Can I Drive With One Caliper Bolt? All Answers

“Caliper bolt sticking” and “caliper mounting bolt sticking” aren’t phrases people say, but thanks to Google, they’re probably why you’re reading this. People have Googled this and similar phrases over 10,000 times in the past year. Which means a stuck caliper bolt is a bug for a lot of people. Stuck or frozen caliper bolts are one of the problems that arise from reusing old parts during a brake job. Here is a link to Carlson’s sales support page if you need to order new screws.

A few years ago I was driving down a neighborhood street near my home when a dog darted in front of my car. I slammed on the brakes and a moment later heard a scream to my right. I looked and saw a tall man coming toward me from his driveway. He ran around the front of my car screaming and slammed his hands on my hood.

As it turned out, his dog (and my hood) were fine. But the next day I decided to look at my brakes. I wasn’t sure, but in the commotion I thought I heard them squeak. And when I looked I saw fluid at the base of my right front wheel. This led to me attempting to remove my calipers and eventually going to Dave the mechanic at the Sunoco station a block away. It was my introduction to caliper mounting bolt sticking.

This is why – stuck caliper bolts – Carlson recommends replacing them every time you replace your calipers. That makes sense. Your brakes are a system that is subjected to enormous loads over months and years. Eventually things will wear out and rust. And it’s not just calipers and rotors and pads, it’s the nuts and bolts — the hardware that holds things in place.

What Caliper Mounting Bolts Are and Are Not…

First, a word about what we won’t talk about…

We are not talking about bolts on drum brakes. (This is strictly disc brake talk.)

We are not talking about caliper bolts or locking bolts that hold guide bolts on a floating caliper. (These screws also get stuck, but that’s a different issue.)

Also, we’re not talking bleeder valves, bleeder screws, banjo bolts, or anything that attaches to brake lines or lets you bleed the brakes.

What we’re talking about is what you see above – the bolts that hold the brake calipers to your car or truck. Remove them and your calipers will fall off. Plain and simple. They are often referred to as “caliper bracket bolts” because they attach to the part of your caliper called the bracket, holding it firmly to the spindle or knuckle.

speak torque…

Now, a word about torque, the turning force that tightens a bolt.

Since the caliper bolts MUST stay in place, they require a lot of torque. For example, AutoZone recommends 113 pound-feet of torque. To put that number in perspective, according to NASA, an average person can put on about 15 pounds of feet with their bare hands. A high powered drill can produce up to 45 pound-feet of torque – “pound-feet” is a way of measuring torque. (There are other possibilities, such as Newton meters, which I won’t go into here. Some people say “foot-pound” instead of “pound-foot,” which is both close and understandable, but not technically correct. )

If you’re wondering how to measure torque, using a torque wrench is a good option. Here’s a wonderfully clear two-minute video on torque wrenches, in case you want or need to learn more, from YouTube mechanic Chris Fix…

Brake caliper screw stuck?

So you have a stuck brake caliper bolt. It may be old or rusty or overtightened. It may be an original bolt that you or someone else reused when replacing a caliper. In any case, it’s stuck: What are you doing?

First of all, when you’re dealing with a front wheel, it’s nice to be able to turn it left or right. This can make things easier to access, especially those screws. So if you unlock your car’s steering wheel while leaving the car off, you can do this.

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Once you find the screws it really comes in handy to have a pry bar. A crowbar is a long wrench-like bar that doesn’t ratchet. When using it with socket wrenches, you can push the handle up or down to generate high torque.

Generally one to two feet long, pry bars give you length and length gives you leverage. Often enough leverage to “break” a stuck caliper bolt when tightened to over 100 lb-ft of torque.

Below is a pry bar and socket my mechanic used to loosen a caliper mounting bolt on a GMC Sierra.

Here are links to breaker bars on Amazon and AutoZone.

Extend crowbars

A breaker bar and an outlet may not be enough. The “caliper mounting bolt sticking” you are dealing with may be old or rusty. It may have been overtightened to begin with. Or you have an older vehicle and the calipers have been replaced but the bolts have not.

