2 bolts, 2 hours...

soundmotor

super modified
...the time it took me to loosen the caliper carrier bolts on one side of the front brakes. My check disc warning came on last week and the inspection sticker expires end of this month. Got the parts but was unable to do anything until today. The vid on youtube was straightforward, looked like a ~60 minute job. As I did the work in my driveway there was no way to get under the car and behind the brakes for leverage. Going to full steering lock on that side did not help much either. Everything had to be done in reach-around mode from the lug nut side.

I tried every possible angle & approach but could not get any force applied to the carrier bolts. It was on the passenger side so upward force was needed. Breaker bar was no help as the clearance was minimal. After farting around for 2 hours including laying in the driveway staring at the sky I had an idea. The only thing I managed to accomplish so far was to get the bolts soaked in Trizol.

Awhile back I picked up a scissor-jack at the dump. I put that next to the brake carrier, put my wrench on stuck bolt #1, and raised the scissor jack up to the wrench with my ratchet then cranked it until everything was tight and straight. Then I kept ratcheting and the car actually came up off the floor jack 1/4" then, CREEEEEAKKKKKKK! and the bolt was loose. The next one came out the same way. The other side was a breeze and I did it under 30 minutes. Before they have time to stick up again I am going to get 4 new carrier bolts and some anti-seize so it isn't such a mess next time. Just back from inspection and got my sticker!

/task accompished: alcohol reward earned
 
Yep. I've used the same trick on inner control arm bolts where there's a bolt and a nut that you have to hold - put jack under the vehicle, wrench on the nut and lift the jack to hold the end of the wrench in place. Twist away with a 2' breaker to get the bolt loose. Make grunt sound for dramatic effect.

Murray
 
I have a big ol' copper hammer that I use to smack my wrenches to break stubborn bolts. The impact usually does the trick and the copper is soft enough to not booger my wrenches up.
 
I broke a ratchet a few weeks ago trying to loosen a stubborn auto transmission fill plug in the Accord. It is way down in the engine compartment, so the only way to get at it was with an extension. This was another of those 15 minute jobs which took well over an hour. Finally the ratchet broke. I then tried to think of other ways to try to get it off, like going to buy another breaker bar with a 3/8" drive (I already have the right size impact socket). But then it turns out that when the ratchet broke, it also broke loose the fill plug, so that last half hour was a waste!

I just did the brakes on the Civic, and the front caliper bolts were a bit stiff to get loose, but I managed. The caliper pin bolts were easier though, and when I reassembled everything, the industrial anti-seize went on the threads and the caliper pins.

The worst was the crankshaft bolt on the POS Merkur I owned. Fought it for a few days. Finally, I stuck a breaker bar on it, put a brick on the frame, then tweaked the starter--that little bastid spun right off with zero effort. :D Can't do that on the Hondas since they spin in the opposite direction. Although with those, I have the crankshaft pulley tool to help. Still...when I had to bust loose the bolt on the CR-V several years ago, it took a breaker bar with a long pipe extension on it to knock that sucka loose.
 
I needed to replace the cabin air filter [fifty bucks!] on my X-Type - it took mere seconds, but getting to it took hours. The wipers had to come off, and I lacked a puller, so I made one out of some plumbing parts. Then the cowling, then the filter. Reverse the proceedure, and apply sealant to the cowling. Done. Whew.
 
Doing brakes seems harder than it used to. I just did my wife's Exterra. Both calipers in front were frozen and shot. That's the first time I've had to replace calipers, ever. Makes the job a couple hundred dollars more expensive. :(
 
Doing brakes seems harder than it used to. I just did my wife's Exterra. Both calipers in front were frozen and shot. That's the first time I've had to replace calipers, ever. Makes the job a couple hundred dollars more expensive. :(
i rebuild them myself cheap enough .or if feeling lazy i just buy service exchange ones . there is a knack to installing some of the dust seals .
 
My wife know when I say it will be about 20 minutes, that it will actually be 3 hours, on whatever job it is.
 
I'm guessing you live in the Rust Belt or somewhere with salted roads. Just did four corners rotors and pads on the Crown Vic. Didn't have to fight a thing. Very, very glad I don't have to deal with frozen bolts and the like.
 
I needed to replace the cabin air filter [fifty bucks!] on my X-Type - it took mere seconds, but getting to it took hours. The wipers had to come off, and I lacked a puller, so I made one out of some plumbing parts. Then the cowling, then the filter. Reverse the proceedure, and apply sealant to the cowling. Done. Whew.
I just looked up that repair. Man, it it possible to cut a door in that thing? Sounds like something I would do.
 
Re: impact wrenches, I have an I-R electric one but not used it since I had my FOX Mustang. Pretty sure I only have SAE & not metric sockets for it though. Hmmm...

I just don't wrench as much as I used to but plan to tackle the rear shocks then front struts next. That said, it was a good feeling when this job was completed -


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