# DIY: Audi TT Paint Brake Calipers



## TT4LEE (Mar 8, 2015)

I think painting the calipers is a nice touch on any car. It takes about 1-2 hours to clean the calipers sufficiently for the paint to adhere. While you are doing the work there are several brake jobs you might do at the same time, I replaced the OEM brake pads with ceramic ones (to keep the wheels/calipers clean - I found no performance difference over OEM), and flushed the brake fluid.

Painting with epoxy paint took 3 hours as it takes several coats but you can move from one caliper to the next as the coats dry). Spray paint would be faster but I think it looks pretty poor compared to epoxy which has a nice glossy finish and is much tougher). Powder coating would be best, but requires complete removal of the calipers.

You'll likely spend another few hours fixing/cleaning/tuning odd bits and reinstalling the wheels.

So plan for a weekend job not an after work project.

Here's my process, based on using epoxy paint.

You'll need


A method to get all four wheels off at the same time. If you use epoxy as you have only 4-6 hours to apply the paint once you add the reactor to the paint.
1 or 2 wheel stud guide pins M14 x 1.5 mm.
Paint. I used G2 Epoxy. One kit does all four calipers. It comes with cleaner, and paint brushes. I was surprised that the supplied flux brushes worked perfectly. Have a few because they start to get gummy after an hour with epoxy paint.
Non-chlorinated brake cleaner
Lots of wire brushes to clean the calipers
Depending on the exact brakes - various common wrenches, I have the big brake set 310mm rear rotors, and 340 mm front rotors. I needed 11, 12 and 15 mm wrenches and a 7mm allen key (that's not so common).
Audi/VW rear brakes require a piston wind-in tool.
Brake grease.
2 bungee cords to support the front brake calipers. The rears don't seem to need extra support
Brake fluid (almost certainly DOT 4 for your Audi)
Optional: high temperature decals for the calipers. Lots available on ebay

*Get Started*

First, loosen wheel lug bolts then get the car off the ground - generally it's best to get all four wheels off at the same time, and it's a must with epoxy paint. Remove the wheels. I've posted a DIY on the forum if you need to know how to do this.

Having a set of wheel stud guide pins helps to take the wheels off without damaging the brake or the inner barrel of the wheel (see photo)


















Next step is to remove the brake pads. This allows you to paint the caliper without getting paint all over the pad backs, and makes it possible to do a small brake tune up at the same time. Otherwise you will be able to mask most parts.

Removing the brake pads generally requires pressing the caliper piston back a millimetre or two with, for example, a C-clamp to make it easier to pull off the caliper. My rears simply required removing the caliper slide bolts with 2 open ended wrenches. My fronts needed a 7 mm allen key. I suggest doing a youtube search if you are unsure how to pull the pads there are some great videos. Don't forget to remove some brake fluid from the reservoir to allow for the caliper movement. And don't have the parking brake on for removing the rear caliper as it applies pressure to the piston&#8230;.

My rear brakes were pretty dirty after 8 years. At this point, I wound the rear caliper piston in all the way with a piston winding tool. The pads just pop out, and the pad shims (rear only) can most likely be cleaned up with solvent and reused if necessary. I elected to replace mine and they were very expensive $20 each&#8230;..










Next brush the dirt off the calipers with wire brushes. I found I needed some stiff brushes from the welding section of the hardware store, and some smaller wire brushes like toothbrushes for the detail work. After a quick brushing, you will most likely need to do a few iterations on each caliper with non-chlorinated brake solvent and further brushing until the caliper is this clean. It is critical to get all the grease off, I'm never sure how many cleanings are required, so I go pretty far because otherwise you'll have paint blistering and peeling.

The photos show how much dirt came off mine.

You may notice I also camfered the outer edges of my old rotors (using an angle grinder with sand paper) just to clean up the look. My rotors were only half worn (29mm thickness, down from 30mm) so I figure I can get a few more years out of them. The rotor scratches wore off in 10 minutes of driving and showed how well the new pads meshed with the old rotors.


























Once you are satisfied that the calipers are clean it's time to start painting. I found it best to paint the caliper carriers first.

Then for the rears, install the calipers loosely and paint the rest. For the fronts, I found it best to hang the caliper body on the rotor to be able to get all the surfaces.

Using some painter's tape helps keep the paint off other parts and makes it easier to paint quickly. You'll see I still got paint on the rotors but not problem, you have to degrease the rotors anyway and along with a bit of brushing the overpaint comes off.

