The Chieftain's Random Musings Thread

The_Chieftain: Every time I work on a car, it becomes a learning experience. Replacing the front disks and pads on the wife's SL was easy enough once I figured out I needed a large hammer, that was yesterday's project. Today's, well, that was the rear brakes. All was going well (once I figured out how to retract the things electrically: Front brakes hydraulic, rear brakes not). Unfortunately, I missed one critical step in not screwing back the piston even further. (Unlike Audi, I have noticed that MB does not release its service manuals publicly.) In my attempt to make things fit, I re-enabled the brakes, and now the bloody piston has fallen out. I have lubricant on the garage floor, a piston not where it's supposed to be, a parking brake which is stuck 'on' (on the other wheel), and a car which is off the road for a few days. The good news is that apparently even if I have to replace the entire caliper/piston set (thankfully, electrical plugs, not hydraulic lines), I think I still end up saving money over the amount I'd have spent taking it to a mechanic. And I'll know better for next time.