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need a set but idk which to go with oem or after market? After market seems to be a better option to save some $$. Which aftermarket would you guys recommend? And where can I purchase them 🙏🏼
I'm running the Brembo kit with Genuine MB pads in the front, and the Zimmermann kit in the rear. Outstanding setup and FTC Euro has lifetime replacement warranty, so you just send back the worn parts and they give you store credit for what you paid for them originally. I'm on my second front set with them. Dealership quoted me something like $5000+ for front and rear. I paid about $2400 out the door before FTC Euro refunded me about $1100 for the prior set.
need a set but idk which to go with oem or after market? After market seems to be a better option to save some $$. Which aftermarket would you guys recommend? And where can I purchase them 🙏🏼
A few months back I purchased from FCP euro a rear brake kit consisting of Zimmermann zinc coated rotor with original stock MB brake pads. The original MB rear rotors hubs/hats rust out especially on salted roads and are unsightly on a beautiful. ( see photos) . I selected the standard shopping and delivery was in 2-3 days in NYC area. I drove to an experienced Indy, he put the car on the lift and only few hours later it was done. I waited in the area and convenient for sure. The labor was between if I can remember was between $ 275 and $350.
You can see the Zimmermann rear rotors hubs/hats have held up against the current salted roads compared to the rusted mb rear rotor hub/hats. And with the original mb brake pads along with the quality Zimmermann rotors I feel confident.
Also last year I replaced the front brake kits through FCP euro with Brembo rotors and original stock mb brake pads. The indy stated that
these Brembo rotors are excellent.
Appreciate it guys! Decided to change out as the rotors from fcp euro! Rotors is glued stuck to the wheel bearing. No amount of hammer and wd-40 could remove it.
So I noticed that fcp euro rotors are an upgrade to full floating. Excuse my dumb question but in technical terms, how does full floating rotors help with better braking and modulation?
So I noticed that fcp euro rotors are an upgrade to full floating. Excuse my dumb question but in technical terms, how does full floating rotors help with better braking and modulation?
Full-floating rotors center themselves between the pads using springs. Our cars have fixed front calipers, so the caliper doesn't move. The self-centering ensures that the inner and outer pads grip the rotor evenly. Add lateral thermal expansion to that, and the rotor stays always center whether it's cold or hot and make optimal contact with the brake pads. The semi-floating stock rotors can only vertically expand independent of the hat. Full-floating rotors can expand vertically and laterally relative to the hat.
In addition these Brembo rotors have PVT (Pillar Venting Technology). PVT is far superior to straight and directional vanes. The stock rotors have straight vanes and it's been shown that straight vanes and even directional vanes don't actually move air through the rotors as much as previously thought. So, the PVT rotors are much better cooled which further adds to the consistent brake feel when you do hard braking and the rotors get hot. In the canyons I can really feel it. As they get hot they actually start to grab harder and stay consistent at that level instead of starting to fade eventually.
2018 AMG C63, 2014 Kawasaki Concours, 2017 Ducati Supersport S
koiyfysh, superswiss, and jj18,
Just curious...why did you (or are going to) replace the rotors and installing front/rear kits? Were the rotors wearing down or did you want a better product than OEM? Asking because my pads are wearing down and need replacing soon (rotors seem to be fine).
Rotors lose thickness over time and it is not much, maybe 2MM that can put a rotor out of spec. Plus you are always better off starting with a fresh rotor and pad unless the rotors are still within spec and perfectly flat with no ridges. Most people get 2 pad swaps out of a single rotor. I would not buy OEM rotors though as they are obscenely expensive compared to much better and cheaper alternatives.
Just curious...why did you (or are going to) replace the rotors and installing front/rear kits? Were the rotors wearing down or did you want a better product than OEM? Asking because my pads are wearing down and need replacing soon (rotors seem to be fine).
Both. As said above, the rotors wear down. Used to be that rotors had plenty of extra material on them, so you could turn them and just swap pads. But these days, rotors generally reach their wear limit after one set of pads. To know if you can go for a second set you need to measure the rotor and make sure you have 50% or more life left on it. I don't do two sets of pads on the front rotors. I drive my car hard. Regularly go to the canyons on nice weekends, so I don't want my brakes to fail. I did keep the original rear rotors for two sets of pads, though. The rear rotors do a lot less of the braking. Somebody once said a car is only as good as its brakes. Brakes and tires are not something to skimp on.
As for getting aftermarket rotors, it's pretty much a no-brainer to get aftermarket rotors if they are better and cheaper. Why pay for inferior, but more expensive OE rotors? I didn't hate the OE rotors, but as I mentioned, they didn't modulate very well. They were a bit grabby at low speeds and lacked some consistency in the canyons.
