Front disc assy question (on how it operates)

[Vanguard]

92 Subaru Legacy L non-turbo AWD 4-wheel disc station wagon

 

I replaced the front disc pads last weekend. The lower bolt gets removed so the assy will pivot up on the upper bolt. When putting it back together, I noticed that the lower bolt sleeve didn't move. This is the brass-like sleeve or tube through which the bolt slides. You lower the assy to line up the sleeve with the bracket so you can insert the bolt and tighten it down. There are rubber boots on each side of the sleeve. I thought the sleeve would move a bit to account for flex in usage.

 

I can see how the upper pivot slides side to side on that bolt. In fact, when I had the assembly raised up, I could slide it side to side by quite a ways. What I am wondering about is the lower bolt. Does the sleeve stay in place in the assembly and it slides side to side on the bolt? Or is the sleeve supposed to move a bit, too?

 

My recollection on the passenger side was that the lower bolt sleeve moved a bit by about as much as I could flex the rubber boots on each side. However, the sleeve on the driver side did not move at all. Maybe they aren't supposed to move. Maybe it doesn't matter if the sleeve moves because the greased bolt is supposed to slide inside of it (so the assy moves in when the piston on the other side pushes against its adjacent pad).

 

I have driven the car since then and have noticed no misbehavior in braking. I let the car roll to a slow stop while in neutral and never felt any jerk at the final stop (i.e., there was no drag by the pads on the rotors). I don't hear any noise of a dragging pad, and it is on the same side as me driving the car to check it out. So it could be the lower bolt is simply supposed to slide sideways inside the sleeve and the sleeve really doesn't need to move itself. However, maybe the sleeve is supposed to move and the driver side is frozen and somehow that might cause uneven wear on the pads, like the top end of the pad doing all the gripping.

 

For reference, see the parts diagram at https://home.comcast.net/~vanguard.stealth/subaru/frontdiscdiagram.pdf. The part that I am talking about is item #8, the lock pin sleeve. I think it moved a bit on one side but was unmovable on the other side other than moving a wee bit by tapping with a hammer to move it out a tad in order to get the parts to slide back together. So it can move if whacked with a hammer to get the parts to fit. I just don't know if the sleeve is meant to actually move when inside the hole in the assy or if it is supposed to be a snug fit and the rubber boots are merely to protect the lubricated bolt (the #4 lock pin) that goes through the sleeve.

[Setright]

Okay, to avoid confusing what does what and where these things are:

 

When I do my brakes, I remove the pads, clean and lube the guide pins, and then assemble temporarily without pads and check that the caliper can slide without resistance. No binding top or bottom.

[Vanguard]

Okay, to avoid confusing what does what and where these things are:

 

When I do my brakes, I remove the pads, clean and lube the guide pins, and then assemble temporarily without pads and check that the caliper can slide without resistance. No binding top or bottom.

So when the caliper slides, does the bottom lock pin slide inside a fixed sleeve or does the sleeve also move? If just the lock pin (bolt) slides around then the sleeve is merely to provide a polished surface through which the lubricated bolt slides, and the rubber boots would be to keep the bolt clean rather than keep the ends of the sleeve clean since it doesn't slide in the hole in the caliper assembly. Alternatively, maybe the sleeve is supposed to slide in the hole in the caliper to provide some give.

 

It was my friend who said that the sleeve on the passenger side slid a bit but then he wasn't sure on recollection if he was just happening to flexing the rubber boots on each end or if the sleeve actually moved in and out. It seems the lubricated lock pin bolt is supposed to do all the moving, just like the pin at the top does all the sliding.

 

Thanks for the tip, though, about putting the bolt back in without the pads to make sure the caliper assembly slides freely. I'll remember to do that next time. The brakes are together now and I really don't want to disassemble them unless the sleeve really is supposed to move inside the hole in the caliper. I was surprised that the pads did not include a packet of brake grease. When I was at the store picking up the pads, I just happened to pickup a grease packet at the counter (because they were next to the dielectric grease and anti-sieze compound that I need for doing the spark plugs).

[Gnuman]

the bottom sleve also moves. the passenger side is an example of the correct operation (providing that both sleves move smoothly and easily). You need to take that driver's side caliper back off and clean then grease the sleeve so it moves easily before putting it back on.

[Vanguard]

the bottom sleve also moves. the passenger side is an example of the correct operation (providing that both sleves move smoothly and easily). You need to take that driver's side caliper back off and clean then grease the sleeve so it moves easily before putting it back on.

What is the best way to get the sleeve removed from the hole. Even when tapping with a hammer, it moved only enough to let me slide the caliper back down so the lock pin bolt would slide through. I'm concerned about hitting it anymore with a hammer simply because it seems soft enough to be malleable and the end would squash so it could distort and make its diameter smaller or warped so the bolt won't slide through well or the sleeve slide through the hole. I'm not sure if a C-clamp would work since one end would have to be off the sleeve and the squeezing would be at an angle. Is there a C-clamp with a hole at one end through which the sleeve would pass?

 

UPDATE:

 

Well, to get the sleeve pushed out of the caliper assembly (so I can clean and lube it), I figure to use a piece of wood, drill out a hole a bit bigger than the sleeve, place it over the sleeve, and use a C-clamp. That would let me align the C-clamp along the sleeve to push it out rather than having to resort to banging (and distorting) the end of the sleeve with a hammer or mar it up on the outside surface (that slides through the hole in the caliper) by using lockjaw pliers.

 

I'm taking the car into the shop on Saturday for an all-fluid flush job and to look at the struts (since I suspect some are bad due to wheel slap and an overly hard ride than from before). I'll ask them about the sleeve. Or maybe I'll just have them do it since it will be up on the hoist, anyway, if they don't charge too much.