Shop Discount Brake Hoses

It has to have a copper washer on both sides of "that square nut thing "..
It had to have one when you took it off or else it wouldve been leaking...It either fell off or its stuck on the square nut part of the hose or stuck to the old caliper.
They are NOT reuseable...get new ones....Make sure you put one on each side of the square nut thing...also make sure you removed the old ones.

The reman caliper shouldve came with them....They Usually come with all the necessary hardware including the copper washers ,but not the banjo bolt.(Screw as you call it)

I've personally never seen lock washers on the caliper pins on any vehicle I've ever done a brake job to but I think I remember seeing somewhere that some vehicles such as Toyota use lock washers. I could be wrong though. I've never seen them on any GM vehicle. If yours didn't have them when you took them off I wouldn't be putting any back on. Try and find a diagram on the brake system on Dodge's part website and see what it shows. I'm sure the mechanics here can give you a definite answer though.

? Head scratcher. OK - I would bet and hate gambling that that wheel's caliper or flex hose has a minute leak and must be pretty minute. It might not show a physical leak easily to find or hidden behind dust boot in caliper. Have to believe if air can get in then fluid under pressure of actual use can come out.

In bleeding there would be a very slight vacuum when closing a bleeder and going for another round and suspect even a small air bubble gets the tiny bubbles noticed somewhere in either of those two new items. You are losing pedal after a few days so it's there somewhere.

Troubles are that brake fluid is water soluble so if wet out driving it could rinse away evidence. Could the master cylinder do this? If it has four lines from it dedicated along the way to just that wheel it's possible or anything dedicated to just that wheel. You also mentioned brake "line"?? Does that mean you made up a section that was damaged or rusted?

If you did and used compression fittings that's both not legal and doesn't work well either so that would be the problem. Even proper flaring and unions can be iffy. You need a real good look at the new flare made and how the nut contacts that flare. It's pretty hard to find one exact length of pre made line with the flare nuts that you can bend exactly right for an entire section of line but possible.

You simply must look at everything carrying fluid to just that wheel's caliper including the caliper,

T

Parts were changed in steps to see what was problem. Only caliper replaced with original Brake lines and flex hose were having exact bleeding problem changed Brake line and hose still having exact same problem. Don't think it's any of the parts that were changed since before and after still having same issues. Brake line was done properly with double flaring tool. The master cylinder has two lines going to abs then four coming out of abs only front left is having aeration type of fluid come out. I don't know if master cylinder would cause this. Maybe I got a faulty caliper

Are you vacuum bleeding this thing?

OP: Is the problem on the side you put new metal line in? It is so easy to split the made up double flare if you used a part of good original line where you could work. Vacuum bleeding that HT just asked would be nice to know but something funky if it last with a good pedal for a few days and now a bit confused if just ONE or both calipers had unusual bleeding problems but only ONE showed air so what's the scoop or I'm missing something.

Another point is now that we know just two lines from master I can't believe a single line could pick on one side from there. Masters is pumping brakes to floor can travel into a crusty zone inside and tear up seals but still wouldn't pick on one side IMO and experience.

Is it consuming brake fluid for those three days?

What was the original reason for doing brake work other than plain wear out and parts replacement. Was something strange before any brake work?

Bleeding thru ABS would really like the vacuum bleed not just pump, bleed, hold, repeat game you can do without ABS and it's lines and flaming magic that could very likely trap air but doesn't make sense to me that it seem OK for a few days at all and not a problem right away?

T

Quote ">>im thinking maybe the banjo bolt is bad or the washers around it might be bad."

Gotta help me help you. Does this use the copper washers on the flex hose block to caliper? Probably and they should be NEW not re-used. Been out of this game for a while sport so bear with me as we have to find out why this is doing this - not good as you must know.

Calipers are about always rebuilt not really brand new. There is room for flaws in anything but rebuilt stuff a higher chance. That bolt never came with any I ever bought and some you need to clean out small hole at bottom and then down from where it flows when you bleed for it to be clear with good flow for bleeding. Usually just drill bits in your hand will do.

Again, help us help you as none of us are there looking right at things.

* By any chance are calipers on the wrong sides? Bleeder should be highest point as it sets in place. Some can be put on wrong side and you'll about never get all the air out.

* ARE YOU CONSUMING BRAKE FLUID? Need to know that with a plain yes or no. You said it feels OK for a few days then goes soft pedal on you I take it and notice when bleeding some minute bubbles on that side. Not right of course. Not often but sometimes when you suspect it to hide small bubbles like a carbonated soda if you tap on the caliper they'll rise to the top.