A helper bar or cheater bar can give you even more leverage. Basically, this is a piece of pipe that you slip over your wrench or pry bar to give you extra length. And with that extra length, you can apply a lot more leverage and torque to the stuck screw.

In the following 1-minute YouTube video, Nick Stageberg assembles a 3-foot galvanized pipe onto a 1-foot pry bar. It’s more likely to loosen a lug nut than a “sticky caliper bolt” – but the idea is the same either way. As he puts it, he has “a tough nut to crack”. And he explains it well.

“Archimedes said, ‘With a lever big enough, I can move the world,'” Stageberg said in the video. But that’s not the only way to deal with a “sticky caliper bolt”.

With a wrench

There is another way that doesn’t involve a crowbar.

Eric the Car Guy is a YouTube mechanic who has created hundreds of videos and has over a million subscribers. While making the video below on how to diagnose and replace a faulty caliper, he came across two hard caliper bolts.

At the 12 minute mark, he encounters two rusty bolts which he calls “fasteners”. And they’re rusty and tight enough that he puts aside his crowbar for a wrench that gives him an ultra-tight fit on the bolts.

His wrench sticks out of the camera, but it appears to be at least 12 inches long and maybe a few inches longer. “I like long wrenches,” he says. “They really help with the leverage.” He squeezes the wrench and switches to his ratchet on the second bolt. “Instead of banging on my wrench, I’m going to bang on my ratchet — it’s soft on the end.”

“Personally, I prefer that bouncing motion on rusty fasteners,” he adds. But I’ve also had people comment that it’s a bad thing because it can cause damage and carpal tunnel and things like that. So weigh the risk and make your own choice.”

Here is the video starting from where the rusty bolts are:

I’ll add that Eric has another video on replacing brake parts – get rid of squeaky brakes by replacing brake hardware). And with that in mind, Carlson recommends replacing these bolts whenever you replace a caliper. Again it just makes sense.

He has the Jack

What if a wrench or crowbar and the strength of your hands and arms aren’t enough?

One thing some people do is put a jack under a pry bar or pipe and just jack it up. What they basically do is let the weight of their car or truck do the work. It’s a way of taking torque to a whole new level.

There is a 40 second YouTube video by Gabriel Cannon that does just that.

“So we have an outlet, we have some leverage, and we have a jack,” says Cannon. “All we have to do is tighten the jack.”

The bolt begins to loosen at the 26 second mark.

There’s more to talk about – from impact wrenches to flashlights – but I’ll stop here.

I will say that replacing caliper mounting bolts is a good idea when replacing calipers. It completes the braking job so you don’t have to rely on the caliper bolt sticking to withstand braking pressure.

Because when a dog darts in front of your car and a screaming owner is right behind it, you want your brakes to be working at their best. Life revolves around a dime.

Here are the ten most common brake job mistakes made by novice mechanics when replacing brake pads, rotors, and calipers.

1. Don’t clean the brake pads and hardware: Just hitting new pads where the old pads were once never works. The slides and abutment clips should be cleaned and/or replaced.

2. Do not lubricate guide pins: For floating calipers, the caliper guide pins should be cleaned with solvent and re-greased. Grease is subject to extreme heat and pressure, so always use a caliper specific grease. NEVER put a torn boot back on a car.

3. Installing the brake pads the wrong way round: Happens more often than you think!

4. Do not measure the rotor: the rotor thickness must be measured every time. Operating a rotor that is below specifications can lead to safety issues such as cracking and fading.

5. No Rotor Machining: New pads almost always require a fresh rotor surface to allow the pads to lay down a thin layer of friction material to increase braking performance. If there is old deposits from the previous material on the rotor, this can foul the new pad and cause performance and noise issues.

6. Caliper bracket bolts are not tightened properly: Not all caliper bracket bolts are created equal. Torque ranges can vary from 30 to 110 ft/lbs. Also, some bracket bolts may be under-torque to yield point or require liquid treadlocks.

7. Stripping the caliper shaft studs: A 13mm wrench is normally required to remove the caliper shaft studs. It’s a beginner’s mistake to go nuts on these screws and snap off the heads. Typically, these screws only require 25 to 35 ft/lbs of torque. Be gentle!

