The hardest part on the front was finding an 11mm allen head socket to take the caliper off the caliper bracket. There wasn't an auto parts store locally that had 11mm. 10? Sure, but I already have that. 12? You bet, but that's too big. 11mm? Nope, you're going for a 100 mile round trip drive to get that, Sucker. Why did the Mercedes engineers decide to put an oddball sized bolt in there? Just to keep morons like me from trying to perform an easy maintenance item? WTF?

The rear brakes were easier, but note: Make sure you get into the service menu on the dash to put the parking brake electrics into the service position. It's easy and absolutely necessary. There's a weird setup on the rear caliper slide pins; you'll need a 17mm wrench to hold the slide pin and a 13mm wrench to remove the bolt that holds the caliper to the bracket. Easy, but the first time I've run into that specific style (I've done my fair share of brakes).

There was plenty of pad life left, but the rotors were S H O T. Like the friction surface was flaking off shot. Last week seemed like a good time to order stuff at Pre Tariff prices and I'm glad I did: The DIC just two days ago said "Check Brakes". Good timing.

PowerStop FTW. Slotted and drilled rotors, carbon fiber brake pads. Looks sharp and reasonably priced at about $550 plus some brake cleaner. The only negative I can say about Powerstop is that the rear anti rattle springs were not quite right and I had to reuse the old ones. No biggie, the old ones were just fine, but they're not shiny and bright. I like shiny and bright. Squirrel!

 

The 11mm wrench/socket is a nuisance to find when needed. I have sometimes been able to use a half inch 12 point, or go up and down 1/32nd easier. If it’s in an area that isn’t too cramped, I just settle for using the adjustable wrench from the side, or sometimes from the front of the wrench in closer quarters.
Nice to see a recent post, and that you are being productive with your projects.
I might be more productive if I had my own shop, and a lot more room than my 1&1/2 car garage. It’s a fantasy that I doubt I will ever be able to achieve.

 

Two sheets of plywood in the driveway made the floor of my "shop". No walls or roof... snow squalls were a real PITA yesterday and the day before as I was doing my Chevy truck's brakes. Got 6 dead rotors next to the trash can now.😵‍💫

 

There has to be something you can do with them. Actually, brake rotors make a great base for a sign, or lamp, or some such.

 

Tekton makes a 22 pc hex bit socket drive set SHB99102 that has every bit size from 2mm to 19mm. $88 at Amazon.

 

Got a small set from Autozone that had from 10 mm to about 18 or 19mm for $30 that got me through the job a few days ago.
Today, as I was cleaning up my tool drawers, I found a stray 11mm allen head socket.

 

11mm is 7/16 - So, many kits do not have the 11
.
The first time I did the brakes in our GLS I forgot to pull back the parking brake (electronically at the dash, or with one of my computers that connect). Well, that cost me a few hours and a new gasket kit for the parking brake. I now keep a spare set of gaskets for the parking brake in the garage.

 

I live in toolbox hell also. Can't find stuff, so I re-organize everything. Afterwards, I can't find stuff 'cause nothing is where it used to be.

 

That's true for many/most of aftermarket pads for these vehicles. I have a 2015 ML 350 4MATIC without the AMG Sport Package brakes. A few months ago, my brakes were due, and I wanted to try the Akebono Euro pads, which were on sale (the complete set of front and rear pads was on clearance and cost less than $85 in total). For the rear pads, the SUV takes Akebono EUR1630A (corresponds to brake kit Mercedes Benz part#: 007-420-83-20, which has been replaced by 000-420-99-04), and, for the front pads, it takes Akebono EUR1629 (corresponds to brake kit Mercedes Benz part#: 007-420-81-20, which has been replaced by 000-420-13-05). The Akebono rear pad kit comes with wear sensors and anti-rattle springs, but they don't fit correctly. The Akebono front pad kit comes with just the wear sensors.

When I was looking up parts, I checked the Mercedes parts catalog, but it seems that the rear anti-rattle springs are not available separately from the Genuine Mercedes kit (I couldn't even find separate part #s from Mercedes). None of the U.S.-based parts suppliers had any either, but I think one might be able to find compatible aftermarket ones from vendors in Europe (or on eBay). Had to clean and reuse the old ones.

The spring clips for the front brake pads are available separately from Mercedes (possibly the same as those used on other makes and models), so I picked up a set from a dealership to replace the rusty ones on my vehicle (we're in coastal northern New England...).

The coating on the Genuine Mercedes rotors that came with the vehicle had held up well in our salty environment, and we were OK with their braking performance, so I decided to just get the coated rotors from Brembo, the OE manufacturer for the Genuine Mercedes rotors (both manufactured in the U.S.)... The parts prices with the sales discounts applied were pretty reasonable, I'd say.