I painted the rears most of the way back but not to the brake bleeders as that is out of sight and will take some abuse in the future if you do any brake work&#8230;. The fronts, I only painted the front of the calipers stopping where the piston half of the caliper begins as it forms a clear demarcation line and leaves a clean look.

I also put a coat of aluminum coloured generic rust paint on the rotor "hats" with a foam brush to cover the light rust&#8230;.

Here are a few photos.


























I added some decals to the calipers for fun. I let the paint dry a day before this step. I think the rears came out better the fronts were tough because the surface was so curved.


















Now you just reinstall the brake pads, reverse of removal. I installed new pads at this point, so the pistons had to be fully retracted. I greased all the pistons and rubber shields with silicone grease to refresh them and added grease to the contact points on the calipers and the pads - this has reduced the squeal to zero as my old pads and guides were dry. I also re-lubed all the slider pins (mine were in excellent shape so I didn't replace them).

The front brake anti-rattle springs are a turd to reinstall without damaging the fresh paint. I protected all nearby surfaces with painters tape and hoped for the best. The springs do move as you force the spring into place so it's virtually impossible to not leave a mark. I found having a hammer handy to tap the center of the spring into place cleanly once it was 90% home worked the best.

I did a brake bleed with a pressure bleeder as my fluid was old. This could be considered optional as the brake lines don't get opened, but really it's a worthwhile step to take.










Yucky old fluid coming out.










Once everything is done to your satisfaction, reinstall the wheels. I put my winter wheels so they are different here than what I started with. Coincidentally it snowed 3 inches the next day!


























I hope that helps show the job and provides some tips. Certainly there are other ways to do the job, different paint types, many variations on how much brake work to do, etc. Have fun.


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## WoRkZ (Sep 19, 2015)

So damn cool of you to take the time to create this how-to mate! I Wanted to do this on my car in the near future... 

Do you have an idea of how durable this paint can be on our calipers (considering they will be assaulted by road salt and other crap for at least 5 months)? Also, I usually use a C-clamp to push the pistons back into the calipers . Is this also possible on the TT?

Those winter wheels look rather good on your car BTW... 

EDIT: Lee, where did you get the G2 paint from? I've started looking around a bit... and the cheapest I've seen it is 50$ shipped on eBay. That's rather steep IMO... :?


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## missile (Jul 18, 2011)

Great post . Thanks for sharing :lol:


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## TT4LEE (Mar 8, 2015)

In reply, the G2 paint is not cheap at $50 but it is a great product. It is self leveling and very durable. I've had it on another car for 2 years and it still looks like new, most spray paint options I've seen fade and look not so good after a few years... But there are lots of options and I'm not promoting G2 - it's just the best thing I've seen next to powder coating which is the next price point (considering the extra disassembly required and specialized painting equipment).

Oh, and the rear calipers need a wind in tool, the piston needs to be turned as it is pushed in....


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## Templar (Mar 9, 2012)

They've turned out very nice mate, good write up.


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## WoRkZ (Sep 19, 2015)

TT4LEE said:


> In reply, the G2 paint is not cheap at $50 but it is a great product. It is self leveling and very durable. I've had it on another car for 2 years and it still looks like new, most spray paint options I've seen fade and look not so good after a few years... But there are lots of options and I'm not promoting G2 - it's just the best thing I've seen next to powder coating which is the next price point (considering the extra disassembly required and specialized painting equipment).
> 
> Oh, and the rear calipers need a wind in tool, the piston needs to be turned as it is pushed in....


I am sure that the G2 paint kit is a good product (I've read about it on other forums)... I was just wondering if there was a way to buy it for less than 50$. It's still on the expensive side. BTW, I don't think that product is sold in Europe...

Do you know how much a wind-in tool cost? It could be a deal breaker for me if the tool is expensive...

At first, I wanted to do a core exchange for powder-coated calipers... but no one seems to do calipers for the TT. I can find that for any other car but the TT fro some reason...


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## Templar (Mar 9, 2012)

A cheaper and more cost effective is a product called Hammerite Smooth, adheres very well to bare steel and dries quickly. Lasts very well and I heat resistant.


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## WoRkZ (Sep 19, 2015)

Templar said:


> A cheaper and more cost effective is a product called Hammerite Smooth, adheres very well to bare steel and dries quickly. Lasts very well and I heat resistant.


Well, 50$CAN is roughly 25 Pounds I think... so from your point of view, that paint is probably not that expensive.


