Replacing brake pads and discs
Discussion
Last Sunday whilst on holiday in Lucerne, Switzerland, the brake pad warning light came on whilst driving. Subsequently went off again and didn't come on after switching engine off and on afterwards later that day.
A quick search on the internet at the time suggested that it must be the front pads as there are no wear sensors on rear pads (car is a 2012 Audi S4 avant s-tronic). I'm not mechanically minded so not entirely sure what i'm looking at but thought I could see some meat on the front pads but struggling to see anything on the rears but this could also be due to the spokes and caliper placement restrcting the view.
As I was returning home to London on Monday, I took the car to Audi Lucerne to ask for advice on which pads needed replacing and whether they would need to be done immediately or if they would last the 750mile approx journey home.
The technician took a quick look around the car (wheels on) car on ground, using a torch and said it was the rear inner pads that were worn and should be good for 3,000 km before metal to metal contact. This put my mind at rest and I drove home on Monday without incident. Warning light did not come in at all on the journey despite several stops.
Yesterday I took the car to an Audi dealer (won't mention which one, and not necessarily the local dealer), and asked them to check which pads needed replacing. They carried out an inspection (car on ground, didn't leave the customer car park) and came back saying that pads and discs front and rear were 70% worn and therefore all needed replacing.
The car has done 30k miles (approx 8k a year) and no mention was made on the full service in May (mileage approx 27k) that pads and disc replacement would be imminent.
I don't want to be flamed about running costs - i'm not complaining about the cost (although 950 odd for 4 nee pads and discs sounds a bit pricey), but I would have thought that the discs don't need replacing just yet if they are only 70% worn and I would have expected them to last longer. In fact, 70% wear would imply an expected life of around 45k miles which I think is more reasonable.
I bought the car at 3 years old with 13k and its not had any brake replacement done in my ownership. I feel that 30k in the original pads is pretty good going but I'd have thought fronts would wear quicker than the rears. I'd also expect that discs last longer than pads.
Is there an easy way for me to measure the discs and pads myself as I find it surprising that pads and discs both front and rear are all 70% worn. Perhaps i'm being a bit cynical.
As it stands I'm currently booked to change the pads but hold off on the discs.
FWiW car is used mainly for school run, no track days and little motorway work.
A quick search on the internet at the time suggested that it must be the front pads as there are no wear sensors on rear pads (car is a 2012 Audi S4 avant s-tronic). I'm not mechanically minded so not entirely sure what i'm looking at but thought I could see some meat on the front pads but struggling to see anything on the rears but this could also be due to the spokes and caliper placement restrcting the view.
As I was returning home to London on Monday, I took the car to Audi Lucerne to ask for advice on which pads needed replacing and whether they would need to be done immediately or if they would last the 750mile approx journey home.
The technician took a quick look around the car (wheels on) car on ground, using a torch and said it was the rear inner pads that were worn and should be good for 3,000 km before metal to metal contact. This put my mind at rest and I drove home on Monday without incident. Warning light did not come in at all on the journey despite several stops.
Yesterday I took the car to an Audi dealer (won't mention which one, and not necessarily the local dealer), and asked them to check which pads needed replacing. They carried out an inspection (car on ground, didn't leave the customer car park) and came back saying that pads and discs front and rear were 70% worn and therefore all needed replacing.
The car has done 30k miles (approx 8k a year) and no mention was made on the full service in May (mileage approx 27k) that pads and disc replacement would be imminent.
I don't want to be flamed about running costs - i'm not complaining about the cost (although 950 odd for 4 nee pads and discs sounds a bit pricey), but I would have thought that the discs don't need replacing just yet if they are only 70% worn and I would have expected them to last longer. In fact, 70% wear would imply an expected life of around 45k miles which I think is more reasonable.
I bought the car at 3 years old with 13k and its not had any brake replacement done in my ownership. I feel that 30k in the original pads is pretty good going but I'd have thought fronts would wear quicker than the rears. I'd also expect that discs last longer than pads.
Is there an easy way for me to measure the discs and pads myself as I find it surprising that pads and discs both front and rear are all 70% worn. Perhaps i'm being a bit cynical.
As it stands I'm currently booked to change the pads but hold off on the discs.
FWiW car is used mainly for school run, no track days and little motorway work.
catman said:
Is there any reason why you're only going to Audi garages for advice? There are lots of independant garages out there, who won't charge that much and many who won't see you as an opportunity to do unnecessary work.
Tim
Good point. So far the car has been covered under warranty and came with a service pack so no need to take it out of the dealer network. I'll probably take to an independent for second opinion.Tim
mgv8 said:
I don't know the car but the discs should last longer than that and rears way longer as they do a lot let work. If you can find some one that works on these cars they should be able to tell you the minimum width of the disc and that should be easy to check. In the morning, before you drive the car (or it will be hot) run your finger across the disc. It should be flattish with no big lip.
This is what I thought but I understand that ESC and electronic handbrake will shorten the life of the rears. Also, when changing over from winter to summer tyres I usually feel the disc for a lip. But as i'm not mechanically minded I'm not able to judge what is acceptable.
Pica-Pica said:
xxChrisxx said:
mgv8 said:
I don't know the car but the discs should last longer than that and rears way longer as they do a lot let work
Well that's not necessarily the case. Traction control, stability control, brake based torque vectoring and dynamic cruise control all use the brakes to function. So it's not uncommon for the rears pads to wear out first.Is the light a pad wear warning light, or does it double as something else (ABS-T/C)?
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