8. Installing a caliper upside down: Nothing is worse than bleeding a new set of calipers on a vehicle, only to find the bleeders are on the bottom of the caliper, not the top. The bleeder must be at the top of the caliper to remove all air. Always check the box to ensure you have a left and right page before you begin work.

9. Using cheap brake pads: This is the most common mistake for beginners to buy a pad based on price and not quality, features and reputation. Features like NUCAP’s NRS mechanical retention system, snap-on/floating washers, and thrown-in extras like abutment clips don’t come cheap, but they can make all the difference in the long run.

10. Hanging the caliper by the hose: Nothing hurts more than watching a caliper bungee jump off a control arm or knuckle and watch it dangling from the brake hose. This can cause damage to the inner structure of the tube, which can cause soft pedaling or breakage.

What was your biggest mistake when braking? Please share in the comments!

No, it is not safe to drive if your brakes have overheated. It’s also not safe to drive if your car, truck, or SUV is overheating. An overheated braking system can eventually fail, especially if the brakes have overheated to the point of smoking. If your brakes start to overheat, head straight to Accurate Auto after stopping to cool them down. If they overheat badly, stop and call a tow truck to take you inside. It’s not worth the risk of losing your brakes.

How brakes overheat

Your braking systems use friction to stop your car. As you know, friction generates heat. Too much heat will overheat the brakes. In fact, too much heat can overheat brakes to the point where brake fluid begins to boil. Once the brakes get that hot, they don’t work. Depending on the condition of your braking system, something as simple as stop-and-go traffic can cause it to overheat.

Overheated brake signs

There are signs that your brakes are getting too hot. Your brakes are overheating if you notice any of the following:

When you step on your brake pedal, it feels soft and sinks lower than normal. Air and water mix with your brake fluid as the fluid ages. Hot brake fluid turns air and water into vapor, which in turn reduces the fluid’s effectiveness and causes your brake pedal to feel “spongy.”

If your brakes are smoking or you smell burning when you brake, they are too hot. Think of a time when you really had to hit the brakes. You saw smoke right? If your brakes are overheating, you will see smoke or smell something hot every time you use them. Stop and call for a tow truck.

Overheated brakes also squeak every time you use them. If you constantly drive aggressively with your foot on the brake pedal, you create a situation that automotive experts call “glazing.” This means that your aggressive driving style will cause your brake pads to wear out prematurely and lose friction.

Any of these signs mean trouble, so don’t ignore it. Remember that overheated brakes can fail, which can put you in a very dangerous situation. Stop, call a tow truck and get your brakes fixed.

Accurate Auto is located in Beaverton, Oswego and Hillsboro, OR.

How long do calipers last? (Replacement & costs 2021)

The caliper is an important part of your disc brake system that helps slow your vehicle down. And like other brake parts, it wears out over time.

However, because they play such a crucial role in your safety, you should replace a bad caliper before it wears out completely.

That brings us to the question:

“How long do brake calipers last?”

Let’s look at how long calipers typically last and what causes them to fail.

Later we’ll cover the symptoms of damaged calipers and even the smartest way to keep them at bay.

In this article:

(Click on the links to jump to specific sections)

We’ll also cover some basics:

Let’s start.

How long do calipers last?

Disc brake calipers are tough braking components and are expected to last as long as your vehicle. Your calipers will realistically last between 75,000 and 100,000 miles or 10 years.

However, this is not an accurate estimate for every vehicle.

The lifespan of your brake calipers also depends on:

how you drive

road condition

environmental conditions such as weather

And more

But there must be a reason your calipers wear out in the first place, right?

Go to this section to see how calipers are damaged.

How much does it cost to replace a brake caliper?

Replacement calipers can be either friction ready or loaded.

Friction-ready calipers have no pads readily installed in them. This makes them comparatively cheaper. For passenger cars, ready-to-friction calipers can cost under $100. And for larger vehicles, it can go up to several hundred dollars.

On the other hand, if you want a loaded caliper with pads mounted on it, you can expect to pay anywhere from $100-$500 for a caliper replacement.

For an accurate estimate of the cost of replacing calipers, fill out this online form with your vehicle’s year, engine, make and model.

