All Front Brake Pads and Rotors jobs
Front Brake Pads and Rotors
2015–2020 Ford F-150 - 3.5L V6 EcoBoost / D35
Front brake pads and rotors on a 2017 F-150. Sixty to two hours of work, depending on how hard the factory threadlocker fights back on those 184 lb-ft caliper bolts. You'll need a breaker bar, a solid torque wrench, and the willingness to not skip the hub cleaning step.
How Rough Is This Going to Be? Know what you're getting into.
This is intermediate-level work. The hardest part isn't removing the pads—it's breaking loose those caliper anchor brackets from the steering knuckle. They're locked down tight with threadlocker, and a standard ratchet wrench won't cut it. You also have dual-piston calipers, so compressing both pistons evenly without cocking them matters. The good news: no brake line disconnects required, and the geometry is forgiving if you're methodical.
Save Another Trip to the Parts Store Clips, seals, fluids, and the little stuff people forget.
Siphon a little brake fluid out of the reservoir before you compress the caliper pistons, or you'll have overflow on your engine bay. Check that you grabbed new stainless abutment clips—they're cheap and usually bundled with quality pad sets. If you're reusing the old caliper anchor bolts, source some medium-to-high strength threadlocker. And have a 21.5mm socket within arm's reach in case those factory capped lug nuts swelled from corrosion.
Here's Where It Gets Greasy The procedure, pain points, and common ways this job fights back.
The F-150's inner brake pads have two semicircular 'humps' on the backing plate. They go inboard, toward the dual pistons. Flat-top pads go outboard. Reverse them, and the humps jam against the caliper frame, the outer pad never contacts the rotor, and you destroy everything. Also: don't let the caliper hang by the brake hose—hang it with a bungee cord or S-hook from the suspension. And don't guess on the caliper bracket bolt torque. 184 lb-ft is not a suggestion; it's a load requirement on a truck that weighs 4,500 pounds.
Procedure
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1
Front Wheels and Hubs
Loosen front wheel lug nuts slightly using a 21mm socket while the vehicle is on the ground. Chock the rear wheels, raise the front end using a hydraulic floor jack under approved frame lift points, and secure the truck on heavy-duty jack stands. Remove the lug nuts and front wheels.
Never work under a vehicle supported only by a hydraulic jack.
If factory lug nuts are swollen from internal corrosion, use a 21.5mm half-size socket rather than forcing a 21mm socket.
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2
Brake Master Cylinder Reservoir
Inspect the brake fluid reservoir level under the hood. Siphon out a small amount of brake fluid if it is near the MAX fill line to prevent overflow when the caliper pistons are retracted.
Brake fluid damages painted surfaces immediately. Wipe spills promptly with water.
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3
Front Brake Caliper
Remove the upper and lower caliper guide pin (slide) bolts using a 13mm socket. Lift the caliper housing off the caliper bracket.
Do not allow the heavy dual-piston caliper to hang by the flexible rubber brake line. Secure it immediately.
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4
Front Brake Caliper & Hose
Suspend the brake caliper from the front suspension coil spring using an S-hook or heavy-duty bungee cord.
Straining or kinking the brake hose can cause internal wall tearing and brake failure.
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5
Front Brake Pads
Remove the inboard and outboard brake pads from the caliper bracket. Note the distinct shapes: the inner pad has two rounded 'rabbit ear' humps on the backing plate, while the outer pad has a flat top profile.
Memorize or photograph pad orientation to avoid mixing up inner and outer pads during assembly.
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6
Caliper Anchor Bracket
Remove the two 21mm caliper anchor bracket mounting bolts using a 1/2-inch drive breaker bar and 21mm 6-point socket. Lift the bracket off the steering knuckle.
These bolts are torqued to 184 lb-ft from the factory and secured with threadlocker; use a long breaker bar and maintain firm square engagement.
Turn the steering wheel to point the caliper outward to gain maximum clearance and leverage for the breaker bar.
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7
Front Brake Rotor
Slide the old brake rotor off the wheel hub. If bonded by rust, strike the rotor hat flat face between wheel studs with a dead-blow hammer to break the rust seal.
Do not strike wheel studs with a hammer.
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8
Wheel Hub Flange
Thoroughly clean the wheel hub face and hub pilot flange using a wire brush or wire wheel until bare, flat metal is exposed. Clean with brake cleaner and wipe dry.
Any residual rust flakes or debris trapped between the hub and new rotor will cause lateral runout and severe pedal pulsation within 1,000-3,000 miles.
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9
New Brake Rotor
Clean shipping oil off the new brake rotor friction surfaces and mounting hat using brake cleaner and clean shop towels. Slide the new rotor onto the hub studs, threading on one lug nut hand-tight to keep the rotor seated flat during assembly.
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10
Caliper Anchor Bracket & Clips
Remove old abutment clips from the caliper bracket. Clean the bracket pad slide channels with a wire brush to remove rust build-up under the clip seats. Install new stainless steel abutment clips.
Failing to clean rust underneath the clips causes pad ears to bind, leading to dragging brakes and rapid uneven pad wear.
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11
Caliper Slide Pins and Boots
Pull out the caliper slide pins, inspect rubber boots for tears, wipe off old grease, re-lubricate pins with high-temperature silicone brake grease, and reinsert them into the bracket until boots seal properly.
Do not use petroleum-based grease; petroleum degrades and swells rubber guide pin boots.
