Which way do the rear brake pads go on?

[freak]

With the rear pad one side is notched and has to go in first, one in the other side slips into place. Does the notch go at the top of bottom of the caliper? Bottom seems to make sense to me as the rotation would want to lift it out the other way. Of course braking in reverse gives the opposite effect. The manual says "When installed, the locator notch on the brake pads will be located at the upper end of the rear disc brake caliper" which seems to contradict what seems correct to me.

 

[SofaKing95]

With the rear pad one side is notched and has to go in first, one in the other side slips into place. Does the notch go at the top of bottom of the caliper? Bottom seems to make sense to me as the rotation would want to lift it out the other way. Of course braking in reverse gives the opposite effect. The manual says "When installed, the locator notch on the brake pads will be located at the upper end of the rear disc brake caliper" which seems to contradict what seems correct to me.

How about some pics?

 

[wollimann]

The notches should be on the bottom side, but you see on the picture
the notch sometimes is on the top. I think the notch should always be
on the bottom side of the caliper. Until now every set of rear brake pads
are designed to have the notch on the bottom side.

 

[SofaKing95]

The notches should be on the bottom side, but you see on the picture
the notch sometimes is on the top. I think the notch should always be
on the bottom side of the caliper. Until now every set of rear brake pads
are designed to have the notch on the bottom side.
View attachment 464073

Queued video to relevant section....his answer, clear as mud...LOL
"...make sure notches are at bottom, but they can be switched, but notches at bottom..." Say what?

 

[SofaKing95]

The notches should be on the bottom side, but you see on the picture
the notch sometimes is on the top. I think the notch should always be
on the bottom side of the caliper. Until now every set of rear brake pads
are designed to have the notch on the bottom side.
View attachment 464073

Interesting that if you go to the RockAuto site and click on the pictures for their rear pads...they all seem to orient with notches on bottom, both sides

2000 FORD EXPLORER 4.0L V6 OHV Brake Pad | Shop Now at RockAuto

Brake & Wheel Hub Parts and More for Your 2000 FORD EXPLORER at Reliably Low Prices. Fast Online Catalog. DIY-Easy. Your Choice of Quality. Full Manufacturer Warranty.

www.rockauto.com

One example below -- have you use you visualization skills to orient them in your mind

 

[410Fortune]

They just have to match
If you mix match them you wont be able to load the caliper and then slide the caliper and pads onto the mount and over the rotor

So as long as you get both notches in the same spot you can mount the loaded caliper

I do not think it matters if you put the bottom on first then slide the top in or opposite

With that said I usually put the wear indicator on the outside pad and the “notches” at the bottom
If you mix match the pads (left to right,one notch at top one at bottom) it becomes impossible to install the caliper and you will have to re Visit your install

 

[freak]

Queued video to relevant section....his answer, clear as mud...LOL
"...make sure notches are at bottom, but they can be switched, but notches at bottom..." Say what?

He was saying you can mix them up (if you're not careful). But again putting the notch at the bottom goes against the manual.

 

[freak]

They just have to match
If you mix match them you wont be able to load the caliper and then slide the caliper and pads onto the mount and over the rotor

So as long as you get both notches in the same spot you can mount the loaded caliper

I do not think it matters if you put the bottom on first then slide the top in or opposite

With that said I usually put the wear indicator on the outside pad and the “notches” at the bottom
If you mix match the pads (left to right,one notch at top one at bottom) it becomes impossible to install the caliper and you will have to re Visit your install

The pads I took off and the new pads I bought were mirror images of each other. So by moving the sets to the other side you can make each side with the notch at the top or at the bottom.

The notches should be on the bottom side, but you see on the picture
the notch sometimes is on the top. I think the notch should always be
on the bottom side of the caliper. Until now every set of rear brake pads
are designed to have the notch on the bottom side.
View attachment 464073

This picture isn't right. On the driver side the outboard pad has the notch up and the inboard the notch down. I'm not saying you couldn't do it but that would be hard to mount the caliper with the pads like that,

 

[wollimann]

It was only a example picture, never get a new rear set with not matching pads.
But maybe it's possible to get a mixed set?