How to Install Rear Disc Brakes on a 2000 Ford Mustang

Installing new rear disc brakes on a 2000 Ford Mustang is a common repair project for the Mustang enthusiast. The rear brake system used in the 2000 Mustang is a single piston disc brake with an actuator built into the caliper for parking brake function. This is the same system used on Mustangs from 1994 to 2005. The installation process is a straightforward "remove and replace" procedure and can be completed in about an hour by the average Mustang enthusiast.

Instructions

1

Loosen the rear lug nuts half a turn with a lug wrench. Wedge wheel chocks in front of and behind the front wheels. Raise the rear of the Mustang using a floor jack placed under the rear differential and slide jack stands under the rear axle tubes. Remove the rear wheels.

2

Remove the caliper bolts that attach the caliper to the caliper mounting bracket using a 13-mm wrench. Remove the caliper mounting bracket bolts from the rear axle flange using a 15-mm socket and ratchet and lift the bracket over the brake rotor. Slip the rotor off the rear hub. A few sharp blows from a hammer around the rotor near the hub will loosen the rotor if it is rusted on.

3

Compress the Mustang's caliper piston into the caliper housing using the caliper piston tool. Slip the tool between the caliper housing and the piston and turn the disc on the end of the tools center shaft until it engages the slots in the piston. Hold the disk against the piston and turn the tools outer nut by hand until the tool expands against the caliper housing.

4

Turn the outer nut counter clockwise using a one-inch wrench, while simultaneously turning the center shaft clockwise with a 14-mm wrench, until the piston is retracted into the housing.

5

Scrub the hub clean using a wire brush to remove rust and scale. Slip the new rotor onto the hub and secure it to the hub using a lug nut screwed onto one of the wheel studs. Apply a drop of thread locking compound to the bracket bolts. Place the caliper bracket over the rotor and reinstall the bracket bolts. Torque the caliper bracket bolts to 64 to 88 ft-lbs using a torque wrench.

6

Slip the new brake pads into place on the bracket. Place the caliper over the pads and onto the caliper bracket. Reinstall the caliper bolts. Reinstall the wheels and lower the car to the ground after removing the jack stands. Torque the wheel to 100 ft-lbs using the torque wrench. Apply the parking brake and press the brake pedal several times before test driving the Mustang.