| ufbz |
| My 2001 MDX is at 80K miles, mostly on highway. And the thickness of the brake pad is 4/32 inch for both front and back pads during the state inspection. My Acura dealer quoted me $478 ($239 x2) for replacing the front and back pads. I wonder if this is overpriced or not? I wish I could do it myself but I never replaced a brake before, so I think I'd better leave it to the experts. I am wondering if I should stick with Acura or go to a 3rd party car repair shop. |
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| DaleB |
quote:
Originally posted by ufbz
My 2001 MDX is at 80K miles, mostly on highway. And the thickness of the brake pad is 4/32 inch for both front and back pads during the state inspection. My Acura dealer quoted me $478 ($239 x2) for replacing the front and back pads. I wonder if this is overpriced or not? I wish I could do it myself but I never replaced a brake before, so I think I'd better leave it to the experts. I am wondering if I should stick with Acura or go to a 3rd party car repair shop.
For regular replacement under regular maintenace, I usually go with an independent I trust.
1. In most cases they are less expensive.
2. Mechanics are just as good if not better.
3. Usually offer lifetime warrany on parts, and in some cases superior parts if not at least the equivalent. Along with free inspections, etc.
So if you have never done it yourself, get personal recommendations on an independent to do the work.
4. Where I go they even take you to your car in the garage to show you what they found and make recommendations. Plus I can stand there with my coffee just beyond the chain and watch them do the work if I want. |
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| richkuan |
I didn't dare to touch the brake 10 years ago cause I thought I don't want to mess up with this important system. By reading manuals and books (Chilton from libraries), I found it's really not that scary or difficult. I have been doing brakes for my own vehicles for years. If you want to be a DIYer and save money, you can learn the whole procedure by reading the manuals. I can give you a list of what you need and what to do if you dare to try to do it yourself. :D
Good luck! |
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| DaleB |
quote:
Originally posted by richkuan
I didn't dare to touch the brake 10 years ago cause I thought I don't want to mess up with this important system. By reading manuals and books (Chilton from libraries), I found it's really not that scary or difficult. I have been doing brakes for my own vehicles for years. If you want to be a DIYer and save money, you can learn the whole procedure by reading the manuals. I can give you a list of what you need and what to do if you dare to try to do it yourself. :D
Good luck!
I have done many pad replacements on other cars. But you need to know if the rotors need turning. My old Taurus also needed the rotors turned or replaced every time pads were replaced.
It seems the MDX needs to have the front ones turned at least as often as replacing the pads You certainly don't want to use new pads on what may be warped rotors.
After driving many miles, you may not have the noticed the degradation in the feel of the brakes due to warpage. But it does affect braking efficiency somewhat. If you are heavy into DIY you may want to even take the rotors off and take them in to a shop for turning. Now things are getting more involved.
In any case, I would not recommend doing it unless you have some experience in the past. And keep the manual beside you. |
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| richkuan |
quote:
Originally posted by DaleB
I have done many pad replacements on other cars. But you need to know if the rotors need turning. My old Taurus also needed the rotors turned or replaced every time pads were replaced.
... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...
In any case, I would not recommend doing it unless you have some experience in the past. And keep the manual beside you.
That is right! If the rotor is not pretty, it's a good idea to re-surface. You need a rotor lathe to do the trick, and measure the thinkness after re-surface to make sure it's still within the specs.
Well, looks like it's not some simple task for most DIYers unless you have access to the shop equipments.:D |
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| mdx99 |
[QUOTE]Originally posted by ufbz
My 2001 MDX is at 80K miles, mostly on highway. And the thickness of the brake pad is 4/32 inch for both front and back pads during the state inspection. My Acura dealer quoted me $478 ($239 x2) for replacing the front and back pads. I wonder if this is overpriced or not? I wish I could do it myself but I never replaced a brake before, so I think I'd better leave it to the experts. I am wondering if I should stick with Acura or go to a 3rd party car repair shop. [/Q
$478 for pad replacement...total rip-off!
I usually get the OEM pads from dealer or Tim ($40/pair +-) and go to local mechanic, they usually charge $40-50 for front or rear so it shouldn't cost you more than $200 for both front & rear, add $40 if the rotors (front & rear) need to be machine. that would be about $250 max. :rolleyes: |
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| DaleB |
quote:
Originally posted by mdx99
[QUOTE]Originally posted by ufbz
[B]I usually get the OEM pads from dealer or Tim ($40/pair +-) and go to local mechanic, they usually charge $40-50 for front or rear so it shouldn't cost you more than $200 for both front & rear, add 440 if the rotors (front & rear) need to be machine. that would be about $250 max. :rolleyes:
For 300 you could get the works done including brake fluid flush which you would certainly want to do if it's never been done.
