I just got a used rear from an 84 Camaro with rear disc brakes. It hade been in a guys garage for a while so I went to the parts store and bought replacement rotors, calipers and new pads. I fit the rotors on and they fit fine, the calipers fit fine, the pad that goes to the outside of the car fits fine but the one that goes on the inside has a small u shaped liece of metal attached to the back of it. When you place it in the caliper the back of the pad does not push against the piston? WTF. Should I just dremel the rear metal clip thing off or are there supposed to be metal clip things on our rear brakes.


Is this clip supposed to be on my caliper?


Thanks
Tony

 

Nice pics. The pads that I buy always come with clips that are removable. Also, the rebuilt calipers in your photos contain the old-style (as in pre-recall) pistons. Either the pistons or the cable brake will possibly fail within 10,000 miles. You paid for profesionally rebuilt units, and that should mean decade-long reliability.

Seth

 

So do I need to remove that clip in the caliper piston? The other one I bought does not have it on it. I bought these from AutoZone for $44 each so I am cool with it if they mess up in the future, I know the autozone guy pretty well and he will replace it for me. Let me know about that metal snap clip on the piston, I can't imagine it should be on it though. thanks for the info.
Tony

 

As I recall, one pad is notched to accomodate the two tips of that half-moon spring. Autozone owes you one. BTW, the recall piston has a solid top w/o that rubber plug. That piston gets a pad retaining spring of very different design. You were sold a pad set for the front, with no accomodation for installation in the rear. I would get the right pads rather than use a grinder wheel. These rear discs are a pain, and if the the drum rears have wide enough shoes, they should be just as good at stopping the beast. They certainly are more reliable.

Seth

 

whats that clip on the piston called, and were can i get one. i lsot one yesterday.

 

Don't know exactly what that retaining clip is called, but you should know that it was redesigned from the circular wire style to a stamped steel design that seems to hold the inboard pad much better. The old clip fits both the old and the recall-style pistons; the new clip only fits the recall pistons. Recall rear pistons have no silicone rubber center plug.

Seth

 

It is called retaining spring.I have that stamped steel spring and I have that rubber plug at pistons.

Jari

 

I could not get the new spring on the old piston.

Seth