Front Driver Brakes Hot!

[tthomasgmc]

I replaced my hubs few weeks ago and decided to change my front brake pads while there. They still had life, but had 125k miles, so I turned rotors and replaced pads. Truck ran fine and I checked for heat problems, all was good. Since last week the front driver brake seems to have been rubbing and producing heat on two occasions. I notice it's hot, like smell it and heat gun it at 450 ish. Get back in truck and continue driving and it's fine. Took things apart and seems fine. I did notice when installing there's not much room on the outer pad for movement, with new pads. I'm thinking caliber going bad, just odd I never had this problem before. Any other things to check? Truck has 125k original miles.

[Rambos_Ride]

Seems like you might have calipers sticking.
Have you flushed brake fluid?
I’d also check brake lines for possible replacement the hoses can get weak and partially collapse.

[tthomasgmc]

Haven't flushed the fluid in a few years, it's not real dark, just slightly tinted. I removed the caliber and applied the brakes, 1 piston fully extended and the other one didn't. They didn't seem to retract after releasing break, if that means anything. I'm thinking changing caliper and hose.

[tthomasgmc]

I replaced the caliber, hose and flushed the lines; seems to be working. The fluid looked pretty bad, that poured out of the caliber. Should i replace the caliber on the other side, also? I've been monitoring the rotor temps and they now run about the same, side to side.

[snowman22]

You shouldn't need to replace the other side, but servicing it properly would be a good idea. Most likely it was a sticking caliper pin on the failed side and the other will do the same if it's not cleaned and re-greased properly.

[tthomasgmc]

Pins where all good. Pretty sure it was the caliber. I've had the calibers off and maintenanced a couple of times in the past year, while doing other front end work. I just changed both front hubs less than a month ago.

[Rambos_Ride]

Should i replace the caliber on the other side, also?

Meh - at this point, unless you're in a nice toasty garage and have the extra time and money...if it aint broke don't fix it!

[tthomasgmc]

What's a normal operating temp for the rotors or what's considered to hot? I know it's going to very on conditions.

[dangerfield69]

When I change calipers I do both sides, the other one will pile up at the most inconvenient time. I've seen a caliper lock up to the point the vehicle couldn't be driven.

[Adrexco]

It's a known issue when replacing pads that the metal back plate slots where they fit onto the guides might not be sized correctly. When they stamp out the metal plates the tools wears and the rounded slots start to get smaller. This causes the pads to bind. It's always best to test fit the pads to make sure they freely float on the guide rails. I almost always have to take a round file to the slots and remove some material to let them slide easily. Loose is always better than tight.