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Has anyone upgraded their S65 to carbon ceramic brakes? From where did you get the parts? How crazy expensive was it? Is there a salvage yard for that specializes in Mercedes her in the US where one might obtain some of the necessary parts? Do you need to change the programming on the car going from conventional brakes to carbon ceramic? Thanks in advance for any insight that can be offered.
This thread goes deep into CCB conversion options. There's another thread I can't find right now in which a dealer did the conversion and updated the car's factory data card to show CCBs as an installed option, which is pretty cool. I keep toying with the idea myself. Desperately trying to convince myself "no brake dust” is worth $20,000.
Has anyone upgraded their S65 to carbon ceramic brakes? From where did you get the parts? How crazy expensive was it? Is there a salvage yard for that specializes in Mercedes her in the US where one might obtain some of the necessary parts? Do you need to change the programming on the car going from conventional brakes to carbon ceramic? Thanks in advance for any insight that can be offered.
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Last edited by BeepBeepBenz; Aug 18, 2023 at 01:57 PM.
Big reduction in unsprung weight. CC rotors for my 222 S65 are 4-5 pounds each. Iron weighs a LOT more and is forever warped or wearing out with all that dust.
Better to to buy a car already equipped. The option adds little to resale value.
20K realistically to do it properly. If you are trying to get rid of dust there is another option. I installed Z28 Powerstop ceramic pads on my 2019 S63 and they work as good as OEM and produce no dust whatsoever. 200 bucks with me installing. Unless you are tracking the car, CCB is a waste of money if you have to pay a huge premium for it. Buying a used car with this option is the way to go if you want the setup. It does look pretty cool to the .001% of people who pay attention to crap like this.
To all who responded to my text, thanks for your input. Looks like trying to retrofit might be a fool's errand but if it could be done for 20k, I might be on board. In addition to the dust reduction, they look cool and in my opinion, stop better. I've got them on my 2017 S65 AMG Cab and my 2022 CT5 V Blackwing. They stop great and I have been known to need better stopping power from time to time. BeepeepBenz, I'm in NWPA, not too far away, but I was thinking more on the lines of a beater parts car that might be equipped with them that I could buy from which I might be able to strip the necessary parts. Your car looks way, way, way, too nice for that.
Problem is that most of the scrap yards know what that stuff is worth and charge a lot for it and it is pretty hard to find a complete set on a parts car unless it was a flood car or fire that did not damage these components. Good luck with the project.
Racing Brake sells upgrade rotors. Also BlackMamba on Instagram sells carbon rotors as wells as direct upgrade from steel rotors for the steel brake caliper size. It’s like $9K for the set. Well worth it considering the weight savings and you never have to replace them again and zero dust
2019 SL450, 2019 E450 Luxury Trim Wagon, 2024 BMW I7 xDrive60
I put brand new AMG CCB on my lowly 2019 SL450. I did it I believe in late 2019 and it cost me around $16K, but that was before the insane inflation of the last couple of years. I had an indy shop do it. I did it primarily for the ZERO dust factor that keeps my white car looking clean for weeks on end. I also like the way the CCB’s look, especially with the polished AMG forged alloy wheels I put on around the same time. Hit the brakes and it’s like you dropped anchor!
2019 SL450, 2019 E450 Luxury Trim Wagon, 2024 BMW I7 xDrive60
Originally Posted by barryrobinson19
I got that option from the factory. My car is a 2016 S63 4matic sedan. It was a $8,950.00 option back then. Love them.
ABSOLUTELY! The CCB are an absolute bargain as a regular production option. I cannot understand why anyone would not order them, if they were available on the vehicle they wanted.
CCB's are a nice option. However they don't stop a car in regular circumstances any better than regular brakes. They di reduce weight by around 10lbs per wheel, so 40 lbs total. That makes a miniscule difference in stopping distance.
Here are the advantages of CCB's:
Lower weight per wheel, around 10lbs or 40lbs total
No brake dust
They last forever, not exactly, but most likely longer than 100K miles.
