Ford Repair: General question on Brakes, independent repair shops, slide pins

Question
QUESTION: Hi Tony - hopefully just a simple question - I had my 2005 Focus in for service and the brakes are up. I've done brake jobs on older beaters before, but I don't want to mess this up - they mentioned "caliper service" as part of the job. I plan on doing the pad/rotors myself, but wondered if you could elaborate on "caliper service" and whether it's a simple DIY thing. I usually just use a clamp and push the pistons back in and don't give the calipers a second thought.

Thanks,
-Cam

ANSWER: Hello Cam, It is rare to see a bad caliper any more, Is it a repair shop saying caliper service? It should be as simple as you know it is. Make sure to lube the slide pins and when the piston is pushed in do it slowly and when dome pump up the gradually to get the pedal. You should be OK. Thanks Tony

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hey Tony - it didn't sound as though it was anything in particular...they kind of played it off as part of the brake service. They didn't indicate that anything was wrong, though they did try to say something along the lines of "we should be able to service the caliper....it could be sticking...if not you'll need new calipers". It kind of felt as though they'd threaten and extra $350 so I would be happy to pay $100 for caliper service. In your opinion, on a 4 year old car, should it just be a matter of some brake cleaner, greasing the slide pins and retracting the pistons? Sorry for the drawn out question!

Thanks again,
-Cam

Answer
Hello Cam, Yes that is about it. #1 thing on brakes is to make sure the caliper can move, It is rae I see a caliper go bad on ford vehicles anymore and a lot of national and independent repair shops seem to use the "scare" method to upsell.But that is a personal opinion for myself. Thanks Tony