Now that you know how much it would cost, where can you find a brake repair service to meet your caliper needs?

The easiest way to service your brake calipers

The best way to take care of your calipers and prevent brake fade is to have a mechanic come to your driveway and perform a brake inspection. This way you don’t have to drive or tow your car to an auto repair shop for a brake service.

And for convenient mobile brake repair services, there’s no better choice than RepairSmith.

RepairSmith is a mobile auto repair and maintenance solution that offers the following benefits:

ASE-certified, professional mobile mechanics perform brake service in your driveway.

Repairs are carried out using quality equipment, tools and brake parts

Upfront and competitive prices

All repairs with 12,000 km | 12 months guarantee

Online Booking Services

And more

Now let’s go through some caliper basics:

What is a brake caliper?

A caliper is the part of your vehicle’s disc brake system that houses the hydraulic pistons and brake pads.

When you step on the brakes, pistons in the caliper push your pads against the rotors to create friction. And this frictional force slows your vehicle down.

Many vehicles use a brake disc or rotor at the front and a drum for the rear brake.

With rear drum brakes, instead of calipers, you would have pistons in the wheel cylinder. They press the brake shoes against a rotating drum that turns with the wheel.

You will commonly come across two types of calipers:

Fixed Caliper: Pistons are located on either side of the caliper body, and the caliper remains stationary.

The pistons are on either side of the caliper body, and the caliper remains stationary. Floating caliper: The pistons are only on one side of the caliper body, and the caliper moves from side to side.

Whether floating caliper or fixed caliper, one thing is guaranteed:

A damaged caliper assembly would not provide consistent braking performance and can lead to brake fade.

For this reason, knowing when your calipers might fail will help you stay on the safe side.

How brake calipers are damaged

When you apply the brakes, friction is created by your brake pads through the calipers on the brake disc. The force of friction then converts the kinetic energy of your moving vehicle into thermal energy, or heat.

Of course, this will quickly increase the temperature of your calipers.

And when you stop braking, the disc brake calipers suddenly cool down.

With repeated heating and cooling cycles, corrosion begins to form inside and outside of the calipers.

This corrosion creates a rough caliper surface that results in:

Abrasion on the brake piston seal

Seizing and sticking of a piston and a brake cylinder chamber

Uneven braking performance

That’s not all.

The brake calipers that are deposited from the environment can also wear them out and impair their function.

Now that you know what causes caliper failure, let’s look at the red flags that indicate defective calipers.

What are the symptoms of a defective brake caliper?

Here are some of the symptoms of a bad caliper to look out for:

1. Unusual noise when braking

If you hear a squeaking noise or rubbing noise from one of the wheels when you step on the brake pedal, you could be dealing with damaged brake calipers.

Your vehicle’s brake calipers could be stuck and the pistons could become stuck in the brake cylinder bores. In this case, the brakes will become somewhat ineffective and you will lose control of the vehicle.

These squeaking noises could also indicate that a brake pad has worn down to the backing plate.

In this case, take your car to an auto repair shop or have the brakes checked by a certified mechanic. They would try to determine if you have a problem with the caliper assembly, the brake piston, the brake pad friction material, or other brake problems.

After inspection, the mechanic may recommend caliper replacement, rotor resurfacing or replacement, brake pad replacement, or other braking work to eliminate the brake noise.

2. Leaking brake fluid

Corroded brake calipers can quickly wear out the rubber seal of your brake piston. This can often lead to brake fluid leakage.

As the brake fluid level drops, the braking pressure that can be applied also drops. And if the leaks become excessive, your hydraulic braking system could stop working entirely.

If you find that brake fluid has leaked, request a brake inspection from a professional mechanic.

They will examine your braking system to determine if you need a caliper piston replacement, brake fluid flush, master cylinder repair, or other braking work.

3. Your vehicle turns to one side

Damaged brake calipers can cause the vehicle to pull to one side when braking.

This usually happens when a piston in the failed calipers becomes stuck on the wheel disc and cannot move freely.

As a result, the vehicle swerves to the side with better grip when the brake pedal is pressed. When braking, the vehicle swerves sideways with the brake caliper stuck.

