rfrys

So, I have a local mechanic that I know very well put on new front rotors (33K miles). Like 1/2 the price the dealer quoted. Anyway, he called me in the middle of the job and said when he went to take the caliper off the passenger side, it was damaged- one of the bolts was completely stripped. He would not be able to fully tighten the caliper. The thing is, I had the car in 12 months ago for warped rotors, and the dealer said that caliper was sticking and needed to be replaced under warranty. Fine. So I told my guy to hold off, and I'll try to see if Acura will replace the caliper under warranty.

Question is, since I had a non-Acura mechanic work on the brakes after they did (I'm assuming they will immediately be able to tell due to the new rotors), do you think they will replace the caliper under warranty? They could easlily claim my mechanic messed it up. Do I take it to Acura and say that another mechanic noticed, or do I take it in and play dumb and say I'm hearing some strange noises while braking from the front pass brakes?

I totally trust my guy, as he has worked on my cars (3 Acuras and a Honda) for the past 9 years. There is no way he would hose me. If he broke it, he would fix it for free. He said he would replace the caliper for $125 parts at cost. He wasn't going to charge me labor.

SatinSilverTypS

iTrader: (1)

this is a toughie. i would almost say to play dumb and bring it in.....but that own't really work since the rotors are new then. you're best bet is to be honest and explain everything to the service manager in a calm manner to see if they will do anything for you.

they may balk at it, but if you try the worst they can do is say no.

good luck.

SSTS

optomos

He said he would not be able to completely tighten the rotor? I thought he couldn't take it off?

Anyway thats not a warranty issue and I dont see how your going to prove Acura dealer did it. They will see that there are new rotors installed.

Phesto

Wow i would say take rotors off, but that may cost more than 125$

Try your best with the dealer

drcookie

The dealer stripped the screw to the IceBox when I took my car in for transmission replacement. Nothing much I could do about it since I got no proof !!!

mdavisii

If I am understanding this correctly, the caliper itself is fine. Sounds like the bracket that the caliper bolts into (and where the brakes seat) has a stripped thread. If that is the case, you can go to a junkyard and just purchase the caliper bracket. They'll prb try to sell the caliper and the bracket together for about $50 or something like that. But you shouldn't need an actual caliper replacement.

rfrys

I talked to the dealer today and told them the truth. They said since brake work has been done to the car by a non-Acura mechanic it's not something they can cover under warranty. I knew that would be the response.

Driving around today I could even hear the f*cker rattling. Like I need another rattle.

mdavisii - I'll look into the salvage yard used part. Dp you think I could replace the bracket myself? Would I have to bleed the brakes?

Acuracy02

I'm real sorry to hear about such a tough situation. I would suggest taking care of everything asap since not fixing problems can cause new problems. It's tough when you suspect who messed it up and can't do anything about it, but take this chance to know your brakes will be completely new and perfect after you get them truly fixed (by your trusted mechanic).

fsttyms1

All depends on what is actually striped. You need to find out if its teh brake or the spindle

mdavisii

Fsttyms1 has a highly valid point. Looking at his diagram, you need to check out Items 6/7 and Items 1/2 (these numbers represent either driver's or passenger side for each component). Items 6/7 is the bracket I was referring to. There are two threaded holes that the bolts go through to secure themselves to Items 1/2 (on the side there in the diagram), which represents the spindle (knuckle). If the thread is stripped on the bracket, then you can easily replace the bracket and attach your current caliper to it. If, however, your thread on the spindle is stripped you have another scenario. Worse case you will have a whole new knuckle (w/ balljoint and all). Let's hope the problem lies in the bracket, that would by far be the simple fix. By the way, since you are not doing anything with the actual caliper/brakeline, there is no need to bleed anything. In essence you will be replacing one of the components the caliper attaches too, again hopefully that would be the bracket.

TunedTL

Is 14 the bolt you stripped?
It is one of two bolts that attach the caliper to the bracket, it is over-torque at the factory and I stripped one of them trying to take driver side caliper off. But I was able to get a 6 point craftsman socket, hammer it in and use a torque wrench to take it off. The bolt itself is cheap about $5 at Acura.
I have a spare pair of TL calipers and brackets if you needs to replace the caliper.

fsttyms1

Is it 14 or the floating pins bolt #17