I'll be doing at least a minor overhaul of the front brake calipers (non-ABS) on my 2007 Cobalt LS this weekend and am confused about the type of grease required. Some of the docs I've read (none specifically for GM) suggest one type of grease for the pistons and another for the slider pins. I'm also finding a dearth of choices at local automotive stores. What does GM recommend, and can I also use it for the back of the pads instead of a special "anti-squeak" grease? Thanks!

 

I just have a big tub synthetic brake grease that I use for everything. I am not sure what you are supposed to use on the piston before compressing it. I have never greased that or anything before.

 

Thanks for the reply. In the end I used a silicon grease on both the slider pins and the backs of the pads. The pistons seemed fine so I left those alone, but did buy a small quantity of "red rubber grease" from the UK (via EBay) for future use. Why it's so hard to find in this country is beyond me...unless in the US, car owners are used to replacing the entire caliper, while everywhere else it's more common to do your own rebuilds. I'm happy to skip the extra work, but the piston videos on YouTube made it look almost fun!

 

Any grease will work, it's very uncommon to do rebuilds yourself here as the new parts are so cheap normally.

 

I have a tub of high temp synthetic grease that I use. I just took my front brakes apart trying to diagnose a Brembo brake squeal and reassembled everything with this grease. Worked great. Squeal is still there but at least I now know everything is moving properly.

 

Just use copper anti-seize for the back side of the brake pads and the little ear lobes so they slide better. Also, lubricate your slide pins with silicone paste.