In such a case, it is recommended that you have your brake system checked by a mechanic for brake problems such as corroded calipers, sticking pistons, worn brake pad friction material, or problems with the brake line or hose.

4. Brake pads wear unevenly

Remember that it is your brake pads that make contact with the wheel rotor to slow your vehicle down.

So if you have a rusty or damaged caliper that isn’t able to move freely, it can end up putting uneven pressure on the brake pads. As a result, the brake pads on both sides of the vehicle could wear unevenly.

To be on the safe side, request a brake system diagnosis from a qualified mechanic and get your brake disc system working again by repairing or replacing brake calipers, rebuilding brake discs, or replacing brake pads.

And when you hire a professional mechanic, just make sure they:

Are ASE certified

Use quality brake service equipment and replacement parts

And offer you a service guarantee

Worn brake calipers endanger road safety

Brake calipers play a crucial role in creating the necessary friction to slow your vehicle.

And while they’re built to last, calipers can corrode and wear out over time.

Luckily, with RepairSmith, keeping your calipers in good working order is easy.

Book your repair service online and ASE certified technicians will come to your driveway ready to perform caliper repairs!

Brake calipers are expected to last the life of the vehicle. So replacing a brake caliper is not as common as replacing brake pads or brake discs. But it’s good to know when you need to replace a caliper.

Replace pads and rotors whenever you do brake work, but only replace calipers if they are damaged or if the pistons do not extend after applying the brakes.

disc brake systems

When replacing brake calipers, there are two disc brake systems to discuss.

Front wheels only

On vehicles with disc brakes mounted only on the front wheels and tires, replace the calipers in pairs. If one side is damaged, replace the calipers on both sides. Replacing only one caliper can cause braking imbalance between the front wheels and tires.

The new caliper can apply the brake pads to the brake disc faster than the older caliper. As a result, the vehicle will swerve to that side and then back when the older caliper engages, causing a dangerous situation or accident.

front and rear wheels

On vehicles with disc brakes on all four wheels and tires, replace the calipers in pairs, either front or rear.

As with front-only disc brakes, if a caliper on a front wheel and tire is damaged or fails, replace the caliper on the opposite side, even if the rear wheel has disc brakes. Only replace the rear brake calipers if one is damaged or failing.

Similarly, if a rear caliper is damaged or fails, replace the opposite caliper. Only replace the front brake calipers if one or both are damaged.

Rear disc brakes don’t have that much impact on the car unless they are swapped out in pairs. Rear brakes provide only about 30% of a vehicle’s total braking power. So if one of the calipers is swapped out, the dodge effect may not be as noticeable.

But any imbalance in the rear brakes increases stopping distance. A key function of braking systems is to bring a vehicle to a standstill using the shortest possible route.

While it may seem like a waste of money, brakes are the number one safety system on any vehicle (except the driver). Keeping them in the best possible condition will help reduce the chance of an accident.

About Goodyear brakes

Goodyear Brakes manufactures high quality brake packages, calipers, rotors, pads and all the hardware required for a successful brake installation, all backed by a national warranty, decades of manufacturing experience and one of the most recognized names in the automotive industry. The brake pads are made in the USA using a proprietary environmentally friendly manufacturing process by a company with more than 50 years of experience in the science of friction. The Goodyear Brakes product line is available through Goodyear Brakes on Amazon, CarID, Buy Brakes and AutoAnything.

Goodyear (and Winged Foot Design) and Blimp Design are trademarks of The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company used under license by FDP Virginia Inc., 1076 Airport Road, Tappahannock, VA 22560, USA. Copyright 2020 The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company. Goodyear Brakes and FDP Virginia accept no responsibility for their products if improperly used, installed or subjected to an accident.

Many people are interested in the safety of their car’s brakes. One question you may have is, “Can car brakes catch fire?” It’s a good question to answer before you head down the road.

The short answer to this question is YES. What we do know for sure is that it can happen when your brake pads are worn out or contaminated with oil, grease or other substances.

If these things get into the pads of your brake pads over time, an electrical circuit can form which can allow a spark to ignite combustible materials in the area, such as: B. Gas vapors from the engine compartment.

