VW Calipers?

Kejtar

PostMaster General
NAXJA Member
So I was trying to replace brake pads on my 06 GTI and for the life of me I can't get the damn caliper to spread open. It actually even collapsed a bit on me while being off and it was a battle to get it back over old worn pads. Is there some stupid checkvalve or something on them?????????????
 
I don't think a check valve would be a good idea in a brake system...

You loosened the cap on the MC, right? Might still need to use a c-clamp, too.
 
Well, congrats on your 13,000th post, anyways!
 
Guess it's time to drink 13 beers :D
 
thats just the rear, right? you need to do that i think because of the e brake? i remember doing the brakes on my friends gti last year, yes it was definitely a pain in the ass. and the little tool that you use with the ratchet....it didn't work on his, kind of had to force it. its not impossible, just a real pain. good luck and enjoy :)
 
5spd_xj said:
thats just the rear, right? you need to do that i think because of the e brake? i remember doing the brakes on my friends gti last year, yes it was definitely a pain in the ass. and the little tool that you use with the ratchet....it didn't work on his, kind of had to force it. its not impossible, just a real pain. good luck and enjoy :)
yeah... that design SUCKS! I was ready to put a match to it. Thing that bugs is that usually I get an FSM with every vehicle I buy, but I am having a hard time getting the FSM for the VW (out of stock). And it's nearing a time when I'll probably be trading it in for something new: as much as I like it, I think I won't have it much longer then another year so should they get them in stock I'll be having a hard time justifying the purchase of the fsm ;)
 
Kejtar said:
just found out that I need a fancy tool to rotate the caliper so that I can retract it. Damn germans!


Hey, Watch your mouth!
 
Late to this thread, but my wife's volvo has the same kind of thing in the rear, and Subarus have had screw-in pistons for decades. It's not really so bad. You do need to be patient, though, to keep the pressure on the tool without having it slip off. It can be pretty stiff to start, but usually loosens up as you continue to screw it in.

I made a tool by grinding the end of a socket to form pins, and welding a little collar around it to center it on the piston. I did the same for the Subaru when my ex wife had one, but she kept the tool (greedy beee-otch!). You can also buy a multi-model rotating tool that fits on a 3/8 inch drive, at auto parts stores. I think it's a Lisle that I saw, and it goes for about 14 bucks. I'm way too cheap to do that, but the tool is out there.
 
If you have strong hands, you can also use needle-nose pliers if you don't have the tool handy. This is the hard way to do it, but can work in an "emergency" (i.e your brakes are disconnected already and you can't drive to the tool store) :)
 
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