DIY: 98 V70 Brake Hydraulic Overhaul (Hoses, Seals, Parking)

[cn90]

Update on my other car 1998 S70 GLT with 160K miles.

- Car pulls to the right even after an alignment. Turned out the RF brake caliper is seized. It has been going on for a few months b/c the brake pads wear down to 2-3 mm on the seized side (RF), but the LF caliper is still good with 8-9 mm.

- Somehow the protective rubber boot OUTER Lip is out of the groove.

- For RF seized caliper, got a rebuilt caliper from local Napa for $45.

- The "good side", i.e. LF caliper, I rebuilt it anyway using ATE seal kit as written in this thread.
During the rebuilt, I got "lazy" and did not want to run the air compressor, so:
* Clamped the brake hose (used card board as cushion).
* Open the bleed valve a bit, grabbed the foot pump that my kids use to pump basketballs.
* A few foot pumps later, the brake piston come out nicely.

- Installed new TEXTAR brake pads, all is good now.

The morale of the story: not all alignment problems come from worn tierod, suspension issues, sometimes it is a seized caliper!!!

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VolvoSeizedCaliper02.JPG (119.29 KiB) Viewed 2485 times

VolvoSeizedCaliper03.JPG (161.59 KiB) Viewed 2485 times

[oragex]

The most important thing is to replace the front flexible lines, they crack and sure will blow off (it happened once when I did a moderate braking on the highway, luckily the hand brake was working). Replace both front ones.

To keep the oil from leaking once a line is disconnected, prepare something like a small piece of eraser and insert it to stop the leaking. I much prefer this instead a clamping a rubber hose.

When greasing caliper pins, also remove the sliding rubbers, shim off the rust underneath and put some silicone grease. The rust thickens and restricts the pin from sliding freely.

Don't forget to grease the caliper sliding pins every 3 years with silicone grease.

[xHeart]

...

To keep the oil from leaking once a line is disconnected, prepare something like a small piece of eraser and insert it to stop the leaking. I much prefer this instead a clamping a rubber hose.

...

...like corking-a-bottle approach?

[cn90]

Brake hoses were replaced 12 months ago.

[cn90]

...To keep the oil from leaking once a line is disconnected, prepare something like a small piece of eraser and insert it to stop the leaking. I much prefer this instead a clamping a rubber hose...

1- If the hose is disconnected, I use a ziploc bag and rubber band to seal it, preventing fluid loss.
Don't cork it or use eraser b/c you don't want any trace of debris inside the hydraulic system.

2- In my case, the hose is brand new, a few months old. And since I didn't want to disconnect the hose (from the caliper):
- I pinched the hose with pliers (card board as cushion). I have used this technique (pinching hoses) for 25 years, no issues at all.
- Then I used the bleed port to introduce air (from the foot pump) to expel the piston. This technique (using foot pump) works great for those without an air compressor.

[xHeart]

My holiday challenge.
Is this caliper repairable, piston looks rusted? Would you recommend replacing with a reman?

caliper piston boot coming off

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[cn90]

See my photo above, exact same issue as yours, xHeart.
Get a reman from NAPA for $45.

[xHeart]

See my photo above, exact same issue as yours, xHeart.
Get a reman from NAPA for $45.

Happy Holidays cn90.
NAPA is not in this area.
Online search shows O'rielly have A1Cardon reman in-stock. The store 5 miles away.
Would it be safe to drive with this problem, pick up calipers when the store opens Thu 26th, I have no other means to get there.

[cn90]

Yes, safe to drive with that caliper (which shows rusted piston but no leak).
Check the reman caliper, very often it says "Volvo, ATE" b/c it came from another car that they re-mfg.

[xHeart]

Yes, safe to drive with that caliper (which shows rusted piston but no leak).
Check the reman caliper, very often it says "Volvo, ATE" b/c it came from another car that they re-mfg.

Would the brake fluid pour out or drip once the line is unscrewed at the caliper, an Oz or cup?
$40 each at O'Rielly.

Volvo ATE - Reman

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Piston, seal, and hardware

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