The best way to avoid this problem is to inspect your brake pads regularly and lubricate them properly to keep contaminants from building up.

Can car brakes catch fire?

Yes, a car brake can catch fire if too much friction is applied to the braking system and it overheats over time. Drivers should regularly inspect their brake pads for signs of wear or contamination from substances such as oil, grease, or gas fumes that could cause a spark in an electrical circuit that could catch fire. The best way to avoid this problem is to ensure that the brake pads are properly lubricated and inspected.

The reason car brakes catch fire

The brakes can catch fire if the driver brakes too hard, applying friction to the components within the braking system and consequently causing it to overheat, smoke and even catch fire.

Brakes can also catch fire if the driver does not properly maintain their vehicle. Brakes often catch fire if not replaced in time. If you neglect brake maintenance on your car and continue to drive it while it’s worn out, the friction generated can be enough to set your brakes on fire.

Brakes can catch fire if the driver speeds and applies more pressure than necessary.

A car’s brakes may be misplaced, putting them at greater risk of catching fire from other causes of friction. It is important for a mechanic to thoroughly inspect your vehicle to ensure it has adequate braking power and proper placement.

What happens when your brakes overheat?

Did you know that overheating your brakes can cause a fire? It’s true. Brakes are designed to work with liquids that generate heat when used. When the fluid on a brake pad or disc gets too hot, it starts to burn – and as friction builds up between the two surfaces, more and more heat is generated.

This type of fire is called brake fade or runaway, and if not treated quickly, the car could be on fire before you know what happened. It might sound like something that would never happen to you because your brakes aren’t being used all the time—but when they are needed (like on long, steep descents) they start to generate heat.

If you see your brakes getting hot, stop driving and instead stop the car as soon as it is safe to do so. If your vehicle has a disc brake or drum brake temperature warning light, pull off the road if possible and take care of it before it can damage your car.

How to make your car EMP safe Please enable JavaScript

At what temperature do brakes catch fire?

Different braking systems have different types of fluids and therefore heat up to different temperatures. Brake fluid that flows through your car’s discs is rated for higher temperatures than brake pads, so cars with disc brakes typically don’t overheat until they get closer to 300 degrees Fahrenheit (148 degrees Celsius).

However, if you drive on rough terrain or if your car has worn brake pads, the brakes will get hot faster and can reach the point where they catch fire at around 250 degrees Fahrenheit (121 degrees Celsius).

Can brake fluid burn?

Brake fluid cannot actually burn, but stays hot enough to react with air and start a chemical reaction. It’s not that dangerous because the brake fluid is in your car or truck, so you don’t have to worry about inhaling fumes from an outside flame. Brake fluid vaporizes in temperatures up to 400 degrees Fahrenheit, releasing hydrocarbons into the air.

Brake fluid is said to be primarily water-based but can contain up to 30% methanol, a type of alcohol that is very flammable. Methanol readily reacts with oxygen. So if you put pressure on your brakes while driving, the brake fluid will start to react with air and release hydrocarbons. If your brake lines leak, these fumes can escape into the atmosphere where they can be ignited by an outside flame or spark.

How do I cool my brakes?

I should let my brakes cool down first. This can be done by parking the vehicle in the shade or in a place where the brakes have access to fresh air. Ideally, this should be done on a flat surface. If I need to brake while driving, I should brake a few times and avoid braking at higher speeds. Driving around at a slow speed for a few minutes after a long and tiring drive will not overheat your brakes. If the pads stick to the hot disc, they can warp, which is bad news for you once they cool down.

Can I pour water on overheated brakes?

No, never pour water on overheated brakes. This could lead to malfunction and failure of the brakes. Water leads to mechanical stress on the metal parts and can also cause cracks in the metal and the brake pads.

Conclusion

Can the car brake catch fire? yes it can Brake burns can be prevented by knowing how to slow down and keep your vehicle cool. If you notice your brakes overheating, take care of the problem immediately or risk a car fire. Knowing these tips can help you avoid igniting brake fluid.

Top Tip: Remember never to pour water on hot brakes.

Relation

What happens when your brakes overheat? https://vehq.com/brakes-overheat/

What are the symptoms of a stuck caliper?

