Just changed my gf's brakes & rotors on her 2011 Ford Fusion. It went swimmingly. Watched your video 3x's and it was like I had already done it before. One thing was different, I had to pry the caliper off, both piston heads had a little bit of caked rust and they were sticking to the old pads. I just sprayed them with cleaner and used a small wire brush to clean them before I put them back on. Thanks a million for the video.
GREAT video! I followed it to change the pads and rotors on a 2010 Mercury Milan with 60K miles. Only suggestion is to use the T40 Torx bit to loosen the rotor screws right after removing the tires. The rotor screws on my car were ultra tight so when I did the 2nd side, I actually set the parking brake to make the rotors stationary so I could loosen the screws. After releasing the parking brake, I followed the video then set it again to tighten the screws before remounting the tires.
Thanks for your video. Just finished installing new pads and rotors. Saved a bundle. But I used a six sided tool recommend by my auto parts store to turn in and compress the piston. Worked great. Thanks again !!!
I didn't know about it either until I did quite a bit of research on the brake service for this vehicle. Another reason why i posted the video. Glad it helped!
Mr Harmon! thanks for a great video. I've actually done the brakes on a 1988 Lincoln Town carmand replaced the rotors. That car was a beast but what a ride. I now have a 2010 Fusion and the brakes are wearing as I look at the rotors through the wheels!
Thank you so much for posting this. I just had my 2012 fusion in the dealer to have the oil change which includes inspecting breaks. And it needs new rear rotors and pads at a quoted cost of 359 and some change. Even with a dealer coupon It'd be over 300. My driver side rear rotor shows wear while the pass rear doesn't but they get replaced in pairs. I haven't had any pulsing, or odd breaking behavior. Not sure if the driver side caliper isn't functioning to its fullest. I have a friend who knows how to do this and watching this video I feel confident we can get it done and save a lot of money.
I usually clean all old parts going back on with a wire brush and then brake clean them (Brackets, caliper etc). I also re-grease the caliper bolts. Other then that, great video.
A few other tips here I forgot to mention at the end of the video. Remember to replace your brake fluid cap and pump your brakes to make sure they are working before you drive. Also, drive in a low mph area and do some quick stops to make sure everything is working correctly. DO NOT immediately go out on the highway without testing this first.
CM C, glad it helped and thanks for your input on the piston compression tool. That's great you were able to make your own tool, but again you can "rent" that tool at most auto parts stores. The reason I say rent is because you buy and return. Also there are a ton of other adapters in there for other cars, so if you are doing another car brakes chances are you will have the correct adapter. Sorry for not putting that in the video:/
Also, I would like to give a shoutout to my wonderful wife for doing all the videoing. She feels bad about covering the mic on the camera at times, but I would not have been able to get some of the great shots in this video without her help. So feel free to thank her as well!
One comment, after replacing pads and screwing the piston back in, the caliper would not seat on completely. It was just a hair off - enough so the the screws would not go in (well, at least one wouldn't). I finally figured out the four notches on the piston serve more than one purpose. One notch needs to line up with a small pin on the back of the brake pad. So one notch needs to be at the six-o'clock position.
You are correct. I was going to say the same thing. the piston must be set with one of the notches lined up with the little nub sticking out of the bottom of the pad.
Good vid but like everyone else out there they all forget to make sure it caliper slide pistons are lubed and working well! This is the most common reason why the caliper goes bad or u have uneven wear! U can get the grease from any automotive store or Wal-Mart. A little care to those slides will save u in the long run. All u do is pull out the slides with boots put grease on the shaft (don't cake it on just a lite layer) and a little in the boot and slide back in. Otherwise the vid was great. Happy fixing!
Just spent a half day drilling out and replacing one of those slides that you're talking about. It was a pain in the butt and could have been prevented with a little grease.
FYI. If the rotor doesn’t come off with tapping with a hammer, there is a screw hole in the rotor that you can put a bolt into that will pop the rotor loose if it rusted on. The bolt I used said it was a 10.9 on the bolt head and I used a 12 mm socket with my impact to get er done. Good video
This is an option yes, but honestly I don't recommend it. There is a chance the bolt can get stripped out and stuck, but I guess you are replacing the rotor that doesn't matter too much. Those threads can be pretty rusted on the rotor.
My ears were ringing from beating on the rotor 😖 living in the “Rust Belt” we need heat and penetrating oil and brute force to get stuff loose. Worked on the suspension on a twenty year old Rx7 from Florida once. It was like mechanics heaven😄Have a good day
+jharmon203 I was about to change the braking pads but a buddy told me I would also need to bleed the brakes and so I stopped, how come you didn't bleed them, so I have to, should I bleed them?
+loui828 I am not sure why your friend told you to bleed the brakes. If your brake pedal is still responding well and isn't soft, I personally wouldn't touch it. Some manufacturers recommend bleeding the brake fluid every so many miles. The latest print of the ford fusion 2010 manual doesn't mention any change interval on it. I didn't bleed mine because I didn't feel it needed it. You are certainly welcome to bleed them and replace as a preventative maintenance, but I don't think it's a requirement. Again I am NOT a certified mechanic. Most of the information I just gave you is stuff I just googled to see others thoughts. Anyone else care to weigh in?
