Are you looking for a reliable way on how to change front brake pads on Dodge RAM 2500? Well, then you’ve come to the right place.
As you might know, the brake pads of your truck help the vehicle slow down all the pressure you’ve been generating while driving.
When coming to a stop, what helps stop the car is that little yet powerful brake pad on the wheels.
Without it, you wouldn’t be able to slow down. If the brake pads on your vehicle do not work anymore, don’t worry.
We’ll walk you through all the steps you need to replace them on your own.
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What Are Brake Pads?
As you drive down the road, you’re generating lots of pressure.
That pressure must be stopped when you step on the pedal. And that is, of course, up to the brake pads.
With the help of the brake pads, the car can slow down or come to a stop.
The amount of friction they cause when you step on the pedal is enough to stop the disc from spinning.
Without the brake pads on the wheels, you wouldn’t be able to stop the car from running.
As you might guess, brake pads are incredibly strong. After all, they need to stop an absurd amount of pressure coming from the wheels.
Nowadays, most brake pads are made of iron, copper, and steel to ensure the toughness brake pads.
However, depending on the vehicle you drive, the brake pads might be built differently.
Given how crucial brake pads are, you can imagine the number of problems they will cause if they ever break.
Vibration, squeezing noise, and losing control over the vehicle. All of that combined might lead to severe injuries if you don’t get a new pair of brake pads for your car.
Brake Pads For Dodge Ram 2500 Cost
Changing front brake pads cost is about $400 for new pads installed.
The average cost for brake pads for the Dodge Ram 2500 is about $200 all the way up to $300.
As always, depending on where you live, prices are subject to change. You might get a lower price or a higher price.
Installing new brake pads takes about an hour for most mechanics. That is, of course, if they do not encounter any problems during the process.
How Often Should I Replace Brake Pads?
Brake pads can be somewhat expensive for some vehicles, so you might not want to replace them every so often.
Not only are they a little bit pricey, but they are also important as they keep you from crashing.
So how can I tell when I need new brake pads? Most of the time, brake pads need to be replaced after 70,000 miles.
By the time you’ve reached that number, you should get a new set of brake pads.
Sometimes, you might hear a squealing sound coming from the wheels.
This usually means the pad is worn—so you will have to replace the brake pads to stop the noise.
However, even if it turns out the brake pads were not the root problem, it usually means there is something wrong with the brakes.
Maybe something got inside the brake pads, or they’re losing their thickness. Either way, you should look into it to find out what’s wrong with the brakes.
DIY Guide: How To Replace Front Brake Pads On Dodge Ram 2500
In this section, we’ll cover all the steps you need to install a Dodge RAM 2500 brake pad replacement.
Going to the local mechanic can be super expensive.
If you’re on a budget and can be bothered to pay that kind of money, then learning how to replace front brake pads is an excellent solution to this problem.
Without any further ado, here are all the steps you must follow to replace the front brake pads on your own:
01. What You Will Need
Before we dive in, you need to get a couple of tools for the brake pads installation.
These are the tools that will allow you to get through all the steps we’ll be going through in just a couple of minutes. Here are all the tools you need:
- An impact gun — the impact gun is super helpful if you need to remove bolts as it requires little to no effort by the user
- A 7/8 socket — you will need the socket to remove a couple of bolts from the wheels
- A 15/16 socket — there is a bolt-on the caliper you must remove
- A cheater pipe — when you have a tough nut, a cheater pipe is super helpful, which is why you want to get one for this job
- Floor Jack — for the brake pads installation, you need to jack up the truck
- Jack stands — always use jack stands when jacking up the vehicle to ensure your safety
- WD-40 — some bolts are hard to remove as they get corroded. However, WD-40 makes this process less tedious. You can skip this product, but it might be hard to break loose those bolts
Those are all the tools you need for the brake pads installation on the Dodge Ram 2500.
Once you have all the tools mentioned above, you’re pretty much ready to take on this simple job.
02. Break Loose The Lug Nuts
Before we can gain access to the truck’s brake pads, we need to remove the wheels.
And before that happens, we need to remove the bolts that hold the wheels together.
However, you will break them loose for now. Here is what you need to do:
- Get the impact gun to loosen the nuts on the wheels
- Use the 7/8 socket to break loose the lug nuts on the front wheels
- Once you have loosed the lug nuts, leave them as they are.
In the next section, you will have to jack up the truck. So, don’t take off the wheels just yet.
Once you lift up the vehicle, we’ll proceed to do so. But for now, leave the lug nuts as they are.
