2014 RT Limited Left Front Brake Caliper Leaking.

[petew]

My 2014 with 1000 miles has a leaking L/F brake caliper . I look at a replacement and see that it has a $264.00 price tag on it. Is anyone aware if there is a rebuild kit available for these ?

[PinkRosePetal]

It's uncommon to have a brake piston seal fail at such a low mileage, I'd be tempted to dismantle the caliper and check the seal for a little debris or contamination and check the piston for a longitudinal scratch. Be sure to remove the seal from its groove (carefully!) and check the groove for debris or left over manufacturing swarf. I've seen it happen so it's not just a guess.

Fingers crossed, you may get lucky.

[petew]

Thanks for the tip, that's where I will start .

[BajaRon]

I assume it is leaking at the piston? You want to be sure it is not leaking at the bleeder or brake line connection. If it is the piston, I'd be inclined to dismantle it as suggested by PRP. You'll have nothing to lose. If I were to replace it. I'd go with a used one. These have proven to be extremely trouble free over the years. Like this one on eBay. I'd say it will do you as good as a new one.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/2014-14-CAN...0AAOSwBJxd5-xw

Good luck!

[petew]

Another great tip ! Never thought of eBay.

I have a friend who races Trans Am II and he hooked me up with the company that handles his caliper repairs. They are confident that they can reseal it as they routinely deal with Brembo .

The caliper is in a box and will be on it's way to them in the morning. A bonus is that they will pressure test it when they are done.

Can't believe there isn't a kit available for these just an expensive replacement.

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

I assume it is leaking at the piston? You want to be sure it is not leaking at the bleeder or brake line connection itself. If it is the piston, I'd be inclined to dismantle it as suggested by PRP. You'll have nothing to lose. If I were to replace it. I'd go with a used one. These have proven to be extremely trouble free over the years. Like this one on eBay. I'd say it will do you as good as a new one.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/2014-14-CAN...0AAOSwBJxd5-xw

Good luck!

…. this is the more likely area to check and the easiest ….. Ron knows brakes ….. Mike

[Wahrsuul]

Where did you get it done? I've already ordered a replacement for my font left caliper, but it would be nice to know wher to get it fixed if it happens with one of the others.

[petew]

The shop is in Mooresville NC . If they are successful I'll post the name and contact info.

Does anyone know the front caliper bolt torque spec ?

[BajaRon]

The shop is in Mooresville NC . If they are successful I'll post the name and contact info.

Does anyone know the front caliper bolt torque spec ?

Great information! Though I assumed there were places to get Brembo components worked on. I was not aware of any specific vendor for this kind of service. Very anxious to hear the results and pricing.

I think brake system manufacturers quit offering rebuild kits due to liability issues. It is a shame that all these legal claims have gone a long way towards limiting our options.

[petew]

Great information! Though I assumed there were places to get Brembo components worked on. I was not aware of any specific vendor for this kind of service. Very anxious to hear the results and pricing.

I think brake system manufacturers quit offering rebuild kits due to liability issues. It is a shame that all these legal claims have gone a long way towards limiting our options.

Well Ron you are exactly right about the liability issue subject.
When I called and talked to these folks about repairing the caliper the gentleman was hesitant at first because it is a motorcycle caliper and they are not a motorcycle shop.
My friend does a lot of business with them and that may be the only reason that he is willing to fix the caliper. I had to assure him that I don’t sue people that do favors for me, it fact in my 62 years I have never sued a soul.
It is a damned shame that it has come to this.

[BajaRon]

Well Ron you are exactly right about the liability issue subject.
When I called and talked to these folks about repairing the caliper the gentleman was hesitant at first because it is a motorcycle caliper and they are not a motorcycle shop.
My friend does a lot of business with them and that may be the only reason that he is willing to fix the caliper. I had to assure him that I don’t sue people that do favors for me, it fact in my 62 years I have never sued a soul.
It is a damned shame that it has come to this.

Sounds like you've got this worked out. But you might want to impress upon him that it is a 3 wheeled, reverse trike with a very good VSS, Anti-Lock braking system. Not nearly as Litigation Prone as a 2 wheeled vehicle might be.

As I said, very interested in the outcome here. Though it sounds like it may be a 1 shot deal. If this goes well, your provider might be open to more Spyder/Ryker business!

[Wahrsuul]

That's very annoying. We disassembled the caliper - it's leaking for the outside rear piston from the looks of the residue. Pulled all the pistons, cleaned everything as well as possible and re-installed and it's still leaking. Its just one piston seal, no dust seal, you'd think they'd be easy to source.

[ris]

You can try Apple Hydraulics in Caverlton NY
I have used them in the past for automotive calipers.

[PinkRosePetal]

That's very annoying. We disassembled the caliper - it's leaking for the outside rear piston from the looks of the residue. Pulled all the pistons, cleaned everything as well as possible and re-installed and it's still leaking. Its just one piston seal, no dust seal, you'd think they'd be easy to source.

