So while cleaning my calipers I think, "lets pull this off and clean under it". Ok, came off fine, flew across the garage to the floor, but it popped right off. Now how the heck do I get it back on? Its obviously spring loaded but I can't for the life of me figure out how to get it back on. Anybody know the trick? Thanks!

How do you get this back on?

 

Put one end of the clip in place and zip tie it there. Now you have two hands to work the other end in. Then cut the zip tie off.

 

Or else the way I eventually figured it out:
1. Put the two "feet" in place (takes a little bit of physical effort to get them both in at the same time).
The clip is still loose and is sitting about 8 or 10 mm "down" or "inside" of where it needs to be.
2. Then using a large flat blade screwdriver lever the whole thing "up" or "outwards" until it is sitting in the correct place. Place the tip of the screwdriver under the very middle of the inside edge, ie the middle of the springy bit.
3. The hard part is to keep the clip and spring pressed back hard against the caliper while you lever it up, without one or both "feet" popping out.
4. At least three ways of achieving this - tie the feet down with zip ties like peppersam740 suggests, hold them in yourself with the thumb and forefinger of one hand while you lever the screwdriver with the other hand (which is only possible if you have very big and strong hands and fingers which I don't) or get a helper with strong fingers to hold the feet down in place.
This last method is what I have used the last two times - my big boofy son - and they went back on in a jiffy, 10 seconds each side.
One last tip - the little metal bits on the ends of the feet tend to fall off but without them the clip doesn't fit like it should. Easy enough to refit them though, just slide them back on and squeeze tight/shut with pliers.

 

Thanks all for the help. Found a YouTube video of someone who used a gluing clamp to hold it also. I thing that between the clamp, zip ties and strong hands I’ll be able to figure it out.

I can’t believe Jaguar designed it this way with no easy way to replace it.. I was hoping someone would have come up with “oh yea, there is a special tool” or something like that.

gonna try it tomorrow, thanks again!

 

I've done more brake jobs than I can even remember, but the spring clips on these calipers are possibly the most aggravating of anything I've done. I might consider fabricating a tool next time, but I'm really hoping that next time is a long ways away.

 

For some odd reason, I didn’t seem to have an issue with them. With just a little bit of force, they popped right into place.

 

I'm not without skills and experience, but I found this task vexing. Perhaps you lead a charmed life. I'm sure that with the right technique it's not a problem, but I clearly did not have that technique.

 

Without question, I lead a charmed life. Next time I change the pads, I’ll take specific note of my methodology so I can describe it in detail.

 

Thanks to all, finally muscled them into place using a combination of the zip tie suggestion on on end (essential) then forcing the center into place and holding it there with a c clamp. Then I wrestled the other end into place with two flat bladed screwdrivers. Once I got one in the other went easy. But I have to say the engineer who designed it sure never replaced one personally!

thanks again!