I’ve never had to remove any rust or corrosion from any of my three second gens, and I live in the land of snow and salt.
Different vehicle. Different parts. Are you caliper brackets uncoated? I find it hard to believe there are many, if any, nearly 20 year old vehicles driven in now and salt that never had any rust or corrosion on the brakes, but maybe you and your vehicles are just special?
I used to change my own brakes until I bought my 2011 Explorer and I never cleaned or removed rust from the caliper brackets either on any vehicle I owned and never had this problem. I recently had some work done at an independent shop on our 2011 Edge and I feel that they will clean the rust and lube the rail under the clips if I ask them to. Hopefully that will help or they will be able to find out what is going on.
Every vehicle and part is different. I'm not sure why that is so difficult to understand. I have done many brake jobs where I just slapped pads on - didn't change brake hardware, didn't turn rotors, didn't clean mating surfaces, bleed, or do anything other than remove and replace pads - and some worked fine and lasted a long time and some didn't.
You guys are free to do you, but for others that don't know, I hope they don't come here and feel like they are getting shortchanged or getting ****ty info because people don't know any better.
Here is a technical bulletin from Raybestos -
https://www.brakepartsinc.com/dam/j...B 18-11 Properly Cleaning Caliper Bracket.pdf
Here's another article that talks about removing rust, scale, corrosion and road grime and says "It is vitally important to make sure that the caliper hardware and their brackets are restored to like-new condition to prevent future issues and comebacks." -
Avoiding Brake Job Comebacks - Automotive Service Professional
Failure to clean rust buildup and properly lubricate caliper brackets during brake service is proven to be a major cause of brake noise, premature wear and increased stopping distance. -
Cleaning Brake Calipers
Brake Shop: Brake Hardware | MOTOR
Caliper brackets. Caliper brackets are normally constructed of ferrous material, which tends to rust in most climates. The rust may build up in the channels that locate the pads, causing the pads to bind. Caliper brackets should be removed, cleaned and inspected during a complete brake job. Remove rust and old lube from the pad lands and inspect the mating surfaces. Wear here may prevent a proper fit when the pads are installed. Any looseness may cause clunks or other noises when the brakes are applied and released.
If you’ve done your job properly, the abutment clips should fit into the caliper bracket lands without drama. Any leftover rust will prevent proper installation, and will keep the pads from installing properly. Some work with a small flat file may be necessary to properly prepare the mounting brackets for abutment clip installation.