Stash

The specifications for the 2006 e500 rear rotors, as found in the MB e series brouchure and on the MBUSA web site as of today are not correct.

To wit:

Brakes 4-circuit electrohydraulic brakes. 13.0" ventilated front and 11.8" ventilated rear disks. 4-piston fixed front and single-piston floating rear calipers.Brakes 4-circuit electrohydraulic brakes. 13.0" ventilated front and 11.8" ventilated rear disks. 4-piston fixed front and single-piston floating rear calipers.Brakes 4-circuit electrohydraulic brakes. 13.0" ventilated front and 11.8" ventilated rear disks. 4-piston fixed front and single-piston floating rear calipers.

The rear discs are now solid. I found this out after checking the air on my three week old e500 and did some calling. Even Montvale did not know until a call came back from a gentleman in Technical Service saying he called Germany and indeed the discs are solid.

This is more than a cosmetic change and although manfacturer's disclaimers about advertisers specifications allow for any and all changes, I am, putting it nicely, disheartened about the difference between what I thought I bought but did not get.

Frank Wiesmann

I can't believe they are doing this. This is the last straw after the deletion of the puddle lights in the mirrors and the new armrest.

marcos

Still got vented here in the UK.
I find it strange that the E320 CDI in the US has the smaller set up but here in the UK they are fitted with the same brakes as the E500.

CynCarvin32

I have a 2004 car and tried to have the vented rotors installed as per the mb specs and they claim it was changed for x production date on. Wagons get vented rear rotors but not the E500.

When I just purchased new pads and rotors for my 2004, I figured i would install the vented rotor but you also need a different caliper since the rotor is thicker. So no luck there.

And the brakes on these W211's are not very large to begin with. I fry the brakes often and well a vented rear disc would help. Go MB!

DWP

And those are just the things that are easy to see. How much decontenting has gone on that is invisible to the average driver?

CE750

And the chryslerization continues! First the rear "leather inserts" become vinyl, then they charge for the Teleservices more money.. and now the brakes... BTW.. my CDI (which obtw) costs more than an E350 comes with 2 piston vs the E350's 4 piston..

where does it end?

CE750

Steve (MBenzNL) noticed that my '05 W211 didn't have "as much" sound insulation as the '04 he took apart last... there is one area.

RobertG

?

Dvinn

I am glad I've got a 2003 version. Or am I? :p
As long as they don't comprimise on the safety part, I will always be buying a benz.

ATS

I am not an expert but it seems (like any industry) that the first few years they make an amazing product, at first it is a bit messed up and the refine it and get it perfect. Once that is done the real work begins for them, which is how to now make a profit. So what they do is figure out a way to cut costs and that is usually by squeezing suppliers. And hence, we see what we are seeing with our car..

By the way, I have a 2001 C240, end of first model year, pretty solid. A few days ago I drove a 2004 and it feels quite different, the fit and finish is a lot different. I also noticed this with my 2004 E500 and a 2005 E320 I drove.

csumt76

Yea, definitely do not try to install the vented rotors on a solid rotor car... It will not work and you will be paying double. As for the change, I was not aware of that either. I'm sure in the end it will cost Mercedes less money to install one rotor on the different models, but you will not be sacrifcing that much performance. The fronts do the majority of the braking, and the difference in the two rears would most likely only be noticeable on an open track.

HELL ONA HARLEY

04's RULE........

konigstiger

Actually the variable power distribution of the SBC system applies additional force on the rear brakes than a conventional system.

HELL ONA HARLEY

True, but still not equally.... The front brakes still see more action than the rear. I noted this when I just received front brakes (no rotors needed) last time in was in for service.... Wrench said rears were fine and would last until the next brake service.

BudC

Yeah but my 300E has 69K on it and the original rear pads are still good.

BTW, how many miles were on the car when the front pads needed changing?

HELL ONA HARLEY

22,000 miles and had hard use driving the foothills to the valley floor everyday....I'm very happy with the longevity of them. I've never had a set last as long as these in any european car living here in the foothills.

csumt76

That is true, the SBC system is unlike anything else. The SBC charge pump is acutated when you wake up the CAN system and performs a self test and checks for leaks. Also, when raining the brakes are applied to the discs to keep the rotors dry. What other systems do that? Surely the rear brakes will wear before the fronts, but the front brakes do more of the work to stop the car.

HELL ONA HARLEY

Must not have read my post or maybe my car is unique..... My front pads were replaced (wore out) before my rears @ 22,000 miles.....

DWP

All this discussion inspired me to reach through the wheels and feel the rear rotors on my '03. I learned two things from that exercise:

1. My '03 does have dual rotors with a space between them, which must mean "ventilated."

2. Those rotors are really, really dirty.

M-B is still technically correct in describing the rear rotors. They are still ventilated, in the sense of being air-cooled. They just aren't dual any more, but the web site prose doesn't claim that they are. That's the kind of excellence in misleading-but-literally-true product description that makes me proud to be a lawyer.

HELL ONA HARLEY

Alright, so now reading about these ventilated "rear" disc's and DWP getting his hands dirty, I did the same and have also learned a few things.....

1) My rotors are really dirty.

2) my rear rotors are NOT ventilated.

3) My rotors are really dirty.

csumt76

The majority of 211's w/SBC will need rear brakes before the fronts. Pad life is all dependent upon driver characteristics. I have seen cars needs pads/rotors at 15K!!!

BudC

I could live with 22K front and 44K rear. I've got to find a way to do it myself because it would drive me batty to pay someone $100/hour to do something I've done for decades.

I know I could change the pads myself but I'm not allowed to kneel on my expensive new knee implants

csumt76

Make sure to disable the sbc and never open a door while changing the brakes. Or else you would be need a hand implant.

BudC

Yup, I know the procedure. I guess I should let someone else do it anyway. I'm getting too old for this kind of stuff.

Brav

My rears went first as well. Rotors are fine.

late 04 is probably the best E500.. too bad mine is early 04. an 04 with an 05 steering rack would be perfect.

Cant get solar panel for 05s either which i have. not decontenting, but de-optioning. they can decontent the pull to the right tho.