Truck Brake Repair for Heavy Pickups That Work for a Living
Truck brake repair at Bodacious Diesel covers pads, rotors, calipers, lines, fluid and ABS faults on pickups that carry far more weight than any car. We measure and find out why the brakes wore the way they did before a part goes on.
What the brakes are doing, and what usually causes it
Most brake complaints point to a short list of causes. Testing narrows it to one.
| What you notice | What is usually happening | What we check |
|---|---|---|
| A high squeal that comes and goes | Wear indicator touching the rotor, or pads glazed from heat. | Pad thickness at every wheel, inner and outer. |
| Grinding or metal scraping | Pad material gone, backing plate cutting the rotor. | Rotor damage and what wore that pad first. |
| Pedal pulses or the wheel shakes on a stop | Warped rotors. | Runout and thickness at several points. |
| Truck pulls left or right | A sticking caliper, a collapsed hose, oil on one side's pads, a bad wheel bearing, loose steering parts or low tire pressure. | Slide pins, hose flow and pad contamination. |
| Soft or sinking pedal | Air in the lines, a leak, old fluid that boiled on a grade, or a master cylinder leaking past its seals inside. | Fluid condition, leaks and a master cylinder hold test. |
| ABS or traction light on | A wheel speed sensor, its wiring or tone ring, the transfer case position sensor, a bad wheel bearing, or a fault in the TCM, BCM or ECM. | ABS codes and live wheel speed data. |
Six parts, one system, checked together
A truck that stops crooked on new pads still has a brake problem. That is why every brake job covers the whole system, on diesels and on American gas pickups and SUVs.
Pads
Pads wear with every stop, and a loaded truck wears them faster. We measure what is left at every brake check.
Rotors
Rotors wear and warp. One that is warped or worn below the minimum thickness cast into it gets replaced.
Calipers
A seized slide pin or sticking piston wears one pad fast, drags, or pulls the truck to one side.
Lines and hoses
Magnesium chloride on winter roads rusts steel lines. Rubber hoses can swell inside and trap pressure at one wheel.
Brake fluid
Fluid pulls in moisture over time, which lowers its boiling point. Boiled fluid can be part of a soft pedal at the bottom of a long grade.
ABS and the booster
Diesels make little intake vacuum, so many use a hydraulic booster or vacuum pump.
Many heavy-duty pickups hide a small drum parking brake inside the rear rotor hat. One that drags will cook new pads.
A brake job that starts with a test drive and ends with one
Parts go on once we know why the old ones wore out.
Drive and listen
We feel the pedal, hear the noise and see whether it pulls or shakes.
Measure every wheel
We measure the pads and check the rotors for wear and warp, plus the calipers, hoses and lines.
Scan the ABS
We read ABS codes and live wheel speed data with OEM factory scan tools, the same ones we use for diesel diagnostics.
Repair, bleed, bed in
Parts go on, the system is bled when the repair calls for it, and new pads are bedded in on a road test.
Direct advice on a big job
319 reviews
- Customer
- MDC
- Truck
- 2016 Ram 3500 6.7
I like to work on my own vehicles but I took my 2016 Ram 3500 6.7 to have the front timing case seal done which is a very large job and beyond my expertise. The owner is very knowledgeable and I appreciate his direct advice. They did an excellent job and went above and beyond to make sure my truck was done correctly. I wouldn’t hesitate to use them again.5 STARS
Bigger tires ask more of the same brakes
A taller, heavier tire adds weight at each corner and acts as a longer lever against brakes sized for stock tires.
A lift stretches brake hoses at full droop, so extended hoses belong with most lifts, and the tire size setting needs updating because ABS reads wheel speed. A truck that darts on a hard stop may need truck suspension repair too.
What we check depends on how you use the truck
Pick the one that sounds like yours.
Mostly empty, mostly on pavement
Daily driving is the easy life for a heavy pickup's brakes. Quality pads and rotors at factory spec are usually right.
What we check
- Wear pattern side to side
- Rotor thickness against the cast minimum
- Slide pins cleaned and lubricated
Towing a trailer
Every stop with a trailer puts more heat into the truck's brakes, and far more if the trailer's brakes are weak or out of adjustment.
What we check
- Brake controller output and gain
- The 7-way plug brake circuit
- Fluid moisture
Weight that never comes off
A plow, flatbed or service body adds weight to every stop. A plow loads the front brakes; a loaded service body or flatbed works the rear brakes harder.
What we check
- Pad and rotor wear, front and rear
- Lines and hoses along the frame
- Caliper slides packed with grime
One-ton duallies
Duallies are bought to carry weight. The rear brakes need the same attention as the front, and a leaking hub or axle seal can soak the rear pads in oil.
What we check
- Rear pads and rotors, both sides
- Parking brake shoes and adjustment
- Hub and axle seals
What changes the price of a brake job
We quote after measuring. These move the number.
| Cost factor | Why it changes the job |
|---|---|
| Pads only, or pads and rotors | Worn, warped or cracked rotors get replaced. We do not resurface rotors. |
| Caliper condition | A seized caliper adds parts and labor at that wheel. |
| Lines and hoses | Rusted lines and seized fittings add time. |
| Pad and rotor grade | Every part we use is tow rated, because these are trucks. |
| ABS faults | A sensor is one part, but the fault can also be wiring or a module, and those take longer to trace. |
| Rear brakes and parking brake | Rear work often includes parking brake shoes. |
Brake work is drop-off. A pull, drag or ABS light needs diagnosis first, which typically takes 24 to 72 hours depending on the current workload of the shop. We call with what needs attention now and what can wait, and nothing gets done without your approval. More on our what to expect page.
Long downhill grades with weight behind you
Coming down out of the high country with a trailer is where brakes get hot fastest. Pads fade, old fluid boils, and the pedal goes soft near the bottom.
- An exhaust brake builds backpressure, with a valve or the turbo's variable vanes, so the engine holds the truck back
- Tow/haul mode on many trucks downshifts when you brake on a grade; one that will not hold a gear may need diesel transmission repair
- Riding the pedal the whole way down overheats pads and boils fluid
Tell us what your truck is doing
Send the year, the engine and what you are seeing, and we'll get back to you as quickly as we can.
- Year, make and engine
- What it is doing, and when it started
- Any codes or recent repairs
Rather talk it through? Call (303) 808-1563
Brake questions from truck owners
What owners ask before they bring the truck in.
Noise, a pulsing or soft pedal, a pull, or a brake or ABS light all mean it is time for a look. Catching it at worn pads usually costs less than waiting for grinding metal, which takes the rotors with it.
No. We replace worn or warped rotors instead of resurfacing them.
The brakes are overheating: pads fade, or old fluid with moisture in it boils. On long Front Range grades, let the engine hold the speed. If the pedal stays soft once cool, it needs truck brake repair before the next trip.
Yes. We repair brakes on Ford, Chevrolet, GMC and Ram gas pickups and on larger Ford, Chevrolet and GMC SUVs, with the same measurements and scan tool checks we use on the diesels.
Follow your owner's manual, and sooner if testing shows moisture. Fresh fluid protects the calipers, ABS unit and master cylinder from corrosion inside.
New noise at the wheels or a pedal that feels wrong? Have us measure it
Call and tell us what the brakes are doing, or use Request Service to send the details. Or drop us a line right here from the website and we'll get back to you as quickly as we can.