This is where you have to be severely logical with yourself... there must be a fault you missed, perhaps a scratch on the piston, a nick in the seal, a bit of debris or even a hair line crack. Square section seals can be purchased and square section O-ring cord can also be purchased so you can make your own seals. Google will be your friend. To start you off.... https://www.globaloring.com/square-rings/

[petew]

During my quest to find a rebuild kit I spoke to a Brembo dealer, nice guy and he seemed to know his business. He said that there was an internal o ring that sealed the "crossover passage" between the caliper body halves. His claim was that if this o ring was bad then the caliper would leak out of the body and not the bores.

Never took mine apart so I don't know if he is right or wrong.

[PinkRosePetal]

During my quest to find a rebuild kit I spoke to a Brembo dealer, nice guy and he seemed to know his business. He said that there was an internal o ring that sealed the "crossover passage" between the caliper body halves. His claim was that if this o ring was bad then the caliper would leak out of the body and not the bores.

Never took mine apart so I don't know if he is right or wrong.

I think he is correct, that is common practise, sometimes it's a round section O-ring and sometimes a square section O-ring. Extremely unlikely to leak unless there was contamination at the build time. Mind you, I'd say that about the main seal too.
Just for completeness, a main seal fault I've seen is for the square section seal to be picked up for a wee length by the insertion of the piston and it roll 90 degrees in the groove. It sealed for a time but then began to weep.

[Wahrsuul]

Kind of strange that there's be a seal in a crossover passage. Near as I can tell, the caliper is one piece, it didn't have two different halves joined together.

Yes, I could possibly have found the proper seals for it, but that requires some seriously accurate measurements that I'm not confident I could do. So I'd either have to send them out, or just keep trying different sizes till I got it right. Either of which puts the tryke out of commission for a while. Maybe if I get a mind to, I'll pull it apart again after the replacement comes in and start the hunt for seals for next time.

And yes, we could have missed something - we're older and our vision may not be the best, but everything felt smooth as best we could tell. But with the pressures brakes are under it doesn't take much for a leak.

[petew]

I hate it when people post about problems looking for information and then never share the fix or outcome.
Not wanting to be that guy I'm going to finish my leaky caliper story.

The shop in North Carolina that does the caliper work for my friends race car was able to rebuild my caliper. He does not want to do them and only did mine as a favor because of my friend. He did however share some information with me that may be helpful to others with a leaky caliper.

What he told me is that this caliper is also used on quite a few other motorcycles like Harley, Aprilia and some others so they are not Can Am only.

They have 32mm bores and he was able to use off the shelf 32mm Brembo seals that he uses in his race car caliper rebuilds. He did not provide a part number but a little searching on the internet turned up Brembo 32mm race caliper seals pretty quickly.

So while I haven't told you much I think the seals could be found without too much trouble.

Does anyone have any tips on bleeding this system ? Some of what I have seen says that if the key is left off the bleeding can be accomplished without tripping any trouble codes. I also read something about not pushing the pedal all the way to the bottom during the bleeding process ?

Pete

[KX5062]

Since your just bleeding one caliper. Leave the key off and either do a mighty vac power bleed from the caliper nipple or just do an old school pedal push. Just don't push the pedal all the way down. You can search the internet for tips on proper bleeding methods, but don't turn on the key so as to not trip any fault codes.

[PinkRosePetal]

Since your just bleeding one caliper. Leave the key off and either do a mighty vac power bleed from the caliper nipple or just do an old school pedal push. Just don't push the pedal all the way down. You can search the internet for tips on proper bleeding methods, but don't turn on the key so as to not trip any fault codes.

Erm, what is the issue with pushing the pedal completely down?

[KX5062]

Erm, what is the issue with pushing the pedal completely down?

Technically nothing, but if you push it all the way down and don't have the timing for closing off the valve right, it can introduce air into the system.

I've found the best way to do it is to pump it up and then push gently down on the pedal/lever whilst opening the bleed valve. As you feel the lever/pedal collapse, close off the valve before it hits bottom.

[Revalden]

Technically nothing, but if you push it all the way down and don't have the timing for closing off the valve right, it can introduce air into the system.

I've found the best way to do it is to pump it up and then push gently down on the pedal/lever whilst opening the bleed valve. As you feel the lever/pedal collapse, close off the valve before it hits bottom.

Man, you must have incredibly loooong arms/legs to pump the pedal and close/open the valve all the way over on the left brake. Ya'll need to get a brake bleed vacuum pump with a one-way valve connected close to the bleeder valve.

[KX5062]

Man, you must have incredibly loooong arms/legs to pump the pedal and close/open the valve all the way over on the left brake. Ya'll need to get a brake bleed vacuum pump with a one-way valve connected close to the bleeder valve.

I got one, but I prefer to do it the hard/old fashioned way. Better feel for what's going on. I've got the kids and wife trained to do along with me.