* Vacuum bleeding would eliminate that with the right equipment.

** One thing I don't know and doubt is if this dual (all are) pressure system is part of master cylinder doing just fronts other rear OR if this is criss-crossed meaning FL+RR get fluid pressure from master and FR+LR for other section of master. That still doesn't account for the bubbles at all or loss of fluid quite yet. Said already that master cylinders don't normally go to the floor pushing rubber seals deeper than they have been in use over sometimes many years and can tear up the seals such that if so you could get lousy pedal or other issues pretty much leaving you with a spongy pedal that wont quit it but might be intermittent. Still that shouldn't pick on one caliper!

* I still wonder about your metal line job too. Is that an entire new line flare nut to the end or did you make a flare with original line? That's what I would do if line looked great where I could cut and make the connection for a brass union. Mopar OE flare nuts used to be and who know which ones too deep and stuck to the lines especially right where the metal line seals to the flex hose as it's exposed there. Any could but the deep flare nuts if used there were trouble and worse if vehicle is in or from a rust belt area which I am but could be trouble with some age anywhere.

Notes: You suspect this sat for a while. Rotors should have shown evidence of being in one spot too long. At some point you can't even machine/turn that out as it comes right back so rotors get tossed for new. THAT ISN'T THE UP FRONT PROBLEM - but if nothing done to the rotors they probably will come back to haunt you.

LEAK FINDING WITH BRAKE FLUID: Sail already it's water soluble AND make to be both rubber friendly and hygroscopic meaning it will absorb moisture from the air even. Read container it will say keep cap closed tightly for just that reason. Bellows at master fill is to keep ambient air out. If moisture invaded fluid enough then it really can allow for rust/corrosion in calipers or anywhere it is much faster plus the boiling point drops to near plain water. Maybe if an area or connection is suspect enough rinse and blow it real dry and clean, hold brake pressure and see if you can even get a finger damp with brake fluid right there.

Gotta find this if it means sending it out for pro help stating what you have noticed,

T

Can't fool with finding this web sites or not it must be found and fixed as it's brakes of course.

I'm convinced it's a faulty remanufactuered caliper I'll buy another one.

What do you think they did?......... put a hidden compartment of air in it? Where is the air coming from?

Quote question from an earlier post by me ">>* ARE YOU CONSUMING BRAKE FLUID?"

I don't know how to suggest crap if questions aren't answered...........

T

no fluid loss.

OK, that mostly rules out (said mostly) air getting in thru a leak.

* Does a wheel feel warmer than the other side or even hot after bleeding when it feels OK for a few days?

* Does the rebuilt caliper have a custom bleeder sometimes used when the core it was made from broke one off hopelessly? Not certain all places would sell those.

* Could be elusive but already asked if calipers were on the wrong sides? Some will fit and bleeder isn't in proper location.

* Is flex line twisted up or setting in proper position as the original?

* If all else seems fine I'd plain pay to have this vacuum bled out as per any specific procedure for the car. ABS might be either screwed up or holding some air.

I'm running out of ideas!

Tom

When I asked about vacuum bleeding, it wasn't because it was the preferred method. It was because bleeding that way will suck air through the thread of the bleeder and give you the illusion that you are pulling air out of the system when you are not. Vacuum bleeding is not recommended in many situations. Pressure bleeding is what I recommend.

If air is actually getting into the system, it has to be coming in somewhere and that doesn't sound real likely with only one wheel, although the master could do that at the LF wheel due to being so close but that doesn't sound likely.

Thanks for all the responses guys. I initially thought of bad master cylinder because one symptom was while at Red light braked the pedal will drop about an inch sometimes which I heard can be sign of bad master cylinder but when bleeding it's just that front left caliper so I wasn't sure if master would cause air in just the front left. I'm going to buy a caliper and return it if it doesn't solve the problem. If not I'll probably take it to a shop :(

I know we are beating this up but it is brakes and worth paying attention to. Master cylinder could be an issue. Already said I seriously doubt it could pick on ONE wheel by itself. They can be intermittent in holding a firm pedal or that more common slow drift fading towards floor at the pedal.


So it's possible to be bad but unlikely to be causing the issue with the ONE wheel thing IMO,


T

no 2 man bleeding into a water bottle with hose.

That's not a good idea to have water around brake fluid. The fluid is hydroscopic and will absorb the water.

I would get it pressure bled.

You changed the wrong side. If it pulls to the right, the left side is not working properly.

Hey what do you mean by that?? The brake caliper and the hose was bad on the passenger side I replaced that. It was NOT bad on the driver side. When I took the car to test drive it the steering wheel was turning very hard to the right and I had a wheel alignment last year and it was not like that before the caliper and the hose was messed up. Any other suggestions would be very helpful.

