Hey all,

 

I need some help on my 93 Impreza L. The brakes have started acting stupid lately and a search of the forum doesn't reveal the answers I need.

 

Back history, I replaced the front pads less than two months ago and discovered that the driver side pads were completely shot while the pass. side still had over half the lifetime left. Wasn't too concerned at the time. Last week heading home, without warning, I felt the front end starting to bog down, (put the clutch in and the nose dives like I'm already on the brakes). When I stopped, smoke/steam was rolling from the front pass. side wheel. I had stopped at a store, and when I came back out, the issue had resolved.

 

Today, same scenario, got off the interstate, and first light, I thought the wheel was on fire with all the smoke that was coming out. When light turned green, and traffic move on through, it was stop and go traffic. The very next time trying to brake, the pedal almost went to the floor. I nursed the car home and it is now in the driveway waiting the repairs. Problem is I don't have the funds to just start throwing parts at it. I suspect a bad caliper. I don't know if the car has ABS. I need help in knowing what options are on the car, and if anybody else has had this problem/what was the fix.

 

Thanks

 

Rich

First off welcome to the forums.

You might want to try another thread in the "New Gen" forum you might get a better response.

I had a similar problem on my loyale wagon which has a similar style floating caliper. It ended up being a stuck caliper piston and always had pressure on the pads which caused excessive wear and heat. You could also have stuck caliper pins, it is possible that they need to be cleaned up and re-greased.

 

The caliper is where I would focus my attention first.

 

Ben

any fluid loss?

 

when you did the pads - did you also clean and regrease the caliper pins/slides?

 

like Tractor pole said it sounds like your caliper could be seizing due to the caliper itself being hosed or the slides being corroded. knowing what it was like when you were just in there doing the job would be good.

 

or you have a collapsed brake line - they collapse internally and cause the caliper to hang. i just saw this for the first time ever this year, it was new to me.

maybe it has stuck caliper slides. the pedal may be going to the floor if the brake is heating up and boiling the fluid.

Disassemble completely(well, leave the piston in the caliper), clean it all up, lube with appropriate lube, new pads (and shims if possible).

 

And the collapsing hose trick I've seen for years on my old VW's from the 60's.

A real head scratcher the first time you run into it.

No fluid loss. That is what has been bugging me. After I shut the car off, pressure returned to the pedal. That tells me something electrical:-\ Is white lithium grease ok for this application, or is there a more appropriate lube? I will probably just replace the caliper seeing as I need the car back on the road sooner than later.

 

I have been searching this forum and all the info I find refers to AWD cars and either older Loyales and Brats or to the newer WRX Impreza's and Legacy's.

 

 

Also, where can I find info on the options that the car may have like ABS and so on?

Edited December 27, 201114 yr by 93_subie

you will want to use a silicone grease for the brake hardware such as sil-glyde from napa.

And the easiest way to tell ABS is the light (or not) on the dash cluster or look behind the passengers headlight for the unit with 5 brake lines going into it.

Then I don't believe the car has ABS. I don't recall seeing any type of control module like what you're describing. I also plan to flush the brake system while I have it apart, is synthetic fluid ok in these cars? Does the clutch use the same reservoir?

Well, it's the caliper. Took the whole thing apart, drained the fluid from it, then refilled it and primed it to make sure I had no air, and then the piston wasn't moving. It was not moving before, so tomorrow night, it will be replaced and lubed properly. Wife will run me to work tomorrow so it gets to sit for the night. I will be flushing the system with fresh synthetic brake fluid too.

 

Do I need to worry about the clutch too? Do they use the same fluid?

any brake fluid that meets the spec's in your manual or on the cap is fine, DOT 3 or something, so synthetic is fine.

 

not sure what you mean about "clutch"? if by clutch you mean the clutch in a manual transmission vehicle, then that's not applicable to your car. yours does not have a hydraulic clutch so it doesn't need brake fluid, it is cable operated (unless someone converted your car which is highly unlikely).

 

in subaru's that do have hydraulic clutches they have a completely separate hydraulic line and reservoir.