3. Jack Up The Truck
Next, we’ll have to jack up the truck. Now, lifting up the vehicle is no easy task.
If you messed up in the process, things could get pretty bad. Don’t worry, though.
We will show you what you need to do. Here are the steps you need to jack up the truck:
- Jack up the front axle using the floor jack
- Now place the jack stand
- Lower the floor jack into the jack stand
- Now raise the other side up
- Now drop the truck into the other jack stand
- That’s it for the front side. Now head over to the backside, lift it up on the differential housing, and place the two jack stands to secure the truck
Before doing any work with the truck, you must give the vehicle a shake to ensure the truck has been safely jacked up.
For more information on this broad topic, watch this video:
04. Remove The Caliper Bolts
Before you can remove the old brake pads, you need to remove the caliper bolt.
There is one on the upper and bottom sides; they are somewhat hard to remove if they got corroded.
Follow these steps to remove the caliper bolts:
- Spray WD-40 all over the caliper bolts. By doing this, you’ll break them loose with ease
- Get the 15/16 socket inside the caliper bolt
- Now use the cheater pipe to break it loose
- Once you have removed the upper bolt, you also want to remove the bottom one
- You should now have access to the brake pads
- Finally, you need to pull out the old brake pads
The old brake pads might be in bad shape. But all you care about is that you gained access to the caliper bolts.
In the next section, you will have to set up the retainer clips.
05. Install The Brake Pad Retainer Clips
Any time you buy brake pads, it comes with retainer clips. The retainer clips hold the unit together, so you must install them for the installation process.
Follow the steps down below to install the retainer clips:
- There are four tension clips you must install inside the caliper
- Each retainer clip is designed differently. Two of the retainer clips are designed up and down in and out. The other two retainer clips are up and down
- If you don’t know where they go, we suggest taking a look at the old ones to see whether they go on the right side or the left side
- Once you’ve figured this out, the new retainer clips should easily fit into notches that are made inside of the caliper mounting bracket
You really want to be careful when fitting the retainer clips into place.
If you’re having a hard time fitting them in, you’re probably putting them in the wrong place.
So, instead, try a different hole to ensure you got the right one.
06. Replacing Dodge Ram Brake Pads
Next, you will have to set up the springs of the brake pads.
You might spend a little bit of time as getting this right on the first try can be somewhat hard. Here are the steps required for this job:
- For the spring installation, the springs must go on the backside of the caliper
- Apply medium pressure to bend the springs just a little bit so that they will snap right into place
- Once you have installed the springs, you want to bend the springs so the brake pads won’t come out as you drive
- Now follow the same steps for the other brake pad
- Once you have installed the brake pads into the caliper mounting bracket, you need to reinstall the bolts to secure the caliper
- Next, put everything back into place
And those are all the steps required for the installation. Be careful when bending the springs.
They won’t break as easy, but you don’t want to risk it by any means, so play it safe!
If you like a video would help you get through all this process, you can give this video a try:
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Here, you will find the common questions regarding the installation of the brake pads on the Dodge Ram 2500.
What’s the cost to replace front brake pads?
Replacing the brake pads costs about $400. However, depending on the vehicle you have, this price is subject to change.
Can I just replace my front brakes?
Yes, you can replace the front brakes on your own.
Replacing the front brake pads for your vehicle is super easy, and you don’t need prior experience to pull it off.
As long as you take some time out of your busy schedule — you should be good to go.
How do you break in new front brake pads?
Follow these steps to break in the new front brake pads:
- First, you want to step on the pedal several times to make sure everything is working properly.
- Go for a drive to properly break in the new front brake pads.
- Hit at least 30-40 miles an hour and then stop.
- You want to do this at least 3-4 times. Once you do that, drive up to 55-64 miles and then stop 3-4 times. Now let the brakes cool down.
- When driving, you should pay attention to the sounds. If you hear noises or squeaks, there is something wrong with the brake pads.
How long do RAM 2500 brakes last?
Most brake pads for the Dodge Ram 2500 can last up to 70,000 miles.
Once you’ve reached that number, you should check the brake pads to ensure they are still in great shape.
Conclusion
We have gone through all the steps on how to change front brake pads on Dodge RAM 2500 at home without relying on a mechanic.
As intimidating as changing the brake pads may look, the process is pretty straightforward.
You might spend two hours figuring out how it works and whatnot, but once you get the hang of it, you will find it pretty easy next time you have to go through the same process.
And you won’t have to go to the local dealer anymore as you know how to do this process on your own.