There are several reasons why brakes drag or bind, but usually it’s because something in the system has become stuck or stuck. The piston can get stuck in the caliper. Brake pads can warp and seize. On single-piston calipers, the slide pins sometimes bind. Finally, when a car is parked in a humid environment, the deposits can actually stick to the glass.

If a brake is stuck when the vehicle is not in use, the symptoms are pretty obvious – when you try to drive it feels like the brakes are on! Sometimes it’s so bad that the car doesn’t move at all.

When the caliper slide pins are seized, the car appears to drive normally, but the pads are pressed onto the brake disc only from the piston side. This reduces braking ability on a wheel and wears out the pad on the piston side much faster. In such cases, the car may pull to the opposite side when braking.

If the piston in the caliper or the pad is stuck, the car can feel powerless (like the parking brake is on). You may also notice that the car pulls sideways with the steering wheel straight if you are driving with the drive and not applying the brake.

The stuck brake can also get hot while driving – very hot. You’ll quickly smell the brakes overheating (it’s a distinctive acrid smell) and maybe even see smoke coming from them. If this occurs, stop! Riding with a poorly-adhering brake can generate enough heat to start a fire, but even if it doesn’t you can damage the discs and all components associated with the wheel hub.

In many cases, braking at a wheel occurs so gradually that you don’t notice the difference. It may only become visible at your state’s annual safety inspection when the brakes are tested for proper operation and stopping straight.

Discover how to change the front and rear brake pads on your vehicle!

“Caliper bolt sticking” and “caliper mounting bolt sticking” aren’t phrases people say, but thanks to Google, they’re probably why you’re reading this. People have Googled this and similar phrases over 10,000 times in the past year. Which means a stuck caliper bolt is a bug for a lot of people. Stuck or frozen caliper bolts are one of the problems that arise from reusing old parts during a brake job. Here is a link to Carlson’s sales support page if you need to order new screws.

A few years ago I was driving down a neighborhood street near my home when a dog darted in front of my car. I slammed on the brakes and a moment later heard a scream to my right. I looked and saw a tall man coming toward me from his driveway. He ran around the front of my car screaming and slammed his hands on my hood.

As it turned out, his dog (and my hood) were fine. But the next day I decided to look at my brakes. I wasn’t sure, but in the commotion I thought I heard them squeak. And when I looked I saw fluid at the base of my right front wheel. This led to me attempting to remove my calipers and eventually going to Dave the mechanic at the Sunoco station a block away. It was my introduction to caliper mounting bolt sticking.

This is why – stuck caliper bolts – Carlson recommends replacing them every time you replace your calipers. That makes sense. Your brakes are a system that is subjected to enormous loads over months and years. Eventually things will wear out and rust. And it’s not just calipers and rotors and pads, it’s the nuts and bolts — the hardware that holds things in place.

What Caliper Mounting Bolts Are and Are Not…

First, a word about what we won’t talk about…

We are not talking about bolts on drum brakes. (This is strictly disc brake talk.)

We are not talking about caliper bolts or locking bolts that hold guide bolts on a floating caliper. (These screws also get stuck, but that’s a different issue.)

Also, we’re not talking bleeder valves, bleeder screws, banjo bolts, or anything that attaches to brake lines or lets you bleed the brakes.

What we’re talking about is what you see above – the bolts that hold the brake calipers to your car or truck. Remove them and your calipers will fall off. Plain and simple. They are often referred to as “caliper bracket bolts” because they attach to the part of your caliper called the bracket, holding it firmly to the spindle or knuckle.

speak torque…

Now, a word about torque, the turning force that tightens a bolt.

Since the caliper bolts MUST stay in place, they require a lot of torque. For example, AutoZone recommends 113 pound-feet of torque. To put that number in perspective, according to NASA, an average person can put on about 15 pounds of feet with their bare hands. A high powered drill can produce up to 45 pound-feet of torque – “pound-feet” is a way of measuring torque. (There are other possibilities, such as Newton meters, which I won’t go into here. Some people say “foot-pound” instead of “pound-foot,” which is both close and understandable, but not technically correct. )

If you’re wondering how to measure torque, using a torque wrench is a good option. Here’s a wonderfully clear two-minute video on torque wrenches, in case you want or need to learn more, from YouTube mechanic Chris Fix…

Brake caliper screw stuck?