Do NOT bleed your Brakes unless you have a spongey pedal or your pedal goes all the way to the floor and does not hold pressure. Let a mechanic bleed your brakes, because most likely its something else wrong and you might just put air into your brake system if you don't know what your doing.
good video. As i read the comments I see people mentioning to put the brake reservoir cap back on. There really is no need to take it off. It's much easier if you leave it on.
+nikonmikey actually, it helps when turning the brakes in it relieves the pressure of the brake fluid, otherwise it could be difficult turning them in.
Nice video. It should be noted however that proper torque of the caliper mounting bracket bolts and caliper bolts are needed. They are as follows: Mounting bracket- 52 ft lbs Caliper bolts- 19 ft lbs
+James Wiggin Thanks for these torque specifications. Could you possibly provide the source where you found these? For torque spec such as these, I always have a hard time finding them and usually i just go for the "snug" approach. However, if these are the correct specs, it would be great to know where you found them.
Thanks for posting! I have a 2011 Mercury Milan and could not for the life of me figure out how to compress the caliper to fit over the new brake pads. I have to admit, I used needle nose pliers ;)
I would've added some brake grease on the rear side of the pads... It'll help reduce braking noise and make it easier to disassemble later when they need replaced again
Alex - brake grease where the calipers and brake pads meet? I jus installed some and didn’t grease them so I have noise... I have to go back and grease them.. any info is appreciated
I use anti seize compound on the sliding portions of the pads. Another tip is put anti seize on the surface of the hub, being careful not to get ut onto the wheel studs. This will make it so the rotor will never rust seize again when you take it off.
They make a less expensive version a small cube for about $10 works great. Also in a pinch needle nose pliers while you push in and turn work great too.
Hey! Thanks for replying back so soon. The video was cut off or faded into the rest if the video at 12:03 minutes. Thank you for you time help posting this video!
Ah ok, thanks for that reference point. I think I probably just "beat" and pushed on the caliper until it went down. The only issues I could see having with this part would be your piston isn't compressed enough to get the caliper over the new ones but it probably wasn't the case for me. I figured people didn't want to watch me just take time to push the caliper down over. What was the technical part you have troubles with that another video showed you? I am actually going to do this job tomorrow night again and I could possibly post a follow-up video
Just a couple things I noticed... 1) You should ALWAYS use brake caliper grease on the metal clips that the brake pads slide into. Also, the slides should be pulled out of the caliper and greased as well. 2) You should NEVER test your new brake pads by slamming on the brakes. A firm, but not HARD brake will do. Pressing too hard may cause the new pads to become glazed over, thus giving them less stopping power. Hope this was helpful.
Brian Housworth These are both excellent suggestions and clarifications. To be honest, I didn't know about greasing the caliper pins. Thanks for sharing that information. Grease on both the caliper pins and the metal clips is a good idea. Be careful when you apply it to the metal clips to not get it on the rotor. Firm brakes at 10-15 MPH is a great way to test. I do not advocate speeding up and stopping on a dime.
@@soccerharms going in reverse and slamming on the brakes was a way that auto adjusting drum brakes was adjusted years ago, but rarely used now unless you have that type of brake.
This video gives me a lot of confidence in changing my own brakes. I don't know a heck of a lot about cars but this looks fairly simple. Can you tell me if this process is the same for the front rotors on my Fusion?
Donovan Gustafson Donovan, sorry I didn't reply to this sooner. The process should be relatively the same for the front brakes. In fact, I think it will be slightly easier because I don't think you need the tool to compress the the caliper piston. Instead, you can just used a c-clamp to compress the piston. However, if you see those notches, go to your autopart store and get the tool Once my front brakes need changing, I will make a video on that as well for all the DIYers like myself.
You only need to take one bolt out of the caliper to change pads, both bolts on the bracket have to come off to change the rotor. Any rust must be removed by a wire brush or bead blaster. Always remove the grease film from both sides of the rotor with brake kleen.
I am so glad this video has helped so many people. Furthermore, thanks so much for all your "likes" and "thanks" comments along with other information regarding changing the brakes. Stay tuned for another video coming with greasing the floating caliper pins.
Thanks. Facing this task tomorrow on my wifes car. Now I know what I'm in for. Fortunately, I already own the caliper compress / rotator tool from my old VW Jetta. BTW, is it just me or is the audio out of sync with the video in the latter parts of this vid?
Thanks for the video. I was only going to change the pads, so I started on the driver's side front wheel, but the upper of the 2 bolts holding the caliper in place seemed to be rusted inside the nut piston, and I didn't have a wrench with a thin enough head to grab onto it. Any idea what size that nut is?
Christoper Vaira...... There is a tool to use , I don't know the name of it. It's used with a hammer , you put the socket on the front ( with adapter cause the tool is 1/2 and the 40 star socket is 3/8 but once the 40 is on the tool and in reverse, hammer the end of the tool . I put some heat on the head first and rust remover spray.
