Brake caliper pins might be small components on your car, but they are extremely important for having safe and fully functional brakes. Not only is it important to have all the necessary brake caliper pins properly installed, but they need to be well maintained as well. One of the best ways to do this is to grease your brake caliper pins routinely. But, with what?
When lubricating your brake caliper pins with grease, you’ll want to purchase a high-temperature grease that can withstand the high levels of heat and friction emitted from the brakes themselves. The best brake caliper pin grease is Permatex Ceramic Extreme Brake Parts Lubricant, but there are other exceptional alternatives.
The last thing you want is to hear your brakes rattling and discover the cause is rusty or worn-out brake pin calipers. Therefore, we will give you our top grease recommendations to make maintenance easy and answer common questions such as why greasing your brake caliper pins is necessary and how to do it.
Top Grease Recommendations for Brake Caliper Pins
Proper maintenance of your brake caliper pins starts with the right materials that will make quick work of this dirty task.
When searching for the best grease to use on brake caliper pins, you’ll want to ensure the lubrication of choice is a high-temperature grease that can withstand heat up to at least 400 degrees Fahrenheit, as this is the temperature the average car’s brake reach on a basic commute.
There are several brands that offer grease products for brake caliper pins, but we have found that only a select few are consistently recommended as the most exceptional options.
Below are our top four recommended greases for your brake caliper pins that will keep them clean and functional for years at a minimal cost.
- Permatex Ceramic Extreme Brake Parts Lubricant
- CRC 05359 Brake Caliper Synthetic Grease – 8 Wt Oz
- Permatex 85188 Ultra Disc Brake Caliper Lube, 0.5 oz.
- Mission Automotive Waterproof Marine Grease
Each of these products is listed on several websites as the best brake caliper pin greases, so you can be sure to get your money’s worth from this small but essential investment.
Do You Need to Grease a Car’s Brake Caliper Pins?
Maintenance is always important for your car’s longevity, but we can’t blame you for wondering if something as small as a brake caliper pin must be cleaned and lubricated regularly.
Generally, you should grease your car’s brake caliper pins every 12,000-15,000 miles or annually to prevent excessive and premature wear and tear on your brake pads.
Considering the frequency of use and strain brake pads have to endure every drive, it is no surprise that they are one of the most commonly replaced car parts. However, that doesn’t mean we should allow them to be worn out any more than necessary, and greasing your brake caliper pins can help prevent this.
Typically, when there is minimal to no lubrication on a brake caliper bin, the bolts will difficultly sliding along the caliper, preventing the brakes from rubbing against the rotor properly. The result is uneven wear on the pad, or it could weaken the brake preventing the pads from hitting the rotor surface fully.
Alternatively, the pins could stick to the rotor, leaving the brake pads in constant contact with the rotor and substantially increasing the amount of heat and friction the pads sustain. This, too, will cause the pad to wear-out for sooner than it should.
Ultimately, for the sake of your brake pads (which could cost you $30-$150 just in parts to replace), you’ll want to grease and lubricate your brake caliper pins regularly unless your car’s user manual instructs you otherwise.
Can You Grease Brake Caliper Pins Yourself?
Dealing with something as important as brake caliper pins might lead you to think greasing them is a task best left to the professionals.
While you can pay a professional mechanic to perform this task for you, it is something you can do yourself with the right tools and knowledge to save yourself the time and money you’d spend taking your car to the shop.
In terms of equipment and materials, you’re going to need:
- A car jack
- A socket wrench with a socket set
- A brake caliper tool
- Your grease product of choice
- Gloves
- Lint-free towels
- A wire brush
Once you have all of these materials, you’ll need to jack up and support your car’s weight so you can remove the desired tire and get to the brake components, namely the brake caliper pins.
You’ll want to loosen various brake components using your socket wrenches, such as the top and bottom caliper mounting pins along with the slider pins, before completely removing the brake caliper pins for greasing and cleaning.
When cleaning the pins, use the lint-free towels to wipe them off, use the wire brush to scrub away any corrosion very lightly, and then coat the pin with grease and replace all of the brake components you removed.
Final Thoughts
Keeping your brake caliper pins greased is an essential element of regular car maintenance that will help ensure you aren’t wearing out your brake pads excessively or replacing them more frequently than necessary. While we recommend you grease them every year, cars kept in hot, dry regions or driven infrequently can go longer without new grease than those kept in wet or snowy regions and driven often.
It is also recommended that you use a high-temperature grease for this task that can withstand the temperatures emitted from your brakes. If you don’t have the tools or experience for this task, we recommend seeking professional help.