Saving Brembo - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

I cant sleep so thought I would post this for you guys who are hands on. When I bought the car Boxster S 2002 5 years ago, I decided a full service would be a good idea. I started with the brakes because I wasn't too impressed with the stopping power (I love late braking). When I tried to bleed them a number of the bleed screws would no way turn. They were locked in solid. The signs were this job was going to be bigger than a brake bleed. I decided to ride out the few months coming up to winter, as I would be taking the old boy off the road then for the 6 month lay up. After I lay-ed the car up I started the brake job, I looked at the discs (rotors) and decided they needed replacing. So I started stripping everything off at all 4 corners. When I got the calipers on the bench all became clear. Have a look at the photos This was what I found the steel bleed screw was fused to the Ali body of the caliper. This was the case with two of them on the fronts. After weighing my options I decided the best and most cost affective way was to try and find inserts. As you can see in this photo I drilled them out. Then I taped them out ready for the inserts. By the way the inserts are stainless steel. Decided on a repaint as well. Just testing fit before paint. New seals as well, a complete referb. Looking good. I should be able to bleed the brakes after this job. They are back on. You will notice I had to renew the short length of brake pipe as well. Its a very corrosive place the UK, especially winter time. No winter driving in this car from now on.

I am voting A+ for this DYI Don't forget to let Lucia know about it http://986forum.com/forums/general-discussions/60336-submit-your-diy-article-get-10%25-off-your-next-order.html

Very nice job sir...

Excellent DIY my friend. If you do submit, make sure your order is worthwhile so the 10% discount equals the lifetime of royalties PP gets in return

Nice job, looks great I will say, that is the first time I have heard someone saying that the Boxster brakes, especially a S was unimpressive. Our brakes are f'in great!

I like it....was wondering about one of my rusty nipples Any sealant / seal required on the outside insert or are they made for a slight interference thread fit?

Nice work! Possibly old brake fluid could cause this kind of corrosion. Also, no anti-seize on the bleed screw threads could allow water ingress from the outside. Where did you get the Porsche decal? Looks great!

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Hello jaykay I used very strong thread lock, right the way down the thread. No leaks been done 5 years.

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Hello JayG Bear in mind I was using a car with brakes that had probably not been bled properly for years. Since I have done the job though they are a lot better. Having said that I still think they could be better for the car it is. If you check out Pelican Parts 101 Projects for the Boxster I think you will find Wayne said the same thing there.

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Hello jakeru I got the decals off ebay. Whoever they were pushed them through my door. no stamp.

Great job. When you were drilling and tapping the calipers for the inserts how did you stop the aluminum shavings from dropping inside the caliper? Or did you just use compressed air when you were finished to blow out any residue?

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Hello alynch I was not to worried about shavings as everything was washed and blown through with compressed air as you mentioned.

Very nice ! Where did you found those inserts ? I hate messing with brakes hydraulics... always something that go wrong ! Just one thing, did you use copper for the rigid line ? For your own security, use stainless steel Ben.

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Hello Ben006 Thanks for your comments. I purchased the inserts from ebay uk. The short copper pieces I used are a copper nickel mix 60% more burst resistant than pure copper. I have used it all my life, and its legal hear in the UK. The lines on most production cars are steel with nickel plate. Brake lines hear in the UK corrode easily because of the whether and salty roads, especially the short hard lines to the caliper . Most replacements here are copper nickel. I have never heard of stainless steel lines.