All I can say is the process will be very similar. I haven't done the front brakes yet, because they haven't needed changed yet. Apparently with these newer brake systems, the rears actually get worn out before the fronts. It seems counter-intuitive on a FWD vehicle, but it's apparently the case. GL with install and take yourself out to eat afterwards with the $$$ you save. Or just buy more cool tools.
+jharmon203 No, the front wear out quicker than the rear. Yours must have been changed at some point. I didn't have to replace the rear on my 2010 fusion until 111,000 miles. I did the front at 72,000.
I agree, the rears usually make it to around 100k, though I recommend doing them all the way around when you do the Fronts. Did mine at 60k and they needed it! FordtechMakulo is awesome for Ford Techs btw!
Great video. You actually don't need to reinstall the rotor screws. They are just for holding the rotors on during the manufacturing process at the Ford plant. That said, I have a few extra sets and use them when I do a brake job on my Fusion.
Are you certain that the screws are not required for this vehicle? The haynes manual certainly does not indicate so. Im certain no damage will be done if u leave them off but why would anyone want to anyways?
Are you certain that the screws are not required for this vehicle? The haynes manual certainly does not indicate so. Im certain no damage will be done if u leave them off but why would anyone want to anyways?
Yes, I am sure. Those screws keep the rotors on while the car is on the assembly line. ;) They strip often and are not needed. But you can reinstall them if you want. Might want to add some anti-seize.
***** Yea one of mine stripped. I have no idea why they decided to use those stupid star head bolts. I just drilled it out and only put one back on that side.
Yeah, their only purpose is to hold the rotor on during the car assembly process. Once they rust, they are a pain in the ass to get out. I strongly suggest the use of antiseize if you must have them.
Nice video but a few questions; why did you not clean the back of the new rotor, and why didn't you use brake lube or copper grease on the pad clips and caliper sliders?
When I made this video, I didn't know about it on the caliper slide pins. I have stated in other comments that I highly recommend doing it and I put it in the video as well. For the rotor, I just simply forgot to. You are right it's a good idea to clean it. As for the pad clips, I wasn't confident that I wouldn't get the grease on the pads accidentally. I know it helps with squeaks by helping the pads to not get stuck on the rotors. Thanks for you feedback!
No problems with the parking brake on this car?? I've also done brakes where one side requires the caliper piston to be turned (with the tool) clockwise on one side, and counterclockwise on the other side. I'm assuming that's not the case here, but I'll know shortly! I think that may have been an older Escape.
I just tried this yesterday. Getting the caliper off was the easy part. I had never seen the extra screws on the inside of the rotor, so when I got those off and whacked it free, I still couldn't get the rotor off. It seemed like something was warped or the studs weren't aligned properly because the rotor kept getting caught on the studs. Very very frustrated, after taking an hour to try to get it off and eventually just putting it all back. Same thing happened on the other side. I'll probably take it to the shop tomorrow with all the parts I already bought. =( Any ideas would be helpful.
+Matthew Shaw So you have two options here Matthew. Assuming you have both rotor screws out and your caliper bracket off, the rotor should be able to break free. If it is not, your rotor is warped and it's going to require a bit force to remove. The two options of doing this are a really big rubber mallet or hammer; or rotor removal screws. I just changed the rotors on my 2009 honda pilot and I had a really tough time getting the rotors off. Only by about 10 mins of banging on the open section (the section that the thin metal shield doesn't cover) with a large rubber mallet did the rotor finally break free. Let me tell you it look a lot of hits to get the rotor off. I was out of breath. There were many times where I thought it just wasn't going to happen. The other option is to use remove removal screws. There are two screw holes (not the ones that you removed the rotor screws) that can put bolts through that would in essence push your rotor out. There are places that you can find the screw size on your car somewhere, I am just not sure where. Some say the washer fluid screw, other says some of the chassis screws near the rotors. However, these screws are not really hardened and can break during this process if you aren't careful. Take your rotor into home depot (more than likely the new and old rotor will be the same screw size), lowes, or whatever your hardware store is and try to find some good hardened screws that fit. If the screw breaks, you will have to drill it out and that why I recommend the hammer method and elbow grease. The rotor will come off if you have everything detached provided your lug nut screws aren't severely bent. In that case you have other major problems that you will probably need to take to a mechanic.
Nice video, but a couple of things I saw: - make sure you use brake cleaner on the back of the rotor as well as the front - it is not recommended by Ford to reuse the same bracket bolts you took off, you should replace them with new bolts. Other than that great diy video to save some money by doing your own brakes.
Billy The Kiddo My guess would be that the edge is the same since the edge is based on the Ford Fusion platform. I would recommend getting the caliper compress tool from an auto parts store via the rental option.
You may want to do a search for how to get that bolt out. I did one myself, but I do not want to recommend anything due to my non-professional backrgroun. However, one low risk possibly solution would be spraying it with WD-40. It might loosen it up a bit. The T-40 is a rather large torx bit. It's a bit shocking that you stripped it out. Sorry about your luck:/
+Matt Ulakovic Certainly not a stupid question is there are many wrong ways to lift the vehicle. I DO NOT recommend using the lift that came with the car. It should really only be used in emergency circumstances. If you are attempting to do this job yourself, you are going to save hundreds on labor costs so invest that money into tools that you can keep (it's what I did). You have a couple of good options in my opinon. Both are hydraulic floor jacks. I currently own two. I have a smaller 2 1/4 ton jack and a larger 3 ton floor jack. You could also buy a bottle jack, but I don't really recommend these since they can't move as the vehicle shifts (they don't have wheels) You always want to lift the vehicle on a part of the steel frame. For this job, I placed the jack to a section just about inline with the door handle (basically a little farther to the rear of the vehicle). You basically want to lift at the part just before the bend occurs at both ends. Never lift in the middle for brake service. Hope this helps.
