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Ford Flex Rear Brake Pads Replacement Guide
How to change the rear disc brake pads on a 1st generation 2009 to 2019 Ford Flex including the part numbers.

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2019 Flex Rear Wheel
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Slightly Loosen Lug Nuts
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Raise Rear of Vehicle
This automotive maintenance tutorial was specifically written to assist owners of the first generation (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 & 2019) Ford Flex crossover SUV in changing the rear disc brake pads and lubricating the caliper slider pins.

Owners of other Ford or Lincoln vehicle such as the Explorer, Fiesta, Focus, Fusion, C-Max, Mustang, Taurus, EcoSport, Escape, Edge, Expedition, Transit Connect, F-150, Ranger, MKZ, MKC, Navigator, MKX and Continental may also find these DIY instructions to be helpful.

A few compatible sets of new rear brake pads with their part numbers are as follows: Bosch BC1377, Wagner ZD1377, Motorcraft BR1377B, ACDelco 17D1377CH, Akebono ACT1377 and Power Stop Z23-1377.

Please verify the correct replacement brake pads for your Flex by using the Amazon Part Finder website. The compatible part numbers may vary depending on the model year, whether your SUV has the HD (heavy duty) braking system and also whether it is equipped with the FWD (front wheel drive) or AWD (all wheel drive) transmission.

The tools and other items needed to complete this procedure include a lug nut wrench, a floor jack, two jack stands, a 13mm socket with a 3/8" drive ratchet, a Lisle 28600 disc brake piston tool (to retract the "screw-in" type rear caliper piston) and a tube of brake caliper grease.

Attention: If your Flex is equipped with an electronic parking brake ("EPB"), please read my directions for placing the EPB in "service" / "maintenance" mode at the 2015-2019 Ford Edge Rear Brake Pads Replacement Guide.



 

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Spin Off Five Lug Nuts
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5 Lug Nuts Removed
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Remove Rear Wheel
The first few steps are to drive the SUV on to a level surface, shift the transmission into park and turn off the ignition.

Make sure that the emergency / parking brake is not engaged.

(This 2019 Flex is equipped with a standard cable operated emergency / parking brake. If your Flex has an electronic parking brake or "EPB", read the statement located above about placing it into service / maintenance mode before continuing.)

If the parking brake is set, you will not be able to pull the rear caliper off the old pads and out of the bracket.

Place wheel chocks on both sides of the front tires to prevent the vehicle from moving.

Slightly loosen the five lug nuts on the rear wheel by turning them about 1/4 to 1/2 turn in the counterclockwise direction.

Carefully raise the rear of the SUV with the floor jack and securely support it with at least two jack stands.

Please do not solely rely on the floor jack to support the vehicle.

I prefer to only work on one side of the vehicle at a time to keep three tires on the ground for extra safety.

Spin off the five lug nuts in the counterclockwise direction and set them aside in a safe place.

Carefully remove the rear wheel and set it aside.

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Rear Brake Caliper
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Loosen Lower Caliper Bolt
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Loosen Upper Caliper Bolt
The rear brake caliper is held in place to the bracket by two bolts located on the back side of the caliper.

The two bolt heads face in towards the center of the cargo area.

Loosen the lower caliper bolt by turning it in the clockwise direction (as seen from the outside of the SUV) with the 13mm socket and a 3/8" drive ratchet.

Then loosen the upper caliper bolt by turning it in the clockwise direction (as seen from the outside of the car) with the 13mm socket and a 3/8" drive ratchet.

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Spin Out Bottom Bolt
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Remove Top Bolt
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Gently Pry Off Caliper
Spin out the two caliper bolts and set them aside in a safe place.

If the caliper pins spin as you are attempting to loosen the caliper bolts, hold them in place with a wrench or a pair of pliers.

Pull the caliper off the old pads and out of the bracket.

If you have trouble removing the caliper, carefully pry it out of the bracket with a large flathead screwdriver.

I used the end of the "F" clamp to pry off the caliper.

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Rear Caliper Removed
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Remove Old Inner Pad
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Remove Old Outer Pad
Once you remove the rear caliper, you'll see that it is equipped with a "screw-in" type piston.

Remove the old inner and outer brake pads out of the bracket and discard them.

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Pad Abutment Clips
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Replace Abutment Clips
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Find Best Fitting Side
If your new set of rear pads includes a bag of replacement brake hardware, pull the old metal pad abutment or "anti-rattle" clips out of the top and bottom of the bracket.

