How to upgrade brakes on 2000 Chevy K3500 DRW.

I have put EBC Sport Rotors on my 06 DRW with Hawk SD pads, I also had the brake fluid flushed. It makes a big difference.

If you haven't already changed out the OEM front rubber brake lines to the caliper, do that first... Even if they 'look' fine and don't leak, when you press on the brake, they actually expand and you don't get as much pressure to the calipers. I changed them on my old 97 F150 and it made a huge difference in the braking power.

As to how many miles you get out of a set, your running loaded most of the time is gonna wear them quicker for obvious reasons.. You might just have to try various pad materials and see what's going to work best for your application. I've heard good and bad things about the ceramic pads. I'd try a semi-metallic brand after the new brake lines and see how it goes..

Good luck!

Mitch

Camp, Forrest, Camp! wrote:
I am just starting to explore the options for upgrading brakes on my 2000 Chevy K3500 DRW truck. The hydro boost brakes have never impressed me, but they have always stopped the truck. The bad thing is that I chew through brakes in this thing and they aren't very powerful. I might get 10,000 miles out of a set if I'm lucky and panic braking is a scary experience as the truck pulls left and right and won't even grab enough to activate ABS when I have a load.

My brakes are due to be replaced and I am considering replacing the OEM system with something else but I don't know where to start. Is this something the brake shop can help me with or should I go to my regular mechanic? Are there specific terms or brands I should be looking out for? What technologies are out there? Any info would be appreciated.

Thanks.

P.S. This truck is driven almost exclusively with heavy loads up to 5,000 lbs in the bed and/or towing with a GCVW of 17,000 lbs with no trailer brakes.

Are you running OE pads and rotors on the front now? Have you tried Hi performance rotors/severe duty pads? The problem you are seeing is you are overloaded and the brakes were pretty much the week link back then. Single piston calipers and drum brakes that won't get rid of heat very well.

Have you changed the brake fluid out? I would say that is going to be one of your problems. I would have imagined you have boiled it a few times the way you talk.

I agree with Trop A Cal about flushing the HydroBoost...but I am not a fan of the turkey baster method. While you will be introducing new fluid with old as the new is pumped through the system and pushing the old back to the same reservoir. If you head over to the Duramax Forum and Click Here. This is the best How To i've read on it yet.

Then next thing I have learned about my 3 DRW's is that if the brake fluid is black...it needs to be flushed...twice! I use the common bleed process at the furthest wheel first and go until you have clean fluid. After you complete the second bleed, replace all the rubber lines with Russell Stainless ones. If the fluid got hot enough to turn black, it usually destroys the rubber lines. In a panic stop the rubber lines will swell and not provide good pressure to the calipers/wheel cylinders. (My 99 had rear drums and I assume your 2000 has them as well.) If you do have drums and have to pull the axles to service the brakes, I recommend replacing the seals with GM seals. I never had any luck with aftermarket seals, and DO NOT re-use the old ones.

I got a lesson on that same truck when when I gravity bled new front calipers. The result was the loudest screech I ever heard when I fired it back up. I should have read up on it first, you are supposed to leave the truck running when you do it. I'm still not sure where all the fluid went, it was a lot more than I had in the drain pan. Change the calipers and hoses to correct your darting/pulling problem.

You may not have flushed the power boost system that is the power steering fluid in the power steering unit. It has to be clear otherwise it sticks in the chamber causing the brake master cylinder to not return the fluid to it after braking. That eats up the brake pads and burns the rotors which causes the pulling as they develop hot spots that many time cannot be machined out. I flushed mine by using a fluid retractor like a turkey baster and then refilled it turned the steering and pushed the brake peddle down. You have to repeat this about 4 times to get the lines and chamber flushed and all the old burnt fluid out. Just be careful as it's toxic. Also check your brake fluid for color as it too can get burnt due to overheating. After this is done you will have better brakes and get better MPG's as the brakes aren't dragging on the rotors.