Hey Everyone,

I'm slowly working on re-building the rear end of my Jag. So far, I have the entire rear-end taken out and taken a part. Unfortunately, I'm now stuck. Here are some questions I have:

1. How can you tell if the Rear Rotors need to be replaced? Resurfaced?
2. How can you tell if the Rear Calipers need to be replaced? Re-built? If they need to be re-built, what goes into that? Is it worth it or should they just be replaced?
3. How can you tell if Brake Lines/Hoses need to be replaced?
4. How does one get the bushings out of the rear sway bars?

Well, that's all for now, I think.

 

Well, just speaking on general automotive knowledge and not necessarily Jaguar-specific:The rotors have a certain thickness at which they should be replaced. This information is probably available in a Jag service manual. If the rotors appear "thin", damaged, or are heavily scored, they should probably be replaced.
Is braking performance compromised? Start by looking for leaks or ripped seals. It would be unusal for the caliper housing itself to need replacement, and they can often be rebuilt rather cheaply.
Again, check for poor braking performance, and leaks and tears. Obviously metal brake lines will last quite a bit longer than the rubber components.
The bushings are usually split to slip over the sway bar, so they should be removed very easily once the sway bar is off the car and the bushings are out of the brackets.

 

The brake rotors are relatively inexpensive, and alot easier for you to change right now. Replace them.

The rear calipers, because of the proximity of the exhaust system and fact that nobody flushes the fluid to remove moisture, are prone to corrosion. The caliper pistons sieze, and corrosion on them leads to fluid leaks past the seal. The dust boots deteriorate, making these problems more likely. Rebuilt calipers are cheap, and yeild a better result at less expense than you can achieve yourself. Buy a pair and fit them now while it will take you minutes, instead of hours later.

If you can carefully remove the steel lines without twisting the pipes at the fittings, they are fine to reuse as long as they don't look really badly corroded. The single rear flexible hose at the rear of your car is cheap, but they never fail. Your choice.

You don't have a rear sway bar on your car, at least not a factory one. You are probably asking about the rear radius arm bushings, one large one at the front of each arm for chassis mounting and one small one for attachment to the hub carrier. These bushings press out and in, probably only the small rear ones are bad on your car.

Look for posts by a guy here named "brakebuster", I believe he was the guy who posted alot of information and photos of what you are doing now. You'll be happy not to have to do any of it twice.

 

Awesome, thanks for the help guys!!!!!