Choosing/Installing New Brake Rotors and Pads

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I'm beginning the process of looking for the best value in replacement rotors and brake pads for my 2001 2500HD. I want rotors that can deal with road de-icer, without rusting, and pads that provide the best combination of life, stopping power and noise-free service.

Any thoughts? Thx, MP

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I'm surprised no one has replaced the brake rotors and pads in their early Duramax powered pickups...

[DmaxMaverick]

I've heard of some, but I'm not surprised. Mine are original, with 50%+ remaining and stops like new. The only service over the years is fluid. I know age is a factor, but I'm not inclined to fix what ain't broke.

[More Power]

I've heard of some, but I'm not surprised. Mine are original, with 50%+ remaining and stops like new. The only service over the years is fluid. I know age is a factor, but I'm not inclined to fix what ain't broke.

I know what you mean. With 146,000 miles on my 2001, the brake pads still have more than half life, but with the rust, a couple of the pads don't make full contact with the rusty rotors. There were a couple of years where I didn't drive it much during the winter, and the rotors rusted more than they do in a typical year.

[JohnC]

Yeah, that was my experience on the '06, too. Replace the pads only because I had to replace the rotors.

Maybe what we need is ceramic rotors and cast iron pads!

[DmaxMaverick]

Carbon/ceramic rotors and pads are a thing. They've been OEM on vehicles for years, but none I can afford (Lamborghini, Ferrari, etc.).

[JohnC]

Yeah, I never should have sold the Ferrari...

[ToddMeister]

Yeah I replaced the pads/rotors on my 2005 GMC 2500HD at about 125K due to rotor rot. Pads still had lots of material left. The 16 GMC is still running original pads/rotors with very little wear at just under 60K

[More Power]

Yeah I replaced the pads/rotors on my 2005 GMC 2500HD at about 125K due to rotor rot. Pads still had lots of material left. The 16 GMC is still running original pads/rotors with very little wear at just under 60K

Did you go with aftermarket or OE?

[CoyleJR]

In 16 years and 255k miles I have replaced my rotors and pads three times on my 06 dually. I was running ceramic pads and that was a problem. They didn't stop well when they were cold and ate the rotors while showing minimal wear on the ceramic pads. The current (non ceramic) pads and (drilled & slotted) rotors are doing well. I am sure a contributing factor to using three sets of brakes is the 24k GCVWR (truck & trailer) and the fact that much of the miles were in the Rockies. This is the best truck I have ever owned.

[arveetek]

I have a problem with warping the front rotors. This time around I went with this kit from Rock Auto that has drilled and slotted rotors:

https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo...pt=13824&jsn=1

I've been pleased so far; only have about 2K miles on them at this point. Very smooth and even braking.

Casey

[Yukon6.2]

I got premium NAPA pads and rotors and did the same for the back on the 98 Suburban.
It wasn't cheap but looking forward to having a new braking system.

[ToddMeister]

Did you go with aftermarket or OE?

IIRC Aftermarket from the local Advance Auto Parts, but did use Ceramic pads.

I will see if I have the old receipts yet to verify.

[Kennedy]

For pads I like the Hawk HP Super Duty for great feel and responsiveness. Ceramics just tend to be to hard and poor performing. The OE rotors are plenty thick and can be turned without much issue so long as they don't rot. They need a good flushing of water between seasons.

[tufcj]

Just did the rears on my '03 2500HD due to a stuck caliper (took the right rear to metal on metal). Replaced rotors, pads, pins, and hardware using all Raybestos parts from Rock Auto for a little over $200 with shipping. I use the premium or heavy duty option parts on their web site. Stuck caliper was due to rust on the pins, calipers were OK and not leaking. I use Raybestos "Super Stop" pads whenever they're available. I've had good luck and good mileage with them.

Bob

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Just bought a set of NAPA's "Premium" front and rear rotors - made in the USA. These are coated, except for the wear areas on the rotors. I also bought their PROFORMER front/rear brake pads - made in China. With a T-55 bit to remove the caliper, the out the door cost was just under $400.

I'll get the rears installed this coming weekend. Hopefully, I'll have a complete install story available online once the job is complete. Hoping the bolts and hardware come off without a lot of ... trouble. I have pin lube and extra brake fluid on hand. Road de-icer is so destructive to vehicles...

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By Jim Bigley - www.TheDieselPage.com



The front and rear brake rotors and pads were recently replaced on my 2001 GMC 2500HD, not due to wearing out, but due to rusting caused primarily by the magnesium chloride road de-icer (essentially a salt) used on the highways during the winter here in Montana. The above photo shows what the rear rotors looked like soon after removed from the truck and then sitting overnight after a light rain. You can also see how the brake pads had lost contact with large areas of the rotors. It was well past time to replace these parts. Read on for a few ideas that could make your brake project a little easier.

What follows is not a step by step replacement, but rather a "heads up" concerning what to look for, how I did the work and what parts I used.




These brake pads illustrate what caused me to do this project now... The outer pad was at about 50% wear, while the inner pad was producing metal on metal. What happens is this... the road de-icer reduces the contact area between the pad and the rotor. This smaller braking surface wears faster, and in the time it takes for that smaller contact patch to wear away, the rest of the rotor becomes grossly rusted. This rough rusted area then rapidly wears away the pad's brake material, resulting in metal on metal.



Once the brake caliper has been removed, use wire to secure the assembly to the frame or spring pack (the front caliper should be secured to the upper A-arm). Don't allow the heavy brake caliper to hang on the brake line.



Incidentally, the front calipers are mounted using caliper guide pin bolts having a 15mm bolt head. The rear calipers are mounted using guide-pin bolts that require a T55 bit. This is the bit I used. Bought it at NAPA. I used an adapter in this bit so I could use an end wrench to loosen/tighten. There's not a lot of room for a lengthy flex-handle.



