I'm replacing the brake pads on a 2017 RAM 2500 4wd. The fronts are finished. Found all of the pads were seized at mounting tabs and one caliper mounting pin seized. The vehicle has 64k on the original brakes. My takeaway is replace everything at 50k no matter what the condition. The rears are next on the schedule. Corrosion under the alloy clips is the biggest problem I'm having. The rust grows and seizes the pad mounting tabs.

I started replacing pads early years ago. Staying up on brake issues saves me a ton of money. I have an '09 Subie outback and a '95 F-150. It's a PITA labor of love!

300k miles on our Ram 3500 4x4 and haven't had to put rotors on it yet. I think we've put 4 sets of pads on in 7 years. We tow over weight regularly but try not to race up to stops and never ride the brake.

2012 Fusion we just bought.
Noticed brake noise, and checked.
Pretty sure someone ran a pad down and ate the rotor.
Then replaced pad.
Rotor is a mess.

Can't find my anti-sieze, so I need some.


Just got back from the parts house.

Front rotor, mid grade pads.
Standard rear pads.
Small set if 3/8 drive Torx bits to remove rotors. Thought I had them, not sure.
Little tool to screw piston back in.
Bottle of brake lube,
small container of anti-sieze.

I'm in over $200.


Bought this car because it's listed as one of the most reliable used cars.

Put two new tires on it. $300
Needs struts, tie rod ends, and alignment.
I'll do the work, about $400.
Alignment is $70.

$1000 in this thing I paid $6k for.

Last car was a 95 Subaru.
$1500. Ran it 4 years.
$400 paying someone to do timing belt, cam/crank seals, water pump...
Swapped the newer tires from my junker.
$100 filler tube.

Not another dime in it.


I hate cars!

I know what you mean. When finished I feel like I accomplished something.

I change brakes every 200k whether they need it or not.

Neighbors love squealing... always waving at me with hand gestures.

I would add a portable sand blaster to recondition the mounting points. They work great and save lots of time.

I put anti seize on my wallet but the GF still got to it

Me too

Change mine every 50,000 miles.

That's a good idea, I should regularly swap out my girlfriends too.

Smart man. Keeps things fresh.

All I have to say is "Thank goodness for disc brakes!"

I had to stop at inspection on the rear's. Need to order OEM parts. The TRW pads used on original are close to artwork, besides I get 25% discount at the dealer. This only puts the parts 5% -10% over priced. Definitely worth it.

Unfortunately I always plan on spending $1000.00 on repairs if buying a used vehicle

No joke. I don't even jack with drums. Just take it to the shop for that.

I've found that using a 4x4 truck around here for offroading/hunting (mud and water) will certainly eat up some brake pads and wheel bearings. Put two new front hub assemblies on my Tacoma last week. Water had eaten them up and they were flopping and popping. What sucked was that the hub puller the wife rented at OReilly had buggered threads, which meant another trip to town to swap it out. Should've just left the truck with my mechanic from the start and went hunting.....

I used to think this.

Back in the days before rear disk and brine on the roads.


Now, I think the xtra work of drums is offset by the PITA of
stuck rusty slides that cause so much trouble.

Worn pads, damaged rotors.

A tight brake that triggers the ABS system on a slick road.
That one is a real treat.
One brake slides because it's sticky.
ABS senses a "skid" and reduces the effectiveness of the other 3.


Drums are more reliable, and less trouble.

If having to do a semi large purchase, I have had good luck with rock auto. I was suprised how much cheaper they were on belts, water pump, etc...
BTW, I am in no way affiliated with rock auto. Just passing it on

I went with OEM parts to maintain performance levels. I'm open to aftermarket parts if I was changing all four at once. Has anybody used Carquest Lifetime guaranteed pads and rotors? What do you have to do to get a replacement set? I would be interested in no question asked return policy.

