How to Change Brake Rotors in a Falcon

by Josh Baum

There are no new Ford Falcons rolling off the assembly line, so if you're a fan of this make, you've got to treat yours with the utmost care. An important part of maintenance involves checking the brake rotors periodically for pitting or cracking. When the rotors start looking worse for wear, it's time for replacement. Fortunately, this is a relatively fast and easy process that requires only the most basic tools.

Step 1

Park your Falcon on a level surface and put it in park, but do not apply the parking brake. Make sure the steering column is not locked.

Step 2

Slide wheel chocks behind each of the two front tires.

Step 3

Slide a floor jack under the rear end of the car, directly beneath a solid part of the frame. Pump the jack handle until the rear end of the car is up high enough for you to be able to put two jack stands underneath.

Step 4

Put a jack stand under each side of the rear end of the car, making sure they're positioned beneath solid sections of the frame. When the stands are in place, gently release the pressure on the jack until the car comes to rest on the stands. Pull the jack out from under the car.

Step 5

Use a tire iron to remove all of the lug nuts from each of the two rear wheels, then pull the wheels off and set them aside.

Step 6

Locate the two large bolts on the back side of each rear brake caliper. Use a socket wrench to remove these bolts, but do not pull the calipers off of the caliper mounts immediately.

Step 7

Get some twine, wire, twist ties or some other binding material. One at a time, lift each caliper off of the caliper mount and temporarily attach it to an exposed part of the undercarriage using your binding material. This is just to make sure that the caliper does not dangle by the brake line, which can cause brake line damage and subsequent failure.

Step 8

Pull both brake pads out of each of the two rear caliper mounts.

Step 9

Use a socket wrench to remove the two bolts holding each of the rear caliper mounts to the rear rotors. Set these bolts and the caliper mounts aside.

Step 10

Pull both of the old rotors off of the wheel spindles.

Step 11

Slide the new rotors onto the rear wheel spindles.

Step 12

Reattach the brake caliper mounts to the new rotors using the original bolts. Install them in the same approximate location where they were installed on the old rotors.

Step 13

Slide the brake pads back into the slots on both rear caliper mounts. If you're switching to new pads at this time, use the new ones instead.

Step 14

Untie each dangling caliper one at a time and place it over the caliper mount, then install and tighten the two bolts on the back side.

Step 15

Reinstall both rear wheels by sliding them onto the wheel spindles and tightening down all of the original lug nuts with a tire iron.

Step 16

Slide the floor jack back under a solid part of the rear frame and jack it up to about one inch above the jack stands. Reach under the car to pull out the jack stands, then carefully lower the Falcon all the way to the ground.