateur mechanic... Figured I could handle brake brake job. Are front hubs easier or pretty similar?
Sounds like everybody just about covered everything else. You can put your "PB blaster" or other 'knocker-loose' bolt loosening product on now if you want and let it soak. Another application a day or so away from your project day will make things come apart a LOT easier.
You'll love using the speed bleeders too. I do both front and back on one side at the same time. It lets the master cyl take a full stroke on both the front and rear master cyl chambers without one or the other pressurizing and restricting the flow of the other. Makes the brake bleeding go twice as fast too. Just be gentle with your bleeding stroke on the pedal and don't bottom out hard. Keep a close eye on the fluid level. You don't want to run it dry and pump a big air bubble through there.
I really like those wheels, Style and color both! Good luck on your project.
Great tip for dual bleeding!! Never would have thought of that.. Glad you like the wheels... I searched for months and looked at hundreds of pics before choosing these... Haven't seen them on another car.
Thanks Cruiser...all good info and just what I'm looking for
Originally Posted by c4cruiser
For the caliper/rotor R&R, you can re-use all of the bolts. The bolts that hold the caliper bracket to the front spindle are torqued to something like 150-165 ft-lbs. IIRC, the bolt is a 21mm (maybe 22mm??) so you need the socket, a 4-6" extension and a breaker bar that's a good 2' long. You could use an impact wrench, but it may be difficult to get it in there and keep the socket square to the bolt.
Once the bolts are out, clean the threads of all the old threadlocker using a wire wheel brush. The female threads on the bracket can be cleaned with some brake parts cleaner and a bronze brush for a 12 gauge shotgun. While the small bolts can be re-used, they are a common size and can be purchased at a hardware store. Just make sure you get the correct length and metric grade of 8.8
Once the rotors are slid onto the hub, mount the caliper bracket by applying some blue Loctite to the big bolts and torque to spec in two steps. On my '87, I use 150 ft-lbs. The only reason GM says to toss the bracket bolts is that the replacement GM bolts already have a threadlocker applied. I have re-use the original bolts on my car a good 6-8 times and never had a problem.
The bolts for the rear caliper brackets don't have anywhere near as much torque to the bolts. I believe the figure is 70 ft-lbs. Just do the same with those bolts. Clean the bolt threads and the bracket threads, apply new blue Loctite and re-assemble.
For those brake lines, the stockers and even most aftermarket lines will use banjo fittings on the caliper end. That way you only have to re-use the banjo bolt and new crush washers. The Wildwood lines look like they have an AN-style adapter that attaches to the caliper and also to the hard line end. Just make sure they are tightened up properly.
You didn't say anything about brake fluid but for general street use, a good quality DOT3 fluid will work fine. Castrol LMA would be a good choice as would the Ford HD Motorsports fluid. With Speed Bleeders, a fluid flush can easily be done by yourself.
A pneumatic brake fluid bleeder will make your life much easier. I picked one up from HF when I did all the brakes on my 85 and I'll never bleed brakes again without one.
I watched the video... Kinda scared me off the hub job. I'm a real amateur mechanic... Figured I could handle brake brake job. Are front hubs easier or pretty similar?
If it's hub disassembly/reassembly that is of concern, check out this thread: http://www.digitalcorvettes.com/foru...d.php?t=144562
I used it through pulling the axels when I did the u-joints on my 86. It was pretty good and covered more everything I ran into other than don't drop the bolts when disassembling or reassembling.
Thanks for that very informative link...Just makes more certain this is not a job for the faint of heart...which I have to catagorize myself at this point..
Originally Posted by hcbph
If it's hub disassembly/reassembly that is of concern, check out this thread: http://www.digitalcorvettes.com/foru...d.php?t=144562
I used it through pulling the axels when I did the u-joints on my 86. It was pretty good and covered more everything I ran into other than don't drop the bolts when disassembling or reassembling.
Brake project tip request
There are three of these bolts on each side. You may find it easier to take the suspension apart and remove the hubs on the bench!
HD Motorsports fluid. With Speed Bleeders, a fluid flush can easily be done by yourself.
They were Snap On bits! I finally took the suspension apart and did the work on my bench. 
