Brake job gone wrong?

[Cabuzzi]

I've done God knows how many brake jobs in my life, but I've never seen this. Granted, it's my first time doing one on an 08 F-350, but there didn't seem to be anything different about this brake job.

I picked up my 08 F-350 last year, but the brakes were incredibly noisy. There had adequate pad left, so I put off the job until now. Last week, the squeal finally got to me, so I ordered a set of rotors and pads from Amazon (link below) with plans to swap them out on Sunday.

When I priced them locally, the guy at the local auto parts place said there were two different types of rotors/pads, based on when it was made. Mine was built in Sept 2007, which he said put it in the later part if the year, *after* Ford made a change to the brakes. Oh, and they were more expensive (of course).

I kept that in mind when I chose the set on Amazon, looking for reviews that included people with 09 and 10 models. I thought I got the right ones, and the dimensions seem to exactly match what was on the truck.

I swapped them out and took it on a test drive. Immediately, it was pulling to the right. I drove it a little more, thinking a piston on the driver's side just needed to settle in. It didn't, and I started to smell the distinct odor of burnt-ass brake pads.

When I got home, they driver's side was literally smoking from the heat. I got the wheel off, but that was about it. I let it cool until after work today .

When I took it off tonight, it damn near looked like it had been cooked too long on the grill. Not only were the pads scorched, but the pistons had chunks torn off. I've never seen anything like it.

The only thing "wrong" I see that I did was the rotors were actually marked. Maybe because they were slotted? At any rate, I've never seen rotors marked as side-specific, so that ones on me. I still can't imagine that causing what I experienced.

These is the kit I got from Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B005UB5TBE

I've attached pic of the carnage. It was too dark to get the passenger side wheel and caliper off, but it was nowhere near as hot as the driver's side.

Thanks in advance for any help/advice!

 

[01yellerCobra]

The drilled/slotted rotors are marked for a specific side because of the vanes. Usually the vanes inside are angled to help direct air. But that didn't cause your issue. Were the pads hard to get on? Did everything slide together easily? It almost seems like the pad material was too thick so there was constant pressure on the rotor.

 

[john mathis]

With the caliper off, have someone pump the brake pedal. The pistons should come out. Make sure they move freely. A C- clamp and a small block of wood works good to squeeze them back in. If they're tight, replace them. I had to replace both on the rear of my 02 SD when they weren't releasing properly causing hot rotors, wheels.

 

[roger2003]

I agree with John. I had something similar happen on my ‘12. My caliper seemed fine, but tore my pads up. One new caliper later and I’m off and running.

 

[tabdiesel]

Several things probably going on here. 1) The caliper pistons have a protective cover on them, yours are destroyed. Hopefully the damage is only on them. You could get new ones but it'll work without them.
2) Make sure you can pull both the caliper pins out of the caliper and they are cleaned and greased. These can get seized and your brakes will do what you're experiencing.