I googled this: "brake piston compression tool" and got prices around $20-30. However, like I said in the video, just go to an autoparts store and rent it for free. You buy the tool, use it, then take it back to the store for a full refund.
those rotor retainers are deceiving. I used a drill on one that stripped out. I have a hammer impact that I smack to help get these off usually but one just wouldn't budge. good video though! I always like to scope out jobs ahead of time in case there is anything different that normal brakes etc. This was just like many I did before besides it being a Torx instead of a philips.
You never mentioned any break-in procedures. While they vary from pad brand to pad brand, it's very important to do. It activates the resin in the pad and helps seat the pad to the rotor. I always start with 5 hard brakes from 40 to 5mph and then 5 moderate brakes from 35 to 5 after which I drive the vehicle around at speed for minimum of 5 to 6 minutes allowing them to cool before stopping. This will ensure longer life to the pad and keep any hot spots from developing on that rotor.
Justin, Thanks for your input on the brake pads. I looked this up and found an article on cartalk. www.cartalk.com/content/i-am-about-change-brake-pads-my It's not absolutely necessary with both new pads and rotors, but still probably not a bad idea.
Can you reference at what point in the video the bolts you are referring to? You could try an impact wrench to try to get them off, but that's really a last resort. A breaker bar should be used first.
always use new hardware . and always clean the hub of rust before putting rotors on.. only lub under new hardware , and cal piston and ears , never lub were the pads sit
I see you cut off this video exactly were I was having trouble myself. It would have been nice if you did not cut it off so we all could see how to properly get the caliper all the way in and the two caliper retaining bolts....but of course I had to go to a different video from another person to see this.
So sorry that I didn't keep the recording going where you needed help. I try to make my videos as short and concise as possible, so perhaps it was an area that I didn't feel needed much further explanation. Can you please let me know where exactly the video cut off? Minute and Second?
Lol, what a puke. It's not his responsibility to make sure the video he made with his time and supplies, caters to your needs.. if you're having that much trouble, pay someone to do it for you.
seems like a simple enough job why couldn't Koons in Annapolis do it in 6 hours they want me to bring back the car next week to do the same thing you are doing. Yes I know they are probably busy but they could do it in 10-20 minutes! I HATE MECHANICS!
Other than the non-greasing of the caliper pins, what issue do you have with the process? Other have provided helpful comments as to what they would change.
Just changed my gf's brakes & rotors on her 2011 Ford Fusion. It went swimmingly. Watched your video 3x's and it was like I had already done it before. One thing was different, I had to pry the caliper off, both piston heads had a little bit of caked rust and they were sticking to the old pads. I just sprayed them with cleaner and used a small wire brush to clean them before I put them back on. Thanks a million for the video.
Your video saved my back end. I didn't know I needed the compression tool and would have had it all torn down before I realized.
GREAT video! I followed it to change the pads and rotors on a 2010 Mercury Milan with 60K miles. Only suggestion is to use the T40 Torx bit to loosen the rotor screws right after removing the tires. The rotor screws on my car were ultra tight so when I did the 2nd side, I actually set the parking brake to make the rotors stationary so I could loosen the screws. After releasing the parking brake, I followed the video then set it again to tighten the screws before remounting the tires.
Thanks for your video. Just finished installing new pads and rotors. Saved a bundle. But I used a six sided tool recommend by my auto parts store to turn in and compress the piston. Worked great. Thanks again !!!
I didn't know about it either until I did quite a bit of research on the brake service for this vehicle. Another reason why i posted the video. Glad it helped!
Mr Harmon! thanks for a great video. I've actually done the brakes on a 1988 Lincoln Town carmand replaced the rotors. That car was a beast but what a ride. I now have a 2010 Fusion and the brakes are wearing as I look at the rotors through the wheels!
Thanks for the video! I've replaced a lot of brakes but it's good to see details like the Torz size and the bracket bolts before I start the job.
Thanks for this video. My left rear rotor and pads are getting replaced this weekend. This is very helpful.
Thanks. Helped a lot. Hadn't seen the piston tool yet. Never done a set that needed it. This cleared it up. Thanks.
Thank you so much for posting this. I just had my 2012 fusion in the dealer to have the oil change which includes inspecting breaks. And it needs new rear rotors and pads at a quoted cost of 359 and some change. Even with a dealer coupon It'd be over 300. My driver side rear rotor shows wear while the pass rear doesn't but they get replaced in pairs. I haven't had any pulsing, or odd breaking behavior. Not sure if the driver side caliper isn't functioning to its fullest. I have a friend who knows how to do this and watching this video I feel confident we can get it done and save a lot of money.
make sure those caliper pins are greased well, alot of time uneven brake wear can be cause by not greasing.
