El Cid

Service Advisor recommended I get brakes done at next service in Nov. 2019. Car has 30,000 miles but is a 2010. About how much should this cost and what should be involved. This is the first time in 20 years or more that I have actually had a brake service. Used to drive up to 120,00, but most of it on interstates.
Assuming I still have the car in Nov.

2011E350

I am not sure how mechanically inclined you are or how many mechanically inclined friends, family etc... I just got a 2011 E350 and ordered a set of R1 Concepts for all four corners. Just under $400 for all four corners, slotted rotors, ceramic pads, hardware kit, wear sensors, and shipping to TX. Check out the UYT Videos...…(University of YouTube a non profit.....for dealers anyway and a profit saving (Yours) institution of higher education for all things. Automotive, house hold appliance repair, lawn care, puppy neutering/spaying......NO I am just kidding, don't try this at home but yes the videos are out there, sink replacement,....Want to see what a 1000 degree F ball does to just about anything, I phone screen, Gummy worms, coca cola, want to see how quick a Pirahana can dispatch a trout, or even themselves, Snake, Mouse etc... University of You tube Founded early 2000's

With that said the concept doesn't look overly complicated, there could be special tools but they look fairly straight forward. Just work slowly and methodically. A fairly major trick is to remove both wheels, but only work one side at a time. Use the opposite side as a static reference incase you get stuck. remove calipers, pads, lube up slide pins, and fairly simple. For the most part you really can't hose up brake pad and rotor replacement. Physical fitment is fairly foolproof. the Calipers and pads pretty much go on one way. You can overtighten bolts, forget to lube the slide pins, tear a brake fluid line (causing air in the system), get the caliper grease on the pad surface but those errors will be pretty obvious quickly. Although low mileage I would recommend flushing the system after pad/rotor replacement. Flushing the system flushes all the nine year old fluid out and pressurizes the lines with fresh new fluid. Brake fluid can trap moisture after time. A little more involved since it involves bleeding the brakes to get rid of air pockets which ideally would be two persons, one to apply the pedal and one to crack the lines and remove the air pockets.

Aside from the possibility of special tools, the pads and rotors are fairly simple. There is usually a C clamp for the front pads, Basically you compress the caliper piston with the C clamp to make up the difference between the thickness of the new pad and the one being removed. Fit the clamp over the piston side of the pad being removed and slowly compress. Loosening the fluid reservoir cap will help. Rear pads are the same concept but they usually involve turning the piston instead of compressing. (Something to do with the Emergency brake cable and in modern day vehicles electric parking brake) Not overly complicated and they sell special tools that fit over the piston. I got one at Car Quest for about $10 and is basically a cube with tabs on the outside. You align the tabs, and slowly turn the piston clockwise (usually with a ratchet and or extension bar. When the new pads get seated the piston will eventually return to the original position but with the new pad thickness.

Watch the videos.....at work on the companies dime preferably..... then carve out a few hours for a weekend afternoon. I would also recommend having another vehicle available just in the event you get a stopping point. Sockets can be wrong, pad and rotor packaging can be mislabeled from the store or the computer part inventory system can be wrong...….(AutoZone).

Mud

Suggest the brake fluid be flushed at this service. Also it's better to crack the bleeder when pushing calipers back, otherwise there's a chance of pushing contaminated fluid thru the abs module.

What I did, your car may vary a bit:
Mud's Brakes

2011E350

Mud

Lol I think you're ok on the specialized tool transport!
I didn't need anything special other than what you mentioned plus I used my hex socket bits for the rear T7 caliper bolts. I did use blue loctite on the caliper bracket bolts and a touch of anti-seize on the caliper to bracket bolt threads, silicone lube on the caliper bolts inside of the rubber boots (sliders).
I've got a caliper spreader tool set as well but the old c-clamp did the trick.
I'm aware that brake parts selection preference varies a lot, so my intent was to show what I did and what parts I selected, hopefully the work process is helpful regardless of what parts may be used.
Since doing this service, everything has worked great and the calipers still look like new, that paint holds up very well, as have the MB decals. Just little details, but it's surprising how many people notice the brakes through the wheels.
Good luck!

kajtek1

First check the pads yourself.
I've got brakes job recommendation from "courtesy inspection" as well and check them to have 6 + mm, what should be good for at least 50,000 miles with my driving even when they are soft pads. .
Then for pad choice, for older models Akebonos were hard to beat and I would start shopping with them.
suppose W212 has new generation warning system that require reset with new pads, than the sensor is good distance from the end and when on older models sensor touch would trigger immediate warning, on W212 computer takes the message and recalculates when to give you actual warning.
sounds amazing, yet dealers still want to cheat the system and scam owners from their money.

