Gosh... I guess I'm going to look like an old fool... after nearly 40 years
in this business, I see no reason to replace calipers in pairs.... I have
replaced calipers that leak... I have replaced calipers that are siezed... I
have replaced calipers that are physically damaged... I have never replaced
calipers because the one on the other side of the car/truck had a
problem..... WHY WOULD I??????

Why did you replace the caliper and hose.... your post is unclear as to the
reason but I feel it may have to do with the pull..... even though you make
it sound like the pull to the left is a new development.

What year Ranger? 4WABS or RABS?

If the vehicle pulls to the left during braking, the first assumption is
that the right side isn't contributing to braking effort.... Don't discount
the rear brakes as having an effect on the brake feel...


"komobu" <curranpg@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:3a93ff95-2a58-4ca4-9fdc-c1fb144beb39@j68g2000hsf.googlegroups.com...
> Hi;
>
> I replaced the front RIGHT caliper and front RIGHT brake hose. Now
> when I stop , I feel the vehicle pull to the LEFT. If I stop hard, I
> can see the skid mark of the front LEFT tire. The lines dont seem to
> be kinked. Any idea what is going on? Should I replace the LEFT
> caliper as well?
>
> Thanks for any advice
> Pat

<mechanic@telusplanet.net> wrote in message
news:YYeFk.513$wq4.228@edtnps83...
> Gosh... I guess I'm going to look like an old fool... after nearly 40
years
> in this business, I see no reason to replace calipers in pairs.... I have
> replaced calipers that leak... I have replaced calipers that are siezed...
I
> have replaced calipers that are physically damaged... I have never
replaced
> calipers because the one on the other side of the car/truck had a
> problem..... WHY WOULD I??????
>

When your a shop doing work for someone else you do things differently

If the customer takes the car out on the road and smacks into a phone
pole, then claims it was because the brakes were pulling to the left and
it's not his fault, when his insurance company comes knocking on your
door, it's going to look bad if it looks like a hack job.

With that said, if I was doing brake work on my own vehicle I'd only
replace one caliper also. I would replace the pads on both sides at
the same time, though. I might consider replacing the other caliper if
the vehicle exhibited a pulling to one side, after the work was complete.

Ted

I'm not sure what you're getting at, Ted.... Where does this "hack job" crap
come from? Given the simple task bestowed upon the caliper, I see no reason
to replace a caliper that isn't defective...

Jim, Warman
mechanic@telusplanet.net

On Sat, 04 Oct 2008 02:20:04 GMT, <mechanic@telusplanet.net> wrote:

>I'm not sure what you're getting at, Ted.... Where does this "hack job" crap
>come from? Given the simple task bestowed upon the caliper, I see no reason
>to replace a caliper that isn't defective...
>
>Jim, Warman
>mechanic@telusplanet.net

I don't think he was accusing you of anything wrong with your logic,
but he's coming up with the perfectly logical (if dead wrong) argument
that the plaintiff's lawyer would use in court. "Your honor, this
mechanic did an incomplete and improper brake job and the next day my
client was gravely injured (or killed) in an accident..."

Doesn't matter that the accident had nothing to do with bad brakes,
but the lawyer doesn't have to admit that - he can simply say there's
no way of knowing, but he found "A Smoking Gun" and is following the
available evidence. (There is actually no law saying that the
plaintiff's lawyer has to tell the truth - if he can fabricate a good
enough story that (s)he can fool a Judge or Jury into thinking is true
and complete, he's golden in more ways than one.)

The lawyer is fishing for dollars, and (s)he gets 33% to 50% of
anything he dredges up, so there is plenty of incentive to "do
whatever it takes" to win. Sometimes your insurance company will
acquiesce and admit to a small percentage of liability and pay him a
little money just to get the plaintiff and his mouthpiece to shut up
and go away without a long trial - but it still counts against you as
a loss.

You normally do everything with brakes or other bilateral systems
both sides at the same time to save time and money in the long run -
both sets of brake pads wear out at the same rate, both calipers go
cruddy inside or have seals fail at roughly the same rate. And
repeat brake failures is one of those things you do not want.

