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Repair shop said powdercoating calipers caused ruined rotors

Posted: Tue Dec 08, 2015 4:58 pm
by xyeLz
Hey all,

Not sure if this makes any sense at all (it certainly may), but over a year and a half ago I purchased GXP calipers for my 2001 SSEi (along with the appropriately sized rotors and pads from EBC). I then had my front and rear calipers professionally disassembled, powder coated, and reassembled on the new EBC pads and rotors. After 8 months the rotors were completely ruined and brake pads were quite worn down.

What the body shop told me was that since they were custom powder coated, this can add size to the calipers. Size that is not intended for the vehicle and can cause undesired results which is what caused the pads to wear down so quickly and ruin the rotors. Sure it's not much size, but it's enough that it can throw off the location of the caliper.

They ended up replacing my front calipers only.

My question is: does this sound normal? Has anyone ever heard of this? I spent a LOT of money on the powder coating job only to have the calipers thrown in the garbage.

Re: Repair shop said powdercoating calipers caused ruined ro

Posted: Tue Dec 08, 2015 5:28 pm
by CMNTMXR57
I've heard of it before. I think Ryan here had an issue when he powdercoated his Brembo's then had fitment issues.

But I would think you would've noted something wasn't right upon install. Not a year later.

Re: Repair shop said powdercoating calipers caused ruined ro

Posted: Tue Dec 08, 2015 6:14 pm
by ddalder
I replaced my calipers and caliper brackets this past summer with some I had rebuilt and powder coated because the finish on my original calipers became chipped over the years. The shop I used specializes in rebuilding calipers, it's all they do. When they powder coated the rebuilt parts they masked areas where one part came in contact with another so there would be no change in geometry. I have had no problems at all. It sounds like your problem may have been process related rather than simply stating the parts should not have been powder coated.