If you have replaced the caliper and hose on the right side, the right side of the brakes are working better than the left side. The left side brake is not working as effectively as the right therefore giving you a pull to the right. Does it pull all the time or just when braking? Before you get all upset, we need all the information we can get to help you as much as we can. Remember, we do not have the car here or the ability to test drive it.

it pulls all of the time,not just when I brake.

Is the caliper sliding freely on the right side? If not, that can cause a constant pull. Remember we can not drive it so we can not tell if it is a hard pull or a slight drift.

We will check the caliper thanks.Question? I had the car on some cinder blocks and the car lost balance and fell Do you think that when that happened it could have knocked the alignment off? Do you think maybe the caliper could be too tight to make it pull? Thanks for anybody's help!

If it fell off blocks and hit part of the streering and bent a linkage or control arm, yes the alignment could be off due to this.

I think that I found the problem.The piston on the caliper on the passenger side was pushing against the rotor.It was acting like it was braking.I am going to bleed the brakes agin in the morning and then drive it again to see what happens.

the piston was pushing the brake pad against the rotor and it was dragging.soI took them back off and I pushed the piston back in with a c-clamp.I put everything back togather and it is spinning freely now.I am fixing to go outside and bleed the brakes to see if that fixed it.

OK I got the brakes fixed and I went to go test drive it down the road. I got a quarter of a mile and the car just completely shut off. I have a brand new battery and just had the alternator changed on it. It won't do anything not even turn over and nothing comes on the battery light or anything. We end up pushing my car with my wife's car to get it home we dont live far from where it broke down at. Do you have any suggestions to what could cause this? We have bought a lot of parts for this car already so we know it can't be the alternator or the battery. I know one thing this car has been nothing but troubule it's a chevy lol! this is the first chev it will be last!

I have another question around Christmas of last year my car got broke into and they stole a lot of electronics like my cd player ok Do you think maybe they cut a wire that was touching either the battery or the alternator? I need someone to help me with this. I need some advice on what I need to check anybody out there please HELP! Thanks!!!!!!!!!!

Obviously you need to get this running again even to see if your brakes are ok. New alt and bat doesn't rule them out. Carefully jump start this car. It may have a hard short in battery or alternator and if it reacts badly just making your last hook up with cables stop there. It's best to use a jumper box instead of another car if at all possible.

The battery may have a connection problem or the alternator itself. One can take out the other.

It's hard to say what may have happened when the car was broken into and what may have been damaged from here. I would think problems would have showed up right away from that so this is problably something new.

You should check for voltage at the battery and if you find none it may be fried.

It's just handy in general to own a battery charger, voltmeter or multimeter, and simple test light for all kinds of things.

See what you can find on that.

I don't think you are done with the brakes unfortunatley and they may have frozen or sticky pins etc that allow the caliper to release the brake pads,

T

Ok we are going to check everything we put the new battery on a charger this morning. Ever since the car got broken into we been having troubule with the cranking part. We have already replace the alternator three times and the battery we just got last week. Yes we have a test light and we will check every wire and everything we need to test. The brakes on the car is fine now that is why I drove the car yesterday to test drive it. It just completly shut off and would not do anything. There is nothing wrong with the brakes they are fixed. It seems like their is something that is causing either the alternator or the battery to go bad have any suggestions to what that could be? I have checked all the wires behind where the cd player was but everything looked fine. I am going to check all that again. We have had it with this car. I hope those thieves end up in jail because what ever they have done they have ruined my car.

You must be ready to go bungee jumping without the bungee!!

With the battery etc: Put your test light between neg post of battery and the disconnected cable with everything off - doors closed, hood light disconnected and the test light should stay off. If it lights there's a short. Just to test that you did that right open a door and watch the test light light up. If there is a short hit back and we can talk about how to find that.

Now with battery charged just take its voltage reading. Should be 12-12.2 -- then start the car and read the voltage. It should read over 13.5 to perhaps 14.5 or so but not much higher. Now turn on all lights, blower, RW defroster and look at the voltage. It must stay above 13.5 now but may have dropped some from with everything off. That should mean the alternator can put out the amps the car needs. If getting a muli-meter is a finacial problem they have a real cheap one at Wal-Mart for under ten bucks but don't expect much. It works but is cheap and the volts scale is hard to pin point the exact # but good enough. It's the size of a pack of cigarettes and you get what you pay for with that one. I've seen them for a little more at other places and real good stuff goes on up in price but you really don't need to go wild.

