Caterham Rear Disc Brake Help

[Elise111]

Hi Folks- just picked up a nice late 80's Caterham that has been sitting for a while. The rear brakes have leaked and fouled the pads. Looking to find caliper rebuild kits and new pads. Anyone know how to find these? From what I can tell, this should be the same as the rear brakes on a 1988 Merkur Scorpio in the USA. If someone has firsthand experience, that would be helpful.

Pete

[xcarguy]

Pete,

 

Welcome to the group. Not a Caterham owner, but your definitely on the right forum to find help. Lots of Caterham knowledge here.:cheers:

[Croc]

Welcome to the fun.

 

Yes they are 1989 Merkur calipers.

 

For a rebuild guide - try here

http://www.alcester-racing-sevens.com/rear_brake_pads.htm

 

 

For rebuild kits, you can order from the UK or just keep an eye out on Ebay. This auction just closed for example

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Centric-Rear-Brake-Caliper-Rebuild-Kit-For-Merkur-Scorpio-1988-1989-/174100838662

 

 

For pads, there are a bunch of compound options out there for your desired usage. The Mintex options are here

https://www.meteormotorsport.com/caterham/brakes-pads/mintex/

 

And the Pagid options are here.

https://www.meteormotorsport.com/caterham/brakes-pads/pagid/

 

 

You could use the Ford ones but they are intended for use on a car that is 3 times as heavy. Might be ok if you are planning to do a lot of track work where you will build up heat fade but not if you are just going to be out on the road.

 

For buying, Caterham, parts will be usually the most expense. Give Redline a call in the UK - they always have them in stock and they ship quickly.

http://www.redlinecomponents.co.uk/

[Black Hole]

I was able to get a rear caliper from Rocky Mountain Caterham. They had them in stock. I had to replace mine as it was leaking, but not from the piston but from the plunger that is actuated by the hand brake so if you can’t seem to find the leak check there.

[fastg]

Rockauto list a right rear for $75. They used to have both available

 

Graham

[fastg]

As Caterhams use a lot of Sierra parts you should contact Jeff at Merkur Parts Midwest. He has a Merkur only breakers yard. He also does a lot of restoration parts. A friend has a XR4Ti that we did a full body shell upwards restoration, Now with a hot 302 Ford in it, cool car. A lot of the parts came from Jeff, If he has not got it he knows were to find them. He has T9 transmission a ton, a lot of people swap to the T5 so T9's are unloved in the Merkur world.

 

http://merkurmidwest.com/index.html

 

Graham

[Elise111]

Thanks all, I was able to redo F & R calipers tonight. Rears went smoothly, however, I am struggling to get the mechanism to adjust. I've pressure bled all 4 corners. I read about the procedure to pump the brakes hard with the handbrake completely slackened. I also read that one needs to have the piston indents clocked to engage the tag in the pads. I have also not pulled the handbrake yet. But still no rear brake movement despite a firm pedal. Any tips?

[Elise111]

Fixed- a second round of pressure bleeding, and some bubbles came out of the rears. The mechanism adjusted after some more pumps.