I need to replace the rear calipers on my blazer as they are sticking. I dropped it in to a local mechanic as I have a bit of a phobia about working on brake hydraulics that goes back to an unfortunate incident involving an alfasud, a kerb and a lamppost in my youth!

I ordered a pair of USA Industries remanufactured calipers from a specialist in the UK for £88 each, and they turned out to be a pile of total junk. One had such a bad brake hose thread on it my mechanic helicoiled it, the other went on but even with new raybestos hoses, a new genuine GM banjo bolt and copper washers it just wouldn't seal and dripped fluid from the hose union, the helicoiled one also suffered from the same problem. I asked the supplier to send me a replacement for the really bad one (at the time we hadn't realised the other one leaked) and when it arrive there turned out to be so little thread in the brake hose hole you could actually push the banjo bolt right the way in without turning it at all.

My next option is either to get my current pair rebuilt by a specialist or buy a pair of A1Cardone calipers for £198 each from another supplier or a new genuine pair from the main GM importer for £300 each.

Either way I'm really pissed off, the cars been up on the garages ramp for over a week (he had the calipers first, then I had to source new hoses, then a third caliper) my annual inspection has expired, my wife is getting the **** with me as she's had to cancel a couple of work meetings as I need her car to take the kids to and from school as we live out in the countryside too far to walk and with no bus. To top it all, last night I went to take the kids to their swimming lesson and her car had a flat so I had to do an F1 style emergency wheel change in the two inches of liquid mud that is my yard at the moment. I'm also currently £264 out of pocket until I get the calipers back to the supplier so they will credit me.

Anyone else had problems with USA Industries parts? "Every part bench tested" my ****!

 

Cardone is a huge rebuilder here in north america
The company I work for now wholesales about 50 skids of their products per week

I worked in for a automotive jobber for 11yrs and cant say that I ever seen or heard of the issues you have had

Some times issues are mechanic caused but they will never admit that they were the cause of it

 

I have never heard of the issues you are telling us about. Every now and then I get a faultly part but you had some really bad luck there. I know stuff coming from the uk has a bad markup but damn. I can get rear calipers for that truck for $40.99 apiece.

 

I've ordered the cardone ones although my bank balance is wincing. I looked at ordering them from Rockauto but the shipping prices there have gone crazy recently, it was going to cost as much to ship as the parts cost, I priced up loaded calipers, hoses and new rotorsd and the shipping came to $290! Part of the problem is they charge multiple shipping costs as they ship from multiple warehouses instead of it all going in one box. Crazy prices when you think I'd have to pay import duty on top.

I did wonder if the mechanic was stripping the threads by overtightening them but the third one didn't even come out of the box. I guess I caught a bad batch, maybe someone was hung over, drunk, high or didn't get laid the night before.

 

I will try to track down a guy I dealt with years ago
He was buying Jensen parts (chrysler power train) here in Canada and sending them across the pond
Due to extreme shipping costs you as a buyer need to eat the costs of the core castings because it doesnt justify sending them back
Its too late this time but he might be able to help you in the future if he is still around

PM me in a week or so and see what I have come up with

 

BTW
I probably would have tried scavaged the parts from the defective "new ones" and put them into your old ones to cut costs

 

thats always a possibility. at my work i remember one of the guys trying to use a 3/16 brake line with a metric fitting into a standard hole and screwed it up. it looks just like a standard brake line but a hair bigger. so ya never know when they let the new guy work on stuff

 

When I was on the road selling I had a guy demanding warranty on a set of truck shoes that were pretty much burnt off on just one shoe
He wanted labour as well
I asked him to pull the invoice for the job
No suprise he had replaced a e-brake cable as well
He was a little embarrased when I pointed it out

I told him the manufacturer would cover the shoes but no labour

 

Oh FFS, I just nipped around to the garage to see how he got on today to find the Blazer sat outside, great I think he must have finished it, then I see a notice on the gates saying "Due to unforseen circumstances we will be closed for the forseeable future" please see Shaun (the guys brother) in the business out front."

I go to see the guy and he's won't say why they've had to close, tells me the brakes aren't fixed, the parts haven't arrived by then but he will get someone in tomorrow to finish it off. I really don't know what to do now, do I trust the guy? My only other option is to rent a trailer and move it to someone else if he doesn't get it done tomorrow, as it is I've had to hire a car tomorrow as the wife has a meeting all day. He was reccomended by the garage that did my MoT (annual inspection) last year as they only do testing, when you move area sometimes you have to take a punt on something like a garage/mechanic. I guess if he's done something stupid like break a leg then as a one man band you're a bit ****ed. Pissed off though that no-one called me.

 

I am having amazing luck with my reman calipers on the front.