If you track your car, your brakes won't fade or burn up like this article: https://www.motortrend.com/reviews/2...t-test-review/
But, they aren't great for most track situations since they don't dissipate heat, which means the brakes won't burn up, but other components will, bearings, lines, and anything else close to the wheel.
It is true that on some performance vehicles, namely Porsche, the CCB fitted car will stop in a shorter distance, but normally that upgrade goes along with other weight savings updates.
So are CCB's worth it, IMHO yes! However not for $20K. Only if under $10K when ordered at time of purchase,. If the look is what's important to you then that's a whole different baallgame. Now that there are good carbon ceramic brake pads available, you can reduce your brake dust by 80% and the total cost is under $120.
I put brand new AMG CCB on my lowly 2019 SL450. I did it I believe in late 2019 and it cost me around $16K, but that was before the insane inflation of the last couple of years. I had an indy shop do it. I did it primarily for the ZERO dust factor that keeps my white car looking clean for weeks on end. I also like the way the CCB’s look, especially with the polished AMG forged alloy wheels I put on around the same time. Hit the brakes and it’s like you dropped anchor!
Thanks to all who offered suggestions. I’ve another question. I’ve located a set of used rotors, calipers and pads that supposedly have only 12000 miles on them. They want $7000 for them delivered. My car is a 2019 and the rotors, calipers and pads are from a 2015. My questions are these. Anyone know if the 2015s will fit on my 2019? The person from whom I am buying these says they will fit but I’m hesitant. I can return these but there is a 25% penalty. Anyone know the part numbers for the CCB rotors and calipers so I can verify them? What do you all think about buying used rotors and calipers? My dealer says they will install these but has no idea how long it will take at $165 per hour. If you were in my shoes? What would you do?
Last edited by ElastomerGuy; Jul 1, 2024 at 05:52 PM.
2019 SL450, 2019 E450 Luxury Trim Wagon, 2024 BMW I7 xDrive60
Originally Posted by ElastomerGuy
Thanks to all who offered suggestions. I’ve another question. I’ve located a set of used rotors, calipers and pads that supposedly have only 12000 miles on them. They want $7000 for them delivered. My car is a 2019 and the rotors, calipers and pads are from a 2015. My questions are these. Anyone know if the 2015s will fit on my 2019? The person from whom I am buying these says they will fit but I’m hesitant. I can return these but there is a 25% penalty. Anyone know the part numbers for the CCB rotors and calipers so I can verify them? What do you all think about buying used rotors and calipers? My dealer says they will install these but has no idea how long it will take at $165 per hour. If you were in my shoes? What would you do?
If I am not mistaken, there are many small nuts, bolts & fasteners that are unique to the Carbon Ceramic Brakes. Check out this like that has photos & diagrams: https://mbworld.org/forums/sl-class-...550-guide.html
This may not be a simple swap parts situation. The logic within the ABS control unit may also be different. You are dealing with different materials here. I would think that the logic between the two would be completely different. Mercedes may have to change the logic in the ABS control unit so it will brake properly with your new set up. Just something to think about. Maybe ask Mercedes.
Thanks to all who offered suggestions. I’ve another question. I’ve located a set of used rotors, calipers and pads that supposedly have only 12000 miles on them. They want $7000 for them delivered. My car is a 2019 and the rotors, calipers and pads are from a 2015. My questions are these. Anyone know if the 2015s will fit on my 2019? The person from whom I am buying these says they will fit but I’m hesitant. I can return these but there is a 25% penalty. Anyone know the part numbers for the CCB rotors and calipers so I can verify them? What do you all think about buying used rotors and calipers? My dealer says they will install these but has no idea how long it will take at $165 per hour. If you were in my shoes? What would you do?
