Front disks pulling to the right!

[TOKFLA]

I am pretty new to this so forgive me for what I don't know. My 92 Corolla (4AFE) engine, FWD, has disks on the front and drums in the rear. I have been struggling with the right front disk pulling almost since I got the car. The car sat in Florida humidity for 4 years previous to me. The brake lines have been totally bleed as the fluid was rusty, and I have installed new pads on the front, and played with the front shims to some extent in attempt to adjust things that way. Finally, I pulled apart the front calipers and cleaned out all rust etc in the cylinders, on pistons, etc. It still pulls to the right. The rotors seem to me to be OK but my last course of action should be to get them turned I suppose. Will that solve the problem or is there some other possibility?

[nizzehult]

Did you buy a complete kit with gaskets etc while cleaning out the cylinder and piston? Tolerances here are very tight and the pressure is high in the hydrualic system so all parts needs to be tip-top - and you can't tell that just by looking. Is the piston moving as it should while pressing the pedal?
If not you should consider buying an exchange caliper.

[Bitter]

get 2 rebuilt calipers and 2 new caliper hoses. that should get you going straight.

[Donald]

Are you feeling the pull in the steering wheel?
If not, it could possibly be a back brake problem, which could either be a wheel cylinder, or the load limiting valve.

[TOKFLA]

I hate to be a disappointment but I did not buy any kit. I simply cleaned the pistons and cyls really well, including polishing and removing the seals and getting everything working really smooth. The pistons (L&R) slide really well and nothing leaks. I presume it must be either the rotors as everything in both calipers works fine. The only thing I am not sure of is if there is some sort of balance mechanism in the line somewhere that could be hanging things up. The Haynes manual is not so great being so hard to find some essentials.

[TOKFLA]

Yes I feel the pull strong in the steering wheel. It is only the R front that pulls and I use the emergency brake (drums) all the time as it makes the system so much more effective and it compensates for the imbalanced front which are really not good by themselves.
I have to depart for a time now!
Be back later.

[SCT]

Did you clean the sleeves the calipers slide on, as those are floating calipers?

Rotors wouldn't cause a pull.

Calipers and mix-matched or faulty pads can cause pulls. If you have checked those, try checking for lose steering and suspension parts. Loose ball joints, control arm bushings, strut mounts, inner and outer tie rods can shift when you brake/accelerate if they're worn and/or loose which can cause pulls.

[90 GP]

Are the caliper bushings moving freely (back and forth) inside the rubber boots? If you are getting a pull one side is binding up.

[freakinbox]

Yeah try cleaning those, but if it persists replace the calipers. my front right used to lock up a lot when I first got the car for some god unknown reason. It seemed to correct itself, but if I had the money at the time I would have just bought a new set of calipers.

When you put the pads on did you also make sure both springs that sit on top of the calipers were both there? Wouldn't cause drastic pulling but will cause a bit and also cause the pads to wear uneven and very quickly.

[TOKFLA]

If the calipers are supposed to slide on the bushings within the boots, I do not think I have ever detected that. They have always seemed quite rigid. If that is what they are supposed to be doing then I do not think they are. I presume my next step will be to break it down once again and see if they can have movement. This is my first set of disk brakes to be working on and I cannot say that I really understood how they could float if it all was so stuck. It is not anything to do with the suspension. It is the brakes. I presume there is allot of corrosion on those bushings as the car sat for so long. Since I use the car each day it will be some time before I can check everything but the bushings sound like the cause.
Thanks for all the Help.
Later

[Donald]

Check for worn ball joints. That could have the same effect.

[90 GP]

You should be able to move the bushings back and forth within the bores they are mounted in. If the glides are stuck they can sometimes be freed up by retracting rubber boot and use vice grips to turn the bushings in a side to side motion to unstick them. After they are freed up remove them and use high temp brake grease to lube them and reinsstall in rubber boot. If they can't be freed up then caliper replacement is in order. If they are stuck you will get the brake pull and premature brake wear.

[TOKFLA]

I think the problem is just about solved. I tapped on the bushings on the calipers and they freed themselves up and there seems to be lots of lubricant inside. They slide very well at the present and the brakes feel much better and balanced. The right seems to have a little grab in places but I think turning the disk rotors will balance everything out completely. It helps to have floating calipers that float! Thanks for all of the assistance! Happy Thanksgiving!

[freakinbox]

you should still pull them apart along with cleaning and re-greasing them up. They sieze up because of the dirt that gets into and the break down of the lubricant from heat over time. Leaving the old stuff in will only lead to problems later on.

[TOKFLA]

Thanks Freakin.. I will keep all that in mind and will get around to it when I have time.