Definitely made me a bit more confident for when I need to replace mine, thanks!
I usually clean all old parts going back on with a wire brush and then brake clean them (Brackets, caliper etc). I also re-grease the caliper bolts. Other then that, great video.
A few other tips here I forgot to mention at the end of the video. Remember to replace your brake fluid cap and pump your brakes to make sure they are working before you drive. Also, drive in a low mph area and do some quick stops to make sure everything is working correctly. DO NOT immediately go out on the highway without testing this first.
Video was very helpful man! Hope you’re keeping up the good work
CM C, glad it helped and thanks for your input on the piston compression tool. That's great you were able to make your own tool, but again you can "rent" that tool at most auto parts stores. The reason I say rent is because you buy and return. Also there are a ton of other adapters in there for other cars, so if you are doing another car brakes chances are you will have the correct adapter. Sorry for not putting that in the video:/
Also, I would like to give a shoutout to my wonderful wife for doing all the videoing. She feels bad about covering the mic on the camera at times, but I would not have been able to get some of the great shots in this video without her help. So feel free to thank her as well!
Great Suggestion. Thanks for your input! When I do my front brakes, I will try to post another video and include that.
One comment, after replacing pads and screwing the piston back in, the caliper would not seat on completely. It was just a hair off - enough so the the screws would not go in (well, at least one wouldn't). I finally figured out the four notches on the piston serve more than one purpose. One notch needs to line up with a small pin on the back of the brake pad. So one notch needs to be at the six-o'clock position.
Hmmm, I do not believe I had this issue. Thanks for the feedback though as it might help others.
You are correct. I was going to say the same thing. the piston must be set with one of the notches lined up with the little nub sticking out of the bottom of the pad.
YOU SAVED MY $ 400 DOLLARS ,THANKS AGAIN. THAT IS WHAT DEALER WAS ASKING .
THE TRICK OF SENDING PISTON BACK
Good vid but like everyone else out there they all forget to make sure it caliper slide pistons are lubed and working well! This is the most common reason why the caliper goes bad or u have uneven wear! U can get the grease from any automotive store or Wal-Mart. A little care to those slides will save u in the long run. All u do is pull out the slides with boots put grease on the shaft (don't cake it on just a lite layer) and a little in the boot and slide back in. Otherwise the vid was great. Happy fixing!
Absolutely!
Just spent a half day drilling out and replacing one of those slides that you're talking about. It was a pain in the butt and could have been prevented with a little grease.
FYI. If the rotor doesn’t come off with tapping with a hammer, there is a screw hole in the rotor that you can put a bolt into that will pop the rotor loose if it rusted on. The bolt I used said it was a 10.9 on the bolt head and I used a 12 mm socket with my impact to get er done. Good video
This is an option yes, but honestly I don't recommend it. There is a chance the bolt can get stripped out and stuck, but I guess you are replacing the rotor that doesn't matter too much. Those threads can be pretty rusted on the rotor.
My ears were ringing from beating on the rotor 😖 living in the “Rust Belt” we need heat and penetrating oil and brute force to get stuff loose. Worked on the suspension on a twenty year old Rx7 from Florida once. It was like mechanics heaven😄Have a good day
. Thank you for creating this video I watched your video and successfully changed my rear brakes perfectly done thanks again
This is so awesome, loved how detail you were and now I feel pretty confident in doing them myself! Thanks :)
+loui828 Thanks for the feedback! Glad I could help!
+jharmon203 I was about to change the braking pads but a buddy told me I would also need to bleed the brakes and so I stopped, how come you didn't bleed them, so I have to, should I bleed them?
+loui828 I am not sure why your friend told you to bleed the brakes. If your brake pedal is still responding well and isn't soft, I personally wouldn't touch it. Some manufacturers recommend bleeding the brake fluid every so many miles. The latest print of the ford fusion 2010 manual doesn't mention any change interval on it.
I didn't bleed mine because I didn't feel it needed it. You are certainly welcome to bleed them and replace as a preventative maintenance, but I don't think it's a requirement.
Again I am NOT a certified mechanic. Most of the information I just gave you is stuff I just googled to see others thoughts. Anyone else care to weigh in?
Do NOT bleed your Brakes unless you have a spongey pedal or your pedal goes all the way to the floor and does not hold pressure. Let a mechanic bleed your brakes, because most likely its something else wrong and you might just put air into your brake system if you don't know what your doing.
good video.
As i read the comments I see people mentioning to put the brake reservoir cap back on.
There really is no need to take it off. It's much easier if you leave it on.
+nikonmikey actually, it helps when turning the brakes in it relieves the pressure of the brake fluid, otherwise it could be difficult turning them in.
I use silicon on the pins. Great video . I went to advanced auto and rented the piston tool.
Silicon is great!
Grinders have a tool with 2 pins, some of them will work on brake calipers. I have 4 with different widths between the pins.
