o4 XC70 rear brake disc removal question. Help please!

[XJXC]

Dear all:

I'd appreciate your prompt reply on this.
I could not remove the rear brake disc on my 04 XC70 despite having read all instructions/suggestions I could possibly find online including this forum.
Here is what I did:
1) Wheel off, caliper/holder off, disc locating pin off;
2) Parking brake adjuster released about 15 turns.
The rotor refuses to come off the hub; not even shows a sign of lessening. I sprayed brake cleaner and even a bit of WD-40 in between the rotor and the hub; still nothing happened. It appears that I've missed something obvious, but what?

Please help!

XJ

[BillAileo]

I assume you have the parking brake handle in the down position. Can you tell if the turning of the release adjustment has resulted in any slack in the cable to the emergency brake at the wheel you are working on? If there is no "slack" there the emergency brake shoes can maintain friction on the drum within the rotor preventing it from moving.

Bill

[thebracko]

Afew good wacks with a good hammer onto the rotor will break it free from the hub. Be careful not to hit the hub or the rotors friction surface, just the area that the wheel sits flush against.

[BillAileo]

FWIW: I have used the few good wacks approach successfully, however, one time I did not have the emergency brake cable loose enough when I did it and when the rotor broke free it took the wear surface of the emergency brake shoes with it....

Bill

[XJXC]

Hi, Bill:

The handle was down as u assumed, and I could tell that the cable was kind of loose and the rotor/hub turns pretty freely. A hammer would really be the only solution to this, as others suggested? The problem is that the rotor is still firmly retaines without any sign of giving up.

There were posts stating aligning an adjusting hole on the rotor and adjust something called a "star" screw through the hole. Are those relevant to the 04 model?
Thanks!

XJ

[BillAileo]

XJ,

I have had other cars that had a "star" mechanism for adjusting shoe style brakes but I do not believe these Volvo emergency brake set ups have such a component. To the best of my knowledge all adjustment is done through adjustment of the cable length at the parking brake lever.

Since the rotor is turning freely, if I were in your shoes I'd probably resort to the hammer, I just threw out that warning because I was too quick to do it once....

Bill

[XJXC]

Hi, Bill:

So, basically, if it's not the shoes, it must be due to rust built between the rotor and the hub. This is my first time dealing with rear rotor replacement, does the rotor fit to the hub very tightly to begin with? Are there special tools I can use other than the hammer? Just a bit concerned by a hammer, a rubber one I assume.

XJ

[BillAileo]

XJ,
I'm not aware of any special tool. Vadis doesn't mention one. But then, I'm no expert. The description that "thebracko" gave is probably as good as any:

"A few good wacks with a good hammer onto the rotor will break it free from the hub. Be careful not to hit the hub or the rotors friction surface, just the area that the wheel sits flush against."

Bill

[MoeB]

Most likely the rotor is rusted to the hub. Tap the rotor with an 8 lb sledge hammer, going around the circumference of the rotor. Don't hit it too hard. A little heat from a propane torch applied to the center of the rotor may help loosen it up. Don't catch your WD-40 on fire.

[gibbons]

When the rear hub bearing on my 04 went bad, I decided to replace the rotors at the same time as the hub bearing. I could not tap the rotor off the hub, it was firmly rusted on. So I put on Kroil penetrating oil and heated the rotor with a torch. Nope. Knowing the rotor was going in the garbage anyway, I really beat on it. Nope. I ended up removing the hub with the rotor still on. Once off the car, I decided to see just how much it would take to remove it, which was a big sledge and hard, hard hits which destroyed the rotor. I was glad I was replacing the rotors at the same time as the bearing.

I hope yours isn't frozen on as bad as mine.

[MoeB]

Once off the car, I decided to see just how much it would take to remove it, which was a big sledge and hard, hard hits which destroyed the rotor. I was glad I was replacing the rotors at the same time as the bearing.

Sometimes these rotors need to be taught a lesson, eh? :D

[skibo]

I'm surprised they chose not to include a 'jacking hole' - a threaded hole in the rotor with a solid hub-surface behind it - lets you but in a bolt to push the rotor off they hub. My last car had one on each rotor.

[XJXC]

Thanks all for your helpful suggestions. Sounds like I'll have to go with the hammer. I'll give it a try this coming weekend and if that still does work, then volvo service will make some money from me.

[gibbons]

Skibo, I'm not sure you meant "they" is Volvo, or us guys in this thread. The Volvo rotors don't have them. But ya know, I don't know if they would have worked on mine or not, I am guessing they would have stripped before the rotor came loose. I am talking hard, hard sledge hammer hits. Weird, huh. I wonder what the dealers do? Whaling away on rotors like if they were still on the car couldn't be good for bearing races. Oh well, just another repair for them down the road.

[BillAileo]

Once one has the rear rotor off and does whatever maintenance was the goal, would brushing some anti-sieze compound where the rotor and hub meet make the next removal less of a challenge?


Bill

[gibbons]

I used synthetic brake caliper grease on mine and I hope it will do the trick down the road. I really don't want to have to replace the hubs if it needs new rotors next time.....

[skibo]

Skibo, I'm not sure you meant "they" is Volvo, or us guys in this thread. .

I meant Volvo. And yes, such holes can be a mixed blessing.

[XJXC]

Dear All:

I'm happy to report that I successfully removed and replaced both rear rotors on my 04 XC70 by using the "hammer" approach; actually I used a 20-lb dumbbell. The rotor came off after only 2-3 "good" wacks:D.

Thanks all for your helpful suggestions!

XJ