How to Replace the Calipers in a 1993 Mazda 929

Miles of service on the road can wear out the caliper cylinder and piston, causing a dangerous fluid leak. This not only compromises brake system functionality but your safety on the road. Fortunately, replacing a caliper in your 1993 Mazda 929 is not as complicated as you may think. If you work in an organized manner, you can install a new caliper in your garage on a Saturday morning using a few common tools.

Instructions

Removing the Old Caliper

1

Park your 929 on level ground. Release the parking brake and shift the transmission to neutral. Open the hood and disconnect the ground (black) battery cable with a wrench, if you are replacing a caliper on one of the rear wheels.

2

Loosen the lug nuts on the wheel with the caliper you are servicing. Use a lug wrench.

3

Lift the car off the ground using a floor jack and position a jack stand under the frame for support and lower the vehicle. Finish removing the wheel assembly and block the two front or rear tires that remained on the ground with a wooden block.

4

Remove any grime from the brake hose attached to the back of the caliper so that no dirt will get into the brake hydraulic system. Release the parking brake cable from the bracket with a wrench and release the cable from the lever with a pair of needle-nose pliers, if you are replacing a rear caliper.

5

Unfasten and remove the two mounting bolts from the back of the caliper. On the rear caliper, unfasten and remove the upper caliper mounting bolt. Use a six-point socket and ratchet.

6

Unfasten the bolt that secures the brake hose to the back of the caliper with a ratchet and six-point socket. Remove the bolt, hose and the two sealing washers, one on each side of the brake hose fitting. Cover the brake hose opening with a clean plastic sheet and a rubber band to keep the brake fluid from spilling onto the floor.

7

Pull the brake caliper off the bracket assembly. On the rear wheel assembly, swing the caliper downward and then slide the caliper off the guide pin to remove the caliper.

8

Spray brake parts cleaner around the brake assembly to remove any friction dust and wipe the assembly with lint-free towels.

Installing the New Caliper

9

Install the new caliper over the bracket assembly. On the rear wheel assembly, slide the lower mounting hole on the caliper over the guide pin and then swing the caliper over the caliper bracket.

10

Install the brake hose on the new caliper using two new sealing washers on the hose fitting. Install the brake hose mounting bolt finger tight and then tighten the bolt with the ratchet and six-point socket.

11

Replace the two caliper mounting bolts, or the single bolt on the rear assembly, finger tight and tighten the bolts with the six-pint socket and ratchet.

12

Replace the parking brake cable on the lever using the needle-nose pliers and secure the cable to the bracket with the wrench, if you are servicing a rear caliper.

13

Connect an 8-inch clear vinyl hose over the bleeder screw on top of the caliper you just installed and submerge the other end of the hose in brake fluid inside a clear container.

14

Ask an assistant to press and hold the brake pedal to the floor. Turn the bleeder screw about three-quarters of a turn counterclockwise with a small wrench. Ask your assistant to slowly pump the brake pedal. When you see brake fluid without air bubbles coming out the end of the hose submerged in the brake fluid, ask your assistant to hold the brake pedal to the floor. Tighten the bleeder screw and release the brake pedal.

15

Mount the wheel assembly on the wheel hub and thread the lug nuts snugly. Check the fluid level in the brake master cylinder reservoir and add new fluid, if necessary, to bring the level up to the "Full" mark.

16

Lower the wheel off the jack stand and tighten the lug nuts with the lug wrench. Reconnect the ground (black) battery cable with the wrench, if you replaced a caliper on one of the rear wheels, and close the hood.