Procedure to remove caliper/bleed brakes...
 

Can someone explain to me what the proper procedure would be to remove the rear calipers off of my FD? I read the write-up in the manual and some info on the scuderiaciriani website, but when do you bleed the brakes and what is the order to do things? Also, how much do you bleed them? I also read about releasing the cover on the brake fluid contained while you bleed the brakes to get the air out, etc... All of this is very confusing and I'd just like to know what you think the best method for doing this is. Thanks...-Joe

ok, update - I finally got the rotor and caliper off. Seems the pads are fine and the rotor could probably use replacing. Anyhow, my main problem was that it seemed the brake pads were dragging on the rotor - I don't understand why though? It's only the rear left wheel and it's not the parking break. Is there any way to adjust the pressure so I can release it or something? I'm not too knowledgeable in the brake department. Thanks, -Joe

Alright no one has bothered to help you so I will jump in. To answer your last question regarding your rear brakes I'm not quite sure how to adjust your brakes.

If you think your brakes are dragging then you may want to look at the boot around the cylinder that pushes on the brake pad. Be very careful with the boot. If the boot is torn then the caliper may be bad (i.e. the cylinder is no good). I had this happen to me on a non Mazda care a few months ago. If the caliper is no good then you should notice that the brake pads are being worn unevenly. In other words the brake pad on one side of the rotor may be worn noticeably more than the other side (assuming there are two pads on each rotor). I'm sorry, but I can't remember exactly how the rear discs work on the FD. It has been a little while since I have had to work on mine and I have worked on several cars since then.

As for general procedure for changing brake pads.

1. Open the cap on the brake fluid reservoir

2. Open the bleeder valve on the brake you are working on and attach a hose with a vacuum bleeder or something similar attached.

3. Use something to gently pry between the brake pad and the rotor to push the caliper in on each side. As you push on the caliper you should see some brake fluid go into the hose. Be careful not to damage the boot around the cylinder pushing against the brake pad. Once you get the brake pads all the way out you should use a proper tool to push the cylinder the rest of the way in. This will make putting in new pads a lot easier.

4. After you push the caliper all the way out you should then drain the remaining fluid out of that caliper.

5. Repeat this process for each caliper

6. After you have replaced the pads it is time to flush the fluid. First you should use the vacuum brake bleeder to suck the fluid directly out of the fluid reservior. Once this is done you should fill the reservoir back up with new brake fluid. I use Motul personally, but it is your choice.

7. Go back to each caliper and use the vacuum bleeder to suck the fluid back through the caliper and out of the bleeder valve on each caliper. Continue using the vacuum bleeder until you don't see any air pockets in the fluid. You should monitor the brake fluid reservoir and try not to get below half full. It will probably take you somewhere around 1 1/2 bottles of Motul to do this.

8. Once step 7 is complete you should get inside the car and PUMP THE BRAKES several times until they get fairly stiff. When you turn on the car the brake pedal may seem a little soft until you pump the brakes a few times with the car turned on.

If for some reason your brake pedal feels soft then there is air trapped somewhere in your brake lines or calipers. To fix this you should go back and use the bleeder valves on each caliper and vacuum some more brake fluid through your system until you see no more air pockets in your system.

The two most important things to remember is that if your pedal is soft that you probably have air trapped somewhere in your brake fluid system and the other thing is to pump your brakes. I have heard of a lot of people who don't do this and end up wrecking their cars (not necessarily FD's) because they have no brakes since they didn't pump them up.

Hopefully at least some of what I wrote will be of some use to you.

- Cody

Hey, thanks a lot Cody - great info ;) I will be sure to use it.

Here is some more info for you from some other places:

http://www.bridow.com/rx7/howto.html

https://www.rx7club.com/forum/showth...ghlight=Brakes

- Cody

There's no adjustment valve to change brake bias on the FD. The dragging could be a number of things. You could have a bad caliper, the v-spring could be worn out, wheel bearing could be shot, or maybe you have a 'warped' rotor. I'd check all these things before jumping to any conclusions.

well thanks a lot guys for all the great info. I think the caliper is ok after looking at it. Wheel bearing also seems ok...I thought I had a warped rotor, but it's still decent. I managed to tighten some things and I definitely cleaned out A LOT of rust from the back of the rotor. It's possible something just got stuck - like a piece of rust because one of the pads seems to be missing a small chunk out of it. Anyhow, I lubed it all up and things are much better now. Put the wheel back on and problem solved. I still have to test it to make sure I fixed it, but it looks good. I also think one of the main things was that the valve that turns for the parking break was stuck. Anyhow, thanks again...-Joe