RJR

My wife has a 2007 ML350 and the brake dust on the front wheels is a mess. They turn black only after a few days. This drives me crazy. I have a 2008 SL550 and I do not get any brake dust. Question is does the W166 model have different brake pads that reduces the dust.

sosh

Its been my experience that most all Euro vehicles use soft brake pads for max braking ability which produces dust. I am surprised that you do not have dust on your other MB. This dust is a small price to pay for excellent stopping ability. There are other aftermarket pads that give off less dust but its my feeling that the stopping ability particularly in an emergency stop would be compromised. Some of the users of these other pads claim thats not the case but I tend to side with MB who does the engineering and testing of these parts. By the way you are on the W166 forum and your ML is a W164 as its an 07.

RJR

My SL550 gets Zero brake dust on it and I drive it hard. I try to baby the ML and the brake dust still happens. We are looking to pick up a new ML this winter and I was just curious if the brake dust was as bad as the W164. Hope someone can chime in that has the new W166 to let me know how the brake dust is. It is not a deal breaker for us to buy the new one but the brake dust is just annoying. I wash both cars every weekend and by the middle of the week the ML front wheels are black.

lboudreau

+1. I agree that the dust is a very small price to pay for optimal braking power and performance

His question was actually related to the W166 so I think he's in the right spot

sosh

Are you certain that you have OEM pads on your SL? Could be also that MB uses a different compound for the pads on that vehicle. I have noticed that my 10 ML550 produces less dust than my previous 06 ML500. I have also noted that my 10 E350 4M produces significantly less dust than our previous 05 E350 4M. Could have something to do with wheel design also perhaps they just do not catch as much dust on the wheels.

PaJohn

Try some Akebono pads. Had the same issues on my Audi's. I use them now and they are a great street pad with no dust.

GregW / Oregon

Most Mercedes & BMW pads produce a lot of dust. They are typically quiet and bite well when cold. Other pad formulations will have tradeoffs of one form or another. I just wash my wheels once a week.

YYZ-E55

MB has been shifting to lower dust pads due to rough owner feedback through JD Power (the same reason for the switch to the new cruise control lever on the W166, but that's another rant). To further mitigate brake dust complaints, some vehicles (C, GLK) also have a special coating on the wheels to reduce brake dust cling. I don't believe the ML wheels got this coating.

Bottom line: the W166 will be better than the 164 in terms of brake dust.

rcf8000

My Lexus vehicles don't have any brake dust, and they stop OK. My GL450 has lots of brake dust, which I find quite annoying. I'm not buying the argument that you need to put up with brake dust if you want good braking performance.

MinnBobber

Same experience here, Akebono Euro pads. No dust and my ML 500 stops fine, no brake squeeling in winter (as with cheaper brand).

RJR

I agree. Nobody reading this post with a new W166?

skw

I'm sifting through old threads learning more and more. As there's more W166's on the road now as compared to when this thread active, what's the current train of thought? I've only had mine 4 days now but I've noticed that the rears build up a lot more brake dust than the fronts. I personally wash and wipe them down every few days to keep ahead of it. Has anyone tried Wheel Wax that comes in the black can? Does it help?

katiesdad7

Speaking of brake dust. Have you ever noticed how dirty BMW front wheels get? I think they have the worst brake dust issue.

dougiebear

YYZ answered ur question with factual statements.
He likely has sold more W166 last few months then you will ever drive :o)
There are no yes or no answers to some questions as the manufacturers make changes all the time. You were also not model specific as the bluetecs have a different rotor then the 350 gas and Im sure the 550 and 63 are again a different animal so pads will be different. Cold or snow areas may get a different pad as well believe it or not.
One point we all learned is lack of dust does not mean poor braking performance or noise. Ceramic systems $$$$$$ must be amazing

RJR

I am very happy with the lack of brake dust on our W166 GAS. Our 2007 was horrible with the dust. I used to joke with my wife telling her to take it easy with the brakes because the fronts were always black. I am

shortspark

If you have a problem with brake dust I have found a couple ways to combat it that you should consider. The first is to mix a home brew of three parts distilled water to one part Klasse All-in-one sealant. Spray it on your clean wheels and it will repel dust (at least a little better than untreated although there will still be some dust shown if the problem is severe).

The second product is straight out of the sprayer - Duragloss AquaWax, which is also a polymer sealant. Spray it, wipe the wheels down and you are protected against brake dust (again, not totally but pretty darn good). The AquaWax is also an excellent topper for your paint if you use a sealant as your last step product on your car rather than wax.

leandrowlat

I have W124m W210 and now W166. They all have brake dust after use. It seems that MB has always this issue.

GregW / Oregon

BMW is the same. The OEM compounds are designed for low noise, long wear and good initial bite in all conditions. There is no free lunch when it comes to brake pads - always compromises.

cookstar

get ceramic brake pads, easiest solution to brake dust annoyances

sxue888

I also noticed the break dust with my new 13 ML350. After a car wash, its only clean for 1 or 2 days than the dust started to accumulating. I noticed the same for other MB on the roads too.

Another issue I have with the ML break is no matter how I carefully breaking the ML, I could not bring it to a smooth stop. It always "chocks" at the end. Anyone experienced with this?

GregW / Oregon

You don't think the German engineers would have figured out if there was a better all around pad? I'm more concerned with stopping under all conditions than dust. Ceramic and Kevlar pads have their advocates, and if you're tracking there may be an advantage to a different type than OEM. EBC & Performance Friction are good brands. There are always trade-offs, though, be it noise, rotor life or initial bite under cold/wet conditions.

frtdog

The front wheels on my '06 ML were always a mess. It seems as if I was constantly washing them. My '13 ML is completely different with very little dust accumulating. Driving style was the same for the '06 as it is for the '13.

cohenmd86

My 13 550 is good but I do notice when I use tire shine it tends to hold more brake dust and gets dirtier sooner. Maybe no tire shine I'f your Washing every weekend?

Semibru

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Semibru

Yes! At first I thought it was just me. I'm constantly apologizing to my passengers. I'd describe the brakes as "grabby" under 20mph. I'm got my '12 350 BT with 13k miles on it. I'd assume that the pads were changed as part of CPO certification, but not sure. Now I'm close to 20k.

Regarding dust, I haven't found it to be much of an issue.



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