Rear Caliper bolts stuck

[Andrew Liu]

I got the front pads changed on my 96 camry just fine, but today, when I went to do my rears, none of the caliper bolts would budge.

I tried hitting the ratchet with a hammer, that didn't work as well.

How can I get them unstuck? The space is sorta cramped in the wheel well, so its hard to get much leverage.

I need to change them ASAP, as they're almost completely gone. Also, none of the car garages will install customer parts. If I have them do it, they overcharge for cheaper-quality brake pads.

[rebel8ball]

deep creep, liquid wrench, wd 40, acetylene torch, or, return the rears brakes to the place ya bought em an duse the money towards the brake job done by the shop.

[Albuynp Ryeno]

liquid wrench and a cheater bar, you might also need an extension. Also when i had to remove my brake caliper bracket it was stuck. So i went underneath the car with a short extension and a cheater bar. Found a way to get it movible and pushed up as hard as i could. It worked.

[Andrew Liu]

Any worries about breaking the head off the bolt by doing that?

I gotta find a new 12mm socket, the deep/long one doesn't stay put.

[Mike Gerber]

Originally Posted by Andrew Liu

Any worries about breaking the head off the bolt by doing that?

I gotta find a new 12mm socket, the deep/long one doesn't stay put.

There are always worries about the heads of any bolts breaking off, but you still have to try to get it off. There is no other way to get it off. I would guess Toyota uses a pretty high strength bolt for these applications, so it shouldn't be too much of a concern. If it does break (and like I said, I wouldn't really expect it to break) then take the other bolt off and then take the caliper mounting bracket off. Mount the bracket in a vise. Try to work the shank out using a slotted screwdriver and a hammer. If you can't work the remaining shank portion of the bolt off that way, you will have to get a bolt extractor and drill a small hole in the shank and turn it out with the extractor.

Get a 6 point impact socket. Also, use PB Blaster and let it soak for a while. Although I use WD-40 for many things, it is not the greatest pentrating oil IMHO. This should minimize the chance of breaking anything.

Mike

[Albuynp Ryeno]

Originally Posted by Andrew Liu

Any worries about breaking the head off the bolt by doing that?

I gotta find a new 12mm socket, the deep/long one doesn't stay put.

Your right. Your from michigan so its prob cuz of rust that its stuck. If you do break the bolt then you would only need to change the bracket the caliper is one.

GO BLUE.

[BMR]

With a lot of the rust penetrants like PB blaster and liquid wrench, time is your friend. Let 'em soak overnight if you can. Makes a huge difference.

[lordstarwind]

ive had the same problem with one of the rear calipers and accadentally stripped the head on the bolt *bad juju* its a pain to get it off if you strip it, but the way i ended up getting the job done in the end was using a penetrator like PB Blaster and letting it soak an hour or two then hitting it with the PB again and letting it sit for a few more hours, when i went to wrenching on it it came loose as if it were hand tightened .

[Andrew Liu]

Used some Pb blaster, and the bolts came right off.

Thanks.

[Mike Gerber]

Originally Posted by Andrew Liu

Used some Pb blaster, and the bolts came right off.

Thanks.

Mike