I get as much as I can from Rock Auto. My '05 Dodge 4x4 2500 has been a brake headache. Calipers locking up, ate rear rotors. Put pads on the front (don't recall the brand but they were towing-heavy use rated) completely faded out pulling the RV. Rock replaced those free. Replaced all the slide hardware with stainless steel. Had the replace the e-brake shoes. One thing after another.

Try Wagner company for brake parts. One of the better I have used.

-Ken

Wagner or Raybestos.
One other that eludes me at the moment.

They were the brake suppliers back when you only had one choice
of quality. And it was good.

Bendix ?

Actually I think they were Wagner. I got Power Stops now and they have been good.

Everybody makes 2 or three price/quality levels.

I'm lucky to be friendly with the manager of the parts house.
He's been doing it since the 70's, and is a smart guy.
He knows some things! Even has the whole rack of books on the
counter. And can find something in them in seconds. Along with use the dumb box.

Anyway, their focus is professional. Deliver to garages all day long.

He keeps up with the parts he sells and generally doesn't like to carry
anything that's not at least decent.

If you haven't guessed,
It not a chain.😉

The job on the rears is teaching me lessons. The bolts are sae. The heads are so rusted that you can’t get a socket on them without pounding.

My wife road raced a Mazda RX 3 in the early 80s. The Rx 3 had small brakes for its speed potential (especially after an engine upgrade). Every Saturday after first qualifying, she would change the front pads and rear shoes. She's our brake specialist.

Don't let us slow ya down !

I got the rears done today. The same problem was observed. The pad mounting tabs were seized in the mounting bracket, all four pads. This convinced me to purchase a sand blasting cabinet. I reconditioned the mounting brackets old school with a file wire brush, not again. The power was out when I did the rear brakes. Lots of heavy duty breaker bar action, no power tools. The brakes are very strong now.

Tried my Fusion fronts today.
One was grinding, for a week or two.
Time to get them done.


But, My nuts were swelled, and I couldn't get them off.

So befor i got started, i gphad to buy a 19.5mm socket and 20
new lugnuts.

$45 more.

Reminds me - I need to check out "The Warden"s brake pads, on her truck.
She's got 240K on the originals.
Probably worn out.
I've been trying to get her to be more gentle on the equipment!!!

Funny how some people wear them out, others don't.

Wife and I live in the valley, don't go over mountains much.
Drive like the ex-truckers we are. Barring a stuck caliper, they last a long time.

Have friends that cross a one of the mountains daily.
Or, the poor bastards th at work in Johnstown. Literally, up (and down) a Mountain
both ways. Their brakes don't last long.

Used to work in Chambersburg, had to cross several.
19 years old and driving a manual, I didn't use them much!

I hear ya on some people.

I'm fortunate, my wife is easy on brakes and clutches.

Wow.

I remember wht I hate working on cars.


Didn't get around to the rears until today.
Just gonna change pads. An hour, right?


The pads were seized into the brackets.
Sooo...
Pull the brackets, clean the slide areas, and grease them.
Lucky, bolts came out decent
Silicone grease before reassembly, wanna keep it that way.

Then, the drivers side.
Noticed a missing bolt in the rotor, probably drilled out.
No big deal.

Then!
Only one bolt on the caliper!
WTF?
The Boss (She Who Must be Obeyed) was keeping me company.
So, gave her

the one bolt. Told her what it was called and sent her to
the parts store.

"Which one?"

"Well, Auto Zone, O'Reilly, and advance are within a mile once you get to 30.
The old fashioned Pro type place is 6 miles.

She tried the better one, the pro place.
Nope. Out.

Was just putting the bracket back in when she returned.

Auto Zone fixed her up.
$10 for the whole slider kit.
I needed 1 bolt.


Boy am I glad I saved so much on this job

2x rotors=$80
1 set good pads=$30
1 set house pads=$16
Anti Seize and brake grease and something else pushed it to over $150

Then it was a tool to screw in the rear pistons $10
A tool for the swollen lug nuts <$10
20 new lug nuts <$30.

And $10 for a stupid bolt.

Wonder if I saved a nickle