The mounting hardware is slightly different but they will fit just fine. Brake hardware, no matter how costly, is one of the "dumbest" things on a car. Your onboard computers simply take the input of wheel spin to calculate things, but the brake components themselves don't matter. Like you, I pondered this for awhile after I bought my car used last year. I "wish" my car came equipped with CCB's, I would have paid up to $4K premium on the used market if I had found one with CCB's.
I saw a set of used CCB's from a parts car on the auction site around 4 months ago, priced at $11K. The seller offered $7K to me to buy them. But like you, I was concerned since they were from a 2016, my car is 2018. I think I asked for the VIN, and they gave it to me. Not sure if same seller or not, but it indeed was a low mileage car - roughly 25K. I referenced the part numbers and they were a match. I decided not to do it and just changed my pads to ceramic instead. Now I get 90% less brake dust than OEM and only spent around $300, which included new rear rotors and afew hours of my DYI time. Hope you decided to go with the new setup and let us know how it goes
Last edited by carlosinseattle; Jul 1, 2024 at 07:00 PM.
The most expensive part of these parts are the rotors. They should look cosmetically good with no chips but the actual weight of the rotor is what is most important as that determines how much life the rotors have left. It is not like a steel rotor that shows wear but the weight should be well within spec if they only have 12K miles on them. Parts should all fit but I would probably want to refinish the calipers and rotor hats if it was me, that could be another grand or so for a proper refinish to factory new. I might also rebuild the calipers with all new seals as these parts are 9 years old at this point. The other thing to consider is the cost to have MB recode the car for CCB brakes. The settings are in fact different and brakes are not something you want to do half assed as there are several safety and autonomous driving systems that use the braking system as part of their functionality and they are calibrated to behave with a specific set of brakes. With all the labor and fluids you could be approaching 10K to do it right assuming all parts are included and good.
The most expensive part of these parts are the rotors. They should look cosmetically good with no chips but the actual weight of the rotor is what is most important as that determines how much life the rotors have left. It is not like a steel rotor that shows wear but the weight should be well within spec if they only have 12K miles on them. Parts should all fit but I would probably want to refinish the calipers and rotor hats if it was me, that could be another grand or so for a proper refinish to factory new. I might also rebuild the calipers with all new seals as these parts are 9 years old at this point. The other thing to consider is the cost to have MB recode the car for CCB brakes. The settings are in fact different and brakes are not something you want to do half assed as there are several safety and autonomous driving systems that use the braking system as part of their functionality and they are calibrated to behave with a specific set of brakes. With all the labor and fluids you could be approaching 10K to do it right assuming all parts are included and good.
While I agree with most of what you said, brakes are basically dumb. There is no computer firmware for they type of brake material used. All braking information goes through the wheel speed sensors, as well as others sensors like height, TSS and ohers, and the car makes any adjustments bosed on those signals. There are far too many additional variables that come into play that would preclude any programming based on brake material. Again, brakes are dumb, no additional programming necessary. If it bolts up properly it will work properly.
No need to give ourselves a headache about software.
Brakes work by friction, sizing of brake master cylinder bore VS total area of all pistons in calipers.
Rumor or has it the brake master cylinder for cars with iron brakes is the same as for cars with CCB. This means you bolt everything on, bleed all the air out and enjoy.
The electronics will apply or release braking for individual wheels based on wheel speed (ABS) and if the car believes you are being an idiot and are trying to throw the car away (the rest of the alphabet soup of acronyms). The car does all of this in real time while monitoring results of every application or release of braking as the driver is or is not applying the brakes.
Thanks Guys, I thought I had read somewhere that the SW was different for CCB brakes as they behave a little differently than steel. Particularly around the safety systems and how they react to and predict crash situations. Anyway, will be interesting to see if the poster does this upgrade.
2019 SL450, 2019 E450 Luxury Trim Wagon, 2024 BMW I7 xDrive60
It’s amazing to me that on the S65, that CCB were not standard equipment. These very expensive, very low production, VERY powerful cars should have all come with CCB. I can understand the much more common S63’s not having them standard, but on the very exclusive S65, the decision should not have been left to the idiot dealers.
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