Nice video. It should be noted however that proper torque of the caliper mounting bracket bolts and caliper bolts are needed. They are as follows: Mounting bracket- 52 ft lbs
Caliper bolts- 19 ft lbs
+James Wiggin Thanks for these torque specifications. Could you possibly provide the source where you found these? For torque spec such as these, I always have a hard time finding them and usually i just go for the "snug" approach. However, if these are the correct specs, it would be great to know where you found them.
Sure can, they are from the Haynes manual for Ford Fusion and Mercury Milans 2012 model year and older.
Thanks for posting! I have a 2011 Mercury Milan and could not for the life of me figure out how to compress the caliper to fit over the new brake pads. I have to admit, I used needle nose pliers ;)
Thanks for the feedback Ronald, what the process pretty much or exactly the same? I would like to put mercery milan in my title if it is.
It was pretty much identical.
Excellent demo! Thumbs up!
I really liked your clip.
I would've added some brake grease on the rear side of the pads... It'll help reduce braking noise and make it easier to disassemble later when they need replaced again
Alex - brake grease where the calipers and brake pads meet? I jus installed some and didn’t grease them so I have noise... I have to go back and grease them.. any info is appreciated
I use anti seize compound on the sliding portions of the pads. Another tip is put anti seize on the surface of the hub, being careful not to get ut onto the wheel studs. This will make it so the rotor will never rust seize again when you take it off.
i would never known about the tool you used to compress the piston. i was trying to use c clamp,which broke. thanks for your video
They make a less expensive version a small cube for about $10 works great. Also in a pinch needle nose pliers while you push in and turn work great too.
Very helpful, I found this in Canadian tire: www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/disc-brake-piston-tool-3-8-in-0252013p.html
Beautiful video thanks!
Hey! Thanks for replying back so soon. The video was cut off or faded into the rest if the video at 12:03 minutes.
Thank you for you time help posting this video!
Ah ok, thanks for that reference point. I think I probably just "beat" and pushed on the caliper until it went down. The only issues I could see having with this part would be your piston isn't compressed enough to get the caliper over the new ones but it probably wasn't the case for me. I figured people didn't want to watch me just take time to push the caliper down over. What was the technical part you have troubles with that another video showed you? I am actually going to do this job tomorrow night again and I could possibly post a follow-up video
Thank you this is very helpful!
Nicely Done!
good video,, keep them coming pls
Just a couple things I noticed...
1) You should ALWAYS use brake caliper grease on the metal clips that the brake pads slide into. Also, the slides should be pulled out of the caliper and greased as well.
2) You should NEVER test your new brake pads by slamming on the brakes. A firm, but not HARD brake will do. Pressing too hard may cause the new pads to become glazed over, thus giving them less stopping power.
Hope this was helpful.
Brian Housworth These are both excellent suggestions and clarifications. To be honest, I didn't know about greasing the caliper pins. Thanks for sharing that information. Grease on both the caliper pins and the metal clips is a good idea. Be careful when you apply it to the metal clips to not get it on the rotor.
Firm brakes at 10-15 MPH is a great way to test. I do not advocate speeding up and stopping on a dime.
@@soccerharms going in reverse and slamming on the brakes was a way that auto adjusting drum brakes was adjusted years ago, but rarely used now unless you have that type of brake.
This video gives me a lot of confidence in changing my own brakes. I don't know a heck of a lot about cars but this looks fairly simple. Can you tell me if this process is the same for the front rotors on my Fusion?
Donovan Gustafson Donovan, sorry I didn't reply to this sooner.
The process should be relatively the same for the front brakes. In fact, I think it will be slightly easier because I don't think you need the tool to compress the the caliper piston. Instead, you can just used a c-clamp to compress the piston. However, if you see those notches, go to your autopart store and get the tool
Once my front brakes need changing, I will make a video on that as well for all the DIYers like myself.
Thank you for this video. El Jay Bee
You only need to take one bolt out of the caliper to change pads, both bolts on the bracket have to come off to change the rotor. Any rust must be removed by a wire brush or bead blaster. Always remove the grease film from both sides of the rotor with brake kleen.
I am so glad this video has helped so many people. Furthermore, thanks so much for all your "likes" and "thanks" comments along with other information regarding changing the brakes.
Stay tuned for another video coming with greasing the floating caliper pins.
So they are doing all in the wrong way
Thanks. Facing this task tomorrow on my wifes car. Now I know what I'm in for. Fortunately, I already own the caliper compress / rotator tool from my old VW Jetta.
BTW, is it just me or is the audio out of sync with the video in the latter parts of this vid?
Thanks for the video. I was only going to change the pads, so I started on the driver's side front wheel, but the upper of the 2 bolts holding the caliper in place seemed to be rusted inside the nut piston, and I didn't have a wrench with a thin enough head to grab onto it. Any idea what size that nut is?
Christoper Vaira...... There is a tool to use , I don't know the name of it. It's used with a hammer , you put the socket on the front ( with adapter cause the tool is 1/2 and the 40 star socket is 3/8 but once the 40 is on the tool and in reverse, hammer the end of the tool . I put some heat on the head first and rust remover spray.
Nice
Thanks! Hope it helped!
Thank you!
