Morning all,

I'm interested in changing both front and rear brake callipers on my 2019 ST Line Eco-Boost, I'd love to get red ones.

Have been searching online for a number of options:

Spray paint

Powder Coat

Second hand

Brand new

Have seen some horror stories online of spray painted callipers and them flaking soon after being done, also not feeling too confident with the places I've contacted as they say the callipers are painted whilst still on the vehicle with everything being covered/taped off to prevent overspray, so I'm leaning away from spray painting. (best case scenario is the finish lasts between 1-3 years-B

Found some nice used callipers (1 set from a breakers yard and another set from a popular auction site) both of which are already powder coated red and 'should' therefore just be instal and go.

Garage local to me has advised that buying used will result in most places refusing to fit them as they are a core safety component and the garage could be held liable in the event of an accident caused by a faulty calliper. Although one of the mechanics has said that as long as the donor vehicle was put into service mode before removing the callipers, there shouldn't be any issues.

I could have my current callipers removed and send them for powder coating, but the garage have said that if the piston has to be removed for the rear callipers, I may have to send them off to another place for refitting as they are apparently a real challenge to sort once piston is removed.

Buying brand new is also proving to be a challenge as I'm struggling to source new, pre painted callipers.

I guess my post here is to ask for opinions, which I kind of feel could be more un-biased and therefore beneficial as I'm not buying anything here, I worry that asking any garage always carries the risk of them trying to upsell etc. to bring in more revenue, understandable but doesn't help me understand as much as I'd like to.

Thanks for reading.

Rich

Really easy to do. I changed the front ones for red ones last year. Got the wrong ones first time. Mine is diesel, and I got the smaller ones for a 1 litre vehicle. Kugas use the same calipers. Prices vary greatly. And listings don't always show how scratched the paint is sometimes.

Only this week, with some nicer weather, I've managed to do the rears. Replaced the brake fluid at the same time. All I did was use 12v battery to wind the donor pistons back in. Then put old ones into maintenance mode.

The rears came off a 2024 Focus, and were like new. The rears I think were 2023 from a Kuga. I think I paid around £100 for all 4

Still got the first red set here, if you are interested and they are the correct ones

Would love to see some images if possible!

The ones on the car, or the spare ones?

The first set if they are available

Yes sure. Probably not until tomorrow though

Brake calipers can perfectly be painted.

Through the Years I did quite a few and basically use 2 different methods:

1: Brake calipers that are very clean and in mint condition:
I generally paint these with a small brush and 2 layers of heat resistant paint while installed on the car. When done properly, this gives a very nice result. The result however fully depends on the skills of the painter.

2: Brake calipers that are dirty or show signs of corrosion:
I remove these from the vehicle and disassemble them completely. The calipers are grit blasted, degreased and afterwards spray painted using heat resistant paint. I usually apply a minimum of 2 layers and have the calipers dried in a temperature controlled oven. Afterwards the calipers are assembled using new seals and refurbished pistons.


Within the next Month I am going to paint the calipers of our Focus MK3 ST. This car already has the factory fitted red calipers but the paint shows quite some damage and wear. I already bought a spare set of unpainted calipers which I will refurbish and paint

On 3/19/2026 at 3:52 PM, Rich_G said:

The first set if they are available

I've sent you a DM