Last edited by superswiss; Feb 10, 2024 at 06:42 PM.
Just curious...why did you (or are going to) replace the rotors and installing front/rear kits? Were the rotors wearing down or did you want a better product than OEM? Asking because my pads are wearing down and need replacing soon (rotors seem to be fine).
When the Check Brake Pad appeared for both front and rear brakes, my rotors also needed to be replaced. If there was any doubt I was still going to change the rotors.
As it pertains to the rears. I ordered the mercedes brake kit from FCP euro that included zinc coated Zimmermann rotors and Genuine Mercedes brake pads. Free standard shipping and the rotors arrived the next day and the pads 2-3 days later.
I see FCP euro currently has a 10% off going on now. I also got 10% off when I ordered last year.
Currentt cost for the rear brake kit is $699.36 with 10% off and free shipping. Sounds like a good deal. I have 2019 C63s coupe
As you can see my post above the OE rotor hats do rust out in my area on nyc salted roads while the zinc coated Zimmermann have held up great so far this winter.
Just curious...why did you (or are going to) replace the rotors and installing front/rear kits? Were the rotors wearing down or did you want a better product than OEM? Asking because my pads are wearing down and need replacing soon (rotors seem to be fine).
after some research. Fcp euro full floating brembo rotors is an upgrade to our semi floating oem. It’s half the price & comes with a lifetime replacement, no question ask. Send them back once they wears out and fcp euro will send you a new one. Killer deal, now I can slam on the brakes all I want and as hard as I want instead of downshifting to slow down to save the brakes in traffic haha
I’m now at about 15200 miles on my 19 C63S cab and just had a B service. Dealer said I was at about 2mm on all four and quoted over $6200 which I promptly declined. Should I get a sensor indicator/message telling me when it is time for a brake change? The brakes are currently working fine with no squeaks.
When it’s time, I’ll definitely go with FCP Euro. (Perhaps sooner than later with the 10% off sale). In the meantime, has anyone gone with the semi-metallic pads instead of the MB pads? Any comments on their performance is greatly appreciated.
Thanks to all of the posters who’ve shared good information in this thread.
I’m now at about 15200 miles on my 19 C63S cab and just had a B service. Dealer said I was at about 2mm on all four and quoted over $6200 which I promptly declined. Should I get a sensor indicator/message telling me when it is time for a brake change? The brakes are currently working fine with no squeaks.
When it’s time, I’ll definitely go with FCP Euro. (Perhaps sooner than later with the 10% off sale). In the meantime, has anyone gone with the semi-metallic pads instead of the MB pads? Any comments on their performance is greatly appreciated.
Thanks to all of the posters who’ve shared good information in this thread.
Yes, your brake wear sensors should trip soon, but with such low mileage it can take another while. The MB pads are semi-metallic, so you have to be a bit more specific.
Yes, your brake wear sensors should trip soon, but with such low mileage it can take another while. The MB pads are semi-metallic, so you have to be a bit more specific.
Thanks for your response. I saw that FCP offers an alternative to the OEM MB front pads for our cars and was thinking that these were ceramic but they are indeed semi-metallic as well. So the question should have been about ceramic (instead of semi-metallic) as possible low dust options to the OEM.
Thanks for your response. I saw that FCP offers an alternative to the OEM MB front pads for our cars and was thinking that these were ceramic but they are indeed semi-metallic as well. So the question should have been about ceramic (instead of semi-metallic) as possible low dust options to the OEM.
The main issues with ceramic pads is that they have less bite than semi-metallic pads, so more braking force is needed for the same stopping power, and they perform poorly in cold temperatures. So it comes down to how you use the car. For moderate daily driving and a warmer climate they can be a good option, but if you want maximum stopping power and/or drive in cold temperatures, then they are not the best choice.
Has anyone used the Centric front rotors? My original plan was to use cheaper disposable rotors (Centric & Zimmerman) for HPDE & track events (after a track event they need to be disposed of anyway considering how heavy the car is) and spend the $$$ on pads, fluid, and tires.
The main issues with ceramic pads is that they have less bite than semi-metallic pads, so more braking force is needed for the same stopping power, and they perform poorly in cold temperatures. So it comes down to how you use the car. For moderate daily driving and a warmer climate they can be a good option, but if you want maximum stopping power and/or drive in cold temperatures, then they are not the best choice.
My car is definitely not a daily driver, and I do reside in North Florida….so the ceramics could work for me. However, I’ll probably just stick with the benefits of the OEM pads and deal with cleaning the excessive dust since I have to hand wash the car because of the matte paint anyway.
Again, thanks for the great information and cheers!!!
When it’s time, I’ll definitely go with FCP Euro. (Perhaps sooner than later with the 10% off sale). In the meantime, has anyone gone with the semi-metallic pads instead of the MB pads? Any comments on their performance is greatly appreciated.
