It seems my rear driver side caliper is sticking. There is way too much dust on the rear driver wheel and there is some noise coming from it while driving. I lifted up the rear yesterday and tried spinning the wheel with the hand brake off. The wheel does not spin very freely. After a drive the wheel is also much hotter than the other wheels. Is it possible that it's not the caliper but the hand brake is sticking on this side instead?

If it is indeed the caliper, should I get new rotors and pads for both sides?

I've also heard that it is recommended to change calipers in pairs?

Do the brakes need to be bleed on all 4 corners after this job?

 

Check all your caliper slide pins first, they may be seized/rusted.

No, you don't have to change both calipers, this practice only applies to pads/rotors.

yes, it might be a seized up e-brake cable on the rear wheel, disconnect the cable from the suspect wheel, then test drive, or spin the wheel.

Yes, you should bleed all corners after replacing brake parts, just to clean some of the old fluid out at least.

 

you most likely need to replace the brake pads for sure. Excess brake dust and noise means they are very low if not completely gone. And when you do pads do them in pairs.

 

the brake dust is due to the stuck caliper which forces one pad to constantly rub against the rotor. The pads are Nissan OEM with 21k miles on them.

If the parking brake was stuck on one side, would I get a lot of brake dust from it as well?

 

Yes.

Make sure your parking brake closes and releases when you operate the lever. Stuck parking brake cables are common.

Unfortunately, sticking calipers aren't uncommon either. I've dealt with one of each.

There is no need for new rotor/pad if your pad still has sufficient material.

Dave

 

check the two slide pins on the caliper, if they move freely or not. If one is stuck thats probably the problem. I always take out the pins when doing brakes and put a little wheel bearing grease in it to keep it from locking up. It would be a waste to buy a new caliper if its just a slide pin that got stuck. Also u might need new brake pads afterwards if they have really worn down. Or your e-brake is stuck