Two days in row when I got home from work my drivers side rear brake was real hot and some smoke coming off it. Stinks real bad also.






Doesn't happen all the time. Is this most likely a stuck caliper?


Thanks

 

Yes, dragging brakes.

Disk or drum brakes in the rear?

Disk calipers have slide-pins that can get cruddy and they don't slide easily. Then heat from the dragging brakes causes other problems. You might be at a point where you need to replace the caliper??

Now then, to prevent it from happening in the first place...

- Clean up the caliper and it's slide pins. Grease on the slide pins so they move nicely.

- Make sure the brake pads fit nicely into the caliper bracket. I often have to file a bit on the ends of the metal backing plates of the pads, so they don't wedge tightly in place. A bit of brake grease or anti-seize where the pads move in the caliper bracket.

- Check operation of the handbrake lever (on the caliper). After overheating a caliper I had one that kept sticking and wouldn't release all the way. It wasn't the cable or lever inside the car. I think it was a combination of corrosion on the shaft that twists inside the caliper, and the spring relaxed because of the heat.

- Check for corroded/stuck cable from the handbrake lever back to the caliper.

 

Thanks for the info.














I had the rotors and pads done in November or December. At that time the replaced the boot on the caliper. They said it was ripped. Also before I had the brakes done my ebrake handle got real loose and if I just lifted slightly the ebrake light would come on but there was no pressure I the handle. After brakes were installed pressure was normal but I try not to use the ebrake since then.

 

If the boot was ripped, which boot are we talking about? The boot around the caliper piston? Or one of the boots on the caliper slide pins?

Either way, but especially if it was the caliper piston boot; it might have been open long enough for crud to get in and mess up the operation of things. Was the caliper rebuilt or simply had a new boot installed?

 

I think it was the caliper piston. I will have my friend look at this weekend. He is a mechanic. I hope it didn't ruin my pads and rotors. I'm sure the shop I had it wouldn't warranty the pads and rotors if my caliper went bad.

 

Or maybe you can say it all happened because they didn't notice the pads were wedged tightly into the caliper & that was the cause of the dragging brakes??? I can't actually see it from here so I don't know what's a reasonable thing for you to claim.

 

I looked at the brake. The cable on the ebrake does not move like the other side. It seems to in the off position now. I wonder if it was stuck and then broke. I haven't had issues since last week.
I will have to take to the shop next time it acts up.
Thanks for all your advice.

 

Maybe the handbrake cable is stuck in it's housing (rust?) and you'll need a new cable.