STCxB

Hey everyone, I'm having some issues with my calipers and I wanna know what my options are. I did my first set of brakes at about 34k and the rears were seized up. I did them myself with the help of a mechanic friend, so it wasn't the dealership trying to rip me off. It took us 4 hours to get the rotor out of the caliper and I think we had to break the pads to get them out. I'm concerned that they've done it again, as the car feels "heavier" and doesn't roll very well without throttle (it's an auto, so I'd expect it to start moving a bit when not pushing any pedals). I don't want to spend $3.5k to do a big brake kit, but I also don't want put stock calipers on again and have this happen for a third time. If anyone knows of any uprated or aftermarket calipers that aren't part of a bbk, I'd love to hear about it. Thanks!

criminaltc

Calipers shouldn't seize up. You're a fool for not taking it to the dealership at 34K miles because it would obviously be under warranty still if there's another issue going on. If it's just that one caliper and it's a piston that's sticking or something, then that definitely would have been replaced under warranty. I would work on solving the problem to as why it is happening at all. Not sure your mileage now, but if you are within warranty, I'd take it to the dealer.

STCxB

My car is too modified to be under warranty for most parts. That isn't what I'm asking about.

STCxB

Also, if you look at the forums, the number of people with seized calipers is very high. So they shouldn't, but they clearly do. And I don't feel like dealing with it anymore, so I want to know what my aftermarket options would be.

criminaltc

I know about "seized" calipers. They're generally a stuck piston, not "seized".

Get some used TRD's or something [?]

STCxB

Ok "seized", "stuck", whatever. My rear calipers don't do what they need to and I don't want stock ones anymore. I'm reaching out to people to see if anyone can provide me helpful information regarding my options outside of stock calipers and moving to a full-blown BBK. Perhaps calipers from another Scion/Toyota/Lexus model? The TRDs are a BBK that would require me to move to 19s, I believe. I am currently on 17" Konig Feathers with (I believe) +38 offset.

xseveredveganx

The tC2/Rav4 calipers and rotors should work. They're about 20mm larger in diameter but significantly heavier.

Worth hitting up a local auto recycler and picking them up.

STCxB

Is that for the rears or all around?

xseveredveganx

Only the front. The newer Prius uses the same rear axle setup as us, same as the Lexus CT200h.

I honestly feel a brake 'upgrade' to be completely arbitrary. Just replace the calipers with OEM units.

STCxB

The OEM units are the problem. I have uprated rotors, pads, and lines, and the calipers cause me problems, even before I switched to the aftermarket setup. When my original brakes needed replaced I had to buy new OEM calipers and they're bad again.

xseveredveganx

Strange. I'm at 125k and absolutely no problems.

STCxB

Yeah, and I've had at least one set and possibly my second set go bad and I'm only at 42k

xseveredveganx

Play around on rockauto.com and do some research. I highly doubt anyone has changed their brakes besides the normal BBK setups (TRD, KSport, etc.).

I did some research with the tC2 and noticed that they use the same front hub/bearings as the xB2. I performed some more research and I do believe that the front brakes will fit.

Regarding the rear you'll have to make sure that whichever caliper you choose, there will be the appropriate cable bracketry to maintain the emergency brake. There's a lot of rear disc setups that use a drum emergency brake inside the rotor with the regular braking system setup on the rotor itself.

xseveredveganx

With this being said, one would assume that maybe the problem aren't the brakes themselves.

STCxB

I'll take a look at that. Thanks!

STCxB

The thing is, my brake setup was stock and things went south. I haven't diagnosed my most current problem, I just have a suspicion that it may be the same problem as before. Once I have the time to look at things I'll be able to say more.

criminaltc

That's what I said, but I get ranted at... real nice.

STCxB

Actually no, you called me a fool. You were rude, and provided no helpful information to answer the question that I asked. So please leave this thread alone unless you can provide information regarding different calipers that will fit the rear brakes of a 2008 xB running 17" wheels. I do not know what the current issue is with my brakes and have not had time to diagnose it. Once I do, I'll know more and know what course of action to take.

xseveredveganx

In a round-about way, you certainly may have. However, I feel that I'm slightly more eloquent.

You may consider completely bleeding the system of all the existing brake fluid and starting anew.
A good friend of mine had to replace her front calipers, but I'm not positive why. My passenger rear caliper was difficult to adjust in when I replaced my pads. I purchased the correct tool, threaded the piston back in correctly, and everything worked perfectly.

STCxB

Looks like a mounting bolt for my rear right caliper jumped ship. I have two bolts on order just in case, so once I have that back to normal I'll be able to say more about whether it is defective or not.