changing calipers
 

I know there are a lot of people on the board who do their own brakes... anyone replace the calipers? Meinekee says both my front calipers are rusted and need to be replaced... they are original, approx 70k miles. They are charging $500. Is this something I can do myself? I'm no master mechanic, but I'm not a moron either.

This is not a brain surgery item. It is fairly easy to do. I would want to know where the rust is. Rust on the outside is not a problem. If rust develops on the pistons it is a problem. 2 bolts hold the caliper on , and there is 1 hose connection. The hose connection usually has 2 copper washers for seals (make sure you use 2 new ones). When done, bleed the brakes. Tapping lightly on the caliper while bleeding does help knock loose tiny air bubbles and give you better pedal.

Was $500 for the complete job or just the calipers?:eek:

Re: changing calipers
 

Price the calipers, dont look for the lowest cost. Also make sure they are coated, some rebuilders just spray a light clear over the shotblasted caliper, these will rust back up in a hurry, especially if your in an area where they salt the roads. These are easy to do yourself, you can even bleed them yourself, bolt them on, make sure the RH and LH are on the correct side, bleeder will be pointing up, now crack the bleeder, gravity will push out all the air, once the bubbles stop, close the bleeder off, basically just a bolt on part.:pat:

Torques for installation. All in ft.lbs. This is out of the 2000 shop manual. I assume all third gens are the same.

Mounting bolts - 90
Beeder plug - 8
Fluid line - 11

You can't really use a torque wrench on the plug and line. Just gave the values for completness.

I like to lube bolts with anti-sieze compound. Buy it at the auto parts store.

Good luck. I have not done this particular job, but is looks straight forward in the manual.

I have replaced pads and it is easier on a 4Runner than any others I have done. Remove the clip holding the pins. Remove pins and anti rattle spring. Pay attention to where the anti squeal shims are when you take the pads out. You won't have to do this with new calipers, but I use a c-clamp to push the pistions back into the housing. Might be good to complete one side before you tear down the other so you can see where things go.

It would be smart to bleed the brakes before you start. This way you will flush all the old fluid out of the lines and you will not put and nasty old fluid in the new calipers.

Post questions if you have any and let us know how the job went.