Re: 211.065 – e320

What did it actually cost you to have front & rear pads & front & rear rotors (individually or collective in any combination) replaced by your dealer?

I know it is possible to change the pads on your own but this is irrelevant as it pertains to the question. I also know that it has been discussed often but to date very few have actually posted pricing.

This is what I’ve been able to find:

Labor 95 per hour
Front pads 2.5 hours
Front rotors 1.0 hour additional
Rear pads 2.5 hours
Rear rotors 1.0 hour more

Parts
Rear pads 69.30
Sender unit 4.00

 

Are you saying this brake job is going to take 7 hrs!!!!
Wonder what it is that takes so long.... or am I reading this wrong.

Forum member "Randy B" stated in an earlier thread that his dealer charged him $500.00 for all parts, brakes and rotors installed... Sure would like to see a work order posted on this forum from him so I can take it to my dealer when it comes time to get mine done. At that price its not even worth my time to even get the car on jacks to do it....

 

That's what one dealer in southern CA quoted. Crazy! My dealer charged 1 hr for rear pads. Another LA dealer (W.I. Simonson – Santa Monica) was quoted as charging ¾ hr for rear pads. That’s why I started this thread. With any luck we ALL can get an idea of what’s actually being charged and apply it to our own needs accordingly.

If in fact RandyB actually got this price or close to it a copy of his invoice would certainly help. I know my dealer would definitely match another dealer’s price – for me anyway.

Here’s another example: http://calibermotors.com/service.html

“Bring in any advertised service price from any authorized Mercedes dealer and we’ll match it or beat it! Nobody looks after your Mercedes-Benz better than Caliber Motors.”

 

That's great.... Sounds like you have an excellent dealership (service center). I feel my dealer has always treated me pretty good too, But thanks to your link and add to your dealers "advertised commitment" I hope my dealer will do the same for me. I'll be definatly copying your link and bringing it in with me to show the service manager whats happening at other dealerships at my next visit.... Thanks!!!

 

Do you mean 3 to 4 hours or .75 hours? I was wondering if you were saying that W.I. Simonson was offering a good deal or not.

 

Sorry, I meant .75 hours. This was reported by another member in DEC 03 e320 @ 20675 miles.

 

I just had my rear brake pads done at 20,000 miles. Interesting that the rear needed it before the front. Service Writer said rear had 10% left, front still has 35% left.

Cost was:
$89.00 - 1 hour labor
$75.00 - brake shoe
$13.50 - stop squeal (what is that?)

 

Its a lube to help keep the brakes squealing when you apply them...

 

You don't need to go to the dealer for brake work!

I had the parts, and Mr. Ty at the local corner Arco station
charged me only $100 to do both the front and back
including changing all the rotors.
Those back rotors were a bear to remove BTW.

This was on mine which had a "Starmark Certified" warrantee, but
those idiots over at Fletcher Jones couldn't feel the pulsing that
was caused by the warped rotors.
As you may know, one replaces the rotors, as they're not supposed
to be turned.

Including all parts and that very reasonable labor,
I spent about $500 altogether.

HTHs

 

Do I understand you had to REPLACE the rotors? I had new pads and rotors ground- $390.

 

Mercedes Benz, and most other German car manufacturers, do not recommend turning (grinding) rotors. Even if they are above the minimum thickness, after turning them you end up with a thin rotor that WILL warp very quickly. I have had no problem getting two sets of pads out of one rotor, but if the rotor was a little warped after the first pad was warn out, I just bought new rotors. Mercedes Benz rotors are so inexpensive that they are not worth turning and then having to replace them later because they still warped.

Green E-300 DT, do you have a W211? I did not see that listed under the cars you drive. If you do have one, I am surprised that they tackled the SBC brakes. I have heard that they are not hard to change, but if you don't know what you are doing you can cause some real damage.

When my brakes get down, I will probably change them myself like I always have done in the past. So far, I have 7,000 miles on the car and all pads are still at 95%. I drive on the highway a lot.

Steve

 

Yes, we tried turning the rotors but that didn't work as
I still had the pulsing issue after they were "trued."
So we went ahead and replaced all four rotors and that cured the problem.
The car had 85K miles, and the rotors were the originals.
I cannot stand a car that doesn't brake smoothly,
and that pulsing was simply "to much."
'Course the stupid dealer didn't think they pulsed, and
wouldn't fix it under the "Starmark Certified" warrantee.

No, it's not a W-211. My car is a '99 E-300 DT which is a W-210.

Is there really that much difference in changing pads and rotors on a W-211?
I've heard about how difficult it is supposed to be because of the SBC brakes, but . . What's the big difference?

Derrel

 

We're talking brakes here.

It would appear that you've posted this same answer in two places.

 

I agree the only thing you have to watch out for is that you don't use crappy brake pads or rotors. I mean even though it is a Mercedes its a pretty brainless job for most mechanics

After the mercedes dealer told me my brakes are unsafe...
I plan to get cross drilled and slotted front brakes and have a mechanic at the dealership i work at do it (a nissan dealer)...save big bucks. so my question is has any one heard of R1 concept cause they seemed to be priced pretty well but i wonder how good they are so im not replacing warped or cracked brakes in 6 months.