MBNUT1

That is surprising wear. Do you do a lot of city driving. Mine have over 30k and while I haven't looked at them in a while I would be surprised if they are half worn out. The PO said he put 80K on the previous set.

Arrie

First,

Did you look at your brake pads and rotors yourself?

These car dealers are in business to make money and telling you need a brake job is an easy one for them, like spark plug change is,

I have a 2010 E550 with 158 000+ miles on my car with the second set of pads on it with the original rotors.. I am planning to replace the pads again when need to be, which I don't know when yet.

My driving is 85% highway.

2011E350

This video is for the most part about as simple as it can be.

FRONT:
The Blue LOCTITE described later in the video is a medium strength Loctite. Strong enough to secure the bolt but not so tight that you break bolt head during future removals. Avoid RED LOCTITE that is the high strength, reports that whatever bolt is being removed will need heat to loosen the Loctite.

REAR:

This Video is a W211 E350 but I am pretty sure that the W212 generation is pretty similar.




The small screw in the rotor hat is to retain the rotor on the rotor hat. This is used during the assembly line to prevent rotors from falling off and puncturing assembly line workers toes. As you can probably imagine the rotor with force will probably at minimum hurt a bit. This is to secure rotors before wheels and tire are installed. I call this the OSHA screw.

El Cid

Thanks for all the replies. I used to do brakes, but quit that a long time ago as I would much rather pay somebody else to do it. As for wear, 80% of driving is in city, so the wear may be reasonable.
Have not looked the pads for wear, but would probably do that before.
Mainly just wondering about the cost comparisons.
Of course, all things considered I may just trade the car in on something from Asia before that.

kajtek1

Those cars have pad sensors who in my case give me at least 3000 miles before pad come to 0.
Worse come to worse- you will have at least 1000 miles warning. Plenty of time to worry about it then if all you do is driving around the city.
Rotors are typical milking item. Unless you have deep grooves on them, they should last for the life of the car.

El Cid

Thanks for the good information. In thinking about it, he may have been referring to the brake flush since I haven't done that in two years. Drive about 3,000 miles per year. Although I suspect he meant a full brake service.

kajtek1

Of Course he did.
The "courtesy inspections" have inside name as "revenue getter"

2011E350

Even a full service can be done at home with knowledge or at Independent qualified shop for much cheaper. Full service aside from any worn, damaged calipers or cut brake lines is the Pads, Rotors, hardware kit, lube the slide pins, and system flush if required (5 years seems to be a common recommendation regardless of mileage as brake fluid can breakdown and absorb moisture. Remember DOT4 and DOT3 Fluids ARE NOT Backwards compatible....Meaning You can out DOT 4 Fluid in most DOT 3 systems but CANNOT use DOT3 fluid in DOT4 systems. DOT4 has a higher tolerance for boiling point and installing DOT3 fluid in DOT4 systems means the boiling point will be lower to not as much protection for fluid heating.........in laymen's terms.......FIRE FIRE FIRE!!

2011E350

Again I wont speak for your mechanical or technical experience with brakes bus rotors, pads, ebrake cleaning, sensors, hardware kit, slide pins and even calipers them selves are fairly straightforward to replace. Caliper Overhaul is of course a different story which is why you buy the new caliper, pay the core, return the old one, get the core charge back and they send the old caliper out to be overhauled. Same housing, they break down, replace, seals, boots, pistons, clean and refurbish everything and it goes back into inventory a few weeks later as a REMAN or possibly NEW depending on how the specs are and how good the housing was to begin with. Can you overhaul a Caliper with the wonderful videos from UYT (University You Tube) probably.......should you....your call. The set I got for all four corners rotors, pads, hardware kit, wear sensors, shipping and tax was just around $400 carve out a few hours on a warm afternoon or morning and be done with it. I am going with the premise that calipers and lines are fine, just R/R the above mentioned parts as part of a used car purchase and baseline. I would probably do the same for any used car I purchased unless I had good confidence that it was done recently.

Save your money, even if you got independent shop it would still be much cheaper than dealer. Couple of Billy Bob friends, some jack stands, good set of wrenches,,. yes Torque Wrenches too and a few hours bada bing, bada boom done. One trick do not remove both brakes from same axle at the same time. The idea is to do one at a time but remove both wheels and use the other side as a reference point in case you get a "Where does this bolt go moment?

