For the FRONT Brake Caliper, Honda sells a kit that includes seals and boots etc. (called "CALIPER SET, FR."):
01463-SHJ-A00...$11.00.


So I'd use only Honda parts.

Most brake calipers seal/boot repair follow the same procedure.

I did my 1998 528i brake calipers seal/boot here and you can perhaps copy the same procedure for the Ody:

1998 BMW 528i Brake Hydraulic System Overhaul (6 Hoses, Caliper Seals/Boot) - Bimmerforums - The Ultimate BMW Forum

 

As I come to expect, any write up from CNN comes complete with awesome pictures!

Question... I don't have an air compressor. Any ideas there?

 

Harbor Freight currently has the "Pancake" air compressor for sales for $60 (reg price $80). It is a good price.
An air compressor can be used to inflate your car tires, bicycles, air tool etc.

Pancake Air Compressor - 3 Gallon, 100 PSI

 

I will be replacing the boot next weekend and have a question disconnecting the banjo bolt.

I don't want to clamp the brake line so I figure that the master cylinder will empty out once I remove the bolt. Do I need to bleed all four wheels after I reinstall the caliper and refill the master cylinder? The caliper I'm rebuilding is the passenger side front.

BTW CNN, I did't purchase the compressor but will use a bicycle pump with a inflatable toy attachment to remove the piston. Hopefully, I can get enough pressure to push it out.

 

If you dont want to pinch the line, here is a couple of ways to stop or slow the leak down, after removing the banjo bolt:
-you could buy this Dorman Brake Hose Plug.
-use a bolt and nut with some tight fitting rubber washers to sandwich the banjo fitting.
-use a valve stem to plug the banjo fitting hole.

To get the piston out, you can pump them almost all of the way out while still on the car (BE CAREFUL IF DOING THIS)(if you pump it out too far, there will be a mess and problems). Then use a pair of channel lock pliers to twist and pull the piston out the last couple of millimeters.

You do not want to let your resevoir empty or you will be bleeding your whole system. If you can plug the line once disconnected and stop the line from leaking, then you will only need to bleed that wheel once reinstalled.

Once you have the newly refurbished caliper installed, makes sure the resevoir is topped up, then crack the bleed screw on the caliper and wait (let gravity remove the bulk of the air in the newly sealed system)
Then bleed that line again with someone in the car.

 

Keith,

Thanks for the suggestion. Follow up questions.

-you could buy this Dorman Brake Hose Plug. Do I plug this in place of the bajo bolt or does it fit in the line itself (requiring the removal of the fitting to the line)?
-use a bolt and nut with some tight fitting rubber washers to sandwich the banjo fitting. Any idea what size nut I would need?
-use a valve stem to plug the banjo fitting hole. Is this a valve stem used in tires?

Thanks!

 

Never used the Dorman plug, but it appears to fit in the banjo fitting hole, much like the valve stem.
Not too sure on the size, but a guess would be 10mm diameter.
Yes, the valve stem is just a tire valve stem.

 

I rebuilt the caliper this afternoon and it was no easy task. It took me almost 4 hours to complete. I was tempted to just get a rebuilt caliper two hours in.

Once I removed the banjo bolt there was very little leakage. I folded over a piece of bicycle tubing,clamped it and hung it from the strut. I had a little trouble with the caliper pistons because once one came out there was no pressure to force the other. Trial and error with several pieces of wood and I had both removed. I used a bicycle pump with a inflatable toy attachment.

The most difficult part was getting the cylinder dust boot attached to both the caliper and piston. I tried fitting the caliper first, then tried fitting the piston first. I found a link that uses a "Tyson" method of installing the boot to the piston. There was a learning curve as it took me 30 minutes to get the first piston in. The second one took about a minute. I found that the cap of Pam cooking spray was a very good size to use. Once the boots were set in the calipers and the pistons in place I noticed the boot bulging so I burped the air out of it by breaking the seal between the boot and the piston.

Installed the 2 caliper bolts and the banjo bolt, bled the caliper, installed the wheel and cleaned up. A lot more difficult than I anticipated but I am now a season veteran of the caliper dust boot.

I had a quick dinner and then I proceeded to fix the sliding door lock actuator. Posting on that thread next.

Good luck to anyone trying this.

 

I am a relative newcomer and have been very impressed with the level of detail in these postings. I used cnn's write up to replace my front brake pads and rotors on my 2005 Ody last Fall, and the instructions made everything so much easier! This weekend, I decided to tackle my rear brakes and ended up fixing one side completely and pumped the brake without realizing that the other side brake caliper was out! Needless to say, the caliper piston ended up coming out, but it was still stuck in the boot, so initially it did not seem that bad. Then I tried pushing it in with the C-clamp approach and it only went in part of the way and then stayed stuck. I did have the master brake cap open....but ended up spraying brake fluid from the boot. I then cracked open the bleed valve, that did not help either. So I ended up taking that banjo bolt off, blocked the flow with a rolled up rubber sheet shoved into the opening and then wrapped the connector with another rubber sheet, held the whole thing with a clamp so no fluid leaked out. Then I drained the caliper, took the piston out, and found that there was some grit that was preventing the piston from going in. I blew the whole thing out with canned air, dried it, and tried the "Tyson method" described in the previous posting. I had a can on Pam spray, and I used that! Took 10 minutes of fiddling around and it went in like magic once I got the boot over the piston. From then on, it was smooth sailing all the way!

By the way, I did but the Helm manual, but that does not describe how to put a piston back into the caliper. I guess those are written for people who use brand new/replacement parts, but don't actually rebuild them.

Thanks to atl_sud for the posting, and to Tyson for the tip!

And interestingly enough, I do have problems with the sliding door and have to place an order for the actuators. I have tried all the other stunts with the fuses that people have posted on Ody club - nothing worked.

 

Took 10 minutes of fiddling around and it went in like magic once I got the boot over the piston. From then on, it was smooth sailing all the way!

Good job guys! Yeah, the first couple of times is hard then once you've done it you know the tricks. Not many people these days can say that they've rebuilt a brake caliper so well done, especially since you mainly figured it out by yourself.