Hello this video is great is it the same proc for the front brakes also ? thanks
All I can say is the process will be very similar. I haven't done the front brakes yet, because they haven't needed changed yet. Apparently with these newer brake systems, the rears actually get worn out before the fronts. It seems counter-intuitive on a FWD vehicle, but it's apparently the case. GL with install and take yourself out to eat afterwards with the $$$ you save. Or just buy more cool tools.
+jharmon203 No, the front wear out quicker than the rear. Yours must have been changed at some point. I didn't have to replace the rear on my 2010 fusion until 111,000 miles. I did the front at 72,000.
I agree, the rears usually make it to around 100k, though I recommend doing them all the way around when you do the Fronts. Did mine at 60k and they needed it! FordtechMakulo is awesome for Ford Techs btw!
Great video. You actually don't need to reinstall the rotor screws. They are just for holding the rotors on during the manufacturing process at the Ford plant. That said, I have a few extra sets and use them when I do a brake job on my Fusion.
Are you certain that the screws are not required for this vehicle? The haynes manual certainly does not indicate so. Im certain no damage will be done if u leave them off but why would anyone want to anyways?
Are you certain that the screws are not required for this vehicle? The haynes manual certainly does not indicate so. Im certain no damage will be done if u leave them off but why would anyone want to anyways?
Yes, I am sure. Those screws keep the rotors on while the car is on the assembly line. ;) They strip often and are not needed. But you can reinstall them if you want. Might want to add some anti-seize.
***** Yea one of mine stripped. I have no idea why they decided to use those stupid star head bolts. I just drilled it out and only put one back on that side.
Yeah, their only purpose is to hold the rotor on during the car assembly process. Once they rust, they are a pain in the ass to get out. I strongly suggest the use of antiseize if you must have them.
Nice video but a few questions;
why did you not clean the back of the new rotor, and why didn't you use brake lube or copper grease on the pad clips and caliper sliders?
When I made this video, I didn't know about it on the caliper slide pins. I have stated in other comments that I highly recommend doing it and I put it in the video as well.
For the rotor, I just simply forgot to. You are right it's a good idea to clean it.
As for the pad clips, I wasn't confident that I wouldn't get the grease on the pads accidentally. I know it helps with squeaks by helping the pads to not get stuck on the rotors.
Thanks for you feedback!
Great video. I'm going to change my gf's this weekend. Is the final step just replacing the cover to the brake fluid reservoir?
Yes, make sure you also test your brakes on slow streets with hard braking. Do not immediately go on the highway or freeway after changing brakes.
No problems with the parking brake on this car?? I've also done brakes where one side requires the caliper piston to be turned (with the tool) clockwise on one side, and counterclockwise on the other side. I'm assuming that's not the case here, but I'll know shortly! I think that may have been an older Escape.
What's the tool called
I just tried this yesterday. Getting the caliper off was the easy part. I had never seen the extra screws on the inside of the rotor, so when I got those off and whacked it free, I still couldn't get the rotor off. It seemed like something was warped or the studs weren't aligned properly because the rotor kept getting caught on the studs. Very very frustrated, after taking an hour to try to get it off and eventually just putting it all back. Same thing happened on the other side. I'll probably take it to the shop tomorrow with all the parts I already bought. =( Any ideas would be helpful.
+Matthew Shaw So you have two options here Matthew. Assuming you have both rotor screws out and your caliper bracket off, the rotor should be able to break free. If it is not, your rotor is warped and it's going to require a bit force to remove. The two options of doing this are a really big rubber mallet or hammer; or rotor removal screws.
I just changed the rotors on my 2009 honda pilot and I had a really tough time getting the rotors off. Only by about 10 mins of banging on the open section (the section that the thin metal shield doesn't cover) with a large rubber mallet did the rotor finally break free. Let me tell you it look a lot of hits to get the rotor off. I was out of breath. There were many times where I thought it just wasn't going to happen.
The other option is to use remove removal screws. There are two screw holes (not the ones that you removed the rotor screws) that can put bolts through that would in essence push your rotor out. There are places that you can find the screw size on your car somewhere, I am just not sure where. Some say the washer fluid screw, other says some of the chassis screws near the rotors. However, these screws are not really hardened and can break during this process if you aren't careful. Take your rotor into home depot (more than likely the new and old rotor will be the same screw size), lowes, or whatever your hardware store is and try to find some good hardened screws that fit. If the screw breaks, you will have to drill it out and that why I recommend the hammer method and elbow grease.
The rotor will come off if you have everything detached provided your lug nut screws aren't severely bent. In that case you have other major problems that you will probably need to take to a mechanic.
Nice video, but a couple of things I saw:
- make sure you use brake cleaner on the back of the rotor as well as the front
- it is not recommended by Ford to reuse the same bracket bolts you took off, you should replace them with new bolts.
Other than that great diy video to save some money by doing your own brakes.
Sachin Parmar Thanks for catching the brake cleaner no going on the back of the rotor. This is a great suggestion.
Would you know if this be the same for a 2008 ford edge? Do I need the tool or could I use a c clamp to compress the caliper for that vehicle?