So you have a stuck brake caliper bolt. It may be old or rusty or overtightened. It may be an original bolt that you or someone else reused when replacing a caliper. In any case, it’s stuck: What are you doing?

First of all, when you’re dealing with a front wheel, it’s nice to be able to turn it left or right. This can make things easier to access, especially those screws. So if you unlock your car’s steering wheel while leaving the car off, you can do this.

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Once you find the screws it really comes in handy to have a pry bar. A crowbar is a long wrench-like bar that doesn’t ratchet. When using it with socket wrenches, you can push the handle up or down to generate high torque.

Generally one to two feet long, pry bars give you length and length gives you leverage. Often enough leverage to “break” a stuck caliper bolt when tightened to over 100 lb-ft of torque.

Below is a pry bar and socket my mechanic used to loosen a caliper mounting bolt on a GMC Sierra.

Here are links to breaker bars on Amazon and AutoZone.

Extend crowbars

A breaker bar and an outlet may not be enough. The “caliper mounting bolt sticking” you are dealing with may be old or rusty. It may have been overtightened to begin with. Or you have an older vehicle and the calipers have been replaced but the bolts have not.

A helper bar or cheater bar can give you even more leverage. Basically, this is a piece of pipe that you slip over your wrench or pry bar to give you extra length. And with that extra length, you can apply a lot more leverage and torque to the stuck screw.

In the following 1-minute YouTube video, Nick Stageberg assembles a 3-foot galvanized pipe onto a 1-foot pry bar. It’s more likely to loosen a lug nut than a “sticky caliper bolt” – but the idea is the same either way. As he puts it, he has “a tough nut to crack”. And he explains it well.

“Archimedes said, ‘With a lever big enough, I can move the world,'” Stageberg said in the video. But that’s not the only way to deal with a “sticky caliper bolt”.

With a wrench

There is another way that doesn’t involve a crowbar.

Eric the Car Guy is a YouTube mechanic who has created hundreds of videos and has over a million subscribers. While making the video below on how to diagnose and replace a faulty caliper, he came across two hard caliper bolts.

At the 12 minute mark, he encounters two rusty bolts which he calls “fasteners”. And they’re rusty and tight enough that he puts aside his crowbar for a wrench that gives him an ultra-tight fit on the bolts.

His wrench sticks out of the camera, but it appears to be at least 12 inches long and maybe a few inches longer. “I like long wrenches,” he says. “They really help with the leverage.” He squeezes the wrench and switches to his ratchet on the second bolt. “Instead of banging on my wrench, I’m going to bang on my ratchet — it’s soft on the end.”

“Personally, I prefer that bouncing motion on rusty fasteners,” he adds. But I’ve also had people comment that it’s a bad thing because it can cause damage and carpal tunnel and things like that. So weigh the risk and make your own choice.”

Here is the video starting from where the rusty bolts are:

I’ll add that Eric has another video on replacing brake parts – get rid of squeaky brakes by replacing brake hardware). And with that in mind, Carlson recommends replacing these bolts whenever you replace a caliper. Again it just makes sense.

He has the Jack

What if a wrench or crowbar and the strength of your hands and arms aren’t enough?

One thing some people do is put a jack under a pry bar or pipe and just jack it up. What they basically do is let the weight of their car or truck do the work. It’s a way of taking torque to a whole new level.

There is a 40 second YouTube video by Gabriel Cannon that does just that.

“So we have an outlet, we have some leverage, and we have a jack,” says Cannon. “All we have to do is tighten the jack.”

The bolt begins to loosen at the 26 second mark.

There’s more to talk about – from impact wrenches to flashlights – but I’ll stop here.

I will say that replacing caliper mounting bolts is a good idea when replacing calipers. It completes the braking job so you don’t have to rely on the caliper bolt sticking to withstand braking pressure.

Because when a dog darts in front of your car and a screaming owner is right behind it, you want your brakes to be working at their best. Life revolves around a dime.