man_btc
10-30-2019, 01:23 PM
I've replaced Previa calipers over the years with NAPA remanufactured units and recently had issues with some, so this is an FYI for something to watch out for. I was told at the counter there was some sort of strike in a Mexican plant where substitute workers were brought in may be the cause, but I have no idea whether that's true or not. At any rate, I always check for smooth caliper motion (i.e.slider pins) at the desk before I walk off. The last time I went they were really stiff, and after pulling the caliper off the torque plate (the part with the slider pin that bolts to the car) the reason appeared to be that the pins were painted along with the caliper bodies, and the paint flaked off the pins, causing internal binding. In addition, one of the calipers didn't have the appropriate caliper attached to the torque plate - it couldn't slide out fully because it was too large and couldn't clear the parts of the torque plate that hold the pads! I didn't find that until I was home because I didn't slide it out much at the store.
I wound up using a mix-and-match of components using torque plates with pins I had already cleaned up and the correct size caliper from a replacement shipment - that still had flaking paint on the torque plate pins.
Hopefully this is a temporary issue for them, but I still wanted to emphasize that a full inspection of sliding movement and maybe even disassembly at the parts desk to check the pins is warranted to avoid unpleasant surprises during an installation.
9527
I wound up using a mix-and-match of components using torque plates with pins I had already cleaned up and the correct size caliper from a replacement shipment - that still had flaking paint on the torque plate pins.
Hopefully this is a temporary issue for them, but I still wanted to emphasize that a full inspection of sliding movement and maybe even disassembly at the parts desk to check the pins is warranted to avoid unpleasant surprises during an installation.
9527