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Rebuild brake caliper or upgrade

5K views 7 replies 4 participants last post by  pzr2874 
#1 ·
This is more of an opinion question than anything else.

I recently discovered what has been causing what I thought was my wheel bearings going bad. In actuality, my right front brake caliper seized and ate the back pad up to pretty much nothing, where as the front one looked brand new.

So, I have a seized caliper. My options are to replace the caliper, rebuild it, or use this as an opportunity to upgrade. I have $500 in Subaru bucks I've been saving up for no particular reason. I was debating on getting the 00-01 JDM/06-07 WRX 4 pot front brakes which would set me back maybe a couple hundred in new brakes, rotors, and what remains for the cost of the kit. This would also mean I lose my ability to use my stock wheels. I have BBS STi rims I run in the summertime which need new tires in any case. Getting this would make me want to get the rear 2 pot kit too, but that wouldn't be possible now for financial reasons.

The other options are to replace the caliper which could run from $150-300. Or rebuild it which would set me back maybe $50 at most since I have a full extra set of Hawk HPS pads at home. I would need rotors in all 3 scenarios since it ate the crap out of them too.

What would you guys do?
 
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#2 ·
I think this is the perfect opportunity for an upgrade. Do you have a credit card? Are you willing to cut back your spending on things you don't necessarily need for a month or so until you have it paid off? If the answer to both questions is yes, then go for it!
 
#5 ·
Well, after deciding to go the rebuild route I was making some progress. I removed the caliper, removed the pistons, scraped all the crap off of it, cleaned up the pistons, painted the caliper, and as it was drying I prepped the bracket. Right when I was ready to paint, I discovered the sliding pin in one was completely rusted in place. Could not break it free. Looks like I'll go the 4pot upgrade option after all. Bah, wish I realized sooner before putting that much work into it.
 
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