E320 1999 12000 miles on brake pads??
 

I guy I work with has just been told that his '99 E320 at 27000 miles needs new pads AGAIN. Only 12,000 miles since the first were put on. Also told his rotors are slightly under spec. He only got 17000 miles out of the factory Michelins on the car. No special undo treatment of the car - his wife's car and it's in Southern California mostly on freeways.

The MB tech told him that 10-15K miles is about right on a set of pads... I told him to find a new shop. Thoughts?

That sounds like many of the drivers that I see in So. California.

(1) They don't know enough to leave sufficient room between cars, so that they have to keep using their brakes.
(2) They don't use a lower gear to go down hills.
(3) They drive with both feet on the pedals; one on the gas and one on the brake pedal (usually while talking on a cell phone).

Mercedes brake pads are fairly soft, so that they can wear out fairly quickly if you do most of the above. On e other hand, if you drive with a little inteligence, they can last several times 12,000 miles.

Maybe this is for the REAR brakes?

On my C280, I usually get just under 20,000 miles on the pads... but I use A LOT of brakes! I'm pretty hard on them. The S-class only had new brakes once, and that was at 35k miles in a 2 ton + Mercedes!

I'd say new mechanic...

W210 E320’s have brake pad wear sensors. Has your friend’s brake warning light come on? This system is not foolproof if the rotors are severely worn, but his mechanic indicated that the rotors are only slightly under spec so this should not be an issue. I replaced the pads and rotors on my 1996 E320 (W210) prior to the warning light coming on because I was not comfortable with the brake pedal travel. I suspect my prior owner economized by not replacing out of spec rotors. Is your friend comfortable with the feel of his brakes? Brake pad inspection is not rocket science. If you have a floor jack it is a pretty simple DIY job. Otherwise, low cost inspections are widely promoted.

For insightful owners, DIY brake jobs are one of the best ways to reduce the costs of ownership of a Mercedes. All of the parts are available from FastLane at reasonable cost, and the procedure is pretty much outlined in the DIY section of this site.

Keeping ONE foot on the brake pedal will wear out front pads & rotors Quickly.
About 25 years ago my wife had a newspaper route & needed brake pads every 4,000 miles!
Driving habits can cause pad wear at alarming rates as the brake temps go higher & higher.

My '98 w210 is at ~43K miles and still has the original front pads. They are about 90% worn, but are still hanging in there. This car has generally seen suburban commuting, with a little bit of freeway thrown in, so it's not just highway miles. It didn't always have such a gentle life - it was the press car in MBNA's fleet used to introduce the turbodiesel to North America. So it got track tested by Car & Driver and some of the other trade rags.

I think your friend should get a new mechanic. If the same opinion holds, then he should teach his wife how to drive...

I'd hate to think how dirty those rims are from brake dust...

I use front brake pads at a rate of 60k-75k a set, but I drive very conservatively and time lights and traffic etc. so that I use the minimum amount of brakes possible. More agressive driving can really wear off the pads very quickly as Mercedes pads are very soft.

Brake Pad Wear on W210 Car
 

I had my front pads changed out at 45 K miles. The wear indicators had not turned on yet, but I had the wheels off for replacement and could see that there wasn't much pad left. I had the dealer replace the discs too. Not cheap, but I have great brakes and confidence for the 30 or so miles of freeway driving I do each day.

Sounds like the car that started this thread has a problem, either with the brakes themselves or the driver.

My 99E300 turbodiesel has 33,000 on the original pads and rotors, with plenty left. I agree that driving habits are probably the culprit in this regard--I pretty much take it easy, so I get long life out of the brakes.
Steve

Wear Sensors on Brake Pads of W210
 

Asked this question the other day in a different thread but have no answers yet. Do the rear brake pads on a '97 E320 have wear sensors or are they only found in the front pads?

OKC

Fronts only.

I generally wear out fronts and rears on the C230 at 60,000-70,000 kilometer intervals (37-43K-miles). The E300 has about 56K (35K-miles) and the fronts are at about 25% and the rears a little more.

MB pads wear faster than most cars. But, most MB cars stop harder than even Porsche models, so you need to ask yourself what your priorities are. Stopping or pad life?

I've gone through a set of pads in 6k, they were textars on the original rotors. I replaced them with ATE rotors and pads. We wills ee how they last in comparison.

Most of you probably do not realize the amount of stopping and starting that we Southern californians go through every day. Try driving your car in stop start traffic at just about anytime between 7 am and 7 pm. Brakes will wear quickly. How about a 20 minute drive taking an hour or more to get there? Most So cal drivers drive like crap anyway, and cause you to have to hit the brakes often, to avoid being hit, and all. I am one who watches the road around me at all times, and I can predict almost all of the time when someone is going to pull a stupid or dangerous maneuver. Remember there are more than 20 million of us down here, and most of those 20 million are on the roads at all times, driving from here to there and so on.

I don't try to use my brakes much if I can, and I rarely use them down hills or on the freeway if I can let the car coast and slow down on its own. and I use lower gears when needed.

I have replaced my front rotors and pads, and will keep an eye on the mileage I get out of the pads.

At the low cost of pads for these cars, and the relative ease in installing htem, Its not a big deal to me if they wear out.

Remember mercedes uses the front brakes more than the rears to stop the car.

Alon

a good rule of thumb is that your rear brakes should last roughly about twice as long as your fronts. I've found that more often that not, I could change out the front pads/rotors twice before touching the rears.

One thing to keep in mind. Some newer cars use the ABS system to supply electronic brake force distribution. I think the goal is to use the rear brakes more during normal braking, evening out the wear between front & rear. By moving some of the braking from front to back, front brake life is extended, rear brake life is reduced, and both can be replaced at the same time. One result would be fewer total shop visits for the car. Dunno if MB uses this technology, but it seems to be pretty common in midpriced cars with ABS.