What rotors and pads have you tried?
Thread Starter
Senior Member
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 312
Likes: 32
From: Long Island, NY
19 E53 AMG Cab, 21 Land Rover Defender 110S, 20 LR Discovery HSE, 23 Ford Bronco 2dr 7spd Manual
What rotors and pads have you tried?
I've had the dreaded brake pulse with every set of brakes since the car was new. I've often read of people going to aftermarket like StopTech, etc.
I went to the StopTech website and they don't list front rotors for my car. I'm really just trying to get rid of the pulsation and not looking to go with a caliper/rotor/pad change. Just looking for more durable rotors and pads.
Any suggestions? 2011 E550 Cab Launch Edition
I went to the StopTech website and they don't list front rotors for my car. I'm really just trying to get rid of the pulsation and not looking to go with a caliper/rotor/pad change. Just looking for more durable rotors and pads.
Any suggestions? 2011 E550 Cab Launch Edition
Member
Joined: Jan 2016
Posts: 152
Likes: 18
2009 CLK550 convertible, 2012 ,,E550 Cabrio, 2012 Audi Q5
Brake Performance drilled rotors on front with lifetime warranty and Centric Posi-Quiet ceramic pads front and rear. Only 1K since replacing but braking is smooth, quiet and positive. Time will tell if the pulsation returns. If so rotors are covered.
Member
Joined: Aug 2013
Posts: 108
Likes: 5
2014 E550 cabriolet and 2017 CLS 550
On my '14 E550 Cab I've gone through 2 sets of pads/rotors. Each set lasts only15,000 miles then the shuddering starts and grows in severity until it really feels unsafe at freeway speeds. Mercedes covered the original replacement (even though brakes/rotors warranty is limited to 12,000 miles). But, just last week they rejected my request to cover the second set and quoted $1,400 to replace the front rotors and pads. I have been driving over 55 years. I never had to replace a rotor. Now I've had to do two replacements in 30,000 miles. I am following Ptrigg17's advice. I've ordered the Brake Performance rotors and Centric Posi-Quiet pads. Note that in 2015 Mercedes downsized the large front rotors on this model.
Newbie
Joined: Aug 2016
Posts: 8
Likes: 4
2014 E550 Coupe
I recently had the same issue, and went with centric rotors (I believe they are made by stoptech, or centric makes rotors for stoptech) and centric ceramic pads. Below are the part #'s I purchased from JC Whitney. I found the part #'s from a prior members post, so kudo's to them for doing all the leg work. 
. If you search online, there are typical 15 to 20% off promo codes for JC Whitney. The brake wire sensors are only needed if your current ones do not need to be replaced. When the mechanic swapped the rotors and pads on my e550 coupe, he mentioned he was able to use the ones that were already on there. So far the brakes have been great, I'm not sure if they will pulsate down the road, only time will tell. One thing to note, if you do purchase from JC Whitney, their system may say the rotors are not compatible. I had to jump on live chat with them, and the customer service rep went to the centric website to verify. He created an invoice for me so that I could purchase them online. Not sure if they updated their system yet, but just a heads up if you do decide to order the parts.
105.13410
Centric
2012 Mercedes E550 Brake Pad Set
Rear Brake
Brake Pad Set
105.16520 - 42.79
Centric
2012 Mercedes E550 Brake Pad Set
Front Brake
Brake Pad Set
128.35115
Centric
2012 Mercedes E550 Brake Rotor
Rear Brake
Brake Rotor (2)
128.35118
Centric
2012 Mercedes E550 Brake Rotor
Front Brake
Brake Rotor (2)
116.35005
Brake Sensor Wire
. If you search online, there are typical 15 to 20% off promo codes for JC Whitney. The brake wire sensors are only needed if your current ones do not need to be replaced. When the mechanic swapped the rotors and pads on my e550 coupe, he mentioned he was able to use the ones that were already on there. So far the brakes have been great, I'm not sure if they will pulsate down the road, only time will tell. One thing to note, if you do purchase from JC Whitney, their system may say the rotors are not compatible. I had to jump on live chat with them, and the customer service rep went to the centric website to verify. He created an invoice for me so that I could purchase them online. Not sure if they updated their system yet, but just a heads up if you do decide to order the parts. 105.13410
Centric
2012 Mercedes E550 Brake Pad Set
Rear Brake
Brake Pad Set
105.16520 - 42.79
Centric
2012 Mercedes E550 Brake Pad Set
Front Brake
Brake Pad Set
128.35115
Centric
2012 Mercedes E550 Brake Rotor
Rear Brake
Brake Rotor (2)
128.35118
Centric
2012 Mercedes E550 Brake Rotor
Front Brake
Brake Rotor (2)
116.35005
Brake Sensor Wire
Newbie
Joined: Aug 2016
Posts: 8
Likes: 4
2014 E550 Coupe
Newbie
Joined: Jun 2012
Posts: 13
Likes: 0
From: Geneva, IL
2012 MB E550 Coupe
I switched to Centric rotors and pads a couple of years ago to solve the pulsating issue on my 12 E550. Much better than the original MB parts in my opinion. So far so good but I only have 7k miles after making the change.
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Junior Member
Joined: Jun 2021
Posts: 16
Likes: 4
2013 E550 coupe
Are you guys doing anything to really put some heat into your brakes, like taking your cars to track days? Overheating pads results in pad-transfer, where to pad material begins to bond to the rotor surface unevenly. Most brake pads are made to transfer their material to the rotor, this is the brake-in process and it is what is essential to brake function. Once they are overheated though it is a ***** to get the uneven pad material off in order to start over, There are pads available that rips any material off the disks, they are used for race situations or when a mechanic wants to clean the rotors to start with a new compound pad. It is almost never that these big rotors will actually warp, they may wear over time resulting in grooves, but true warping takes extreme conditions.
If you want to start with a different pad compound that the rotors have been previously used with, you can use scotch-bright pads to clean the rotors, but it is a tremendous pain in the ***.
I am curious as to what pads you are having trouble with?
If you want to start with a different pad compound that the rotors have been previously used with, you can use scotch-bright pads to clean the rotors, but it is a tremendous pain in the ***.
I am curious as to what pads you are having trouble with?
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