For the past couple of days I have noticed a slight grinding sound when braking. Today the sound became louder, and does it slightly when driving without having my foot on the brake pedal. Visual inspection with wheels on shows considerable rotor wear on all four rotors, but the rear passenger side has deep grooves, while the other three are reasonably smooth. The noise appears to come from the rotor that is in the roughest shape, I can see fine metal filings on the wheels. My 2005 F150 XLT SC with the 5.4 V8 has 32K original miles, and has never had more than a visual inspection of the brakes during tire rotations. I am not able to do the repairs myself due to an injury, and lack of technical knowledge, but have had friends who are just do it yourselfers with basic tools who are willing to do a complete brake job (new pads and new rotors) for a small fee which is great, but from what I have read, there are ABS issues, difficulty removing the calipers and rotors, and emergency brake issues that would perhaps be best addressed by a certified mechanic. I'm not certain if the rear passenger caliper is malfunctioning as I have read that rotors should wear equally on the right and left, and that one should never hear the brakes when driving unless the caliper is sticking, other opinions state that there will always be one side to wear first and that if the wear is severe enough, noise will be heard when driving. I am at a loss as to whether or not I most likely have a caliper issue, or if it is normal to hear noise when driving if pads are very worn? Would you suggest a decent do it yourself mechanic, or are there definite things that should be left to a certified mechanic? Thanks in advance for reading, and any advice you could please offer. I would appreciate also if anyone could recommend by brand what they feel are the best parts for this truck. Thank you...

 

If you can't do it yourself, I would have a shop do it... if they break something they are then responsible.

Search to find a million threads on what rotors and pads to use. Most people have good luck with Wagner Thermoquiet pads. I use them with OE rotors.

 

Thanks...My wife has the Thermoquiet pads on her Freestar and noticed a big difference. It seems that for the F150, the Thermoquiet pads are semi-metalic in the front and ceramic in the rear according to Rock Auto's website.

 

From my original post, does anyone believe I have a caliper issue?

 

brakes are easy on these trucks. you need to pull off the wheel and look what the problem is.