You wouldn't take the entire dash cluster out to replace a single
illumination lamp, because there are six to ten in there and they all
have the same hours on them - you would be back in there every few
months changing them one at a time till you did them all. So the
smart person changes them all at once when one goes bad. Same thing
with headlamps, tail and marker lamps, shock absorbers, belts and
hoses, motor mounts, etc. The labor is usually a lot more than the
cost of the parts.

Feel free to change one caliper on your own car, but when you run a
shop and professional liability is on the line you can't be that way.

If the customer pleads poverty, write a small disclaimer on the
ticket and get it signed that you strongly suggested to do both
calipers as a pair but the customer insisted he only wanted one. It
might save your ass later.

--<< Bruce >>--

Bad day at the office so you are likely right.... Truth be known, every time
I approach a vehicle I am leaving myself open for "inclusion by
association".

I'm a big boy and I can look after myself.... Joe Consumer, on the other
hand, will continue to try his best to become a statistic...... with or
without my help.....

Hack job? We'll leave that for anyone that fails to consider the outcome of
their actions..... In spite of the connotation, I continue to do well and,
strange as it may sound, I owe much of that success to being a practicing
dinque.

"Bruce L. Bergman" <blnospambergman@earthlink.invalid> wrote in message
news:idpde4perq0b9h28oeqf7c046lape8jsgc@4ax.com...
> On Sat, 04 Oct 2008 02:20:04 GMT, <mechanic@telusplanet.net> wrote:
>
>>I'm not sure what you're getting at, Ted.... Where does this "hack job"
>>crap
>>come from? Given the simple task bestowed upon the caliper, I see no
>>reason
>>to replace a caliper that isn't defective...
>>
>>Jim, Warman
>>mechanic@telusplanet.net
>
> I don't think he was accusing you of anything wrong with your logic,
> but he's coming up with the perfectly logical (if dead wrong) argument
> that the plaintiff's lawyer would use in court. "Your honor, this
> mechanic did an incomplete and improper brake job and the next day my
> client was gravely injured (or killed) in an accident..."
>
> Doesn't matter that the accident had nothing to do with bad brakes,
> but the lawyer doesn't have to admit that - he can simply say there's
> no way of knowing, but he found "A Smoking Gun" and is following the
> available evidence. (There is actually no law saying that the
> plaintiff's lawyer has to tell the truth - if he can fabricate a good
> enough story that (s)he can fool a Judge or Jury into thinking is true
> and complete, he's golden in more ways than one.)
>
> The lawyer is fishing for dollars, and (s)he gets 33% to 50% of
> anything he dredges up, so there is plenty of incentive to "do
> whatever it takes" to win. Sometimes your insurance company will
> acquiesce and admit to a small percentage of liability and pay him a
> little money just to get the plaintiff and his mouthpiece to shut up
> and go away without a long trial - but it still counts against you as
> a loss.
>
> You normally do everything with brakes or other bilateral systems
> both sides at the same time to save time and money in the long run -
> both sets of brake pads wear out at the same rate, both calipers go
> cruddy inside or have seals fail at roughly the same rate. And
> repeat brake failures is one of those things you do not want.
>
> You wouldn't take the entire dash cluster out to replace a single
> illumination lamp, because there are six to ten in there and they all
> have the same hours on them - you would be back in there every few
> months changing them one at a time till you did them all. So the
> smart person changes them all at once when one goes bad. Same thing
> with headlamps, tail and marker lamps, shock absorbers, belts and
> hoses, motor mounts, etc. The labor is usually a lot more than the
> cost of the parts.
>
> Feel free to change one caliper on your own car, but when you run a
> shop and professional liability is on the line you can't be that way.
>
> If the customer pleads poverty, write a small disclaimer on the
> ticket and get it signed that you strongly suggested to do both
> calipers as a pair but the customer insisted he only wanted one. It
> might save your ass later.
>
> --<< Bruce >>--
>