Hey everyone, need some suggestions. I changed the front pads,rotors, and calipers on my 1999 grand caravan. I also changed the brake hose on the passenger side only. The passenger side caliper is freezing up, after the brake fluid gets hot. It will not release the rotor. This makes the rotor hot, and it stinks like burned brake pad. The is the only side it does this one. I actually drove from Phx to L.A. like this. Once in L.A. , I switched out the caliper again. These are remanufactured calipers from Autozone. I still have the same problem. One mechanic shop told me that it is not the bleeding of the brakes, because the brake system always has air in it. The shop said that it may be the master cylinder, but I do not have a mushy brake pedal. When the caliper will not release, the brake pedal gets stiff, like the pressure builds up. I did not bleed all four wheel, only the two front. I never touched the back. Anyone think its the caliper again? I

 

Anytime you open up the brake system, always bleed all the brakes. Is the passenger side the only side you are having problem with? The problem could be a master cylinder, oil in the brake system or a colapse line.

 

Air in the lines will not cause the brakes to lockup, you'll have a soft/squishy pedal. You stated you replaced the hose and caliper. Here's a way I test for this problem. Jack up the wheel in question, apply HEAVY braking and release, try to turn the tire. It will drag hard if this is your problem. Then when you determine it is dragging, open the bleader screw and see if there is any pressure (i actually use brake pressure gauges in place of the bleeder screw). If you have pressure, then somewhere from the hose back to the mastercylinder is holding pressure. If no pressure, then the caliper piston or slide is causing drag. Use a LARGE c-clamp and see if you can compress the piston and move the caliper on the slides. In other words, the caliper is fully installed, the fixed side of the c-clamp goes on the body of the caliper near where the hose attaches and the screw end is placed on the outer brake pad. Tighten the c-clamp, it should have minimal resistance to compress. Being you have replaced the caliper multiple times, I highly doubt it's the caliper. But not seeing you situation first hand, it's really hard to forsure analyze and determine an exact cause. Afterall who's to say the person doing the work didn't do mess up something or didn't realize that something was worn/damaged/ or out of whack.

 

Thank you everyone. I would of never thought it was this: I called another parts store, for pricing on a caliper. The counter guys stated, that they only have the die-cast piston type. This got me thinking. I called a Dodge dealer and got a price for a new OEM caliper. It ran for about 125.00. I also asked if it mentions anything about a die-cast piston, he said no. On a hunch I stopped by Pep boys to look at their calipers. They also sell remanufactored calipers, but from a different company then AutoZone. Get this, the piston was steel! Even felt different, felt solid. I compared them. I went back to autozone and explained the situation. They returned my money, with core charge. I bought the Pep-Boys caliper, installed it. And it worked! Heres what I think happened. Once the brake fluid heats up, that die-cast piston swells, and does not allow the piston to return to its housing. This is the second part that has failed for me, coming from AutoZone. What the hell are they doing? The first part was a idler pulley. Same thing, replaced twice, and failed. I bought an OEM part from Dodge dealer, and it fixed. The idler pulley from Autozone was not welded, and separates. Thx for everyont help. This is an eye opener, to inspect, every little detail when buying after market parts!