Vauxhall Astra New Brake Pads And Discs
Discussion
Last year the wife’s 2009 Astra suddenly needed the front brake pads and discs replacing. It was literally screeching and came on all of a sudden.
Took it to the nearest tyre and brake centre near my work and they replaced it. Bill was £320 , and they advised a fluid flush which they also did. I presume it was a brake fluid flush.
Last weeks her car fails it’s MOT for a tyre and a brake fault but they needed to investigate the fault and couldn’t make a diagnosis. So a week later we re- book the MOT.
Yesterday , after not hearing anything by 2pm ( car was dropped off at 8am) I drop her off on my way to work to the garage so she can wait.
They’d just finished the work on the car and passed its MOT. Only this time , they changed the front brakes pads and discs, and the tyre.
The guys at the garage didn’t ring her to tell her it was pads and discs that needed replacing and the price.
The front pads and discs are just over a year old and she doesn’t do much mileage. Just local , kids to school and work. Barely 8 k in a year.
Were we ripped off? New pads and discs after a year ? Should they have let us know in advance ? We obviously needed the car to get through its MOT either way.
The garage has generally good reviews and a friend of hers also uses it. Were we just unlucky to need this work doing again ?
Took it to the nearest tyre and brake centre near my work and they replaced it. Bill was £320 , and they advised a fluid flush which they also did. I presume it was a brake fluid flush.
Last weeks her car fails it’s MOT for a tyre and a brake fault but they needed to investigate the fault and couldn’t make a diagnosis. So a week later we re- book the MOT.
Yesterday , after not hearing anything by 2pm ( car was dropped off at 8am) I drop her off on my way to work to the garage so she can wait.
They’d just finished the work on the car and passed its MOT. Only this time , they changed the front brakes pads and discs, and the tyre.
The guys at the garage didn’t ring her to tell her it was pads and discs that needed replacing and the price.
The front pads and discs are just over a year old and she doesn’t do much mileage. Just local , kids to school and work. Barely 8 k in a year.
Were we ripped off? New pads and discs after a year ? Should they have let us know in advance ? We obviously needed the car to get through its MOT either way.
The garage has generally good reviews and a friend of hers also uses it. Were we just unlucky to need this work doing again ?
Edited by Rogerout on Saturday 3rd February 10:49
It could be a sticky caliper wearing out the pad and disc on one side, or a seized slider pin keeping the pad in contact with the disc. They are replaced in pairs so both sides get done. Ask the mechanic if this was the issue, as you will need replacements in a year again if it is.
Could also have been a stone caught between disc and pad cutting a nice big track into the disc.
Basically it could happen there are a few common scenarios, but you should ask your mechanic, we arent out to dupe people but sometimes people feel we are because they arent technically knowledgeable. If you ask was the root cause a sticky caliper because you might need to change it they will give you a full explanation (as long as it wasnt 20 jobs ago).
Could also have been a stone caught between disc and pad cutting a nice big track into the disc.
Basically it could happen there are a few common scenarios, but you should ask your mechanic, we arent out to dupe people but sometimes people feel we are because they arent technically knowledgeable. If you ask was the root cause a sticky caliper because you might need to change it they will give you a full explanation (as long as it wasnt 20 jobs ago).
Original MOT failure reason says “Front Service brake excessively fluctuating “. Dangerous defect.
On the restest they didn’t ring my wife to let her know what work they were doing and changed the front pads and discs.
The front pads and discs were changed over a year ago somewhere else and the car had barely done 7k miles since then.
Shall I go back and query this ? I have proof with a receipt that the pads and discs were changed then.
Had I have known this I would have queried this at the time of payment but I wasn’t with my wife when she picked the car up. This was last Friday. They were shut over the weekend.
On the restest they didn’t ring my wife to let her know what work they were doing and changed the front pads and discs.
The front pads and discs were changed over a year ago somewhere else and the car had barely done 7k miles since then.
Shall I go back and query this ? I have proof with a receipt that the pads and discs were changed then.
Had I have known this I would have queried this at the time of payment but I wasn’t with my wife when she picked the car up. This was last Friday. They were shut over the weekend.
Edited by Rogerout on Sunday 4th February 13:51
Edited by Rogerout on Sunday 4th February 14:45
A binding caliper could do damage in 1 drive let alone 8k miles. Depends how bad it’s binding.
Take it for a drive and then (carefully) feel the wheels. They should be similar temperature, and as long as you don’t drive like a maniac, just warm.
If one of them is properly hot, it’s binding.
