Upgrading brakes on 540i to M5, work log

[dealy663]

Started on my big task for the weekend today. I received a set of M5 brakes that I found on Ebay used last week. Then I ordered the parts to overhaul the new calipers and install new rotors on my car.

Today was just working on refurbishing the calipers. They started out pretty rough looking. The first order of business was getting the calipers reasonably clean. Here are the before and after shots of the front and rear calipers.

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Next I pulled out the pistons in order to add new seals and boots to them.
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After cleaning the pistons I found that the fronts weren't in the best shape. There are pits at the leading edge of one, and an actual scratch in the other. The guy said they were working properly. I'm gonna just put it all back together and hope for the best. I couldn't even find replacement pistons and Pelican parts. Hopefully that scratch isn't too big a deal.
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The calipers and carriers have had a couple of coats of G2 paint applied. I'll snap a photo of the finished product tomorrow after it has all dried and can be handled.

There will be more to come.....



Derek

[Stück]

The one with the pits just below the dust boot channel are above the actual seal so no sweat.

The second piston with the scratches I would not reuse.

[NLu]

Have not tried myself, but it seems you can purchase Pistons individually: http://centriccatalog.com/Inquiry/AppResult.aspx?id=WEB_CALPIS&v=LD&y=2002&m=31&mm=211

[johr34]

Looks good. Eager to see the results.

[dealy663]

Unfortunately I won't be able to complete the job this weekend. I'm really bummed. But have decided to wait until the new caliper pistons arrive. Hopefully they'll be here in time to finish the job next weekend.

I've painted the calipers, and will clear coat them today. After that everything is on hold.

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[dealy663]

The new pistons arrived, so today I finally got back to work and reassembled the calipers. I wanted to get at least one brake setup finished today and was successful. Things went pretty smoothly.

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After getting the decals I applied them and some clear coat in the hopes of making them a bit more robust. I'm not so sure they'll hold up well. The engraved M logo in the calipers caused the decals to not lie flat.
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And finally a before and after shot of the completed (though not bled) job.

Not sure why but I can't seem to post the last two images.

[dealy663]

Here are the before and after shots of the front upgrade:

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[auaq]

Looking good.

[justinca540i]

Wow. Looks good. I plan on doing that when its time for brakes.

[JimLev]

Not sure why but I can't seem to post the last two images.

Looks good dealy, rusty calipers detract from the E39's great looks.
When you post pics this way the limit is 5 pics.
FYI, if you double click on your pic before you post them a window will open which will allow you to expand the pic size, large gives you a nice size pic. You would have to do this for each pic.

[dealy663]

ok, thanks for the posting tips

[Jason5driver]

What did you do to clean up the calipers?
Where did you get the new rotors at?
Looks great!

[dealy663]

Just ran into a major snag.

The rear rotors don't have a hole in the right place for the bold which holds it to the hub. Not sure how to tell if they sent me the wrong rotors.

Does anyone know if there is supposed to be any difference between the mounting of the rear rotors between the 540i and the M5?

I tried making a template and drilling a hole in the rotor. But my template wasn't accurate enough and things don't quite line up. Any ideas on how to make something that will help me get the hole drilled in exactly the right spot?

[JimLev]

You don't really need that bolt, it just keeps the rotor in place to make it easier for you to change pads, etc.
Once the wheel is on that will keep the rotor in place.

[dealy663]

Yea, I know. I just think about me forgetting about it in the future, pulling the wheel off, and having the rotor unexpectedly fall off and smashing my foot! Rotors are surprisingly heavy.

[bimas]

Just ran into a major snag.

The rear rotors don't have a hole in the right place for the bold which holds it to the hub. Not sure how to tell if they sent me the wrong rotors.

Does anyone know if there is supposed to be any difference between the mounting of the rear rotors between the 540i and the M5?

I tried making a template and drilling a hole in the rotor. But my template wasn't accurate enough and things don't quite line up. Any ideas on how to make something that will help me get the hole drilled in exactly the right spot?

I have bought rotors before that had a hole in the wrong place. I did what JimLev said. Worked fine. I also forgot about the bolt missing next time I removed the wheel. Oooops!

Did you trim the back shields or replace with M5? IIRC, the front just require removal of the inner part of the shield, but rear need cutting/replacement.

[dealy663]

I just thought of a way to get the spot for the hole marked. Instead of making a template, hopefully I can use the old rotor as a template. Put the old and new rotors hat to hat, line them up with the lug bolts and mark the center of bolt hole. Just gotta find some place that has the right size nuts for these lug bolts. We'll see how it goes tomorrow.

Does anyone know if it would be safe to drill and tap a new hole in the hub? I have no idea where the bearings are. I assume it probably isn't worth the risk. Worse comes to worse I'll just have to live with the rotors not really being properly attached to the hub.

The backing plates I ordered haven't come yet. I'm just gonna cancel the order tomorrow. I didn't have to modify the front backing plates. Everything just fit fine. On the rears I cut the backing plate with tin snips. I still have one more to do. If there is an easier way to trim the backing plate I'm all ears.

[JimLev]

The rotors will be held on by the caliper/pads when you remove the wheel if you don't use the bolt to hold them on.
You can drill thru the hub, the bearings are in the center.

[dealy663]

I got everything worked out on the rear brake.

Luckily I have a spare car for backup, when the bimmer is down for maintenance.
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Here is how I used the old rotor as a template for drilling the extra bolt hole.

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I used a 1/2" bit to try to help keep it centered in the hole to get it started. Then I used a 3/8" bit to drill through. And finally made a counter sink with the 1/2" bit halfway through the thickness of the hat. Here is the final result. It would have been smoother I'm sure if I actually had a drill press.

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And then I was finished

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- - - Updated - - -

Looking through the DIY section I don't see anything on brake bleeding. Is there any special tricks that I should know of, or best practices? I have a vacuum bleeding system.