Corrosion on Wheel and Brake Components, Painted Caliper

[PanEuropean]

When you say "wheel center", are you referring to the brake rotor? That is the only thing you can see behind the wheel when the wheel is installed on the car. If you remove the very small hubcap from the center of the wheel, you can look inside the hole and see corrosion on the middle of the wheel bearing assembly, but that is not normally visible when the car is fully assembled.

The assembly order of the parts related to the wheels goes like this, working from the outside (fully assembled car) inward:

1) Alloy wheel with tire mounted on it.
2) Brake rotor (brake disc)
3) Wheel bearing.

I have posted a few photos of these parts below.

Michael

Alloy wheel removed, showing new brake rotor in place

Old Brake Rotor, after being removed

Existing (old) wheel bearing, visible after brake rotor is removed
The corrosion in the middle is just superficial and cosmetic, it has no effect at all on function or strength.

[ai guy]

I expect they mean the plastic hubcap. I think they suffer from water ingress

[stevieB]

Quote, originally posted by ai guy »

I expect they mean the plastic hubcap. I think they suffer from water ingress

Yep ...that

[toph]

i had mine replaced last month(helios), seems to be a standard warrenty claim part, no questions asked they just put new ones on.

follow up- mine had corroded around the edges of the alloy, where the VW badge is.


Modified by toph at 4:48 PM 8-11-2007

[PanEuropean]

Quote, originally posted by ai guy »

I expect they mean the plastic hubcap. I think they suffer from water ingress

Ah, sorry, thanks for clarifying that... I was looking too deeply into the problem and thought the reference was to the parts behind the wheels.

You are correct, water does get trapped behind those little plastic inserts. The insert itself (the hubcap) does not rust. What rusts is the center portion of the wheel hub (the wheel bearing), and the rusty water then sloshes over the decorative hubcap, and deposits rust on the hubcap. To solve this problem, apply a squirt of VW Corrosion Protection Wax to the middle of the wheel hub before installing the hubcap. This will stop the ferrous metal parts from corroding, and thus stop the rust particles from being transported to the decorative hubcap.

Here is a link to a thread that describes the process in detail: Corrosion Prevention Precautions when removing and replacing Phaeton wheels.

Michael

[PanEuropean]

Photos re-hosted.

[brosen]

My calipers are already Black Painted, that's the original paint from factory or they were painted after ?, maybe from factory they will be RAW, meaning no paint ?

There are some minor scratches on them, I would like to repair that to avoid corrosion during tough MN winter, where I can find the right paint to touch them up ?, what is the type of paint ? Duplicolor Caliper Black ?

Please your advice, thanks

[PanEuropean]

Quote, originally posted by brosen »

My calipers are already Black Painted, that's the original paint from factory or they were painted after?, maybe from factory they will be RAW, meaning no paint ?

Please read the first page of this discussion, you will find the answers you are seeking there, complete with pictures.

To get to the first page, scroll down to the bottom of this page, then press the figure 1 in the lower right corner of your screen. Or press the word First.

Michael

[aaron843]

I'm noticing a significant amount of corrosion on what I assume are dust shields for my front brake calipers. Does anyone have information on this? I'm going to ask VW if they can be replaced under CPO warranty. If not, I supose I could buy new ones, or paint the existing ones. Having rusty parts on the car doesn't seem to make sense.

[Prince Ludwig]

The anti-squeal springs do tend to go rusty. I took mine off and painted them a few years ago - I'll post the pictures of the process this evening.

Harry

[aaron843]

Thanks. It hadn't occured to me that these are springs because they are flat. Is it tricky to remove them? I do have jack stands that will support the Phaeton, but would I need any other special tools?

Aaron

[PanEuropean]

I'm noticing a significant amount of corrosion on what I assume are dust shields for my front brake calipers. Does anyone have information on this?

Hi Aaron:

This question came up about 5 years ago and was researched and discussed extensively at the time.

Corrosion on the small rectangular metal plates that are about in the middle of the brake caliper is caused by chemicals that car washes spray onto wheels to remove brake dust. It is not a vehicle defect.

The easiest fix for this is to buy a small kit containing "black caliper paint" and paint the entire caliper assembly black. This results in a better looking (meaning, more discreet) caliper and permanently solves the corrosion problem. If you want to keep the original appearance (silver calipers), just buy the same kit but with silver paint, and paint only the affected part.

Michael

[aaron843]

H
Corrosion on the small rectangular metal plates that are about in the middle of the brake caliper is caused by chemicals that car washes spray onto wheels to remove brake dust.

Michael

Thank you. Sounds like it wouldn't be a warranty item, although I'll ask anyway because it was that way when VW certified the vehicle -- I didn't spray anything

Aaron

[Prince Ludwig]

Here are the pictures of what I did with my brakes.

All you need is some brake caliper paint of your choice and some rust remover:



Jack the car up and remove the wheel:



Take a flat head screwdriver and prise the anti-squeal spring away from the caliper:





Time for some elbow grease... Try and get rid of as much of the surface corrosion on the spring as possible:





I then used some rust-removed gel to get rid of the remaining corrosion:



After a few applications and cleaning with some degreaser:



Next, paint the spring according to the instructions and let it dry fully:



Then reinstall the spring. The outside ends of the spring should be installed first and then use the screwdriver to push it back so the two inner tabs engage properly:



Those pics were from two years ago, and this is what the calipers looked like in November when I changed my brake discs and pads:



There's been a bit of corrosion around the edges but it certainly looks better than it did originally!

Harry

[Rowayton]

I did exactly as Harry did two years ago (they still look fresh) except that I went one step further and polished my aluminum control arms. Might as well, the wheels are off anyway and everything behind them was screaming, "clean me!". What's another half hour of detailing per side on a nice day anyway .

Ron

[geoffrey_fake]

I did mines too



but not in black
(car with 49.000miles)

Before -

After -



Before -


After -

[VloJoh]

Like...

[VloJoh]

I really need to do this now...

[PanEuropean]

Photos re-hosted.

Michael