2005 Freestar SEL rear brakes

klancf51 · 06-11-2006, 06:49 AM

Yesterday while changing the rear brake pads on 05 Freestar SEL I had a hell of a time getting the caliper pistons to retract into the bores. A post on another forum gave me a hint: "push really hard." I used a heavy-duty C-clamp and tightened it with FORCE (i.e. a short piece of pipe on the c-clamp handle). They did retract, but I've never seen caliper pistons that required so much force. Also suspicious is that the inner pads on both sides were worn twice as much as the outer pads. This vehicle has 33K so I'm taking this story to the Ford dealer to see if they will condemn and replace the calipers under warranty. I'll post result. Has any one else experienced this? Thanks.

klancf51 · 06-19-2006, 05:24 PM

The Ford dealer's service department confirmed that the rear calipers are difficult to retract and that the inner pads dramatically outwear the outer pads. Keep an eye on them. FYI

holeshot28 · 09-15-2006, 08:02 PM

Thanks for the tip I guess I need to check mine out can you flip them around. I need to order them soon then...

acisne · 09-21-2006, 01:28 PM

I just had problems with my wife's '05 42K miles and the rears were shot and all four pads almost metal-to-metal. The fronts look brand new.
There is a tool ($9 and change) that you need to retract the piston. I bought it at a part store where I bought the pads. The same shop would not turn the rotors as they said they were shot and wanted me to but them for $80 plus each (Fords were $125)
I took them to a friend's shop that has a brake lathe and he turned them.

The tool you need will "turn" the piston back into the bore. You will see two notches on the piston and the tool "grabs" it there and you turn it back in.

The brakes now feel better than new and a slight vibration that the van had went away.

I did have to purge the line to get some air out of it, and the reservour is a pain to get to. Bad design!

Good luck!

klancf51 · 01-19-2007, 03:30 PM

That's the info I was looking for.

Thanks man!

tula771 · 03-29-2007, 02:21 PM

I own an o4 freestar. Like it, but it certainly eats the brakes, more than any ford I've owned. I was sure the brakes were locking up, but the dealer said the rear brakes were just wore out..............400 dollars

spudszman · 11-06-2007, 05:12 PM

The only way to retract the piston is to screw the pistons back in with a tool designed to hook up to your 3/8 in ratchet extension and ratchet. I removed the roto and screwed the caliper back in place. Then I vise gripped the caliper to the caliper mounting bar. You must push hard , lean into the ratchet and turn clockwise at the same time to turn the piston in. It takes a numerous revolutions and if you dont lean into it you will get nowhere. Very poor design. Make sure you removed or loosened up the brake fluid resovoir cap.
If you try to "c" clamp with force you will damage the internals of the caliper.
I also am trying ceramic pads since I went thru the originals in 22 K and I am not hard on brakes. Should do better with the ceramics.
GLTA..

Hissing Cobra · 02-18-2008, 10:41 AM

I had problems with my rear brakes on my '04 Freestar when it had 29,000 miles on it. I heard grinding in the rear everytime I pressed on the brake pedal. I called the dealer and they insisted that it was a "wear item" and that I would be responsible for the repair charges.

After thinking about this injustice, I flipped and called back to speak to a manager. I let him know that I WAS NOT going to pay for the repair, as it was still under warranty and that if they did wear out at 29,000 miles, it was due to a design flaw and not from normal wear. I then let him know that in my 22 years of driving, I had never seen the rear brakes wear out faster than the front (by the way, my front brakes still looked brand new). He agreed to look at the van and then called me AFTER it was repaired.

The diagnosis? It needed the rear pads replaced and the rotors to be resurfaced. At this time, we have 58,000 miles on it and the brakes have been fine since the repair. I paid nothing for the repair and have to thank both FORD and my dealership for standing behind their product. However, I also feel that if I didn't raise hell, I believe that I would have had to pay.

This is a very common problem with these vans and I've done a lot of research on the rear brake problems. I've found that many people have had the same issues and the dealer's are forcing them to pay. It's unfortunate that a design flaw or a faulty part should cause the consumer to part with their hard earned money.

holeshot28 · 03-08-2008, 05:30 AM

I have a ford freestar had the same problems with the back brakes wore out on the inside pads on the back front look new. I also took it to the dealer being stationed in germany good luck with this they are very difficult to deal with. The lead mechanic said it is something wrong with the rotors so he replaced all four rotors and new pads of course I kept all the old parts. This did not fix the problem brakes still feel just wrong pedal goes way down before you start breaking. It is almost as if the calipers are not working. we are around 43000 miles and pads on front new and back look good still bleed brakes and still not much better. Any ideas on the pedal travel?

jr78 · 03-08-2008, 07:30 PM

Might check to see if the rear pads were installed correctly. There is a pin on inner rear brake pad that needs to fit into a slot in the caliper piston.