Rusted brake rotors can sometimes be tough to remove from the hubs. Luckily, factory GM rotors (and these NAPA replacements) used on the front accept bolts that can be used to force the rotor off the hub. We used common 3/8" SAE hardware store bolts, which seemed to fit the threaded holes perfectly. The 3/8" bolts worked great to force the rotors off the front hubs.



You can use a couple of bolts/nuts/washers to push the rear rotors off the hubs using the caliper mounting bracket attachments on the rear hubs. This works great. Don't use a big hammer to knock the rotors off. Heavy impact can peen the bearings/races, causing a premature wheel bearing failure.



Caliper Mounting Bracket Bolts, Front/Rear (25/35 series): 221 lb-ft (21mm socket): Reaching these torque values will require some effort to loosen, then re-assemble. For tools, you'll need 1/2" drive 6-point 21-mm socket (preferably an impact socket), a long flex-handle and a torque wrench capable of handling 221 lb-ft of torque (it may require ~300 lb-ft of torque to break them loose). It's all about leverage, so a longer flex-handle and torque wrench will make it easier for you. The caliper bracket bolts (having a 21mm hex head) were originally installed using a thread locker. The thread locker is usually persistent enough that you shouldn't need to re-apply new thread locker when re-installing the hardware, but a re-application of the "blue" thread locker is up to you. I needed to use a cheater pipe on my 1/2" flex-handle, and I considered it a tossup whether my new 1/2" drive 6-point 21mm NAPA socket could loosen those bolts without breaking, but it survived. You won't need any deep-well sockets for this job.

An air impact capable of at least 300 lb-ft of torque could be used with wobble extensions, but it's difficult to get a square shot at the bolt heads due to interference with the suspension components.

Note: I also have a big 3 feet long 3/4" drive flex-handle that I bought a couple of years ago to remove the Duramax damper bolt. That long 3/4" flex-handle would have made it easier to break those caliper bracket bolts loose due to its length/leverage advantage... but I didn't have a 3/4" drive 21mm impact socket. Note to self...

Before installing the new rotor you should use an air nozzle to blow out the dust in/around the e-brake parts. I then applied a little oil to a few of the rusty components to help them survive the coming winters. Always make sure to keep oil away from the actual brake components - shoes/pads/drums/rotors/braking surfaces.




You'll need to use brake cleaner to remove the protective film from the wear surfaces of the new rotors. BTW - I did knock off the loose rust and flaking paint from these calipers/brackets. That was followed by a light coat of oil (used as a rust preventive) - keeping it off the new pads and rotors, obviously. This'll need to be re-applied on a yearly basis. Another alternative it to strip/clean/paint or replace the calipers/brackets. It's up to you. And, I re-lubed the caliper guide pins using NAPA caliper grease. This special grease was designed for the high temperatures commonly seen in brake calipers. You can see in the above photo how the rust preventive I've been using has protected the areas I've applied the solution to (frame/spring pack). More info on this solution can be found below.



These are the front/rear rotors I used for this project. These "made in the USA" rotors appear to be well made, and are coated in all areas other than the areas where the pads make contact. So... they'll still rust on the wear surfaces...



Rear brake pads part #PF-7653M

Continued next post...


Jim

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Having trouble removing stuck on wheels? Depending on how often you rotate your tires & wheels or how corrosive your operating environment, these aluminum wheels can become nearly bonded to the hubs, making it difficult to get the wheels off the truck. Some suggest using a big hammer, but a hammer could cause wheel damage or create a personal safety hazard when hitting the tires. I ran into this stuck wheel problem recently, and found that a motorcycle tire changing tool works very well to pop the wheels loose from the hub.



Insert the curved end of the tool into the notch on the brake caliper and pry. Even stubborn wheels pop right off. If you're concerned about scratching the wheels, wrap the curved end with electrical tape before hand, or use a piece of plastic to cushion the tool against the wheel.
The 16" long tire tool shown here was purchased from MikesXS.net (https://www.mikesxs.net/product/35-0080.html) a few years ago and it remains available. The Mikes XS Part #35-0080 tire tool was just $9.00 at the time. I've seen this tire tool available at Harbor Freight, Amazon and Ebay as well. This is the best solution I know of to safely loosen stuck on wheels.

The new pads and rotors gave the brake pedal a whole new feel... firmer-faster, with a lot more effective braking. I'm happy! I'm sure there are aftermarket parts available that are more resistant to the corrosive effects of road de-icer, but the new NAPA sourced parts shown here should last for as long as the original (some two decades, though if this truck was being used to tow heavy, I would have swapped out the parts a long time ago).

Let all of us know what you used for your last brake job on your Duramax diesel truck, and how those parts have held up to the riggers of winter road de-icer. Jim

By the way.... I needed to change the rear rotors and pads recently on my wife's 2016 Chevrolet Malibu... for the very same reason shown here. Next spring, I'll likely need to change out the front set. My wish is for either the states to develop a non-corrosive road de-icer OR for vehicle manufacturers to begin building vehicles (and their braking systems) that are a lot more resistant to the corrosive effects of road de-icer. As much as these vehicle cost, shouldn't we expect more?

One more thing... Visit this link to learn what I do here in Montana to help keep rust from melting my truck.
https://www.thedieselpageforums.com/...php?46809-Rust

www.TheDieselPage.com

[DieselDavy]

Thanks for that "tutorial"! I used "PowerStop" rotors and calipers from Rock Auto. (drilled and slotted as Casey said) They have stayed very clean and shinny even after our salty winters here.
d

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"salty winters"...

Have a look at this: https://youtu.be/DP-7-cPKaOM

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