Billy The Kiddo My guess would be that the edge is the same since the edge is based on the Ford Fusion platform. I would recommend getting the caliper compress tool from an auto parts store via the rental option.
good
You may want to do a search for how to get that bolt out. I did one myself, but I do not want to recommend anything due to my non-professional backrgroun. However, one low risk possibly solution would be spraying it with WD-40. It might loosen it up a bit.
The T-40 is a rather large torx bit. It's a bit shocking that you stripped it out. Sorry about your luck:/
Penetrating oil helps loosen rusted bolts and screws
question, I'm sure it's a stupid one, but what's best method for jacking the Ford fusion up with a floor Jack?
+Matt Ulakovic Certainly not a stupid question is there are many wrong ways to lift the vehicle. I DO NOT recommend using the lift that came with the car. It should really only be used in emergency circumstances. If you are attempting to do this job yourself, you are going to save hundreds on labor costs so invest that money into tools that you can keep (it's what I did).
You have a couple of good options in my opinon. Both are hydraulic floor jacks. I currently own two. I have a smaller 2 1/4 ton jack and a larger 3 ton floor jack. You could also buy a bottle jack, but I don't really recommend these since they can't move as the vehicle shifts (they don't have wheels)
You always want to lift the vehicle on a part of the steel frame. For this job, I placed the jack to a section just about inline with the door handle (basically a little farther to the rear of the vehicle). You basically want to lift at the part just before the bend occurs at both ends. Never lift in the middle for brake service.
Hope this helps.
+jharmon203 But where? The pinch welds under the doors? Or is there a better place?
What is,the name of,the tool you use to compress the caliper piston? I tried googling it to get a price but no luck
I googled this: "brake piston compression tool" and got prices around $20-30. However, like I said in the video, just go to an autoparts store and rent it for free. You buy the tool, use it, then take it back to the store for a full refund.
thank you sir. much appreciated
Your supposed to spray & wipe both sides of the rotor not just one side. They come coated to prevent rust.
I don’t bother with pad hardware, it just makes pads freeze up, especially if you live in salt belt like me!
Isn't a drive battery charger on the rear brakes on a hybrid?
Not all fusions are hybrids
@@soccerharms imagine that! It was a question.
those rotor retainers are deceiving. I used a drill on one that stripped out. I have a hammer impact that I smack to help get these off usually but one just wouldn't budge. good video though! I always like to scope out jobs ahead of time in case there is anything different that normal brakes etc. This was just like many I did before besides it being a Torx instead of a philips.
And by the way, the dealer told her they wanted $322 to do them, I did them in about 1h 15m for $95 in parts.
And 322 is considered a cheaper brake job from a place. I usually hear around 500. I have hear quotes over 1000 for disk brakes.
jharmon203 3uiby ttwe_I'll
Would this be the same on a 2011 fusion
Yes exactly the same. I just changed them on my gf's 2011 today.
+DrewThomas AYtTNrnal5jkr rk jkjust hrtyh9 joYunju kd
You should always spray both sides of the rotor, not just one.
I agree 100%, I didn't realize that at the time and it's been documented in the comments to spray both sides.
You never mentioned any break-in procedures. While they vary from pad brand to pad brand, it's very important to do. It activates the resin in the pad and helps seat the pad to the rotor. I always start with 5 hard brakes from 40 to 5mph and then 5 moderate brakes from 35 to 5 after which I drive the vehicle around at speed for minimum of 5 to 6 minutes allowing them to cool before stopping. This will ensure longer life to the pad and keep any hot spots from developing on that rotor.
Justin, Thanks for your input on the brake pads. I looked this up and found an article on cartalk.
www.cartalk.com/content/i-am-about-change-brake-pads-my
It's not absolutely necessary with both new pads and rotors, but still probably not a bad idea.
That is a awd fusion right?
Nick Weber No just FWD
I literally can’t get the bolts off the calipers no matter what I do
Can you reference at what point in the video the bolts you are referring to? You could try an impact wrench to try to get them off, but that's really a last resort. A breaker bar should be used first.
Yeah just the 14mm bolts on the first step to get the caliper loose..
always use new hardware . and always clean the hub of rust before putting rotors on.. only lub under new hardware , and cal piston and ears , never lub were the pads sit
I see you cut off this video exactly were I was having trouble myself. It would have been nice if you did not cut it off so we all could see how to properly get the caliper all the way in and the two caliper retaining bolts....but of course I had to go to a different video from another person to see this.
So sorry that I didn't keep the recording going where you needed help. I try to make my videos as short and concise as possible, so perhaps it was an area that I didn't feel needed much further explanation. Can you please let me know where exactly the video cut off? Minute and Second?
Lol, what a puke. It's not his responsibility to make sure the video he made with his time and supplies, caters to your needs.. if you're having that much trouble, pay someone to do it for you.
Torx bolts should be first
seems like a simple enough job why couldn't Koons in Annapolis do it in 6 hours they want me to bring back the car next week to do the same thing you are doing. Yes I know they are probably busy but they could do it in 10-20 minutes! I HATE MECHANICS!
Please do not do it this way move to the next video
Other than the non-greasing of the caliper pins, what issue do you have with the process? Other have provided helpful comments as to what they would change.
Lol you screwed your lugnuts on in the worst way possible. You're supposed to screw them in like a star pattern not one after the next