Sticking rear brake - clean without VCDS?

[Pixelmix]

One of my rear brakes is sticking (enough to be noticeably hot after a drive, have a noticeable effect on MPG and it also confused the TPMS - thought I had a puncture, presumably because of the extra the resistance on the wheel).

I don't have VCDS or a pad winding tool (although I did change my front discs and pads brakes using a clamp and a block of wood).

My rear pads and discs are fairly new so I don't need to change pads, so is it worth trying to remove the caliper myself, cleaning up the piston and bolts without putting the brakes into service mode using VCDS? Or is it going to be too much faff to get the caliper and pads back on without the piston wound in?

It is booked into a local garage but not until next week so I'm tempted to see if I can improve it sufficiently myself with just a clean this weekend.

[madstaff]

I would remove the caliper, 2 x 13mm bolts IIRC and move out the way.

I would have a guess that the pads are sticking in what I refer to as the pad carrier, make sure they are free to move, and should be a nice snug, but not too tight fit.

Providing you don't turn on the ignition, or work the footbrake or handbrake you should be OK as the piston shouldn't move.

[Pixelmix]

Thanks for the response. I ended up buying a Carista ODB reader in the end, so just moved the electronic parking brake and took the pads out in the normal way. I'm not 100% convinced it is sorted (I might give it another clean - the inside pad doesn't seem to move very easily) but the wheel definitely rotates better than it did before, albeit not as cleanly as the other side.

[madstaff]

The pads need to be able to move freely on the pad carrier or else when the brakes are applied they'll not be able to retract and it'll drag.

[Carbon VW]

Have you checked and greased the slider pins?? was this done with the recent pad/disc change?

[Pixelmix]

Just noticed these replies. I cleaned and greased the slider pins myself the other week. Gave the calliper another clean today when putting the summer wheels back on. I’ll know in a few days if it is as free as the other wheels. It wasn’t noticeably sticky when driving anymore, so my first clean seemed to make a reasonable clean. Fingers crossed my second clean did the job.

[symonh2000]

Make sure the sliders are greased with Ceratec and not Copper grease.

Many people use copper grease, but it dries out and hardens pretty quickly which can cause the sliders to stick and the pads to drag.

It is fine for putting on the hub to stop the wheels sticking on though.

[Pixelmix]

Yes, I used an appropriate grease on the slider pins, thanks (and I always put a dab of copper grease on the hubs when swapping my summer and winter wheels - it saves a lot of hassle every 6 months!)

Sadly the rear left is still dragging more than the other wheels. I gave it a good clean with brake cleaner but no joy. I think I'm going to have to admit that it needs a caliper rebuild unless I can find anything else.

Can anyone confirm if the standard (small) rear brakes on the Mk7 GTI should have spring clips in the caliper, or do they just rely on the spring built into the pad? The spring which is built into the inside pad does give a lot of resistance against the caliper - I'm not sure if it is just poor manufacturing tolerances.