Stripping RS2 Calipers

[richslay]

Guys & Galls,

I have managed to secure the help of a friend to work on my car for a few days One of the things on my hit list is to change the brake fluid and whilst i'm at it thought he could paint and strip the calipers. Can anyone tell me whats involved in the process(standard RS2 brakes) and what parts are required, is there a specific caliper service kit?? If so where to buy?

Have done a few searches on the forum and hunted around the internet but without much success, so any direction would be much appreciated.

Cheers,

Rich

[dan_b]

If you want to completely overhaul the RS2 calipers, you'll want to get:

New piston kits (pistons plus seals)
Sprung plates (the stainless steel plates that retain the pads)
Anti-squeal shims

You can get all those items from VAGParts.com. Do you know if you have the 304mm disc or the upgraded 322mm disc - they have different calipers?

Don't forget that the caliper has 4 pistons, 2 per side, and that the pistons are different sizes. The piston kits come with the rubber seals and the lubricant, use plenty! Get youself plenty of Copaslip to apply to the backs of the pads and the squeal-shims, and use liberal quantities of Brake Cleaner - it's minging solvent stuff, but does the trick, you'd be surprised at how much cack will come out of the caliper. Probably worth taking some sandpaper to the pads to clean them up a bit if they're old. What pads do you have?

Good luck removing the bolts that retain the sprung plates, they're a right PITA. You may have to heat them to remove them. Be careful. If you have to heat them, do it after you've removed the pistons so you don't damage them. Clean any corrosion out (the scary white stuff) by scraping with a big screwdriver or similar.

I would recommend you get a decent brake fluid - if you can find it my recommendation is ATE Super Blue, you can buy that from Eurocarparts now apparently. If you do a full system bleed I would recommend getting 2litres to fully drag the old cack out, and get yourself a Gunsons Eazibleed kit. Start with the right rear caliper, then the left rear, then the left front (inside bleed first, then outside), then right front (inside then outside).

Expect this to take longer than you might think! Good luck...

[Alistair C]

So to do a full rebuild you need:

8 new pistons + seals (come as a paired set),
4 stainless steel pad guides,
4 pad guide screws,
4 bleed valves,
4 anti squeal shims

....and this little lot cost nearly as much as just buying a set of 996 calipers 2nd hand?

Is it just me or do these RS2 calipers seem more trouble than they're worth when they get old......

[dan_b]

Of that lot, the only things that are particularly expensive are the piston kits, all the other bits are cheap.

[AndersS2]

I have a couple of rear rs2 calippers that does really need a overhaul, and does this kit @ vagparts.com fit my calippers also,, or do you need separate "kit" for the rear?

-Anders

[dan_b]

Rear calipers are smaller, so different components, but I'm sure VAGParts will supply that also.

[AndersS2]

ok, thanks Dan B!