electromethod

so... 2 nights ago, I took the benz out and noticed that the brakes were making a grinding sound that i could also feel through the pedal. Stepped out and felt the rotors and noticed they were slightly warped..... I have driven the car for 5K miles and ALLL hwy mileage. I was concerend with what might have caused this...... any ideas? I will call and make an appt for next week with the dealer so i am not worried. I am more curious if anyone else has seen this happen with this little abuse on the brakes.

Guest0001

thats weird dude, i notice a grinding sound most of the time set the parking break. but i just ignore it should i do something about it?

webbersworld

hmm maybe you need some new brake pads.. if thats the case, I have 4 day old pads for sale

let me know if you are interested.

-Ben

Matt230K

Was there any vibration? Usually, warped rotors cause a vibration, not grinding sound. Either way, it should be covered under warranty. I think within the first year, things like this are covered if they are not normal wear and tear. Because of your low miles, you should (hopefully) be able to get it covered.

Now you just need to find time in your busy schedule to get it in for service. I guess you can't take it in at 4 am, can you??

SilverStar

Sounds like you may have gotten some kind of contamination,(rocks, dirt, sand, etc...), between your pads and the rotor...

electromethod

that's the funny thing guys..... the car stays in the garage for sometimes 10 days str8. I only take her out when I drive +100 miles each way on the interstate to visit some people i know... She never sees traffic etc.... and has only seen the rain 2 times. I left her out under a huge tree for 2 weeks and always moved her back in the garage at nights (this was when I was renovating the garage).
Technically shouldn't the sensor let me know when the pads are almost finished? and I checked it out and it looked like the pads had a lot left on them.

Matt: in my past experiences... unless the rotors are severely warped, then you won't feel a vibration. I heard the scraping noise and felt it slightly through petal so I immediately stopped. I thought maybe pads were low etc or maybe something was in between pad and rotor.... but then i felt the rotor and felt grooves. sigh.... in my mind there is no doubt that it is going to be covered under warranty..... and for those that want to say MB quality sucks etc... this could happen to ANY make vehicle. I LOVE this car....

Ed: what do you mean when you hit the emergency brakes? what kind of noises are you talking about bro?

mleskovar

How can you "feel" with your fingers that the rotors are warped? Grooves in the rotor are normal, not desirable, but won't cause a problem and do not mean the rotor is warped. What did you 'feel' through the pedal? Pulsing when breaking normaly or what?

steve s

i don't think it's something u should worry about. our c36 sees action maybe once a month or twice a month. it's probably just something getting caught between the pad and the rotor. if ur area is extemely humid, it might cause some rusting of the rotors...this rust can definitely cause the grinding, but should wear off immediately. if u want to try, next time, wash the car, and watch the rotors turn rusty....then ease out of the driveway...grinding noise. if all else fails, it wouldn't hurt to have it checked. i doubt it's warped rotors tho.

Guest0001

yeah exactly. i park the car and then push the emergency break down and i get this grinding type sound. is this normal?

Matt230K

I can't believe I forgot about rust. I have to deal with this all the time with cars sitting on the lot for long periods of time. Have you had the car sitting for a long period of time recently??

I have seen cars where the rust gets bad enough that it takes a while for it to wear off. Since the pads sit so close to the rotor, there is a ridge of rust that will form around the pad. So everytime the pad hits this spot while turning, you will get a vibration or even hear a grinding sound sometime.

Take the car out and do some high speed full-brake stops to really wear that rust down. It doesn't come off immediately if it is on there good enough. For the rear rotors, you will get better results if you drive in reverse and slam on the brakes, because the weight will shift onto the rear of the car. Do this in a controlled environment because you will look crazy and be noisy. The tires, especially the front, will probably be squealing a lot.

If this is not the problem, then take it to the dealer and hopefully they will warranty it. If they don't, drive on up to Ohio and I'll make sure to get it warrantied for you. Although it will cost more just to travel.