I usually do it every couple of years on my cars. |
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| JeffK |
Just my $.02.
There are many post on "turning rotors".
Keep in mind, that turning rotors decreases the thickness of the rotor. This is not good.
As to a warped rotor: You will notice if it is warped: You will feel it when you brake.
Many years ago, we just replaced pads - never turned a rotor unless it was heavily scared.
Sometimes with the installation of new pads, the breaks squealed - maybe one out of hundred!
If your dealer did the brake job and afterward the brakes squealed you would be unhappy. Dealer solution, turn the rotors each time you changed the pads. Very costly, usually unnecessary, but eliminated squealing.
For my Mercedes Benz, putting in new rotors was only $30 more per rotor more than turning them! I usually went 3 to 4 brake pad replacements before replacing rotors.
Bottom line, if the rotors are not scored, look good, just replace the pads!
JeffK |
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| dipersp |
| I agree with Jeff. Turning the rotors makes them thinner and more susceptible to warp again, only faster. At MOST, turn your rotors once, taking off the least amount of material as possible to be true. If they've been turned once, trash them. Not worth it for the cost. |
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| XStatic |
I have replaced pads on heavily scored rotors on my truck without consequences. It takes a little braking to get the pad to sit in the grooves but after initial wear in it would seem like you would get more surface area for gripping.
I wouldn't suggest that for your MDX though....
On our Volvo the service manual called for replacing the rotors whenever the brakes were done as they were too thin for turning.
Even at the dealer with 4 wheel disk brakes, replacing all 4 rotors it was less than $400 though. I had to do this a couple times in 130K. |
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| richkuan |
I agree. Re-surfacing/turning the rotors may not be necessary and it does make the rotor thiner. Depends on how deep the grooves are, normally .002" - .005" should get rid of all the grooves and the rotor will look like a mirror. As long as the thinkness is within the spec, you are good.
The advantage of doing turning is that your new pads will have a good start and even wear down the road which makes them last longer and have maximum gripping force from the beginning. You will feel the difference -- smooth, quite and sharp! The difference is very noticable!
The procedure to turn the rotor is also very simple. Mount it on the lathe, set the cutting depth, and let the lathe run. The whole thing takes about 5-10 minutes. Just, most of us don't have access to the lathe and have to pay to have it done. |
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| DaleB |
Agreed, the difference is very noticeable. I'd rather have shorter rotor life over the life of the vehicle if it means better pad/rotor contact with each application of the brake.
Experience tells me this is just another Acura feature. When Acura resurfaced mine (goodwill free service) at 18,000 they said they only required a dressing up, and were still well within limits. Regardless, the difference was significant.
Just remember, you may not need rotors turned with every pad replacement, but you should not have the rotors turned unless you also intend to replace the pads. You want to start of with a perfect interface. And you can not determine warpage with the amount of scoring. But pedal feel can tell you a lot. |
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| need4spd |
For the price you'd pay someone to do your brakes, you could afford to buy a new set of rotors. Then you could have the old ones turned and the next time you need brakes, swap in the old ones. That way, you don't have the hassle of taking everything apart and going to a machine shop to get the rotors turned to complete the brake job. Saves lots of time but defeats the purpose of saving money on the first brake job. And you have to store those rotors somewhere in the garage.
Also, BTW, true rotor warpage is very rare. Read this article on brake myths by StopTech. |
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| DaleB |
quote:
Originally posted by need4spd
For the price you'd pay someone to do your brakes, you could afford to buy a new set of rotors. Then you could have the old ones turned and the next time you need brakes, swap in the old ones. That way, you don't have the hassle of taking everything apart and going to a machine shop to get the rotors turned to complete the brake job. Saves lots of time but defeats the purpose of saving money on the first brake job. And you have to store those rotors somewhere in the garage.
Also, BTW, true rotor warpage is very rare. Read this article on brake myths by StopTech.
Interesting article. Just removing the 'glaze' or material from the rotor is not too different than dressing the rotor on a lathe. Which means the minimal amount of cast iron is removed to just obtain a clean smooth surface. This is more expensive, but can be done much more uniformily than can ever be achieved by hand sanding. An expert brake mechanic knows this and will measure with a straight edge and feeler gauge at more than one point on the disk to ensure there is no real warpage, per se, before resurfacing with an abrasive making random swirls, rather than a shiny surface, which takes longer to seat the pads.
So when it comes to turning a rotor, there is more to it than just shaving off metal to make it flat.
Again, this is dependent on the skill and knowledge of the mechanic.
But the article does stress the importance of breaking in brakes, which is also true for tires. The first few hundred miles is most critical for those two components. |
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| DChan415 |
Front and rear brake pads at independant shop: $300
Peace of mind: Priceless.... |
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