New rear calipers wedge

Maintenance advice to keep your Spider in shape.
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tima01864
Patron 2021
Patron 2021
Posts: 702
Joined: Thu Jan 12, 2012 8:01 pm
Your car is a: 1983 FIAT Pininafarina Spider 2000
Location: Wilmington, MA

New rear calipers wedge

Post by tima01864 »

I have my answer for the witness mark on the piston, Faces up to the bleeder. I installed the caliper on the rotor, the wedge is very loose, Sloppy is this normal. Any answers are appreciated.
peep333
Posts: 2
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2016 8:39 am
Your car is a: 1979 124 pininfarina

Re: New rear calipers wedge

Post by peep333 »

I have owned three spiders and all the brake wedges have been very tight now I have one wheel that the caliper is fitting very loosely any ideas about what could cause it the wedges seem to be all the same size no external wear
18Fiatsandcounting
Posts: 3812
Joined: Fri Mar 15, 2019 11:23 pm
Your car is a: 1969 and 1971 124 spiders
Location: San Francisco Bay Area

Re: New rear calipers wedge

Post by 18Fiatsandcounting »

The C-shaped brackets that hold the calipers are pretty robust, so it's unlikely that they could bend. If your wedges all appear the same, then that leaves only the caliper itself as a possibility. Any chance that it's a rebuilt caliper that has slightly different dimensions?

You should be able to insert the wedges by hand if you press the caliper inward towards the axle, but once installed, they should be tight enough so that they don't move easily. The caliper can "rock" slightly, but the wedges should be tight enough that you have to tap them out gently with a screwdriver and hammer. If you can push them out easily by hand, something is wrong.

By the way, the wedges should be lubricated with a light coat of grease, and auto parts stores carry a silicone-based grease specifically for these wedges. Usually clear green in color.

-Bryan
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