Defender Calipers- replace or rebuild?

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director_steve

director_steve

Active Member
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London. BUT I'M STILL HUMAN.
Hi all,
I noticed a slight pulling to the left under braking form my '92 110tdi recently which i reckon is down to a knackered piston. Looking at the outside of the calipers, they look like they've been through hell. Would it be best for me to replace them, or rebuild them with new pistons, seals etc? I'd rather it was as cheap as possible, and don't want to to have to pay a mechanic to do the work for me. But if new calipers are going to be cheaper in the long-run then i'd rather have the expense now (i've got no plans of ever selling the vehicle), and know that they're sorted.

Any advice welcome!
:confused:
 
Effectively if you rebuild them with all new pistons and seals you should have one that's as good as new provided the caliper casting itself is ok.
 
Oh right, i see. Thanks for the info.

Would this be a job i could do relatively easily? In the Haynes manual it doesn't look too difficult, but i know from experience that that doesn't mean anything! It's not something i've ever tackled before.

Cheers!
 
Never done lr ones but in general yes it easy. I find bleeding afterwards the most tedious bit. Just give everything a good clean with brake cleaner and a toothbrush and make sure the seals seat properly and the bore is undamaged where the pistons go. If you can get a cheap set of calipers I'd rebuild them then swap them over in your own leisure and you'd have the old ones to rebuild and sell or keep as spares
 
I was lucky enough to get a ser of calipers for 20... but havent fitted them yet, but the ones that are still on my 90, will soon come off and im going to rebuild them.

Its handy to have an air compressor at end to make the pistons pop out
 
if you buy a pattern seal set, then you will never get the outer dust seals to go in, because they are just rubbish.

even if you buy a genuine set (girling, etc) you might still have problems fitting the outer seals and end up replacing the calipers.
 
Yes rebuilding them is a good way to go, I did mine a few years ago and there were no problems at all. A few months later I split them again to add a vented disc conversion and they have continued to work fine ever since.
Make sure you hold the caliper firm to allow you to tackle the bolts that hold it together (you need to use a vice). Ensure you keep everything nice & clean to avoid contamination. Take care fitting the seals, some people seem to find it difficult and blame aftermarket parts (usually Britpart) but I used them myself and had no problems whatsoever.

"Its handy to have an air compressor at end to make the pistons pop out"
Yes that would be very handy but I managed fine using a foot-pump, as soon as I had made a good seal against the bleed-hole they soon popped out.

"I find bleeding afterwards the most tedious bit."
I bought myself an Eezibleed several years ago and never looked back. Now it is the work of less than 30-minutes to completely bleed through the brake system single-handed, makes you more likely to do regular fluid changes which should help prevent the build-up of moisture in the system.
 
personally i would replace them, by the time you have bought a genuine seal kit, 4 pistons and then spend a while getting them clean before you change the seals then mess about getting the seals to fit and stay seated.

Dont get me wrong sometimes the seals and pistons are easy to fit other times there a real bugger, never had any probs bleeding them when refitted.

I used the paddocks ones on the rear of my 90, stripped the old ones of and replaced along with new pads and discs, had both sides done in less than 2 hours, and thats cos the disc wouldnt come off,(big hammer and grinder were required)
 
The only reason I said I find bleeding the most tedious part is because compared to refurb-ing the calipers it is so dull, not hard at all! I use the eeze-bleed kit too btw ;)
 
ive rebuilt a lot of land rover calipers and it is right the hardest part is fitting dust seal retainer ,especially if are around is pitted which it usually is ,but when you can buy new for £50 its not worth it
 
jamesmartin said:
ive rebuilt a lot of land rover calipers and it is right the hardest part is fitting dust seal retainer ,especially if are around is pitted which it usually is ,but when you can buy new for £50 its not worth it
Click to expand...

:D there was me thinking it was just me being club handed, had a go at doing 1 on me fender that was leaking badly out of the 4 retainers managed to get 1 to go in half sensable :doh:
 
Litch said:
Yes rebuilding them is a good way to go, I did mine a few years ago and there were no problems at all. A few months later I split them again to add a vented disc conversion and they have continued to work fine ever since.
Make sure you hold the caliper firm to allow you to tackle the bolts that hold it together (you need to use a vice). Ensure you keep everything nice & clean to avoid contamination. Take care fitting the seals, some people seem to find it difficult and blame aftermarket parts (usually Britpart) but I used them myself and had no problems whatsoever.

"Its handy to have an air compressor at end to make the pistons pop out"
Yes that would be very handy but I managed fine using a foot-pump, as soon as I had made a good seal against the bleed-hole they soon popped out.

"I find bleeding afterwards the most tedious bit."
I bought myself an Eezibleed several years ago and never looked back. Now it is the work of less than 30-minutes to completely bleed through the brake system single-handed, makes you more likely to do regular fluid changes which should help prevent the build-up of moisture in the system.
Click to expand...
Warning if you split the calipers[not the recomended method] make shure you replace the two seals between the caliper halves.There is a proper tool for pressing in the dust seal ring but i do it with a g clamp and metal plate.keep any old rings that are good in case you mess up a new one.
 
Last edited:
It's a time vs. money thing. If money's tight you probably just want to buy the seals and rebuild, but you might end up buying a new one anyway. I'd just bite the bullet and buy new calipers. So much less hassle.
 
I made a tool to fit the dust seals. And use a press as this helps apply and even and square pressure which can help.

Make sure everything is clean too.

I split the calipers ever time. Never replaced the o-rings between the two halfs and never had one fail or leak. It is by far the easiest way.

When I have done it I have also fitted stainless steel pistons as well, so the hassle has always been worth it as new or second-hand calipers are not likely to have these fitted :)
 
"Warning if you split the calipers[not the recomended method] make shure you replace the two seals between the caliper halves."

What's the issue with splitting the calipers, my rebuild kit came with a new seal for between the caliper halves?:confused:
I did add that I later added a vented caliper conversion and that takes the form of a machined block which fits between the caliper halves.
 
jamesmartin said:
the hardest part is fitting dust seal retainer
Click to expand...

So use a washer off one of the radius arms.... Its brilliant. With a ball pein hammer & big vice to hold the caliper, every one I've done has gone in squarely and tidily.....

310.JPG
 
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