I Smoke! - Page 2

**1996 328ti** · 01-23-2005, 03:28 AM

If you ever go with remanufactured calipers, you might as well upgrade to vented rotors.

robcarync · 01-23-2005, 05:14 PM

alright...so rebuilding calipers...so that isnt too difficult? i dont know how to do that though...does anyone know wherei can find a writeup on it?

what is a remanufactured caliper? how much does that cost...and vented rotors would be nice but seeing as im poor and everything...im trying to fix it with minimum cost...

motorsport · 01-24-2005, 04:21 AM

brakes wouldnt really smoke, and you would notice that wheel pulling towards that side if it were stuck pads so you can rule that out.

robcarync · 01-24-2005, 06:43 AM

yeah thats what i figured...im pretty sure its burning brake fluid...

bmw///m3/// · 01-24-2005, 09:43 PM

you should be able to find used for dirt cheap...

**clex2** · 01-24-2005, 10:09 PM

I had a similar experience with my driver side front wheel. There was a burning smell and light smoke, but it happening only once in a while for a year or so. I had my mechanic check it out when it got bad and was happening more often than not and he put an infrared pyrometer over the brake disc and it was hundreds of degres hotter than the opposite side. Turns out it was a sticking caliper that took a while to go bad. The tire also had a bit of cupping from the drag the caliper was producing. My solution on my 95 was to upgrade to vented rotors and calipers off a Z3 (any e36 model). Maybe this is your problem. Something to keep in mind.

robcarync · 01-26-2005, 08:51 PM

interesting...

my tire started smoking last thursday....smoked again friday...and hast smoked since then...

meanwhile...my passenger window fell in a while ago...and the regulator is bent way out of shape...to the point where im not going to fool with it anymore...i think im about to take it to a shop for a window fix...and ask them to check out the wheel too...

im hoping eventually i will just get to the point where the car runs out of things to break on me...

my steering wheel also tends to vibrate kinda violently when i drive...which kinda made me think it was a sticking pad/caliper... maybe stick enough to vibrate the wheel but not enough to drastically pull the vehicle...if a pad/caliper was stuck like above...could that cause a shaking steering wheel?

robcarync · 01-31-2005, 08:37 PM

i took it to the shop today and they called and said i need new pads, new rotors, and a new caliper on my front right wheel.

they want 900 dollars...i think that is kinda ridiculous...

i could understand maybe a new caliper but i just replaced the pads a few months ago and i took the wheel off last week and didnt notice anything wrong with the rotor...no warpage or anything...and it look pretty thick...

i think they are trying to rip me off...

aceyx · 01-31-2005, 09:43 PM

unless there's something terribly wrong with the caliper you can rebuild it for about $20 and an hour of your time.

when you put the wheel back on did you torque down the bolts correctly? annoying as it is, over-torquing the bolts on this car can warp rotors.

also, get a second opinion.

**clex2** · 01-31-2005, 09:43 PM

Well, $900 is alot of money when you consider that I got a used set of calipers (great condition), new brembo rotors, and pagid pads all for $250 from Zionsville. I did the work myself, so no labor. My car was is a '95 that had solid front rotors, so I was able to upgrade to the vented rotors and fix that nasty stuck caliper at the same time. I would not pay $900 for what they are doing. Your caliper may be able to be rebuilt, but you wont really know till you see the piston. A rebuild kit consists of a few rubber o rings and shouldn't costs more than $20-$30 per caliper, although it seems like a lot of $ for pieces of rubber. I guess it all comes down to how DIY you are. There are lots of writeups on how to do this stuff (ie, bimmerforums)

robcarync · 02-02-2005, 03:59 AM

yeah my dad heard 900 bucks and was like...uhhh F that and i drove it back home...but the shop didnt charge any fee since they didnt fix it.

apparently the mechanic guy said that by the piston (i think), there was some rough metal that causes the pads to stay locked up. so i guess when you push the brake pedal, the pads squeeze, but they cant be let back away from the rotor cause the rough metal causes the piston to stick to the rough metal. it isnt totally locked up but he said that it could get locked up any time and not to drive it.

he called this patch of rough metal a "burr" and said it couldnt be rebuilt because of this.

i asked why it was so expensive and he said it was 350 just for one caliper...i called auto zone and they said 80 bucks for a caliper. im going to auto zone tomorrow to order rotors, calipers, and pads for both of my front wheels.

i chekced bavauto and they didnt have any calipers...all they had were big brake kits which i cant afford right now

is there something wrong with parts from auto zone/pep boys/advance auto? was the mechanic wanting to pay for a caliper made of magical gold or something? why are the prices so different?!

aceyx · 02-02-2005, 05:43 AM

$350 is probably from bmw. i'd find out the brand of the autozone stuff; if beck-arnley is their distributor for european parts it should be okay.

also, give ebay a shot. i picked up a full set of calipers for $50. just waiting for the bitter cold to end (and for insurance to replace my tools) to do the upgrade.

**1996 328ti** · 02-02-2005, 02:17 PM

I noticed in some catalog that calipers for solid rotors are more money than the vented ones.

**clex2** · 02-02-2005, 06:16 PM

I would try Zionsville

http://www.zionsvilleautosport.com/store/shop.mv?

They are a repuatble used BMW part source.

bimmerboi318 · 02-02-2005, 07:40 PM

The dealer is probably saying you need the pads and rotors as well as a caliper is to cover their ass. You may be able to get away with just a caliper (if you need it)...but if the rotor is warped (which is very hard to tell by looking at it), both should be replaced. And if new rotors are put on, it's comon practice to replace the pads as well. 900 sounds a litte (well, very) steep. We charge 1.5 hours for a front brake job, I would figure 400 bucks or so for the job. Maybe a little more since you have to replace the caliper and bleed the brakes.

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