Thanks to all of the posters who’ve shared good information in this thread.
When I replaced my brakes front and rear I optioned for the Zimmerman rear rotors from FCP EURO, And the Brembo 2 piece rotors, I didn’t buy pads from them. I couldn’t stand the brake dust the OEM Benz pads left every week on the wheels it was a hassle to keep the shine on the rims. Instead I purchased portersfirld R4-S pads. Theirs a couple of threads on here about them already. Superior difference in brake dust. I almost never really have to clean them because of brake dust anymore just normal road grime dirt. As for stopping power yes as others have mentioned semi-metallics grip better and have a better bite feel. But I personally have not noticed much difference with the R4-S ceramics. Brakes stop on a dime and most importantly no more squealing and severe dust as I was getting from the stock Benz pads after delivery.
Last edited by Shlick96; Feb 11, 2024 at 01:02 PM.
Regarding rotor wear ... most AMG rotors have "wear divots" that allow you to visually see/judge the rotor's wear towards it's maximum limit. Search and you'll find that I've posted a picture of this multiple times on this forum. In my experience, including tracks that are known for brake wear, the front rotors will last through 2 sets of pads ... actually more if you're using pads that are more "rotor friendly" (including some "race" pads).
How long are your guys brake pads lasting? I did the brembo front kit + MB rear kit via FCP Euro in April 2022 and just got the check pad wear light today. It's only been ~13k miles since those pads were installed. This is my daily driver taking the highway to work and shuttling kid. I'm not driving very aggressively and don't track it. 13k miles seems very short life?
Also, I haven't done the FCP lifetime guarantee swap before. So I buy another set of brake pads, install, and then send them back the old pads. Then they issue a store credit in the amount of the original purchase? It's not a straight refund of the purchase price of the second set, right? So you can really only take advantage of the program with the 3rd purchase (since you have the store credit from the 2nd purchase)? Am I understanding the program correctly?
How long are your guys brake pads lasting? I did the brembo front kit + MB rear kit via FCP Euro in April 2022 and just got the check pad wear light today. It's only been ~13k miles since those pads were installed. This is my daily driver taking the highway to work and shuttling kid. I'm not driving very aggressively and don't track it. 13k miles seems very short life?
Also, I haven't done the FCP lifetime guarantee swap before. So I buy another set of brake pads, install, and then send them back the old pads. Then they issue a store credit in the amount of the original purchase? It's not a straight refund of the purchase price of the second set, right? So you can really only take advantage of the program with the 3rd purchase (since you have the store credit from the 2nd purchase)? Am I understanding the program correctly?
I'm at ~34k miles and on my third set. Just installed in December, so roughly 17k miles per set. I regularly take it to the canyons, but I also mostly drive in manual mode and use engine braking to slow down. Not specifically to save the brakes, but that's how I roll after over 20 years of driving manual transmissions.
Yes, that's how the lifetime replacement works. You have to go to their website and generate a return authorization and then once they receive the parts you get a store credit for the original purchase amount. Can't send them back before you bought the new set, so yes you are correct, you can only use the store credit for the next purchase. If you bought the parts before they changed their policy, then you can request a cash refund for the store credit. I did that last time, because I bought my front kit before the policy change.
Last edited by superswiss; Feb 12, 2024 at 08:23 PM.
I'm at ~34k miles and on my third set. Just installed in December, so roughly 17k miles per set. I regularly take it to the canyons, but I also mostly drive in manual mode and use engine braking to slow down. Not specifically to save the brakes, but that's how I roll after over 20 years of driving manual transmissions.
Hmm, so yeah, 13k-mile life when I never canyon/track and pretty much only drive in auto mode commuting seems crazy short. Could a bad install or something else cause that short life?
Hmm, so yeah, 13k-mile life when I never canyon/track and pretty much only drive in auto mode commuting seems crazy short. Could a bad install or something else cause that short life?
Not really. I should have also added that I don't really daily the car, zero commuting and I especially don't really do stop&go traffic. Daily driving with lots of traffic will just kill your brakes. You are basically constantly on the brakes in those situations. The brake wear alert unfortunately doesn't tell you if it's front or rear. The rears generally go first, because especially when braking moderately it mostly uses the rear brakes. Same for DISTRONIC in stop&go traffic.
Last edited by superswiss; Feb 12, 2024 at 08:37 PM.
Appreciate it guys! Decided to change out as the rotors from fcp euro! Rotors is glued stuck to the wheel bearing. No amount of hammer and wd-40 could remove it.
I've only ever heard good stories about FCP, I myself have pads, rotors and sensors and getting ready to change mine on my old *** 2012 car
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