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I have taken them apart and its pain to redo the seals. Also we dont have the seal on its own anymore ( it think people just swapped calipers). Just the dust cover, some people have matched up a seal they found.
Also i found the piston on the rear likes to corrode and stick. Both the caliper bore side and the piston itself. You cannot rebuild them if the bores are messed up and pitted with corrosion. I had to replace mine with new ATE rears. We have the bremmen part ones in now which i would have gotten if we had them at the time. Yours look pretty clean and might not be bad. The salt here killed mine.
Yea, we use to rebuild calipers (Seal Kit) back when I was earning my dosh by pulling wrench. But I have not been able to find such service kits for some time for standard calipers, it seems manufactures would rather have you just replace the assembly.
Pity you didn't upgrade your rubber lines to Stainless Braided, some really great quality hoses out there for about the same price as the OEM Rubber.
Finished up with this for the most part. i ran into two things that i'm looking to sort out.
i used a motive pressure bleeder to bleed the brakes along with inpa to activate the abs pump. went ok but at one point i saw fluid running down the back of the reservoir. I was at 15 psi. No leaks once the pressure is released. Normal?
Second, is there a way to adjust the e-brake without removing the pads? I have the bolt at the leaver all the way down. the left locks up but the right spins.
The e-brake has a single cable going to a splitter that is supposed to account for different lengths of cables or pad wear, but I can never get them to hold the same resistance. Adjust it so one side grabs and then check it again a few months from now. it might settle out and adjust better.
When replacing my brake fluid reservoir I found a crack on the backside corner that was not visible from the front. Like yours it started leaking when pressurized. I have no idea why it didn't leak from normal usage. And BTW, the price of a new plastic reservoir is ridiculous!
When replacing my brake fluid reservoir I found a crack on the backside corner that was not visible from the front. Like yours it started leaking when pressurized. I have no idea why it didn't leak from normal usage. And BTW, the price of a new plastic reservoir is ridiculous!
When replacing my brake fluid reservoir I found a crack on the backside corner that was not visible from the front. Like yours it started leaking when pressurized. I have no idea why it didn't leak from normal usage. And BTW, the price of a new plastic reservoir is ridiculous!
Originally Posted by ssoliman
sounds like i have to replace mine
What is it with brake fluid reservoirs cracking?
I replaced my original reservoir in 2018 after I went to pressure bleed my brake system and like @cooper48 , I had brake fluid running down the reservoir. About a month ago, I went to pressure bleed my brake system again and same thing!
This time I am adding steel braided brake lines just because I'm still on my original brake hoses from early 2003.
Same exact problem.... I used a power bleeder to do my brakes this spring and had brake fluid seeping down.... can't really see the leak anywhere but I just ordered a new reservoir.
Part is now over $100. I ordered from Pelican because they are on the West Coast so shipping is only a couple days.
When I first bought my car, the parking brake didn't work so great. I found the driver side caliper wasn't engaging properly. Even when moving the lever by hand, I could see the piston wasn't really moving at all. I replaced the caliper and that did the trick.
there is a process in TIS for adjusting the e-brake. it involves pushing the pistons on the calipers all the way down. so im eventually going to have to go back in and try.
for now, one side grabs but the other doesn't as much. ive just been parking it in gear for now
e-brake worked perfectly before the new pads, so I think the calipers are good
Circling back to the degradation of the brake/hydraulic fluid reservoir -I meant to reply earlier...
Before performing unfamiliar tasks or repairs (including hydraulic pressure bleeding) on my own R53, I often like to hit the salvage yards as a primer by taking things apart on a junker.
What I'd discovered on 90% of the junkers, when removing the brake fluid reservoir was either cracked or severely degraded plastic at the far leading edge on the end of the tank. Always seems to be just underneath the cowl vent.
Seeing firsthand from what I saw on all the salvage yard Mini's reservoirs that I'd pulled; I felt it prudent to purchase a new reservoir before attempting to pressure bleed my own Mini.
I'm glad I did.
Pictured below was my 19 y/o, never replaced, reservoir tank when/before I performed power bleeding my hydraulic system...
It's a little hard to see, but - I wrapped a strip of Gorilla tape along the back edge of the new reservoir before installing.
2wo years to this day I have yet to see any sign of wear where I had applied the tape.
Circling back to the degradation of the brake/hydraulic fluid reservoir -I meant to reply earlier...
Before performing unfamiliar tasks or repairs (including hydraulic pressure bleeding) on my own R53, I often like to hit the salvage yards as a primer by taking things apart on a junker.
What I'd discovered on 90% of the junkers, when removing the brake fluid reservoir was either cracked or severely degraded plastic at the far leading edge on the end of the tank. Always seems to be just underneath the cowl vent.
Seeing firsthand from what I saw on all the salvage yard Mini's reservoirs that I'd pulled; I felt it prudent to purchase a new reservoir before attempting to pressure bleed my own Mini.
I'm glad I did.
Pictured below was my 19 y/o, never replaced, reservoir tank when/before I performed power bleeding my hydraulic system...
It's a little hard to see, but - I wrapped a strip of Gorilla tape along the back edge of the new reservoir before installing.
2wo years to this day I have yet to see any sign of wear where I had applied the tape.
If you're using a pressure bleeder to do the brakes be careful not to exceed 10-12 psi. 15 psi can get you in trouble with blowing the seals on the clutch master cylinder that resides on the clutch pedal, especially if it's old. That's something you want to avoid at all costs because it is a true PITA to replace. It required me removing the driver's seat to get access then cussing non-stop as I worked on it -- there is absolutely no room to easily accomplish the replacement. Word of caution: EVERY SINGLE TIME you remove the seat (or the steering wheel for that matter), be sure to disconnect the battery first or you'll trip the airbag light and it requires programming to reset.
If you're using a pressure bleeder to do the brakes be careful not to exceed 10-12 psi. 15 psi can get you in trouble with blowing the seals on the clutch master cylinder that resides on the clutch pedal, especially if it's old. That's something you want to avoid at all costs because it is a true PITA to replace. It required me removing the driver's seat to get access then cussing non-stop as I worked on it -- there is absolutely no room to easily accomplish the replacement. Word of caution: EVERY SINGLE TIME you remove the seat (or the steering wheel for that matter), be sure to disconnect the battery first or you'll trip the airbag light and it requires programming to reset.
Agree.
I had previously read somewhere = 15 psi. Even with a new reservoir and no signs of leaking; I was cautious at @12psi.
