NB2 rear caliper rattle
 

Serious question: does a reliable, cost-effective solution for this exist?

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If it's the same rattle I had without these pieces, these have been on my car for 4 years or so now.

Reviving this thread, as the situation is starting to make me crazy...

Knowledge I've learned:

Most later-model NBs came equipped from the factory with "sport" rear brakes. These calipers do not support the use of the M-shaped springs or anti-rattle clips. So that's why they were missing from my car.

I replaced the pads back in August or so, also replaced the slider pins / bolts. No improvement. The whole caliper can still be wiggled side to side on the pins.

It seems clear that the bores in the caliper which slide along the pins have become enlarged / elongated.

It doesn't seem to be possible to purchase a brand new rear caliper for this car. Even Priority Mazda only has rebuilds. I'm assuming that these holes don't get drilled out and re-bushed during a typical rebuild.

Searching both here and the other forum revels that a lot of folks have experienced this nuisance, but I see no evidence that anyone has actually solved it.


Seriously, it's embarrassing to hear my car rattle like a 70's vintage Chrysler every time I drive over rough pavement, which, here in Chicago, is about 90% of it.

On my (many) nb's it didn't seem to matter what flavor you had, it would either rattle or not. From NB1 base, to NB2 SE, to MSM. From 160k to 30k miles.

Just turn the radio up :likecat:

2003+ so sport brake

Front:
Back:

Amazon tells me i bought both those Centric kits. Neither actually fit. There's thread upon thread out there of people trying to find those kits that fit with sport brakes. Even the ones you get through Mazda Motorsports don't fit unless you modify them and cut about half of each clip off.

What i have found, is that the kits that Stoptech is sending with their pads, fit great. What i have not found, is how to buy those separately.

There's a lot of misinformation out there.

What I found out from the folks at Rosenthal before they folded is that there were two possible brake packages on the late NBs. The "standard" brakes (which use those clips on the rear) and the "sport" brakes, which do not.

Because of all of the "special edition" cars that Mazda was pumping out towards the end of the NB production run, the vast majority of late NBs got fitted with what we'd otherwise consider to be LS or MSM brakes. My car, for example, was an "Azure Blue Sunlight" car, meaning that like an LS, it had leather seats, a cloth top, 16" wheels, and all of the "convenience" accessories, but otherwise none of the "serious" hardware you'd find on an LS. (5 speed, open diff, etc)

Except the damn brakes.

As a result of this confusion, it's damn near impossible to trust the online parts catalogs on the '01-'05 non-MSM / non-LS cars when it comes to brake hardware.

The scary thing is that I found out during my adventure that the "standard" pads will in fact drop into the "sport" calipers, though they're loose as hell. Makes me wonder how many cars are driving around with this combination.

I always just put large amount of brake slider lube on the calipers where the clips would sit.

If you happen to know of any aftermarket source from which I can buy new calipers (and pads, and hardware, etc) that'll work with the OEM rotors and such, I'd be curious to hear about it.

Obviously they need to support the stock parking brake.

I lubed those things more heavily than Hustler's anus at a Miata club meet. No joy.

Calipers, you're rolling the dice on some remans, by and large. Or finding low mileage used units.

The Stoptech pads/clips for Sport Brakes fit perfectly though.

From the Stoptech site, it lists only the 305 series pads as having the hardware kit [when looking at a 2004 that supposedly all would have the "sport" brakes]. Do you know if the other compound pads are shipped with any? Pics of the pad sizes for clarity...

https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...571f130f31.jpg
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...7ed45b5d02.jpg
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...2ebf1a7044.jpg

I have Stoptech Sport pads, whatever that compound is. I got them from Rockauto for a DD, i didn't put a ton of research into it, and was just pleasantly surprised when i received the first set of hardware that i've ever seen fit Sport Brakes since i owned my first Miata.

I really don't have confidence that caliper clips are going to solve the problem of loose calipers. Ideally, I'd like to find a place that'll sell me two brand new calipers which fit with the stock "sport" rotor (hell, I'll even downgrade to the "base" rotor) and the stock 16" twisted-starfish wheel.

Got a video of the loose calipers? I've noticed that mine can be manipulated by hand fairly easily, but i haven't noticed any real noise that made me think "brakes" instead of "bilsteins."

So, drill them out and bush them. Or, if you don't have the equipment to do so, find someplace that will do it. Machine shops do this kind of thing all the time.

Find a local machining place. Call them, ask to speak to a supervisor. Bring donuts and parts for show and tell. Ask for a "government job price" (this means someone is going to do it on their own time for cash).

Or ship parts to someone you know that does this kind of thing.

In for another water heater thread :)

I took video a year or so ago. Can't find it now.

If I drag the hand-brake lightly while going over bumps, the noise vanishes completely. As soon as I release the brake, it comes right back. This proves to me that the calipers are at fault, and not anything in the suspension / exhaust / etc.




I've thought about it. My concern is getting the spacing between the two bores just perfect, without having any sort of reference. Otherwise, I'll have binding calipers instead of loose calipers. I'm not assuming that the new, larger (worn-out) holes are perfectly concentric with the originals.




Oh, god. Don't remind me of that experience.

Just buy the non-sport 1.8 rear calipers and the relocation brackets to use them with sport rotors. Then you can use any standard rear pad and avoid the sport pads.