brake replacement - how hard?
 

I'm just curious of how hard it is to do your own brake replacement? I see kits for front and rear going for $25 each and I figure that I could save a lot of money just buying the kit with the new pads and brake sensors if I could put them on myself.

Any special tools or things I may need? I have a garage full of tools but nothing specialty or for german cars or whatever.

If it's too hard I'll just take it in.

nothing special at all needed. My 126 is the easiest brake job I've ever seen.

Step-by-step instructions at the yop of this page. Click on D.I.Y. Easiest $100 you'll ever save.

I just did my front brakes and rotors on my 1991 300CE and it was a piece of cake. This was my first ever brake job and actually my first ever monkey wrenching. The caveat of course is that things can go wrong and it may take you much longer than you originally anticipate. (Frozen bolts, rusted on rotors, etc.) Be prepared and have everything on hand. Brake fluid, brake cleaner spray, antiseize paste, Loctite (for caliper bolts if you change rotors), anti squeal paste, etc. I had new rotors and bearing grease on hand and ended up replacing the rotors and repacking the wheel bearings also. This is a good time to flush brake fluid. I added speedbleeders at this time and that made flushing/bleeding a snap. It is a dirty job, so those disposable gloves come in handy.

Chances are good that you will need new rotors as well.
May as well be prepared. You can always use them the next time...

No special tools required for the 124.
Metric hex key to remove rotor set screws, but this is not exactly 'special'.
Easier than average as brake jobs go.
The front is particularly easy on your early 1-piston model.
The rear can be something of a pain due to the inherent complexities of the parking brake, but still easier to deal with than many other cars with the same config.

Probably worth searching old posts for 'best practice' techniques, and reading up on braking systems in general if you have never done brake work before. While brake work is relatively easy, it is not a place to be taking shortcuts or risks.

KNanthrup

If you need to replace the rotors, sometimes they can be very hard to get off the spindles due to corrosion. If your rotors are worn-out, pounding them with a heavy hammer will help.

If you have never done something like this before, see if you have a friend who has done it. Possibly a ShopForum member lives close by you.

The other alternative is to ask and see if your mechanic will let you work along side while they do it.

Haasman

real easy
 

I have never found an easier pad replacement on any car including the ex's Volvo which are also easy to do. The toughest brakes Ive ever tried are on Lacey, and I'm still trying.:D

thebern

I've done pads all the way around on ALL of my MBs, and I will attest to the ease and serviceability as well.

It's gotten to the point where I have my 8-yr old daughter helping out. She gets to pound out the pins (300E and SL500), pull out the old pads, and when I get caliper clearance, put the new ones in and pound the pins back in. Now she eagerly tells her friends that she knows how to do brake jobs! ;)

The most exotic tool I use throughout the process is a punch...your particular model MB has the pads held in place by pins that have to be driven out...

..oh yeah, if the brake kits don't include paste, buy some and apply sparingly on the piston side of each pad. Keeps the brakes from squealing! :)

How different is the 107 from the 124?

W201?
 

I imagine it is just as easy on a W201?

Azhari
Babybenz 1991 190e 1.8

I am wanting to replace/flush the brake fluid in my 126....how hard of a job is this and what special tools are needed? Thanks!

azhari, the 201 is a piece of cake. You undo one bolt and swing the caliper out to change the pads. The new pads should be supplied with a replacement bolt with the blue locking compound on it.

9 times out of 10 the wear sensors break, so buy a new set, they're cheap. Be careful how you fit these as it is easy to get them back to front, and this breaks the new ones!

Cool.

Thanks, Neil.

Azhari
Babybenz 1991 190e 1.8

mbtjc,

Here is a good posting on Bleeding your brakes It is not hard to do and is a good DIYer.

Be careful of brake fluid as it will take paint off!

Haasman

mbtjc,

I just learned how to do the brake fluid bleed and or flush. I am a rank novice at this so check the archives for additional tips. The basics apply to just about any car. After I did my MBZ, I went ahead and did my wife’s Mercury Villager. It is quick and easy and good for your brake system. I replaced the stock bleed screws on my MBZ with speedbleeders. The old ones had a bit of corrosion on them. Flushing your system at timely intervals will surely keep it healthy. Flushing is just replacing your old fluid with new. Bleeding is eliminating any air that may have gotten into your brake lines from a repair.

You’ll need about 1 quart of brake fluid, jack, jack stands, plastic tubing to fit over the bleed screws, some metric wrenches 8mm,9mm,10mm and a catch basin. This might be a good time to get speedbleeders:

http://www.speedbleeder.com/

The MBZ size is SB8125LL, $7 each, total $32 and well worth it in my opinion. These allow you to bleed or flush your brakes yourself. Otherwise you need a helper.

Chock front wheels. Crack all rear wheel lug bolts. Jack up rear. (One wheel at a time or use jack stands so you can do both rear at the same time). Remove wheels. Bleed calipers in this order , right rear, left rear, right front, left front. Thoroughly clean around the bleed screw with a rag like you were shining shoes. Crack bleed screw and get a feel for loosening and tightening it. Some fluid will come out. The bleeder is hollow so DON’T OVER do it. As you can see from speedbleeder.com, it is a tapered fitting. At this point, if you have the new speedbleeders, just swap out the old ones. Attach tubing over the fitting and direct to your catch basin. You might have several lengths of tubing handy. Open up your fluid reservoir and to make things go quicker, suck almost all the old fluid out. Fill with fresh fluid. IMPORTANT! Make sure all compartments of the reservoir are filled with fluid. The reservoir is segmented into 4 parts, one for each caliper. And the front part of the reservoir may look full when the back part is empty. So fill to the brim with fluid and make sure fluid makes it way to the rear compartments. With speedbleeders, open them one at a time, pump your brakes a few times. You’ll hear the fluid squirting into your catch basin. Inside the speedbleeder is a valve that opens on your downstroke and seals on your upstroke. Keep pumping, and replenishing your reservoir as necessary until clean fluid comes out the bleeder. This does not take long as the brake lines are very thin. Tighten your bleeder and wipe up any fluid. CAUTION! Clean any spilled brake fluid on a painted surface immediately! It will curdle your paint in no time! Without speedbleeders, your helper steps on the brake, you open the bleed screw, fluid comes out, your helper will feel the brakes go to the floor, you close the screw, and your helper does NOT let up on the pedal until you say so (after you close the screw). He lets up on the pedal, drawing fluid from the reservoir, he presses, you open bleeder, pedal drops and he holds pedal down, you close bleeder, you say OK and he lets up on the pedal. Repeat until clear fluid comes out the bleeder. Close your bleed screw, wipe up and move to the next caliper. Your helper should keep even pressure on the pedal and should not push the pedal too hard particularly at the bottom of the downstroke. One excellent tip from members is that after finishing any work on your brake system, WHILE you are in your driveway, stomp on your brake pedal, with BOTH feet. If anything blows, better it be in your driveway.