tjod6

I'm a longtime reader, but this is my first post - sorry if I make some mistakes ( actually already did, I posted this in the wrong section). My explaination may be long winded, so bear with me.

I have a 2011 F-150 SuperCrew Lariat 5.0L, about 58k miles. I recently bought the truck used from a Toyota dealer (which may be my first mistake) and the salesman made sure I knew the truck's brake pads had all been replaced. Sounded great to me and I drove truck home that night. Noticed on the 1.5 hr drive home that it pulled slightly to the left, but not enough to be worrisome. Over the next couple days, I made a couple longer trips and realized there was some serious heat and brake dust coming from the front left wheel, not to mention the pleasant burning smell. At this point I was pretty upset due to the fact that I was told my brakes were 'new.' I thought I knew what the problem was (either a sticking caliper or kinked line) so I called the place I got it, read the riot act and got them to pay for the fix at my nearby Ford dealer. Both the caliper and line were replaced and I thought I was happy. I was told to replace my pads and rotors again because during the time I was driving on a locked up caliper, my pads had worn irregularly and my rotors had warped.

After replacing the pads and rotors myself, the problem still hasn't been fixed - still lots of heat, a burning smell, and lots of brake dust. Upon further review, it appears that the back end of the outside pad continuously rubs with the rotor. My guess is that something is bent, but I can't figure out what. New caliper, brake line, pads, and rotors, so I can't imagine it's one of those. Could it be the caliper bracket itself? I know that should be able to withstand a tremendous amount of force, but it's just a guess. Could it be something even worse and be as far up as the hub? Has anybody run into a similar problem?

Any and all help is appreciated!

RLXXI

Take it to a reputable alignment shop and have them check the steering axis inclination (SAI) sounds to me like your steering knuckle (spindle) may be bent.


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LiftedTeal95

Welcome

Marc D

welcome from SoCal . Brake pads are supposed to have full contact with the rotor at all times with 7# of pressure. If only the back is touching something is bent. Did they change the entire caliper assembly including the mounting bracket? If no it's a place to start. Any way, good luck with the brakes. I agree time for the pros to have a look.

tjod6

I appreciate the responses. No, the bracket wasn't changed. The truck is back with the pros today, and I'll make sure to have them check alignment as well as the bracket. Isn't that bracket meant to handle a ridiculous amount of pressure? How rare would it be for that to be bent?

I'll update with a post when I get it back (hopefully sooner rather than later)

Marc D

Yes the bracket will withhold a lot of brake pressure. What it won't handle is the tire getting slammed into a curb. This will possibly bend the rim, the rotor and the bracket.

1Aauto

How's the brake pedal feel? Is it rock hard or spongy?

tjod6

After having the pros at Ford take a look at it, they first made sure the brake pads were correct (they were; apparently some people have issues with inboard vs. outboard pads) they said the bracket looked like it had been bent and somebody had tried to bend it back. The truck is also on a second set of tires with not a ton of miles, which may have been a product of hammering a curb or something. Appreciate all of the help, I doubt I would have had them look at the bracket on my own.

Thanks again.

https://mail-attachment.googleuserco...MaeTFaHSEQBsSk

Marc D

Outstanding. Thanks for the update.