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I saw a few Youtube videos emphasis on deactivating SBC before changing brake pads is a must or else it could cause damages to SBC. Is that true? I don't have the tools to deactivate or activate SBC settings but I saw on this forum we could simply unplug the SBC module and start working on brakes. Will it cause any issues? Please advise and thank you in advance. - Wayne
You will get an error message on the instrument cluster. It will go away after 1-3 key activations once you plug the SBC connector back into the unit. The code for SBC failure will remain stored in memory until the next service is performed. But your fingers will remain attached to your hands.
I did SBC pads like 3 times in my life and pushing tow button, locking the door and putting the remote in safe place always worked just fine.
Still with years of mechanical experience, it become natural habit not to put your fingers between jaws that can lock them.
A $135 foxwell nt520 can deactivate/activate SBC as well as bleed the brake fluid (there's a brake bleed function built into SBC) check system pressure at each individual wheel. Besides that it can scan, diagnose and run test functions on every system on the car like SRS, airmatic teleaid etc. As a DIYer, I wouldn't own a w211 without this type of tool.
Thank you all for the replies and letting me know by disconnecting SBC module will not cause any issues/damages on the computer. For sure I will for use want to keep all my fingers intact for the next week Christmas party!
@ tjts1 - Thank you for letting me know about the Foxwell tool. It is surely affordable and now I already owned an OBD II scanner and will definately get a Foxwell when my old scanner decide to quit on me.
Thank you all for the replies and letting me know by disconnecting SBC module will not cause any issues/damages on the computer. For sure I will for use want to keep all my fingers intact for the next week Christmas party!
@ tjts1 - Thank you for letting me know about the Foxwell tool. It is surely affordable and now I already owned an OBD II scanner and will definately get a Foxwell when my old scanner decide to quit on me.
Replacing pads, rotors, or hubs, I never would bother disconnecting the SBC Harness or disabling the SBC with a diagnostic tool because I don’t have one yet, and it has never caused a problem trying to pinch me, I always wear gloves anyway. Twice now I accidently opened the passenger door while the caliper was waiting to be reassembled and it pumped up the SBC but it only moved the piston about 2 mm and I was able to push it back in with just my thumbs.
Replacing pads, rotors, or hubs, I never would bother disconnecting the SBC Harness or disabling the SBC with a diagnostic tool because I don’t have one yet, and it has never caused a problem trying to pinch me, I always wear gloves anyway. Twice now I accidently opened the passenger door while the caliper was waiting to be reassembled and it pumped up the SBC but it only moved the piston about 2 mm and I was able to push it back in with just my thumbs.
I can swap a 240V water heater element without turning off the power. That doesn't mean it's a good idea and I DO turn off the power because I don't feel like being thrown across the room if **** happens.
Gloves won't prevent a crush injury.
But to each his own.
I always figured the Mercedes engineers created training materials with explicit warnings to prevent injury or material damage. But what do I know?
Thars the price you pay when you try to reinvent the wheel and use your customers and beta testers. I wonder how much money MB lost in the whole SBC fiasco?
When it is easy to give advise "Buy $20,000 computer, pay $5,000 annual subscription and then you can do the job proper way" I see nothing wrong in deactivating it the other mentioned ways.
Someone somewhere posted that even dealers used the lock/secure key on pads job as this is faster than doing it with SD.
Pulling the plug from pump will work too, but SBC had early recall on those plugs, so I stayed away from touching it.
When it is easy to give advise "Buy $20,000 computer, pay $5,000 annual subscription and then you can do the job proper way" I see nothing wrong in deactivating it the other mentioned ways.
Someone somewhere posted that even dealers used the lock/secure key on pads job as this is faster than doing it with SD.
Pulling the plug from pump will work too, but SBC had early recall on those plugs, so I stayed away from touching it.
The tool to do the job properly is now $135. You have no excuse.
I can swap a 240V water heater element without turning off the power. That doesn't mean it's a good idea and I DO turn off the power because I don't feel like being thrown across the room if **** happens.
Gloves won't prevent a crush injury.
But to each his own.
Again wear gloves when dealing with power, I have changed out hundreds of electric water heaters, yes hundreds within a 3 year period, I was doing 3 a day or even more if they werent in the attic, working as a contractor for Lowes. Because that breaker can be mismarked, and sometimes is. I was getting the majority of the of the changeouts because the other contractors were scared ****less of 240 V, but I digress.
This SBC brake crushing danger is over emphasied by a FREAKING mile, consider that perhaps originally dealers scared you into having them do the brake work. Also yes gloves do help with potential crush situations, than no gloves, because your SKIN DOES NOT GET CAUGHT AND IT GIVES YOU THAT EXTRA MILLISECONDS OF TIME TO PULL YOUR HAND FREE, OUT OF THE GLOVE, NOT JUST WITH THE SBC but anytime working on a car there is a potential of getting injured if your not cautious AND FURTHERMORE WHAT IS THE CALIPER PISTON GOING TO CRUSH YOU AGAINST??? There is nothing! If you doing the brake jobs properly there is never going to be a time where you can even get a finger under the pad or between the piston and pad.
i have pulled the SBC calipers over a dozen times now, and at first I was concerned about the warning and what would happen, if it was activated and it tried to gobble me up to my elbow but then I watched an indy mechanic do it without disabling it. But I had thought my first time that piston is going come flying out and castrate me, but it doesn’t. So people if you feel the need to disarm the SBC, when changing pads or rotors or hubs thats your prerogative, Each to his own, right... and I am relating my own experiences, I personally do not find it necessary.