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12
Caliper Anchor Bracket Bolts
Reinstall the caliper anchor bracket over the rotor onto the steering knuckle. Thread in the two 21mm bolts (new bolts or clean bolts with medium-to-high strength threadlocker) and torque both bolts to 184 lb-ft (250 Nm) using a calibrated torque wrench.
Do not guess this torque. 184 lb-ft is extremely critical on full-size trucks to prevent catastrophic bracket detachment.
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13
Front Brake Pads
Apply a thin film of brake lubricant to the contact sliding notches on the abutment clips. Install the inner and outer brake pads into the bracket: install the pad with the two raised humps/ears on the INBOARD (piston) side, and the flat-top pad on the OUTBOARD (wheel) side.
CRITICAL: Installing an inner pad on the outside or an outer pad on the inside causes the humps to contact the caliper frame, cocking the pad and preventing proper braking contact.
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14
Dual-Piston Caliper
Using a dual-piston caliper compression tool (or a large C-clamp with an old brake pad placed flat across both pistons), slowly push both caliper pistons straight back into the caliper body until fully seated.
Compress pistons slowly to prevent pressure spikes or reservoir overflow. Ensure the dust boots fold in cleanly without tearing or pinching.
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15
Caliper Guide Pin Bolts
Position the caliper over the newly installed pads and onto the guide pins. Install the two 13mm caliper guide pin bolts and torque to 27 lb-ft (37 Nm).
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16
Front Wheels and Lug Nuts
Remove the temporary retaining lug nut from the rotor. Reinstall the road wheel and hand-thread all 6 lug nuts. Lower the truck until tires touch the ground, then torque all lug nuts to 150 lb-ft (204 Nm) in a star/crisscross sequence.
Do not drive the truck before completing the brake pedal pumping step.
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17
Hydraulic Brake System & Bedding
Before starting the engine or moving the vehicle, pump the brake pedal 4-5 times until it becomes firm. Check and top off the brake fluid reservoir with clean DOT 4 / DOT 3 fluid to the MAX line and secure the cap. Perform a test drive and pad bedding procedure (several moderate stops from 45 mph down to 10 mph without coming to a complete stop, followed by cooling).
Failure to pump the brake pedal before driving will result in zero initial braking pressure.
Gotchas
- Inner vs. Outer Pad Mix-Up: F-150 front brake pads are side-specific. Inboard pads have two distinct semicircular 'humps' (rabbit ears) atop the backing plate designed to align with the dual caliper pistons. Outboard pads are smooth/flat on top. If an inner pad is accidentally installed on the outboard position, the humps collide with the caliper bracket casting, cocking the pad and preventing outer pad-to-rotor contact, leading to severe grinding, dragging, and rapid destruction of the new pad and rotor.
- Extreme Caliper Anchor Bracket Torque: The 21mm caliper anchor bracket bolts are torqued from the factory to 184 lb-ft (250 Nm) with threadlocker. Standard 3/8-inch ratchets or short 1/2-inch wrenches will not budge them. A 24-inch or longer breaker bar (or high-output 1/2-inch impact wrench) and turning the steering wheel outward for clearance are essential to prevent rounding the bolt heads.
- Swollen Two-Piece OEM Lug Nuts: Factory Ford capped lug nuts absorb moisture and swell over time. Standard 21mm sockets may not fit or can become permanently stuck on the lug nut. Have a half-size 21.5mm socket on hand or replace swollen factory lug nuts with one-piece solid steel aftermarket lug nuts.
- Hub Flange Corrosion Induced Rotor Runout: Failure to completely strip rust, corrosion, and scale from the wheel hub face before placing the new rotor will cause the rotor to seat tilted by just a few thousandths of an inch. While unnoticed initially, this lateral runout creates uneven disc thickness wear (DTV) and violent steering wheel brake shudder within 1,500 to 5,000 miles.
Common mistakes
- Installing inner brake pads (with humps) on the outside of the rotor or putting both inner pads on one side and both outer pads on the other.
- Allowing the heavy dual-piston caliper assembly to dangle by the rubber brake hose, damaging internal reinforcing cords and precipitating future brake hose failure.
- Failing to pump the brake pedal to seat the caliper pistons against the new pads before shifting the vehicle out of park and attempting to drive.
- Under-torquing the caliper bracket bolts because 184 lb-ft exceeds the capacity of standard consumer torque wrenches.
- Applying petroleum grease or chassis lube to caliper slide pins instead of dedicated silicone/ceramic brake lubricant, resulting in swollen slide pin rubber bushings and frozen calipers.
- Failing to clean rust deposits from underneath the stainless steel abutment clip channels on the caliper bracket, which pinches the pad ears and causes brake drag.
It's a Good Idea To... Greasy tips and useful while-you're-in-there advice.
Strip the wheel hub flange down to bare metal with a wire wheel before you seat the new rotor. Rust scales, corrosion debris, and mill scale trapped between the hub and rotor hat will create lateral runout and brake shudder within 1,500 miles. Spend five minutes here; save yourself a callback.
You Already Have a Screw Loose. Your Car Shouldn't. Final checks before you call it done.
Once you button everything up, pump the brake pedal four or five times before you move. Pedal should firm up. Top off the brake fluid reservoir, then do a calm bedding run—moderate stops from 45 down to 10 mph, several times, without full stops. New pads and rotors need a few miles to establish proper friction layer. You'll feel it work.