Took the car out for a spin yesterday for the 1st time in a few years... And for the first time ever, she left me on the side of the road. (Well, I got to an empty parking lot...)

Passenger front wheel locked up, and was nice and toasty. After a few phone calls, I was able to get my tools out to me, and took the caliper apart and cleaned/lubed the slider pins and bushings. No go. To get home, I crimped the line with a rag and Vice Grips, and cracked the bleeder.

Is there a definitive way to tell if the piston has bound up or the line has failed? I'd like to save time & $$$ by not using the shotgun approach if I can...

Thanks!

 

i would bet that its the flex line to the caliper . not unusual for a car that has been sitting for a long time . happened to me except it was the drivers side . good time to flush entire brake system , after change of all flex lines . rt. & lt. brake lines all keyed different to the brackets . make sure you have the correct one on the correct side . lol

UNCLE TOM

 

If the car has been sitting for a while I would replace the calipers too. They are only 13.00 per side and that a small price to pay for breaking safety.

 

$13.00 for calipers?!?! Seriously? I've paid more for used junkyard calipers for the Grand Prix...

 

check out the part places as long as you return the cores they are cheap. I know at autozone is 9.99 with core and advanceauto parts is 9.88 with core. So as you can see stock reman calipers can be had for cheap.

 

No kidding. I just called a local place that had them for $18. Cool. Anyone have issues with using the Valvoline synthetic brake fluid in these older cars? I've had bad luck with synthetic engine oil in the past causing leaks, but how about the brake/clutch/PS fluids?