How to Change the Brake Pads in a Ford Focus

The brake pads on your Ford Focus car need to be changed at 60,000 to 80,000 miles, depending on how hard you usually use the brakes. Most versions of the Ford Focus use Teves calipers, which are slightly different from those used in many other vehicles. The brake pads are stored within the calipers themselves rather than in the mounting bracket in the disc.

Instructions

Raise the front end of the car with a floor jack and support it on jack stands or axle stands, then remove the front wheels. It will help to apply the parking brake and loosen the wheel lug nuts before raising the car.

Clean the entire brake assembly with a brake cleaner spray, catching the residue in a drip pan, and wait for the assembly to dry.

Pry off the retaining clip for the outer brake pad from the caliper using a flat-bladed screwdriver and pliers; the pliers are to make sure the clip doesn't fly off as you pry it off with the screwdriver.

Remove the guide pin bolts from the brake caliper--the bolts will likely require an Allen wrench and have plastic caps you must remove with the screwdriver--and then lift the caliper off its bracket. Disconnect the brake hose from its bracket on the strut.

Pull out the inner brake pad from the brake caliper; it is retained within the caliper piston through a built-in retaining clip. Slide the outer pad out of the caliper along with its securing clip.

Push the caliper's piston back into its bore with a C-clamp. Open the brake master cylinder reservoir and observe the fluid level as you compress the piston; make sure the fluid doesn't overflow.

Slide the new outer brake pad into position within the caliper and push the inner pad and its clip into the caliper piston.

Install the caliper back onto its bracket and secure it with the guide pin bolts and the outer pad's retaining clip.

Repeat all of the previous steps for the brake caliper and pads on the other wheel.

Re-connect the wheels and lower the car off the axle stands once you've changed the pads on both wheels.