How to Inspect Car Brake Calipers

Video Transcript

"Hi! My name is Nate McCullough on behalf of expertvillage.com. In this clip we are going to talk about one of the components that needs inspecting during any kind of brake service. The component we are inspecting in this clip is your caliper. It is a hydro mechanical energy conversion device. That sounds kind of fancy but it only has 3 parts. What you have is the outside casting which I have my hand on right here. On the back is your cylinder and of course, you have a seal which is called a square cut seal. The only thing that seals the brake fluid inside the caliper is that seal. If it ruptures you are going to notice brake fluid leaking. That is going to ruin the caliper. It can possibly be rebuilt. I recommend replacement just for the cost benefit ratio. At a cost of approximately $50 to $100, you can have the caliper rebuilt and at a cost of approximately $50 to $100 you can have a brand new caliper installed on the car. One of the ways to inspect the caliper for leakage is to drag your fingers across the bottom of the back of it. If you come up with only road slide nothing wet, that means it's not leaking. You are also going to want to inspect the hydraulic area where the hose plugs into and make sure it is not accessibly rusted and the banjo fitting appears to be in good condition. The other things you want to look for are cracks in your mounting stud here and here and inspect the outside and make sure there is no excessive corrosion or any bluing which would indicated an extreme amount of heat. That's the proper way and things to look for on your brake caliper. "