HELP with front brake pads that won't fit!

mjmilford · May 22, 2013

Hello all!

Hopefully I am posting in the correct spot. I have a 2002 Chevrolet Avalanche that I am replacing the front brakes on. The front pads are EXTREMELY tight. I was barely able to get the right inner pad on (had to hit it with a hammer a few times), but the left side will NOT go on with both pieces of hardware... When I took off the old pads the inners were stuck and the wear pattern was odd (grove on the outside edges).

My question is, could this be a half year and could I be using the wrong pads? I am using the Autozone duralast gold DG785 pads.

Please halp!

Thanks!

Ramin258 · May 22, 2013

Did you compress the caliper piston(s) back into the caliper? If not use a c-clamp and push the piston back in. If you have 2 pistons on your calipers make sure you press them both in at the same time. Use the old pad as a bridge across both pistons and put the c-clamp in the middle. When you are all done with your brake job you will have to "pump" the brake pedal to get the pistons back out to where they should be.

mjmilford · May 22, 2013

I was able to compress the pistons no problems, it's just the actual fitting of the new pads into the caliper bracket. They are ridiculously tight, like really really tight on the inners. There is no way there are going to budge or slide away from the rotor and I'm afraid I'll have premature wear again (the pads I replaced had tons of life left, just bad wear patterns..).

I've done a lot of brakes (worked at a shop for a bit) and was always able to slide in the pads by hand and able to move them back and forth. Please help

! Thanks!

Bad Bowtie2 · May 22, 2013

Go back to Autozone & have another salesman look up the PN# , then have him pull another new set to compair against. Maybe yours are the wrong ones??

I come up with that same PN# for a 1/2ton 4x2 and 4x4.

Edited May 22, 2013 by Bad Bowtie2

BruceDeuce · May 22, 2013

Never fails when I go to Pep Boys they always give me the wrong part. Do what BadBowtie2 said.

Ramin258 · May 22, 2013

I agree with bad Bowie2. Hopefully they just gave you the wrong ones. I also looked up the front pad part number for an 03 avalanche and it is the same as a 02, 4x4 and 2wd. This leads me to believe you don't have a "half year" truck that needs a different pad.

Edited May 22, 2013 by Ramin258

mjmilford · May 22, 2013

I talked to their tech support, apparently 2002 is the first year for the Avalanche. Both the 2WD and 4WD take the same pads as well as the 2003 model. The only different one is the 2500, but it's certainly not that.

I did have them swap out all four pads when I was doing the first wheel for the same reason. Was able to get that buttoned up but the inner on that one was tight as well. The pads are very similar to what came out, but the ones that came out were too tight as well.

GOod idea though, I'll bring the old pads to a few places to see if I can see any visual differences. Ugh .

txab · May 22, 2013

Yep, take old ones and compare

mjmilford · May 22, 2013

I agree with bad Bowie2. Hopefully they just gave you the wrong ones. I also looked up the front pad part number for an 03 avalanche and it is the same as a 02, 4x4 and 2wd. This leads me to believe you don't have a "half year" truck that needs a different pad.

I think you're right, I'll post a picture hopefully tonight. There literally is no room for two pieces of hardware on the driver side, the top of the pad hits the steel of the caliper bracket without the top hardware. It's crazy. I'll definitely try a few more pad sets, that's literally the only thing I can think of.

You guys are great, thank you for the replies. If you think of anything else please let me know. I have truly never seen this happen (brake pad not fitting super easy) unless it was a half year vehicle(worked at Merlin's here in Chicago for 6+ months and did tons of brake jobs) so it's really perplexing.

Ramin258 · May 22, 2013

You live in Chicago? Sorry our Red Wings are putting the smack down!

Ramin258 · May 22, 2013

Just read a post on here from 2006. A guy had the same issue you are having with an 02 silverado. No one provided any insight to fix the problem, just stated a bad brake design by GM. They were also stating that their inner pads wore much quicker than the outers. 02 silverado uses the same pads as the avalanche. Maybe try a different brand/auto store to see if you can get a better fit.

aflesch · May 22, 2013

I have had this happen several times with Duralast pads on different vehicles. I always just take a die grinder to the pads until they slide smoothly. I've never had a problem doing that. Just make sure you lube your hardware to keep them from squeaking.

Edit: The backing of the pad is a cast steel piece that is not machined. There are bound to be variations in the casting.

Edited May 22, 2013 by aflesch

mjmilford · May 22, 2013

Ramin, hilarious . Im not much of a hockey fan so I didn't even know what the series was at. I'll be sure to relay your sentiment to my co-workers here at the office.

Aflesch, that would work for sure... just a tad nervous about it haha.

Badass69 · May 24, 2013

Brand doesn't matter in this way. Every set of pads that I install in a caliper bracket like the trucks or my cars needed to meet the grinder before they would move freely. Just grind and install.

Edited May 24, 2013 by Notamember

Debo511 · May 24, 2013

Clean the corrosion from the caliper bracket behind the shims. Does not take much corrosion to bind the pads. Lube behind the Shims also to help prevent further corrosion.