 

I own '03 E500 with 57K miles on it.
I just had mine replaced about 2 weeks ago. It started to make a sqirlking noise so I called MB dealer to get a quote. With 4 pads,4 rotors, 2 ABS sensors + labor, they wanted for $1K. MB is a complicated car but it can't be that much$$$, right?
I wanted to order pads from the Net and DoItMyself but I was worried about the note that they listed >>>>>>
>>> :Important: SBC brake system MUST be deactivated using SBD 102 or Mercedes Star Diagnosis tool. When activated, the SBC brake system builds up high pressure in the brake system. The automatic extension of the caliper pistons may result in serious bodily injury. Brake pressure may cause brake fluid to escape at high pressure, with possible resulting damage or injury. Maintenance or repair work must never be performed on an active SBC brake sustem. The SBC brake system pushes out the brake master cylinder when:
The vehicle is opened by remote control. The driver, front passenger or rear door is opened. The trunk is opened. The key is turned to position "1" in the ignition. The brake pedal is operated. The parking brake is released. The system performs a self test (pre-drive check). <<<<<

Anyways, I called 1 garage specialize in MB here in my home town and asked them about that Important note listed above, they told me they knew about that note and not to worry as long as my ABS or brake light is not on... The guy was very helpful and seemed well known with MB.
I bought the pads from BapGeon and let him worked on it for $160 (labor+ turn rotors included)
-New Front Pagid pads @ BapGeon= $72
-New rear Pagid pads @ BApGeon = $58
-Keep same rotors and ABS sensors.
TOTAL = $290
The brakes seem to bite harder, more control... just like when it was new. Very happy with the result.
Almost forget, Brake Check and Midas confirmed with me that they have done many lux cars such as....blah blah blah... but when I brought the car over for them to see/do it. They then realized that they never done this new models b4. Thankyou 4 wasting my time...

 

Where did you get a quote of 0.75hrs for a complete front end brake job? I want to see this.Did they clean and repack the front wheel bearings? If so this is the greatest buy in the history of MB! After paying $400 for the front brakes with new pads and rotors,wear sensors,and a bearing repack,I decided to do the back brakes myself.New Balo rotors are $76,OEM MB pads are $32.99,MB anti-squeal grease $3.20,2 new set screws $2.50,and new Lemfoerder parking brake shoes and springs $29.99.Around $150 parts,no labor.If you buy the parts on the Internet you can get the front brake parts for around $170.So $320 total parts for a complete brake job yourself using all OEM parts.No tax or shipping charges.

 

This info was posted, along with supporting invoice, by another member back in DEC03 for a 03 e320. The dealership was W.I.Simonson, Inc. Santa Monica CA. This is what was listed on the invoice for a replacing the rear pads:

Labor .70 @ $69.00
Rear pads @ $69.30
Paste @ $2.50
Sender Unit @ $4.00
Brake Wash @ $.01
Total Cost $144.81

 

From my experience new front,rear rotors and pads very close to 1,000 dollars.

I was told the rotors are disposable they can not be turned down and reused????

Seems a little bit fishy to me.

 

I just had my front rotors and pads done @ the dealer for $650. Next time, i will try to do it myself.

 

Just got quoted $550 here in Dallas for rear pads, rotors etc. Certainly seems high but I have never driven any of my MB's long enough to need the brakes replaced. (Usually, I am trading in at about 40k miles.) This 2004 needs its rear brakes done after 22k. Very odd.

 

I wonder if this is possible. Perhaps SBC results in faster and higher wear?

 

If you look on the W210 forum regarding brake replacement, you will find they have very little trouble with pads and rotors wearing out prematurely. They also do not have SBC.

 

At 20,000 miles I had to replace the brakes and rotors front and back...dealer wanted 125.00 and hour and my total would have been over 900.00 I got it all dont for 550.00 at a local break and alighnment shop. and by the way is just me or do these brakes give off a more than normal break dust, my rims are always getting dirty!!!!

 

While my car was in yesterday for the front axle bolt carrier recall, the dealer told me that my rear brakes had about 20% useful life remaining at 26k. When I questioned the seemingly premature wear, he said it is due to the "traction control" function that utilizes the brakes for control. I think I can count the number of times I have seen the ESP activate, so I'm skeptical of this explanation, although the service advisor has always been pretty reliable in the past. Price quoted for the job was approx. $500.

 

This is due to the infamous design of the SBC system that applies brake to dry the rotors periodically when the wipers are on. Talk about over-engineering! Thank God MB has dropped the SBC! I never like the SBC because it is difficult to modulate the brake to have a smooth stop when you are 15 to 20 feet from stopping unless you drive it all the time. In my case, my daily drive is a G35 and when I drive the E, I have some difficulty to adjust to the SBC.