2011E350

All this talk and this weekend I believe I am finally getting around to R/R my brakes. Doe's anyone know of any "Gotcha" Moments? besides the specialty E Socket tools? This will be a rotor and pad replacement all four corners. just over 100K miles and eight years so yes I plan on the fluid flush but are there any surprises I should be looking for as far as the pads and rotors themselves? Also I have a brake caliper piston compression tool. It is a bunch of different tool dies to help rotate the rear caliper piston in ot make up the difference in space between the new pads and old ones. I have two threading clamps Right and Left Hand thread....does anyone know off the top of their head which way the caliper thread for a 2011 E350 BASE Sedan thread Left or Right? I always learned Lefty Loosey Righty Tighty but you now these crazy European manufacturers... Want to make sure before I get too far embedded in the project.

Thanks in Advance!!

happyeds

COST in the atlanta ga area the warranty cost for my E550 was approx $3,000. +/- 600. Your E350 should be a little less. There is nothing special about a brake job on our everyday Mercedes cars. New rotors, new pads, system flush, maybe pad sensors. Any professional qualified brake shop can do the work and it will be half the price of the MB dealer. Good luck.

Mud

I'm not aware of the pistons needed to be turned to compress, on mine I just compressed them straight in if I remember right. Pay attention to the condition of the rubber caliper seals - if brittle or cracked the caliper should be rebuilt. Use correct lube for the caliper pins, free movement of the caliper is critical.
As mentioned this is pretty much a standard brake job. Look in my brake work thread - I think it can give you info to follow plus details.

2011E350

Thanks!!!

Are you serial $3000 for a brake job?

2011E350

Update......I removed and replaced the front and rear rotors and pads at not quite 100.6K miles. Not easy with out a lift and or power tools but it worked. A few observations…...

Front: Fairly straight forward but when it comes to removing the wheel do yourself a favor get a "Tire Tree or rotate the last lug/stud bolt in loose and position at 12 O' Clock. Try not to raise tire any more than you have to trick is to get it enough to clear the ground plus maybe another two-three pumps of the trolley jack. After removing the tire you can see better behind and find a place to set a jack stand. I used my Safejack backed up by jack stand. I did one wheel at a time and the higher capacity jack stands (8000lb. high to get underneath the suspension. If you raise the axle too high you risk either running out of height on the jack pad. It can only stretch so far. That's fine they still work on my Explorer. I went with 3 ton capacity stands because...…..well they were on hand and easy to work with. I placed on the inside of the tire along the axle shaft cover. If you go too far out, yes it is physically probably safest but you won't be able to get the tire fully on and flush for the lug studs to draw tight. I used the standard, trolley jack and the side arm stands that came with the Safejack. This feature allows you to lift and the attachments can be used as a "tower/pier to provide additional stability if the pump action of the jack fails. Theoretically that would be a extreme example but either way the jack stand inside the suspension should be loaded with the axle to avoid any downward movement. Between the SafeJack and jack stands I had no problem. 13MM for caliper bolts and 18mm for bracket bolts again IIRC. Nothing overly unusual for the fronts except the heavier front rotors.

LEAVE THE OSHA SCREW IN until the rotors are actually ready to come off. T-30 I believe and fortunately the Torx screws were pretty easy my guess is they had to have been off at least once in 100K miles. After you remove the screw be ready to catch the rotor it is heavy.

Fender well. The upper bolt of the caliper bracket for the rear brakes is wedged in between the bracket and a downward bar. I am figuring Pan hard Bar or Torque link. Long Story short the 1/2 breaker bar won't fit and neither will a 1/2 drive ratchet or socket. The ratchet will break the torque but after about a few turns it will get wedged in between the rod and bolt. 1/2 in ratchet wrench 18mm IIRC Might work but don't plan on it and I didn't have one readily available. Another long story short use a 3/8 drive ratchet/socket combo. I found a piece of metal angle iron/welding reinforcement point. The inside was hollow and I used my Dremel tool metal cut off wheel and cut a 36' length into half first. After that I measured inside the fender well and cut again small enough to get some leverage on the ratchet/breaker bar but allowed at least a full couple of turns to break the torque. I slipped the iron over the ratchet to extend the fulcrum and leverage point. It totally slipped over the breaker bar full length but not quite so with the ratchet. I used the ratchet because of the finer calibrated teeth and more flexibility in the set up point to slide the iron bar over. Basically a Breaker bar with an extension.