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## IC_HOTT (May 29, 2010)

missile said:


> Great post . Thanks for sharing :lol:


+1 great post and thanks for the effort 8)


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## Blaylock1988 (Dec 29, 2014)

WoRkZ said:


> TT4LEE said:
> 
> 
> > In reply, the G2 paint is not cheap at $50 but it is a great product. It is self leveling and very durable. I've had it on another car for 2 years and it still looks like new, most spray paint options I've seen fade and look not so good after a few years... But there are lots of options and I'm not promoting G2 - it's just the best thing I've seen next to powder coating which is the next price point (considering the extra disassembly required and specialized painting equipment).
> ...


In the US you can rent a brake caliper tool set for free from AutoZone, O'Reilly, Advance, etc. Just make sure you keep your receipt or you'll have a hard time turning it in.

Sent from my XT1060 using Tapatalk


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## jocco (Apr 6, 2015)

Great guide, nice pictures.

How much pressure are you using on the brake bleeder tool?

I have a spare garden sprayer bottle that I want to use for this.


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## missile (Jul 18, 2011)

jocco said:


> Great guide, nice pictures.
> 
> How much pressure are you using on the brake bleeder tool?
> 
> I have a spare garden sprayer bottle that I want to use for this.


I would suggest you get the proper tool for the job, They are not expensive http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/UK-STOCK-Car- ... SwiwVWSqoc


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## TT4LEE (Mar 8, 2015)

Thx for the feedback everyone. Good point that the brake wind in tool can often be borrowed from auto parts stores or find someone that has one. For the brake bleeder I used 7-8 psi. I've heard people try to use a garden sprayer, but you can't tell the pressure and too much can cause damage, plus apparently it's difficult to achieve steady pressure without leakage. I used the dry method - using the pump to pressurize the brake fluid reservoir and watching not to let it go dry...


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## jocco (Apr 6, 2015)

missile said:


> jocco said:
> 
> 
> > Great guide, nice pictures.
> ...


This tool is really inexpensive, but the customs in my country are.

Might try to order one.


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## TT4LEE (Mar 8, 2015)

I'm happy to report that after a winter of salty Ontario driving and a further summer the paint and the decals are like new.


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## MT-V6 (Jan 11, 2015)

Looks good and a good guide. Last month I painted mine black, but didn't remove them as I didn't have the correct tools. I plan to take them off soon to replace the discs, so will try and get some photos then. I used Hammerite as others have mentioned, it lasted well on my previous 2 cars.

Glad I'm not the only one that struggled with the front retaining clips, they are nasty. Audi must have a tool that makes it easy to reclip them


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## IC_HOTT (May 29, 2010)

MT-V6 said:


> Audi must have a tool that makes it easy to reclip them


You're right - its called an apprentice :lol:


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## SwissJetPilot (Apr 27, 2014)

If you use spray paint, I recommend regular kitchen roll aluminum foil to wrap the surrounding hardware bits. Much easier than paper and tape. While you've got the wheels off, it's worth re-painting the hubs silver too.

Here's my front & rear done in matt red. Paint is DUPLI-COLOR® Supertherm 300º, Dupli-Color® Red Spray Cans 400 ml. available from Amazon.


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## ashfinlayson (Oct 26, 2013)

If you cba to do it yourself it only costs about £90 to have it done. I had the callipers on my Beamer sprayed black the other day along with a wheel refurb and colour change + window tints. All in for about £400 and got the car back the same day

It is amazing the transformation you get from wheel and calliper change


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## RocketRoss (Oct 18, 2016)

great guide, thanks


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## nhs99v (Jul 18, 2017)

1st post after having bought a TT two weeks ago (on a whim!).

I've had it up on axle stands in the garage for the last few days as I always like to put new pads and discs straight on from the off.

I made a schoolboy error and nicked a brake line, so its still in the air whilst I sort out the brake line! This gave me the chance to take the caliper brackets etc off completely because they had been very poorly sprayed red and looked utter dog sh1t.

Firstly, I can't see how anything 'sprayed' would be effective past the first week. I bought a caliper re-paint kit from Euro Car Parts for £15 which ahd the cleaner, brush and paint in. I decided to go with the graphite colour and I have to say - although the car is still off the road, in the air on axle stands - the repainted caliper, brackets, disc hub and wheel hub back plate, look really good.

Couple of the carrier bolts were a right PITA to get off (two breaker bars and a ratchet down) but the opportunity to take them all right back to new, with proper greasing, new Pagid parts, new carrier bolts, etc. really is worth the effort.

Will post some pics shortly.


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