Removing Brake Rotors... Am I missing something??!

[528elover]

I am in the process this weekend of R&R my brake rotors (to be replaced with Balo fronts and rears, brake pads, paint calipers, etc. I am running into a few problems.

1. Front Rotors: Can't seem to get the calipers off. I have removed the guide bolts (7mm hex) and the caliper bracket mounting bolts (17mm). But for some reason the caliper will NOT lift off of the rotor? Did I forget to remove something? Does this mean it is stuck? What's going on here?

2. Rear Rotors: Can't seem to get the rotors off. I have removed the calipers and suspended them with some wire, and have removed all of the lug bolts and the set screw with too many issues. However, the rotor won't come off. Is it frozen (i.e., rusted) on? Is there something else I have to remove to get it to lift off??!

Thanks for your assistance and input!

[Jeron]

There should be small hold down bolt on the face of each rotor. It's about a 6mm hex.

The rear e-brake is likely a drum integrated into the hub of the rotor. Make sure the Ebrake is off.

Hit the rotors with a dead blow hammer or some other large hammer to dislodge them.

[528elover]

Ok! I've gotten off the front rotors. I had to pull the calipers very hard straight off towards the direction of the front of the car. It came off, but was very stiff and very difficult. What would cause this? Does this have something to do with the piston? Or, the pads just tight? (I should mention that the pads are in great condition, etc.)

Regarding the rear rotors, these won't budge. I have the 5mm hex screw out as well as all the lug bolts. I have hit it up with PB blaster and heat, and nothing seems to work. I have whacked it repeatedly with a soft-faced mallet.

I have been reading that there are special "rotor pullers" that one can use to break these suckers free. Has anyone used these? Where do I get one? Rent them at Autozone? How complicated to use?

Thanks!

[Jeron]

What year is you car? How long since the brakes have been touched?

I misread and didn't understand you were having trouble with the front calipers. That's unusual. I suspect the rotors were very worn and the pads were resting in a trough so that the outer lip of the rotor held them in place. You just need to compress the piston which can be done with a big C-clamp or simply using a flathead and constant pressure to lever the outside pad against the carrier bracket.

For the rear rotor, it could be that the brake has worn a deep grove which is holding the rotor in place. There might be a release wheel on the back hub. I would hit the outer face of the rotor really hard with a real hammer or small sledge (3-5lb) if you don't have a dead blow hammer.

[528elover]

This is a 1984 BMW 528e (E28). I really don't have any idea when the brakes were last touched. I believe in 1997-1998 one set of the brake rotors were replaced, but I'm not sure. I am the original owner and have records going back to 1993 but couldn't locate any information regarding the brakes! Ack! Since I'm now in charge of the maintenance and taking an active interest, this situation will never happen again!

Anywya, thanks for your ideas! I'm not sure how bad the rotors are, relatively speaking. There is some scoring on the rotors, but no sharp edges, etc. I did managed to get off the front rotors. I had to pull the calipers very hard straight off towards the direction of the front of the car. It came off, but was very stiff and very difficult. What would cause this? Does this have something to do with the piston? Or, the pads just tight? (I should mention that the pads are in great condition, etc.) Your diagnosis may be correct about the rotors being very worn. Can I upload a picture to this system? (Don't think so, b/c it only asks me for a URL).

Regarding the rear rotors, these won't budge. I have the 5mm hex screw out as well as all the lug bolts. I have hit it up with PB blaster and heat, and nothing seems to work. I have whacked it repeatedly with a soft-faced mallet. I even tried a 16 lb. sledge hammer, lightly, to the face of the rotor - no results and no moment.

I have been reading that there are special "rotor pullers" that one can use to break these suckers free. Has anyone used these? I went to Autozone this evening to rent one, but haven't used it yet. How complicated to use? Good idea or bad?

Thanks for your help!

Thanks!

[Jeron]

I thought I answered some of those questions.

For the front calipers, I would have compressed the piston before removing the caliper by C-clamp or wedging a screwdriver against the back of the pad. If it was that hard to get off then you need to make sure the dust boot is intact and in place. If it the dust boot is bad then rebuild the caliper.

For the back rotors, you need to hit the rotors very hard. Try hitting the outer edge from the back. I don't of anyone who has had to use a puller. I cant imagine needing one unless you were trying to reuse the old rotor.

[528elover]

Alright, after wrestling with these rotors for almost 1 week I was finally able to remove them.

The rear rotors were thoroughly rusted on to the hub. After trying knocking them off with a hammer, soft-faced mallet, and application of heat (for 10+ minutes), the only thing which worked was the following:

I bought a 42 oz (3 1/2 lb.) "dead-blow" hammer from Home Depot. The dead-blow hammer is different from a regular hammer because it contains free-moving steel shot. A regular hammer will deflect the energy off of the face of the hammer resulting in recoil. A dead blow hammer, however, transmits all of the energy directly to the face of the object being struck.

I got the rotors off by whacking the rear side of the rotor at the caliper area about 5 times. Then, moved the rotor approximately 10 degrees and whacked again. I kept doing this until the rotor came off. Took about 3 minutes to do this. I wish I had bought one of these earlier. Hope this helps someone else in the future. Thanks to everyone for their advice and assistance.

Good luck!

[Jeron]

I love my dead blow hammer.

It works good on tent stakes too.

[528elover]

The dead blow hammer rocks! It's my new favorite "tool." Only problem is, I've gotten my rotors off so I ain't got nothing left to whack! If anyone in the area needs rotors to be removed, just let me know and I'll come a-running.