ChapelHillMBFan

I put all new rotors and pads on my 2006 S500 less than 20,000 miles ago, and it now seems like my rotors are warped (I get a pronounced shudder under braking at higher speeds, like when I hit the brakes at 70-80 mph). This seems like lousy wear to me, something I may expect in a Honda (which are known to have lousy brakes) but not in MB's flagship which was allegedly bred for the Autobahn. Granted, I drive fairly quickly, but, of course, I never track the whale.

So, I am wondering what kind of wear others are getting out of their rotors (I believe the shudder I am feeling is coming from the front of the car).

I am also wondering whether anyone knows of any after-market rotors that offer better wear/performance than the MB rotors (which is what I got when I had the new rotors installed less than 20,000 miles ago).

Thanks for any help.

ChapelHillMBFan

82 views and no thoughts on brake rotor wear? Just wondering whether my experience is an anomaly.

trombone

Hard to make a guess. I have over 30K miles on the brakes and still a lot to go, and it wroks smooth.
I would take the case to a competent mechanic to check the calipers and pads. It is more likely the pads were substandard than the rotors.

sammydragon3

do u brake too late? the way u brake also effects the rotors

how did u wear the new pads and rotors in? most people f up the brakes trying to do the bed in stage

MRAMG1

Well I can tell you that I replaced my stock rotors at 44K when I bought the car. Now some 10K + miles with the new rotors, autocrossed, raod raced and countless drags they are still okay.

I guess my question is, what brand of rotors did you use?

If OEM, I would say that they should have lasted longer.

Keep in mind that this IS a very heavy vehicle, and the harder you drive it, the quicker the rotors are going to wear out.

ChapelHillMBFan

I do drive quicker than most, and I know that would lead to increased brake wear, but this still seems excessive.

When my brakes were preplaced around 18,000 miles ago, I believe the shop intalled new, OEM brake rotors, but the pads are EBC Redstuff ceramic pads. Could the pads be responsible for tearing up the rotors so quickly?

tusabes

Shudder is common I got it less than 3000 miles after rotor replaced with OEM mb parts

Just deal with it or try high end aftermarket supplier

MRAMG1

Highly doubt it, as I have Redstuff on all my cars with NO increase in rotor wear.

Did I ever mention how much I LOVE EBC pads

Great choice, just curious as to what part number you used, as originaly Summit racing sent me the wrong pad. Not really there fault as EBC lists two different pads for our cars.

MRAMG1

I really find your statement hard to believe my friend.

Shudder is NEVER common on any car that I have ever owned or raced. It is a clear sign of warpped rotors mainly do from excessive heat. Espically noticable when coasting down steep hills and slightly tapping the brakes.

H-LL my 2000 Taurus would warp the rotors every 4-5K, because they were too small for the weight of the vehicle. Ford knew this and upgraded the rotor size in 2003. Which I might add was a simple swap of the calipar bracket, calipar and rotor. $300 later and my brakes would NOT warp for 25k+ miles.

ChapelHillMBFan

Thanks for the note. I'm not sure about the part number, but I did buy them from Summit Racing. Would the wrong pad even fit the vehicle? They've been on for about 18,000 miles now.

Do I read your post correctly to say that you autocross and road race an S600??? Where in PA are you? I grew up in Mechanicsburg.

Oh, and I agree that the shudder in unacceptable. I'm going to fix the problem, and then I may just sell the car. I'm sick of dumping money into fixing it.

marktan

Looking at my S600, the car had her 2rd set of front rotors (stock cross drilled) replaced at 90,000 miles (42k miles on the first set, replaced @ dealership by prior owner).
I just replaced the original rears (solid) at 90,000. The last set (front and rear) I ordered from R1 Concepts. Got the Premium (not economy) cross drilled for both front and rear for about $375 a set after discounts (they'll give you 15% off if you call and ask). The rear rotors cost marginally more than the fronts for some reason. Had my indy mechanic install with his pads since he will warranty the pads for life and replace for free in the future if they wear.

No issues aside from going through 4 sets of various brands of FRONT ceramic pads (warrantied out by my mechanic) until he could find a front set that didn't **SQUEAL** coming to a slow stop (stop and go traffic in the Chicago burbs created headaches of epic proportions). Ended up installing the "genuine" MB pads from the dealer...dead silent...go figure. I tried and really wanted to use the EBC redstuff, but they made a horrible noise from day one.
No issues from the new rotors, and they perform as well as the originals as far as I can tell (I'm a notorious late braker...wife hates it). Plus, I like the cross drilled look front AND rear.

To compare, our E500 has about 68,000 miles and is still on original rotors/pads, although I'm about to get the fronts replaced in the next month or so (no warning light yet, but I can hear a slight "scuffing" coming to a stop). Both are solid rotors on that car.

ChapelHillMBFan

Thanks for all the good info. I noticed some slight squeaking from the EBC redstuff pads when they were new, but it went away after 1,000 or so miles. You've definitely confirmed that my wear is excessive. I actually got a PM today from Kevin at R1 Concepts in response to this thread. Good to see your endorsement of them. I need to confirm what, exactly, the problem is and then get it fixed, perhaps with new rotors from R1 Concepts. Then, I need to put a for sale sign in the window.

drewk88

I've heard that in some cases, tightening the wheel nuts unevenly (not using a torque wrench) can result in warped brake rotors.

tusabes

then i guess all my cars have rotors too small for the weight of the car, both my jag and my s430 and my gf mustang shudder, even after rotors are replaced with oem parts. different mechanics, and no hard driving either.

MRAMG1

Yes my friend you read that right.

The road race was a bit of a joke to be honest. But it was still fun to pass a Porsche on the front straight away at Beaverun doing 120+. Only had 4 or 5 laps before the brakes faded.

In the autocross, I managed to get into F stock, I used the V8 Impala as the ruleing. Anyway, out of 12-13 cars, I took Second. They even gave me a first place trophy instead because of the way the car handled. My friends wife told the other drivers, mostly camaros and Mustangs that they shuld all be ashamed of themeselves for letting a 5000+ pound whale spank them.

http://www.nhscc.com/2009/20091004/Oct42009/index.htm

Note: The camaro that spanked me was on race tires.

PS; Used to be in Pittsburgh, now Beaver county by the nuke.

MRAMG1

To be honest my friend. Most cars DO have front brakes too small for their weight.

But shuddering with new rotors and pads has NEVER occured on any cars that I have ever driven. Did it start to occur after a few thousand miles, sure, but brand new, NEVER.

Worst cars ever for shuddering were an 91 Mustang, and 2000 Taurus.

Heck, the mustang after an autocross started shuddering on me