motsco_ _ wrote:
> Chopface wrote:
>
>> Hello,
>>
>> I've been working on a '98 Civic HX with 108k miles on it. It was
>> bought used, and had some sort of intial brake problem when test
>> driven that was taken care of by the used car dealer it was bought
>> from. I think the pedal was soft, so maybe it was just bleeding or
>> master cylinder work.
>>
>> The driver's side front brake is sticking. This started after
>> replacing the pads for the front brakes. I noticed when replacing the
>> pads that the pads on the driver's side brakes were worn unevenly
>> across the length of the pads. The upper pin of the caliper was not
>> moving very freely and had to be cleaned up and lubed. Also, pushing
>> the piston in with a c-clamp did not work until opening the bleeder.
>> This was not required for the passenger side which was done first.
>>
>> The sticking did not occur immediately after replacing the brake pads.
>> The car was driven at least 120 miles before the problem started. When
>> the brakes started sticking the car was driven to the point of smoke
>> being emitted from the brakes. After receiving advice from a mechanic
>> I decided to replace the brake hose for the assembly. When doing the
>> work I inspected the caliper and the piston and noticed the dust seal
>> on the piston had melted. I got a used caliper from a junkyard and
>> installed it and bled the system. The car was then driven for a solid
>> 300 miles with no problems until the brake started sticking again. Its
>> driving me nuts because I will drive the car and the brakes are fine
>> and then as soon as I hand it over to my brother it starts sticking
>> again.
>>
>> Anyone got any ideas about what could be the problem? Could it be the
>> pipe from the master cylinder to the hose?
>>
>> Thanks for any ideas or advice,
>>
>> Mark
>
>
> -------------------
>
> Were _all_ of the brakes overheated, or just the one? Does it have ABS?
> Has anybody had the master cylinder apart (and set the clearance so
> tight so the brake boost is always ON)?
>
> 'Curly'
>

The only brakes having the problem are the driver's side front. This car
does not have ABS. I do not know what the used car dealer had done to
remedy the initial brake problem I mentioned. Unfortunately I didn't
drive the car at all until after the dealer had fixed the brakes.

My father talked to the mechanic who recommended replacing the hose and
said that air can be stubborn getting out of the lines and that you may
have to bleed, drive a while, bleed, drive a while, bleed, etc. to get
all the air out.

The one thing through all of this that seemed odd was how the piston in
the caliper wouldn't budge on the driver's side front until I opened the
bleeder. This was not necessary on the other side or either of the front
brakes on my '91 civic.

Mark