Brake pads and rotors

Safety

• When the brake wear warning sound is heard, have the vehicle serviced. The warning says the brakes will soon not work well, and that could lead to a crash.
• Do not top off the brake fluid. Adding fluid does not correct a leak. If fluid is added when the linings are worn, there will be too much fluid when new linings are installed.
• There are two reasons the level goes down: normal lining wear, or a leak. With a leak, the brakes will not work well.
• Do not use the wheel-nut torque as a caliper torque.
• Too much brake fluid can spill on the engine and burn if the engine is hot.

Symptoms

• Disc brake pads have built-in wear indicators that make a high-pitched warning sound when the pads are worn and new pads are needed. The sound can come and go, or it can be heard whenever the vehicle is moving, except when the brake pedal is applied firmly.
• Some driving conditions or climates cause a squeal on the first or light application. The manual says that does not mean something is wrong with the brakes.
• Continuing to drive with worn-out pads can mean costly brake repair. When the wear warning sound is heard, have the vehicle serviced.

Diagnosis

1. Brake linings should always be replaced as complete axle sets.
2. The manual says to always replace brake system parts with new, approved replacement parts.
3. This 2018 book does not print a Brake Pad Life System in the brake section that was read. Do not copy the 2020 reset steps onto this truck.
4. Appearance care says to visually inspect disc brake pads for wear and rotors for surface condition. That sentence has no mileage. The once-a-year sentence next to it is steering, suspension, and chassis, not the brake inspection.
5. Wheel-nut torque is on the wheel lug nut guide. The brake chapter says properly torqued wheel nuts help prevent pulsation. That torque is not a caliper torque. No tightening order is drawn here.

Tools

• Torque wrench

  For the wheel nuts after a wheel is reinstalled. The figure is on the wheel lug nut guide. No tightening order is printed in the capacity table that guide cites, so none is drawn.

• Jack and jack stands

  Support the truck before you look at a pad. Do not work under a vehicle held only by a jack.

Specifications

Steps

1. 01Treat the wear sound as a service warning

   A high-pitched warning from the pad wear indicators means have the vehicle serviced. A squeal on the first or light application, in some climates, is the sound the manual says is not a fault.

2. 02Replace linings as axle sets, front or rear

   Brake linings should always be replaced as complete axle sets. The manual does not print a thickness that would let you condemn one pad and keep the other on that axle. Always use new, approved replacement parts.

3. 03Read the fluid and the five-year change

   The reservoir is filled with DOT 3. Do not top off. Add or remove fluid only when work is done on the brake hydraulic system. Replace brake fluid every five years. Clean the reservoir cap and the area around it before it comes off.

4. 04Reset or inspect only what this book prints

   This 2018 book does not print a Brake Pad Life System in the brake section that was read. Do not copy the 2020 reset steps onto this truck. When the tires are rotated, inspect the pads and tighten the wheel nuts to the torque in Capacities and Specifications. That figure is on the [wheel lug nut guide](/vehicles/chevrolet/silverado-1500/2018/wheel-lug-nuts).

5. 05Stop before a caliper torque you do not have

   No caliper torque and no rotor minimum were in the pages read. Do not unbolt a caliper to a guessed number. The appearance-care brake sentence is a visual inspection of pads and of rotor surface condition, with no mileage on that sentence.

Common mistakes

• Topping off the reservoir because the level dropped from worn linings.
• Replacing one pad on an axle and leaving the other.
• Using the 140 lb ft wheel-nut figure on a caliper bolt.
• Copying the 2020 Brake Pad Life reset, or the 2020 DOT 4 1500 fluid, onto this 2018 truck.
• Inventing a pad thickness or a rotor minimum.

Parts and tools

Outbound links only. BaySheet does not sell parts. Confirm fitment on the retailer page. Amazon links are searches for a real part name plus this vehicle. Tool rows do not get a product search. The search is not a part number.

• Part

  DOT 3 Hydraulic Brake Fluid GM 19353126

  The recommended fluids table lists this GM part number, and 19299819 in Canada. The reservoir is filled with DOT 3. Do not top off.

  2018 Silverado recommended fluids (opens in a new tab)Search Amazon.com (affiliate link) (opens in a new tab)

• Part

  Front brake pads for a 2018 Chevrolet Silverado 1500

  No pad part number is printed. Linings on an axle are replaced as a set. Confirm the brake option and that the truck is a 1500.

  2018 Silverado owner's manual (opens in a new tab)Search Amazon.com (affiliate link) (opens in a new tab)

• Part

  Rear brake pads for a 2018 Chevrolet Silverado 1500

  No rear pad part number is printed. The rear axle is its own set. Do not use a front pad listing for the rear.

  2018 Silverado owner's manual (opens in a new tab)Search Amazon.com (affiliate link) (opens in a new tab)

• Part

  Front brake rotors for a 2018 Chevrolet Silverado 1500

  The manual says to inspect rotors for surface condition. No minimum thickness is printed.

  2018 Silverado owner's manual (opens in a new tab)Search Amazon.com (affiliate link) (opens in a new tab)

• Part

  Rear brake rotors for a 2018 Chevrolet Silverado 1500

  No rear rotor minimum is printed. Surface condition is the inspection the appearance-care sentence names.

  2018 Silverado owner's manual (opens in a new tab)Search Amazon.com (affiliate link) (opens in a new tab)

• Tool

  Torque wrench

  For the wheel nuts after a wheel is reinstalled. The figure is on the wheel lug nut guide. No tightening order is printed in the capacity table that guide cites, so none is drawn.

  McMaster-Carr torque wrenches (opens in a new tab)

• Tool

  Jack and jack stands

  Support the truck before you look at a pad. Do not work under a vehicle held only by a jack.

  2018 Silverado owner's manual (opens in a new tab)

Questions

Sources

• 2018 Chevrolet Silverado Owner Manual, GMNA 11349200, CRC 2/27/18 (opens in a new tab). General Motors. Published 2018-02-27. Read 2026-10-15.

Checklist and email notes

The maintenance checklist is on the site now. The email list is not sending yet, so this box will not store an address.

Other repairs on this 2018 Silverado 1500

All Chevrolet Silverado 1500 repairs

Other years of this Chevrolet Silverado 1500

Same repair, different model year. Use the page that matches the truck or car in the driveway. A figure on one year is not a figure for the next.

This repair on other vehicles

These guides cover the same kind of work. Their numbers belong to those vehicles, not to this one.