Take it for a drive and then (carefully) feel the wheels. They should be similar temperature, and as long as you don’t drive like a maniac, just warm.
If one of them is properly hot, it’s binding.
Ok thanks will try that. Otherwise maybe just ask the garage if they might have any ideas? I don’t want to accuse the garage of ripping us off as such , there could be an explanation as to why they needed changing after just a year.
In any case they’ve already been paid and got our money.
In any case they’ve already been paid and got our money.
As above, two things will cause excessive disc/pad wear. Sticking caliper slider pins and/or caliper pistons. Both of these problems ought be attended to at the time of replacement - at least by any responsible garage.
One other possibility is poor quality pads that bind in the carrier. Your only real option to determine what is going on is to have the brakes checked by someone you can trust. There is nearly always someone knowledgeable in your social circle that can help.
Excessive black brake dust or brown ferric corrosion from binding brakes would probably be visible on the affected wheel(s).
The car should roll easily forward in neutral on a slight incline. Best to do this immediately after coming to a stop. After 10 secs of light braking to a stop the brakes should release immediately after lifting off the brake pedal. If they are sticking and continue to drag for another 30+ secs that is a considerable amount of excess wear over a year. Even when binding the rotation of the discs will slowly push the pads away as you drive - at least until they seize completely.
In future you may wish to consider asking for any parts removed to be retained for inspection.
One other possibility is poor quality pads that bind in the carrier. Your only real option to determine what is going on is to have the brakes checked by someone you can trust. There is nearly always someone knowledgeable in your social circle that can help.
Excessive black brake dust or brown ferric corrosion from binding brakes would probably be visible on the affected wheel(s).
The car should roll easily forward in neutral on a slight incline. Best to do this immediately after coming to a stop. After 10 secs of light braking to a stop the brakes should release immediately after lifting off the brake pedal. If they are sticking and continue to drag for another 30+ secs that is a considerable amount of excess wear over a year. Even when binding the rotation of the discs will slowly push the pads away as you drive - at least until they seize completely.
In future you may wish to consider asking for any parts removed to be retained for inspection.
Ask the garage. Don’t be confrontational, just say that you want to understand why the brakes needed replacing as they were only done a year ago and there might be an underlying fault.
I’m not sure what other advice you are looking for, no one can tell you anything more than what’s already been said, so asking the garage is the next step.
I’m not sure what other advice you are looking for, no one can tell you anything more than what’s already been said, so asking the garage is the next step.
It's unfair to tar all fast fit centres with the same brush, but I'm always a little bit cynical about their approach as they generally do well off panic visits. Brakes screeching, take it immediately to the nearest fast fit centre and they've pretty much got a captive audience now. It's possible however they did the job very well and used really good quality parts. But equally its possible they fired the cheapest, nastiest parts on (with a nice wee mark up) and fired it out the door... no brake fluid changed, no caliper slides or contact points cleaned and lubed, didn't look at the state of the pistons or dust seals. But who knows.
A brake fluctuation on the rollers would usually hint at a warped disc or possible pad build up on the surface but a decent garage would be able to check run out on the disc and / or the hub and also give an opinion on the state of the friction material. Yes, it's only a year and 7k but you'd be surprised how badly affected crappy components can be after a relatively short time. Equally, as has been said all it would take is a sticking caliper... be it slides, piston or the pad stuk in the carrier, to either excessively wear the friction parts of generate enough heat to warp a disc, more so a cheap disc. But again the garage should be able to advise if there was uneven wear, anything was binding etc etc.
A brake fluctuation on the rollers would usually hint at a warped disc or possible pad build up on the surface but a decent garage would be able to check run out on the disc and / or the hub and also give an opinion on the state of the friction material. Yes, it's only a year and 7k but you'd be surprised how badly affected crappy components can be after a relatively short time. Equally, as has been said all it would take is a sticking caliper... be it slides, piston or the pad stuk in the carrier, to either excessively wear the friction parts of generate enough heat to warp a disc, more so a cheap disc. But again the garage should be able to advise if there was uneven wear, anything was binding etc etc.
Rogerout said:
Bumping for more advice !
Without seeing the old discs and pads its impossible to know either way. My view is that it would be very unusual for car with the sort of use case as your Vauxhall to require new discs and pads so soon through normal wear.
That said, if the discs had corroded then they might require replacement along with pads.
I would have thought you'd have noticed the vibration and/or excessive heat that would arise from a sticking caliper.
As suggested above, a health check of the system ie for undue heat from the wheels, vibration, freely spinning wheels after the brakes are released etc would rule out/in whether the braking system is not working as it should.
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