How To: Replace front brakes: Pads, Rotors, wheel bearings
This is a How To: for my 2003 2wd regular cab Ranger. You may or may not need to replace the rotors when doing your brakes, the Minimum thickness is printed on the inside of the factory rotors. Measure your rotor with a micrometer to determine if they need to be replaced. Since you have it all apart you might as well replace the wheel bearings for piece of mind, its only another $25 for both both sides inner and outer wheel bearings and seal. There is no reason to re use the old bearings or seal.
Tools and parts you will need: Parts: Two new rotors New set of pads New outer and inner wheel bearing and seal for each side Brake cleaner Wheel bearing grease New cotter pin Shop towels for cleaning off old grease Tools: Jack and jack stands Rubber Mallet Ratchet with 14mm and 15mm sockets Ratchet Extension Lug bolt wrench Flat head screw driver Needle nose pliers Cardboard box http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2740.jpg First, loosen the lug nuts but dont take them off http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2742.jpg Jack up the car. http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2744.jpg Remove the lug nuts and then remove the wheel http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2745.jpg Remove the two 14mm bolts on the caliper, http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2746.jpg http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2747.jpg Pull the caliper off, this is where the cardboard box or bungy cord comes in handy. Do not let the caliper hang from the brake lines! http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2748.jpg Remove the pads http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2750.jpg http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2751.jpg WOW I really needed new pads, look at the old ones compared to the new, LOL http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2772.jpg remove the two 15mm bolts on the back of the caliper bracket http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2752.jpg http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2753.jpg http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2754.jpg remove the caliper bracket http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2755.jpg Now remove the grease cap, I used a screw driver and a rubber mallet to start to pry it off. http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2758.jpg http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2760.jpg Remove the cotter in with a pair of needle nose pliers http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2761.jpg http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2764.jpg Remove the bolt lock cover http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2765.jpg Remove the bolt, Mine was just over hand tight. I did not need any tools to remove it. http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2766.jpg Pull the Rotor off the car. A large washer and the wheel bearing will probably fall out of the old rotor. http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2767.jpg Discard the old rotor and wheel bearings. Clean all the old grease off of the spindle, bolt, bolt holder, washer etc. http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2769.jpg http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2770.jpg My new rotors came with wheel bearing Races already installed so I did not need to use the Races the came with the wheel bearings. http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2771.jpg Grease up the bearings VERY LIBERALLY, as well as inside the rotor, on the spindle BEFORE you install the new bearing. http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2773.jpg http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2774.jpg http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2780.jpg Install the new seal, its a tight fit so I used the rubber mallet. http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2775.jpg http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2776.jpg Put the new rotor on the spindle http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2781.jpg Grease up the outer bearing before putting it in the rotor http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2782.jpg http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2783.jpg Put the washer back on http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2784.jpg Put the bolt back on, I tightened it up a bit with a wrench then backed off. Then put it to finger tight. I also put a bunch more grease inside. http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2785.jpg Put the bolt holder back in http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2786.jpg I used a new Cotter pin but you could probably re use the old one. http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2787.jpg http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2788.jpg http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2789.jpg Put the grease cap back on with a mallet. http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2790.jpg http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2791.jpg http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2792.jpg Now you need to reinstall the caliper bracket with the 15mm bolts. I used loctite but its not necessary. I used my caliper piston tool to push the pistons back into the caliper, make sure you watch the level of the brake fluid reservoir so the fluid doesnt go above the MAX line, otherwise it might spill everywhere. I didnt have a problem but if you do I would remove a bit of fluid with a turkey baster or something. http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2794.jpg http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2795.jpg I used the brake lube that came with my new pads and put it on every metal to metal contact point to make sure the brakes dont squeek. Make sure you only use half of it so you can use the other half on the other side. http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2796.jpg http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2797.jpg http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2798.jpg Put the pads back in and put the caliper back on. Tighten the caliper. I used loctite again but its not necessary. http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2799.jpg http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y27...o/IMG_2800.jpg Put the wheel back on. Tighten the lug nuts half tight. Put the car down and tighten the bolts the rest of the way. Do the other side with the same steps. When you are finished, turn the car on and pump the brakes until it gets stiff again. Drive around easy for the next few hundred miles. You just saved yourself a ton of money! Congrats! I am in no way responsible if you mess up your brakes using my tutorial. I followed these steps using guides online myself and was able to do my brakes without a problem. If I missed something please let me know and I will edit. |
Re: How To: Replace front brakes: Pads, Rotors, wheel bearings
Good write up. I just replaced my front wheel bearings/races/seals on a 2000 Ranger 2 W drive with 120 K a few days ago. Your write up would have helped me greatly. I did not change the rotors or brake pads however. My only issue with this procedure was not being able to follow the ford recommendation on last step on torquing the spindle nut. I did torque nut to 25 ft lbs and rotated the wheel 15/20 times to set bearings [first step] and backed off nut 1/2 turn, [second step], but did not have torque wrench for the 20 ft inches last step as ford recommends. I did notice when I took the spindle nut off originally I could remove it by hand, so on third step just tightened it as much as I could by hand. Have had no problems yet. Only other problem was while reassembling, had hard time getting the two bolt holes on the brake caliper to line up with holes on rotor assembly. Later, finally figured out that the attached rectangular washers on each hole had to be rotated a certain way to line up properly. I bought this ranger new 12 years ago, and as far as I know the bearings have never been lubricated. Some manuals suggest once a year, and others when you change brake pads or 30K. I was surprised to find them still lubed and not too badly worn. Mostly pitting on the spindle and on the races, but all bearing still good. But I wanted to replace them for peace of mind with 120 K.
