Re: 1990 200tqw: Parking brake problem and stuck brakes

[Ssgacc@aol.com]

I have noticed quite a few posts about this subject recently so I figured I'd 
add my $.02.  This happened to my first Audi.  I was equally perplexed, so I 
removed said caliper and disassembled it.  I found that the piston and rod 
that it threads onto were both rusted in a ring right around their bores.  
Since I have disassembled about 20 Girling rear calipers, and what I have 
found is that they ALL show some signs of this rust (everything from a slight 
rust-colored ring to absolutely fused solid), and the right (passenger) side 
was always worse.  Seems that the brake fluid absorbs moisture, which works 
its way or gets trapped at these o-rings, where it does its damage.  First 
time I rebuilt one of these it was an absolute b*tch.  I couldn't even figure 
out how to get it apart completely.  The cost of these calipers is HIGH 
(check out the core charge).  Once I identified all the soft parts (caliper 
kit p/n, o-ring sizes, and oil seal size) I found they were very cheap.  Then 
I needed various hones and reamers to clean the bores.  The issue becomes: 
1-how badly yours are damaged (rusted), 2-how many units you might eventually 
rebuild, 3-what your mechanical ability or tool availability is, and 4-what 
the time/money factor is for you.  You could save $200-$300 per pair (not to 
mention no core charges) by rebuilding them yourself.  Also I had the last 
set I did powdercoated/plated to prevent this from happening again.

HTH
Jim Accordino