I had to put new brake pads and rotors on the rear of my daughters 2001 beetle yesterday. Knowing what a pain wind back pistons are, I decided to buy a low cost wind back tool set off Amazon. It worked so well I had to post about it. It almost makes me look forward to the next set of rear pads I have to do on one of my Fiats... almost. In the past I have tried making a tool to fit the slot and then buying one of those cube tools. It was always a battle to keep these tool engaged and still twist while juggling the wrench and caliper.
This new wind back tool was worth every penny I spent on it. It pushes and twists at the same time which is the key to getting the pistons screwed back into the caliper. The head that holds the individual discs is magnetic, which is awesome. The whole set is much more robust than I was expecting for the price.
One other note of no importance to anyone but myself. I hate working on this beetle. VW does all kinds of crazy things that seem way more complicated than necessary. I did find one positive in this job: You can remove the rear rotors without pulling the caliper support bracket. It's a little thing, but a few less rusty bolts to deal with.
This new wind back tool was worth every penny I spent on it. It pushes and twists at the same time which is the key to getting the pistons screwed back into the caliper. The head that holds the individual discs is magnetic, which is awesome. The whole set is much more robust than I was expecting for the price.
One other note of no importance to anyone but myself. I hate working on this beetle. VW does all kinds of crazy things that seem way more complicated than necessary. I did find one positive in this job: You can remove the rear rotors without pulling the caliper support bracket. It's a little thing, but a few less rusty bolts to deal with.