Ok but strong consideration for buying a Foxwell or equivalent is that you can bleed the system, which a dealer will try to charge you $250 for this work.
I get it and as i said before you're free to do as you will. You're all grown up.
That said: I've done more than a few water heaters myself. And I've NEVER not been able to find the breaker prior to doing the job.
There's a reason I wear a climbing harness when I'm climbing. There's a reason seat belts are a good idea and best put to use BEFORE the crash, not during (because, contrary to what your post implies, you're NOT that fast). There's a reason I wear a motorcycle helmet and all the gear all the time when I'm riding, and it isn't because it is super comfortable or because it makes me look good (it isn't and it doesn't). It's because it has the potential to save my life if I screw up or if someone else screws up for me. A helmet or two has been sacrificed in my honor.
240V/30A is plenty to melt and send airborne a glob of steel that just might land on your arm or in your eye, both places your gloves won't help.I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that the gloves you wear that still allow manipulation of 10 gauge wire aren't electrically insulated rated gloves. Klein makes an electrical tester that looks like a pencil (even sell 'em at Lowe's) that'll tell you if a circuit is hot or not (and there really aren't that many 240V 30A breakers in a box anyway). As a homeowner and professional contractor myself, if I saw someone working in my house on a 240V energized circuit I'd ask 'em to leave. I know a plumber who has been hit by 240V. He shuts things off now. Cool Hand Luke is a movie figure.
Popping a piston out of the caliper seems to have happened to members on this board before. If the simple 1 minute act of unplugging the SBC controller will prevent that from happening, if not stop my fingers from being put through a press, I'll do it.
BTW: the two carpenters I know who lost the tip of a finger to a table saw? They were wearing gloves. Just say'n.
I'm not trying to start a pissing contest here, and you're obviously free to do things as you will. But I'll not condone the promotion of something that will eventually lead to an ER visit.
(steps off soapbox)
Last edited by rapidoxidation; 12-22-2018 at 10:01 AM.
Living in dry climates, I allow for long brake fluid intervals and my standard procedure is to squeeze the fluid from caliper outside by opening the bleeder when I push the piston back.
Most of contamination happen in the cylinders so that is good procedure regardless.
When fluid in MC looks bad, I suck it out and refill with fresh one.
This way when I pump the brakes after pads replacement I have + - 70% new fluid in the system. That is all done with no scanner and no bleeding hassle.
I get it and as i said before you're free to do as you will. You're all grown up.
That said: I've done more than a few water heaters myself. And I've NEVER not been able to find the breaker prior to doing the job.
There's a reason I wear a climbing harness when I'm climbing. There's a reason seat belts are a good idea and best put to use BEFORE the crash, not during (because, contrary to what your post implies, you're NOT that fast). There's a reason I wear a motorcycle helmet and all the gear all the time when I'm riding, and it isn't because it is super comfortable or because it makes me look good (it isn't and it doesn't). It's because it has the potential to save my life if I screw up or if someone else screws up for me. A helmet or two has been sacrificed in my honor.
240V/30A is plenty to melt and send airborne a glob of steel that just might land on your arm or in your eye, both places your gloves won't help.I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that the gloves you wear that still allow manipulation of 10 gauge wire aren't electrically insulated rated gloves. Klein makes an electrical tester that looks like a pencil (even sell 'em at Lowe's) that'll tell you if a circuit is hot or not (and there really aren't that many 240V 30A breakers in a box anyway). As a homeowner and professional contractor myself, if I saw someone working in my house on a 240V energized circuit I'd ask 'em to leave. I know a plumber who has been hit by 240V. He shuts things off now. Cool Hand Luke is a movie figure.
Popping a piston out of the caliper seems to have happened to members on this board before. If the simple 1 minute act of unplugging the SBC controller will prevent that from happening, if not stop my fingers from being put through a press, I'll do it.
BTW: the two carpenters I know who lost the tip of a finger to a table saw? They were wearing gloves. Just say'n.
I'm not trying to start a pissing contest here, and you're obviously free to do things as you will. But I'll not condone the promotion of something that will eventually lead to an ER visit.
(steps off soapbox)
(Steps onto soapbox)
oh yes i forgot to mention, i always wear safety glasses, that i started as an electrician when i was 14(very true), residential, then commercial years later, that was a centry ago and not sure if you know this but you can touch an L1 or L2 hot and not get zapped, without gloves but i wear 9mil any way its sufficient for 240, sometimes under leather, just depends on what im doing, and as long as you are not touching the panel. But the trick is all in the boots. Pure heavy rubber. I use to wire in meter cans live, you need good boots, there are no breakers to flip. LInemen work on hot circuits all the time, its about not grounding yourself and being knowledgable and paying attention. Yes I have a few of those GB or Klein pencil testers you refer to and my motorcycle helmet seriously saved me too, and some panels are stuffed with 240v breakers, depends on how big the house is.
But We are only suppose to be discussing the SBC and dismounting the caliper and how SAFE it is in reality.
And I can disagree with you, because my disregard to disable the SBC when pulling a caliper WILL NOT eventually led to an ER visit, it can not happen, as i never put my fingers under the pads or inbetween the piston. And i would never allow someone to sit in the car while the caliper was free to step on the brake pedal. there is not going to be the chance of an SBC related accident, not eventually not ever.
It would be funny if you know my brotherinlaw, he lost a tip with a table saw.
Done with my 2cents on this topic.
But even though we disagree on this safety issue...Fröhliche Weihnachten
12-16-2018, 06:33 PM