If you can catch the car totally dead again test between connections at battery to see if the battery has voltage but not the cable and right along with both cables. OHM meter on multimeter can do that or just test light if hooked up right and hook a pos jumper to the test light's clip to test for ground. Grounds count just as much as pos current.

Hit back with results, I'm here,

T

The battery is charged up we put it back in and test it with the light and the light came on. Now what do we need to do? Thanks!

Now get the voltage readings. Three are useful.... engine off, while cranking, and while running. Give it a load on electrical items like I said and it should hold. Then there's a mystery as to why it did that to you and you have to check out all connections and do the test for a short,

T

So what you are saying he has to check anything electrical ? Anything else

Take the observations and start the car. What does it do or not do?

T

Hey ok we will do that when he gets home hopefully we will find something out. Tom you have been a really big help and we do thank you for trying to help us deal with this. We don't have the money to take it somewhere so we are trying to do this ourselves. It's just been annoying for us to try to find out what has been causing this we had to replace the neutral safety switch a while back because when you put the car in reverse it shut off. It seems like we get one thing fix then it's something else nerver fails. I am glad he got the brakes fix bleeding them was a pain lol . We are going to check all the wires and everything that is electrical may take us all day but when you have nobody to help it's all on us.

Tom one more thing his abs light and parking light stays on . Do you know what causes that he said that his parking brake does not work. Is it possible that abs module could be bad or do you know???

The ABS light staying on means the ABS system is in it's default mode and will not do its ABS tricks in a skid. Regular braking should still be there as if it didn't have that feature. The problem could be a couple things. Since a brake piston was pushed back to make clearance the old brake fluid was pushed back thru some expensive ABS controls with old probably dirty brake fluid back to the master cylinder which can mess it up. Best to open bleeder when retracting a caliper piston and add new brake fluid when doing any work like that.

There are star wheels (things that sense wheel speed) at each wheel and they can get brake dust or dirt on them and fool the system and it will go to default mode. You can try blowing out the dirt with compressed air and see it that fixes it. With the parking brake not working (I think your rear brakes are regular drum brakes) there is brake dust that doesn't always get out by itself and that can be cleaned out. DON'T BREATHE BRAKE DUST!!

The back brakes are actuated by cable for the parking brake. If cables get sticky from rust they won't release well and can wear out back brakes fast or get real hot and cause problems there. Proper adjustment of back brakes that are in good condition usually gets the cables in range to work without adjusting the cable at an adjuster under the car.

When you said "parking light" stays on, did you mean there is a light just for the parking brake or a red light indicating "brake" which can be either parking brake is not in fully off position or a fluid pressure problem. Sometimes bleeding brakes or just one can set the warning off and it may just go away or you may have to very slowly bleed off some pressure on a rear wheel to center the sensor again. Just holding service brake and letting out some pressure to the rear (since front was bled) at the master cylinder will do. Hold pressure on the pedal and just loosen the brake line at the master a little to see some fluid come out while maintaining some pressure till light goes out (do this with engine running and light on) till the light goes out. If that is the same light - probably is for the parking brake the parking brake cables are more likely to be the problem. Sometimes just grabbing them from under the car and pulling on the cable can free it up for the time being. Make sure brake fluid is full at master cylinder as that can set off a light by itself if low. If the parking brake pedal or arm that you pull feels limp to return to off the cables are the problem almost always. Worry about RED warning lights right away and get to amber/yellow warning lights after any red ones are off and back to normal,

T

Hey Tom back to the part about the car shutting off. Well we are going to get the alternator checked out and some guy at Advance said it could be the main wire harness to the car. He checked all the wires behind the cd player and everything with that is fine. We will let you know about the alternator when we get it checked for the third time.

Hey Tom again well the alternator was fine. Anybody out there please help us

Not to be obnoxious or mean, but take a deep breath and think about all the problems you have with the car. Please post the problems and what you have tried to do to overcome them. This thread has become confusing and hard to follow. Please try to post all informatiuon you can in the post. I see where you have fixed the brakes. That is a good thing. Now post the other problem separate so it can get the attention it deserves. If you tie it to this post, users will think it is still the brake problem when there is a new post. I know I did for a couple of days. Thanks for using the forum and please take a deep breath, relax, and post the problem with the repairs or diagnostics you have done so far. Thank you for understanding.

To add: Brakes will generally pull to the cooler brake. If there's a failure of a hose or caliper keeping that brake hot it will grab better on the other side.

Also: When you find a problem on one side you should replace both sides as whatever caused a problem with one probably is lurking with the other,

T