Owners of other Kia or Hyundai vehicles such as the Optima, Cadenza, K900, Sorento, Sportage, Sedona, Soul, Elantra, Veloster, Sonata, Azera, Tucson, Santa Fe, Genesis, Cerato, Spectra, Accent, Sephia, i20, i30, ix35, i40 and Equus may also find these DIY instructions to be helpful.

The items needed to complete this procedure include a floor jack, two jack stands, a lug nut wrench, a 14mm socket with a 3/8" drive ratcheting wrench, a 17mm wrench, a "C" or "F" clamp and a tube of synthetic high temperature brake parts lubricant grease.

A few compatible replacement sets of new rear brake pads with their part numbers include the following: Wagner QC1398, Dura International BP1157 MS, Bosch BC1157, TRW TPC1398, ACDelco 17D1157CH, Bendix D1157, Power Stop 16-1157, Monroe CX1398 and KFE Ultra Quiet KFE1398-104.

The first few steps are to park the car on a level surface, make sure that the the emergency / parking brake is not engaged and chock both sides of the front wheels to prevent the vehicle from moving.

Slightly loosen the five lug nuts on the rear wheel by turning them counterclockwise with the lug nut wrench.

Raise the rear of the vehicle with the floor jack and securely support it with at least two jack stands.

I'd recommend working on one side of the car at a time to keep three wheels on the ground for extra safety.

Spin off the 5 lug nuts and set them aside in a safe place.

Pull off the plastic wheel cover or "hub cap" and set it aside in a safe place.

Remove the rear wheel to reveal the rotor, bracket and caliper.

The rear brake caliper is held in place to the bracket by two bolts on the back side of the caliper with the bolt heads facing in towards the center of the car.

Loosen the lower caliper bolt by turning it clockwise (as seen from the outside of the car) with the 14mm socket and 3/8" drive ratcheting wrench.

If the caliper slider pin turns as you are trying to loosen the caliper bolt, hold it in place with a thin 17mm cone spanner wrench or a pair of pliers.

Then loosen the upper 14mm caliper bolt by turning it clockwise (as seen from the outside of the vehicle).

Carefully pull the rear brake caliper out of the bracket and off the old pads.

Rest the caliper on the suspension or suspend it from the spring with a bungee cord or some rope.

Try to avoid stressing, kinking, pulling or bending the rubber brake fluid hose.

Pull the old brake pads out of the bracket and make a mental note of where the wear indicator bar or "squeal" bar is situated on the old pads.

On this 2013 Forte EX sedan, the wear indicator bar was situated at the bottom of the inner brake pad.

I recommend buying the Wagner ThermoQuiet QC1398 brake pads since they have excellent reviews on Amazon.

Apply a thin layer of brake parts lubricant to any area where there is metal to metal contact such as the outer lip of the caliper piston. Do not apply caliper grease to the friction surface of the new pads.

If your Forte previously exhibited shuddering, pulsations, or vibrations in the rear end during braking, you may need to have your rotors "turned" (resurfaced) or it may be easier to just replace them with brand new rotors. If this is the first rear brake job on the car and the rotors appear to be in good condition, you should be able to just replace the pads with great results.

To remove the existing rotors and install new ones, remove the two bolts on the rear of the caliper bracket that attach it to the steering knuckle. Then loosen the old rotor with a rubber mallet, pull it off, and slide the new one in its place.

If your new set of rear pads included replacement brake hardware, pull the old pad abutment or "anti-rattle" clips out of the top and bottom of the bracket before pushing the new ones in to place.

Apply a small amount of synthetic high temperature brake parts lubricant grease to the pad abutment clips where they will come in contact with the new pads.

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

Pull the upper and lower caliper slider pins out of their rubber dust boots.

Apply a thin layer of high temperature synthetic brake caliper grease to the smooth parts of each slider pin before pushing them back in to their rubber dust boots. The two pins are different, so try to avoid mixing up their positions.

In order for the caliper to fit over the thicker new brake pads, you'll need to compress back the caliper piston.

Attach the "C" or "F" clamp to the rear caliper and use the back of an old brake pad to evenly distribute the pressure across the piston.

Move to the right rear area of the engine bay and twist off the black plastic brake fluid reservoir cap in the counterclockwise direction.

Removing the cap will allow the brake fluid to more easily travel back through the lines when you compress the piston.

Try to avoid pinching or otherwise damaging the rubber dust boot surrounding the caliper piston.

Repeatedly check the brake fluid level in the reservoir to prevent it from over flowing.

Clean up any spilled brake fluid immediately since it can easily damage painted surfaces.

Replace the brake fluid cap as soon as possible since brake fluid is hygroscopic and easily absorbs moisture from the air which could reduce your braking performance.

Push the two pads together until they are flush against the rotor.

Carefully lower the caliper over the new pads and in to the bracket.

If the caliper won't fit over the new pads, you may need to compress back the piston a bit further.

Spin in the two caliper bolts a few turns by hand in the counterclockwise direction to prevent them from becoming cross threaded.

Tighten the lower caliper bolt by turning it counterclockwise (as seen from the outside of the vehicle) with the 14mm socket and 3/8" drive ratcheting wrench to just past hand tight or about 25 ft-lbs of torque.

If the slider pin turns as you are trying to tighten the bolt, hold it in place with a 17mm wrench or a pair of pliers.

Tighten the upper 14mm caliper bolt in the counterclockwise direction to just past hand tight or about 25 ft-lbs of torque.

If your brake pedal previously felt spongy or soft, the brake fluid may be contaminated with water or the brake lines may contain some air bubbles.

It would be best to bleed the brake lines at this time in order to flush out the old fluid and replace it with fresh DOT 3 brake fluid. For more on this topic, check out my Brake Line Fluid Bleeding With An Assistant DIY Guide or alternatively the Brake Line Fluid Bleeding With A Power Bleeder Guide.

The brake fluid bleeder valve is located underneath a rubber cap on the back side of the caliper just below the upper caliper bolt.

Push on the rear wheel and replace the plastic hub cap with the cut out section for the tire valve orientated in the correct position.

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

Use the floor jack to carefully lower the rear of the car from the jack stands.

Continue progressively tightening the lug nuts in the clockwise direction to about 1/4 to 1/3 turn past hand tight or about 65 to 80 ft-lbs of torque.

It would be best to use a torque wrench to make sure that the lug nuts are properly tightened.

Sit in the driver's seat of the vehicle and pump the brake pedal a few times to restore the brake line pressure. Check the brake fluid in the reservoir and verify that it is at the proper level. If it is low, add some DOT 3 or DOT 4 fluid.

To break in your new rear brake pads, just drive normally for the first several hundred miles while trying to avoid any hard or "panic" stops which may glaze over the new pads and/or cause them to be noisy and not perform as well.

It's also a good idea to regularly check your driveway or garage for drops of brake fluid which may indicate a leak, check the brake fluid level in the reservoir, and also verify that the lug nuts are still tight.

For more, check out my other 2010-2013 Kia Forte DIY Repair & Maintenance Guides.