Your brake system is a perplexing series of parts that handles the kinetic energy of your moving vehicle and converts it into thermal energy through friction. The sequence of hydraulic, mechanical, and electronic parts stems from your foot down to keep you from slipping through the neighborhood stop sign.

A lot of drivers are familiar with some of the hearsay signs of a busted brake system. Nevertheless, most of your braking components, such as brake pads, brake rotors, shoes, and drums (as well as the brake fluid) are designed to deteriorate over time. They are the so-called wear and tear items in your car, and taking a close gander at their condition every now and then will help you achieve your car’s best performance at braking.  A softer pedal or harder pedal, a bum stopping distance, and tiny to loud squeals from the wheels are quite an indication that some parts of your brakes need a bit of attention.

Although, some parts of the brake system are generally meant to last a lifetime such as anti-lock braking (ABS) components, brake boosters, brake calipers, brake lines, and brake master cylinders. Brake calipers live the hardest life of them all. They are bound to corrosion from chemicals, high temperatures, moisture, water, road grime, and rust. Designed to be simple and robust and usually to last longer, calipers at times can give in to these barbaric conditions.

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What Calipers Do

Brake calipers are found on disc brake systems (basically most modern cars are equipped with them), and contain pistons that use the force of hydraulic brake fluid to stop a moving vehicle. In particular, these pistons squeeze the brake pads against the rotating disc rotors – allowing the vehicle to (hopefully!) slow down.

Overall, disc brake calipers are built tough and durable. They should be, because they must endure brutal conditions whenever the wheels are spinning. Most calipers of vehicles nowadays last at least 100,000 miles or 10 years. Although the caliper’s life varies from climate, and the way you drive. From cast ductile iron, most manufacturers are now moving to aluminum calipers. It saves weight and resists better against corrosion.

Signs to Look For on Your Brakes

Due to their important role in stopping a vehicle, along with the forces they must endure on stop after stop, brake calipers are designed to survive harsh conditions. Although all automotive components with moving parts and fluids are expected to fail. How would you know the condition of your calipers?

The best way is to inspect it visually from time to time (once every 6 months). Loosen your lug nuts, jack it up (always use jack stands), remove the wheel (if on front wheels turn it sideways to get a better view), and simply get a good look at the caliper and it will tell you enough. Here are the signs you should be looking for:

•         Brake Pad Fluid Leaks
•         Excessive Corrosion
•         Missing or Deteriorated Caliper Piston Seals
•         Uneven Brake Pad Wear
•         Unusual Noise from the Brakes

Seeing any leak from the brake fluid line or the pistons in the caliper should be addressed immediately. As mentioned earlier, high heat levels and any corrosion build up in the fluid will cause rubber seals and boots around the caliper pistons to deteriorate and leak. Leaks in these areas can indicate a problem with the brake line, at times it could be the cross-threaded fitting in the caliper, or a crack on the cast iron, both are rare but you don’t want to see any of it anyways, because any fluid leakage is very dangerous, and enough fluid leaking out of the vehicle may lose its entire hydraulic system. 

Corrosion on most cast iron calipers look pretty good on the outside, even if completely rusty, will perform just fine. As time goes on, corrosion allows moisture to penetrate the inside on the caliper, affecting mounting surfaces and fixtures. In this stage you may feel that your car is pulling you to the “good” side where grip is now stronger. Release the pedal, and you will notice a pull back to the “bad” side that hasn’t released its grip. Because brake fluid absorbs water, effectiveness in braking affects the entire braking system’s performance.

The pistons on the rubber seal as they expand and retract from the caliper causes the seals to crack, crumble or even miss entirely – allowing moisture and contaminants into the caliper body itself. Corroded calipers can, in the worst-case scenario, stick into place or freeze up all the way.

If one of your brake pads seems to be wearing down faster than the other, it’s a sign that you have a weak or uneven pressure being applied by the caliper to the brake pads. Caused by either corrosion, fluid leaks or dirt building up the pistons resulting in uneven brake pad wear.

Lastly, when your vehicle is moving and you hear a squealing or some high pitch frictional sound from one of your wheels when brakes are not being applied, you probably have a stuck-up caliper. Noise temporarily disappears when braking. When these stuck-up pistons are either partially or fully jammed in their cylinder bores, they release an unpredictable effect. This can cause irregular levels of noise, grip, and it will in most cases cause some pulling to one side.

Solutions

Doing a Do-It-Yourself (DIY) job on your own brakes is quite dangerous – after all, these pieces are the main safety system for your vehicle. Come what may, if you find that you need to replace brake calipers, do not be a miser, it’s for your own safety after all. Be it a caliper repair kit, or an entire caliper these parts are very straight forward on installation. Brake fluids need to bleed out air that enters when calipers were changed, to ensure your brakes are at optimal performance levels, not having that mushy pedal feel that reduces the performance of the system. 

Tip

Whenever any brake-related work is performed on your car, be it the pads, rotors, or a fluid flush, the calipers should be thoroughly inspected for any possible needs. This is the best time to check for corrosion, leaks, or any signs of damage in your brake system. It is also the best time to check for wheel hubs, bearing, and the axle.