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2001 civic ex coupe... noticed that drivers side front caliper was sticking.. replaced calipers, rotors, pads, flex line, and checked the hard line from the abs manifold to flex line for blockage. i should note that the caliper will engage but not disengage from the rotors. the abs manifold seems to be working as i believe it should, but im no mechanic.. while the hard line was removed from the abs manifold, i pressed the brakes and saw fluid comming through the manifold... i am stuck..i dont know what else to try

.. to recap.. i have removed the hard line from the abs manifold and blew through the line.. no blockage, i replaced the flex brake line no blockage, but caliper engages with no problem, its the disengaging that is causing a problem. I took back one of the calipers already thinking manufaturing error, but same problem.. im at a loss.. any help?

 
Rep Power: 217

Check the condition of the caliper slides/pins.

 
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removed and greased already..

 
Rep Power: 217

Hmmmm. What about the condition of the brake hoses? Or is that the flex line? interchangeable terms?

 
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yeah.. i replaced the brake hose from the hard line that comes from the abs manifold and goes to the caliper

 
Rep Power: 352

You will probably take your caliper apart and clean/degreese everything like the pistons, seals...etc

 
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they are brand new calipers... i bought a set of new calipers and when it didnt work i thought it might be a defective caliper. i returned the new callpier and replaced it .. still the same problem. i dont believe that it is a grease issue.. i have trouble shot that already

 
Rep Power: 210

You have replaced just about everything that can be replaced and it sounds like you know what you are doing. Since it is only the drivers side that is sticking I would remove both front wheels and compare how easily the two sides turn after applying the brakes. If the drivers side is harder to turn than the passenger side I would crack the brake bleeder valve and see if it is then easier to turn. My thought is that if it is easier to turn after releasing the fluid then you know it is not the caliper or pins but an issue with the fluid.

I don't know if it is possible but I wonder if the ABS could be holding the pressure for the wheel. If it does appear to be fluid pressure you might want to repeat with the key on and off and see if it makes any difference if the ABS has power and is active.

 
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so after a bit of research.. i am thinking preportioning valve?.. i dont know about this.. any suggestions? could this be the cause?

 
Rep Power: 294

How much room do you have from a clamped down position to fully open? After a quick read you've got new calipers, pads and rotors. Driver's side calipers are also the closest distance from the master cylinder/resevoir - correct?. You will not have that much wiggle room to start, no pun intended. You will drag the pads a bit, which I've experience numerous times. Did you do a bed-in? That may give you a little more room to operate. Drive around for a bit, it "should" clear up. If not, you have issues other than the proportioning valve. EM2 Valves are front/rear split, not left/right also.

 
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Yeah.. the pads kiss the rotor a bit.. but as normal.. as far as "bed in" i am not familiar with that term... so i can't speculate. i understand the front/back not left right relationship which is why i can absolutely rule out the master cylinder since the right front caliper works as it should.. i have been trying to get some information regarding the proportioning valve. from what i can gather it regulates the supply of brake fluid to the front and back calipers (less to the back more to the front).. but what i cant tell if it regulates the front singularly or if the right and left side are independant... if they are independant.. i can take a look and go from there.. if they are singular.. well then i can rule it out...

 
Rep Power: 294

If I'm not mistaken, the proportioning valve regulates the front-half "singulary". I say this because, only the EP3 uses a 4 way-joint, which allows the ABS to determine where to send more/less of the brake fluid pressure, individually to each caliper. The DC5 has the same valve type with less proportion to the rear, due to the discs (vs. drums).

IIRC, bed-in will seat the pads properly into the caliper and "match" the face of the pads and the surface of the rotors. Hard, emergency-style stops from progressively faster speeds allow for optimum braking performance. E.g., 3 stops from 10mph, 3 stops from 25mph, 3 stops from 40mph, etc. Varies, depending on which expert is correct. For me, it creates the correct intial surface for the pad and the rotor, to meet every time you stop. Ridding any unevenness, pad width differences, rotor surface vaiances, etc. Do this right after each brake change and it will make for optimum braking throughout the life of the pad/rotor.

I would try the easiest route and swap pads from the left to the right (there may be a width difference - wouldn't be the first). Try the rotor next. If the sticky caliper still sticks, gotta be the caliper. If not, then your problem is solved. You didn't have a problem with the proportioning valve before did you? Only way a valve would go bad is from contaminants entering the system (there isn't anything mechanical going on, just hole size differences). Valves just don't go bad that often.

One final thought - Pads and calipers are meant to be worn down. A few miles, even a hundred, is a drop in the bucket in the life of a brake system (How may times has someone's girlfriend driven around with the emergency brake on?). See if things look better with a few trips around the block. My $.02 Good luck.

 
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Klaudio, how did you resolve this issue. I am having the same problem except it is the passenger side and I have not replaced anything yet. Pads have 20+K miles on them. Just started happening.