Rears: the major weird part is they use a 7mm HEXKEY socket for the caliper bolt but the same 18mm for the caliper bracket. Would it kill Hans and Franz to use either Hex key on Front AND Rear or 13mm Front and rear. I don't care which but pick a lane your inventory costs should go down.

I got the Hex Key stuck in the passengers side lower caliper bracket. I figure it will jar loose with one major pothole and if not out by the time I take for the transmission/engine mount replacement I will ask them if they can pull it out with whatever Big F**## Tool they have at the ready Tires are heavy even down low remember that. Normal procedure, I even went so far as to grab a Scotch Brite Red pad on the end of a drill to sand off the rust around the hub/tire contact surface. Rear rotors did not need special tool they compressed nicely with basic C-clamp and the old pad as a flat surface. I went all out, cleaned, lubed slide pins and even got a new hardware kit (Slide pin boots, retaining clips etc...) Also note that the Caliper attaching bolts and slide pins are the same. I used Synthetic brake grease for the slide pin part and a dab of Anti Seize on the threads.


There is one item that I do need help with though When I ordered the brakes I also ordered pad wear sensors. I read about them and was figuring eight...one per pad... I only saw connection for two sensors. Passengers Front AND Rear inboard pad. Did I miss something? or are there only supposed to have two...one front axle and one rear axle? I have no problem going back in if I did forget but no messages on the Dash so I think I am fine.

The parts list is fairly simple and easily obtainable.

1. 7mm Hex Key socket...preferably a longer key to get more grip during removal from socket to avoid it getting stuck during install. I used 3/8 drive and probably wouldn't go any higher due to space limitations.
2. 18mm Socket, either attached to the end of a ratchet or breaker bar. I used 3/8"drive socket all the way around and this allowed my breaker bar extension to fit over the ratchet handle longer. Again worked for me your results may vary. If you know someone with a lift great but for most shade tree/diy'ers this should work.
3. 13mm Socket, wrench or ratchet wrench. Just so happened I was able to use the 13mm ratchet wrench for the fronts without any problem. Bolts were tight but not factory tight and moderate force to break torque.
4. 4-6" inch C Clamp This allows he body to fit over the caliper and grip on the outside while the turning plate compresses in with one of the old pads you are removing.
5. Synthetic Brake Lubricant: Sil-Glyde is a common one I had some left over from a previous Permatex purchase. Just so happens between this project and my 2018 Explorer for corner rotor/pad replacement I used pretty much every little last drop so that's one purchase for next project.

6. Anti-Seize Same thing Permatex (Silver it comes with its own applicator brush as part of the cap.) Small dab on the Osha Screw.

7. Loctite Blue (Medium Strength) tight enough to maintain secure but should be able to remove later without excessive force.
8. Tire trees> Available from Amazon basically a piece of metal that is threaded on the end but knurled and flat on the shaft. Remove one tire lug stud insert the Tire tree and rotate until the Tire tree is at 12 O'clock. You can use more than one but this allows you to help line up the lug studs for the first tire or two and keeps the weight of the tire on the axle not your hands. When installing use the tree align one of the other lug studs, thread in about halfway and the other lug studs should thread in without trouble...make sure tire is flat against the hub.

Pads and Rotors were brought to you by R1 Concepts. Geomet Carbon Series slotted rotors and Ceramic Pads.

Aside from the obvious stuff like shop rags, brake cleaner, nitrile gloves not a lot too it.

Process took a while but I was doing one wheel a day and of course no immediate rush.....except to get it drivable in case to have to evacuate to a local parking garage to wait out the tornado or hail. I believe the North Texans know exactly what I am talking about.

Mud

Just 2 wear sensors as you discovered. One each on passenger side front and rear caliper.

cetialpha5

Yep, just two sensors. Not only that, if you don't have a warning on your dash, you can just reuse the old sensors. When the pads wear down, it also wears down the sensors and eventually it breaks the contact which triggers the warning. If you don't have a warning it means they're not worn away yet so you can just reuse them.

2011E350

Thanks. I purchased eight so didn’t want to risk it. I just went ahead and installed two shiny new sensors pretty much everything new. Next step is brake fluid flush and E-Brake adjustment but when pulling rotors it looks like e brake shoes could be in good need of a spruce up. In Theory I have good rear brakes I tried adjusting the star wheel about as far as I can and still seems loose. I need to diagnosis to determine whether the shoes need to be adjusted or the pedal itself.

i guess I need to break out my passport for another trip to FCPEuro.com. Ha ha!!!