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Re: How To: Replace front brakes: Pads, Rotors, wheel bearings
x2 on getting a new cotter pin. it really sucks breaking one and not having a spare.
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Re: How To: Replace front brakes: Pads, Rotors, wheel bearings
Did the pads come with those shims?
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Re: How To: Replace front brakes: Pads, Rotors, wheel bearings
Quote:
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Re: How To: Replace front brakes: Pads, Rotors, wheel bearings
Which wheel bearings does one get?
I found this: http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/x,ca...3L%2BL4%2BDOHC But it's for a 2001 Ford Ranger XLT rwd 2wd... I keep seeing inner and out bearings? I'm confused if these are in the actual rotors themselves or are they not? Just trying to do this properly... Thanks, -Nigel |
Re: How To: Replace front brakes: Pads, Rotors, wheel bearings
Excellent write-up. May I make some suggestions?
- Use brake cleaner (spray) to remove grease or anti-corrosion coating off new rotors. - Tap your new bearing races into place, to ensure they're properly seated (esp. if new). - Ordinary C-clamp also works to compress the caliper pistons. - Squeeze caliper pistons with bleeder screws open. You really don't want that rusty & dirty brake fluid going back into your lines, esp. into ABS or master cylinder. Tip: use a block of wood to hold your brake pedal down, which closes off your MC ports, thus preventing dirty oil from getting back into MC. - Grease the caliper pins & sliders. - It's a good idea to replace old brake fluid. See http://www.aa1car.com/library/bfluid.htm |
Re: How To: Replace front brakes: Pads, Rotors, wheel bearings
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Nigel, look at the photos of your model's brake/rotor parts: http://www.fordparts.com/Commerce/Ca...Ford&mo=Ranger Notice that each rotor has 1 "bearing & race" set on its inner surface, and a 2nd completely separate "bearing & race" set on the outer surface. So you need BOTH (inner and outer) sets for each front wheel. Total needed for 2 front wheels: 2 inner sets and 2 outer sets. Some rotors might come with races pre-installed, others may not. But the "bearing" means only the part with rollers, and "race" means the smooth tapered ring that the bearing rides upon. The bearing & race are usually sold together, in a set (eg, TIMKEN SET5). It's a good idea to replace both bearing and its race at same time. Typically, when buying a bearing, its matching race is often considered tossed in for free. The race is dirt cheap, and takes 10 seconds to tap into place, and it's gotta be FIRMLY seated into place. The bearing must be slathered and packed in LOTS of special grease. And the seal is a separate item (keeps away dirt, only on inner bearing). |
Re: How To: Replace front brakes: Pads, Rotors, wheel bearings
Excellent!
Thank you for clarifying that for me! I made the order for rotors, pads, calipers, and all bearings plus new seal so this should be a nice thing to do next week once I get everything in. Just annoyed at the same time because I went to bleed my front brakes and the bleeder is completely seized in the caliper and everything is sooo rusty. I doubt the previous owner EVER changed anything, which is sad. Lots of work to do but this how-to is of GREAT help! -Nigel |
Re: How To: Replace front brakes: Pads, Rotors, wheel bearings
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While I can easily acquire dust cups for a couple bucks, I can't seem to find that lock nut looking piece. Is there a particular name for the piece or an alternative method to secure it and keep the actual nut from backing off? I had thought perhaps getting a castle nut in the proper size and threading it on to use, or just getting a few regular nuts that are large enough to at least keep the nuts from backing too far off (imagine that may damage the cotter pin though if they try to back off.) Any suggestions? |
Re: How To: Replace front brakes: Pads, Rotors, wheel bearings
Also dont forget to "bed in" the brake pads. What that involves is getting the truck up to about 30MPH and then stopping with medium brake pedal pressure. Repeat this about 5-10 times. This will help the pads and rotors seat to each other.
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How many pounds of torque on the slide pins?
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Re: How To: Replace front brakes: Pads, Rotors, wheel bearings
My Ford FSM says 38-48 ft-lbs for caliper pin bolts, and 74-96 ft-lbs for caliper bracket bolts.
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Re: How To: Replace front brakes: Pads, Rotors, wheel bearings
Sorry, sorry I know this is an old post, but could someone clarify the information in the last two posts. One states the front caliper bolt torque should be 26, the other post says 35 or 38-48 ft/lbs. Read somewhere that a guy used 35 and stripped the threads. What the heck should it be for a 2009 Ranger? Should Loctite be used? (the blue stuff)
New to Ford and want the daughter to be safe. Thanks very much. |
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