Clean off the rotor, lug studs and bracket with brake parts cleaner spray.

Apply some brake caliper grease to the parts of the new pad abutment clips where they will come in contact with the bracket or the new pads.

In order for the caliper to fit over the thicker new brake pads, the screw-in type caliper piston will need to be rotated back into the caliper assembly.

Attention: If your Flex is equipped with an electronic parking brake ("EPB"), please read my directions for placing the EPB in "service" / "maintenance" mode at the 2015-2019 Ford Edge Rear Brake Pads Replacement Guide.

Find the side of your disc brake piston tool cube (such as the Lisle 28600) that has the best grip on the caliper piston.

I found that the edge with two rounded nubs situated far apart had the best grip on the piston.



 

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Attach To 3/8" Extension
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Turn Back Caliper Piston
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Remove Slider Pins
Attach the tool to a short extension bar and a 3/8" drive ratchet.

Slowly rotate the caliper piston in the clockwise direction until it is fully retracted.

If you don't have a piston tool, you may be able to use a pair of needle nose pliers.

In order for the caliper to operate smoothly, the two caliper slider pins or "guide bolts" need to be well lubricated.

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Lubricate & Replace Pins
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Install New Inner Pad
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Install New Outer Pad
Apply a thin layer of brake parts lubricant grease to the smooth parts of each pin before pushing them back into place.

If you've been feeling vibrations, pulsating or shuddering in the rear end while braking, you may need to have the rotors turned or it could be more convenient and less expensive to just replace them with new rotors.

To replace the old rotors, remove the Torx T35 set screw on the outer face of the rotor, remove the two 15mm bracket bolts and slide off the old rotor. The torque specification for the bracket bolts (or anchor plate bolts) is 76 lb-ft of torque.

Install the new inner and outer brake pads into the bracket.

They should fit snugly into the bracket if you replaced the old pad abutment clips.

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Push Pads Against Rotor
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Spin In Top Bolt
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Spin In Lower Bolt
Push the two pads together until they are flush against the rotor.

Line up the bolt holes in the caliper with their corresponding bolt holes in the slider pins within the bracket.

Spin in the two bolts a few turns by hand in the counterclockwise direction (as seen from the outside of the SUV) to help prevent them from becoming cross threaded.

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Tighten Bottom Bolt
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Tighten Top Bolt
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Rubber Valve Cap
Tighten the two caliper bolts in the counterclockwise direction (as seen from the outside of the SUV) with the 13mm socket and a 3/8" drive ratchet to just past hand tight.

If you have a torque wrench, the specification in the service manual for the rear caliper bolts is 24 lb-ft of torque.

Double check that the two caliper bolts are tight before moving on to the next steps.

If the brake pedal has been feeling soft or spongy, there may be a few air bubbles or some moisture (water) in the brake lines. It would be best to bleed the brake lines at this time to replace the old fluid fresh new brake fluid.

Please check out my Acura MDX Brake Line Bleeding Guide where I use a one-person bottle bleeder to make the job super easy.

The brake fluid bleeder valve is located just below the upper caliper bolt. It is covered by a rubber cap.

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Brake Fluid Bleeder Valve
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Replace Rear Wheel
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Spin On Five Lug Nuts
The brake fluid bleeder valve can be opened with an 11mm wrench.

(Most cars are equipped with 10mm bleeder valves so I was surprised to find an 11mm bleeder valve on our Flex.)

Carefully push the rear wheel back on to the lug studs.

Spin on the five lug nuts a few turns by hand in the clockwise direction to prevent them from becoming cross threaded.

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Slightly Tighten Clockwise
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Lower Car From Stands
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Torque Lug Nuts
Slightly tighten the five lug nuts in a criss-cross or star pattern with the tire iron.

Carefully lower the SUV from the jack stands by using the floor jack.

Continue progressively tightening the lug nuts in a star pattern to about 1/4 to 1/3 turn past finger tight.

It would be best to use a torque wrench to tighten the lug nuts to 100 lb-ft of torque as specified in the owner's manual.

Sit in the driver's seat and firmly press on the brake pedal a few times to restore the brake line pressure.

Be sure to record the brake pad change in your vehicle's service records.

Please check out all of my Ford Flex DIY Repair & Maintenance Guides.
 

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