norcal_cyclist

My calipers are covered in corrosion.... anyone ever clean theirs up?

IknowHuhA6

Ya know... this post just got me to think twice about my approach. I was going to paint my calipers but now I'm wondering if I need to have them sandblasted, or maybe take a polishing tool to them and remove the corrosion.

Maybe cheaper to buy new calipers? Hadn't thought about the finished product given the years of corrosion on the calipers.

Thanks for posting. I'll have to reconsider what I really want finished calipers to look like.

mdkv5

I have the same calipers, they come from the factory unfinished and look like crap to begin with so there is no refinishing them.
Just have them painted. Here are some threads discussing different approaches:

https://www.audiworld.com/forums/a6-...lease-2862166/

https://www.audiworld.com/forums/a6-...-tips-2851310/

norcal_cyclist

I may just pull the wheels and run a soft wire wheel over them then hit with a matte clear coat... idk

jpru2001

Great stuff in those links!

cal3thousand

Paint them black. That's what I'm doing on my C6. It will give you a nice clean appearance while not looking all civic-fanboy-with-red-painted-calipers.

I'm going to rebuild and reload my calipers with new pads, clips and seals while they are out getting painted.

IknowHuhA6

OK, I loved all the photos in previous posts shared. that made me decide to try making a custom caliper cover for the rear brakes so I can apply the Audi S-Line logo on all four corners. Front brake calipers are fine to do that, but the rear brake calipers are small and have that inconvenient U shaped cut-out that doesn't allow any nice logo markings.

I'm going to shoot for black calipers with red S-line logo for now.

tenspeed

I'm on the same track with you. I looked at the covers that are available and thought that I could come up with something as good for a lot less than their asking price.

IknowHuhA6

Edit:
Sorry went off topic. This thread is about refinishing calipers not paint. I relocated painted caliper pictures to more appropriate location.
https://www.audiworld.com/forums/a6-.../#post24798712

Regarding caliper refinishing, I noticed I did have to brush off quite a bit of dust on the fronts. Even after using brake cleaner, paint degreaser and nylon and wire brushes, I could not get stains out but that wasn't primary goal since i was repainting. I imagine they could be refinished but thats a lot of work, much more involved than painting.

Added pic of rear caliper after using steel brush on an airtool (on floor below in photo). I went to town on that caliper but no luck getting a newer-like finish.