Rear brakes pads on the 2005 Chevy Malibu normally last roughly twice as long as the front pads. The front pads perform more than half the work to bring the Malibu to a halt; however, the rear pads will require replacement sooner or later. When replacing them, considering machining or replacing the rear rotors to ensure the new pads wear smoothly and evenly. Anyone with basic auto-repair experience can install rear brake pads on a 2005 Chevy Malibu in around two hours.
Place the wheel chocks up against the front tread on the front tires to make sure the Malibu cannot roll forward during the repair. Turn all the rear lug nuts counterclockwise using the lug wrench until they’re loose enough for you to remove them by hand later.
Jack the rear end of the ground and lower it onto the jack stands. Pull all the rear lug nuts and both rear wheels of the Malibu by hand.
Put the drop pan under the right-rear brakes and clean all the brake dust off them with the brake cleaner. Unbolt the caliper with the socket set and pull it up and out of the caliper bracket by hand.
Pull the old brake pads out by hand and then clean the inside of the caliper with the brake cleaner. Lube the caliper slides with the white lithium grease.
Push the pistons back into the caliper with the caliper tool and then insert the new brake pads by hand. Put the right-rear caliper back into the caliper bracket and bolt it in place with the socket set.
Move to the left-rear and repeat steps three through five.
Reinstall both rear wheels and all the rear lug nuts. Lower the Malibu off the jack stands with the jack, move the wheel chocks away from the front tires and tighten the rear lug nuts to 85 ft-lbs. with the torque wrench.
