Hello,

I've got an 88 or 89 240 wagon, non-abs brakes, girling calipers. I was having some weird braking problems, intermittent "brake failure" and weak braking were the symptoms, until one day I noticed my right front brake gettin stuck and smoking! I pulled the wheel and checked the pads and they were GONE. Metal-on-metal. Somehow my rotors are perfectly smooth, no clue how, but I clearly needed new pads.

Ok, easy right? NOPE! I cannot get the new brake pads in!! I was able to squeeze one of them in, but if you've worked with these calipers you know if you compress one piston, the pison on the other side engages, I was not able to compress the piston on the other side enough to get the other new pad in. In my several hours of messing with them I may have damaged by calipers/pistons trying to force things together, I'm not really sure.

I am fairly certain I purchased the correct pads, they look just like the old ones, they just have meat on them.

For now I just put the old pads back so I can at least drive it back from my workshop. I'm at a loss for what to do now. I'm not really understanding what's wrong. The only thing I can think to do is get a bench grinder or something and take like half the material off the new pads so they'll fit. It seems something else is causing this problem though...

Do I need to just replace the calipers? Drain the system? Kind of at a loss. I thought about just taking it to a brake shop and saying "here's pads can you put them in?" And seeing what they say

 

With non-abs brakes - you have 2 flexible brake lines going to each front caliper. (and one to each rear caliper)

What can happen is a flexible brake line collapses on the inside - and will allow pressurized brake fluid (you stepping on the pedal) to the caliper but will not "bleed" back or release. Hence the worn out brake pads on one side.

If you want to install the pads and verify a flexible hose is bad - simply loosen one of the bleeder screw to allow the piston to push back. (and squirt fluid on the ground) Make sure you do not allow any air back in the system/screw during that process.

If you can push the piston back and install the pads by letting brake fluid out - you have a collapsed brake hose. (or a misadjusted pushrod on the master cylinder not allowing the fluid back when released) Replacing that hose will solve your brakes not releasing problem.

Your intermittent brake failure - the brake failure light comes on when there is more pressure in one side than the other. (dual master cylinder, 1 side to each front caliper and a rear, the other side the same to the other rear caliper). There is a piston in the brake junction block that is pushed to one side if the pedal sinks to the floor. So it's a warning that - HEY - your brake pedal just WENT TO THE FLOOR!

That could be a sign of a failing master cylinder - but in your case it could have been because the stuck caliper was boiling the brake fluid in one side, causing a pressure differential.

 

thank you for that info. Just to confirm, both old pads are worn evenly! My problem is the new pads won’t go in, even when I pushed the piston back in as far as I could.

yes I did encounter a problem where a piston got stuck but even when it’s compressed back in the new pads just won’t fit.

I am wondering if the overheating I experienced by braking on worn out pads has caused metal in my caliper or something to permanently expand?

or maybe I need to purchase a bench grinder and “make it fit” ??

 

No the heat did not do that.

Have you tried installing new pads in the other side? That will tell you if the (i'm certain aftermarket) new pads are too thick.

 

oh good idea. I’ll try that.

I now see what you mean about the lines. I suppose if one piston comes out and gets stuck when the other is compressed it’s because the line isn’t necessarily allowing the fluid back up into the reservoir. Hmmm.