Hello, would appreciate advice...got the Rotex Gold pads. I was originally told by dealer a fairly reasonable cost for the labor. I am now being told $150 for front, $150 for rear, to replace brake pads and grind rotors...am now at 16K miles. Questions that I have...

1. Is it necessary to grind the rotors, if they are otherwise fine?

2. Is this a reasonable price for just labor, around $300? Its at a dealership...or can a brake place do it as well, and if so, any recommendations. (And FYI, I absolutely refuse to go to Pep Boys based on previous experience with other cars).

Thanks.

 

no need to grind the rotors (resurface). not recommend imo.

labor for the change (front & rear) should be about 1.5 hours...total. i would go to any well know brake center.

the switch is an easy diy project (i have one if needed). the rear caliper doesn't even need to be removed to change the pads.

your being robbed.

 

I had only fronts put on, cost $20. + pads.

 

Seriously? Which store, or is there nothing terribly special about replacing X-Fire brakes that requires the person to have knowledge of German engineering.

 

You would be better off investing in the Crossfire maintenance manual and doing it yourself.

 

here is my diy:

ROTEX BRAKE PAD INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS:

Tools Required:

flathead screw driver
needle nose pliers
3/8 ratchet w/ extension
7 mm allen wrench
7 mm allen socket
17 mm socket w/ extension (for easy of removing lug bolts)
floor jack
torque wrench

Steps to follow:

1.) Use a floor jack and tools to loose lug nuts. (suggestion: use electrical tape around exterior lug wrench bore for added protection from scratches to your rims)

2.) Use a floor jack to lift vehicle so the tire is 2" off the ground.

3.) Remove loosened lug nuts with 17 mm socket and extension. (use electrical tape on this socket as well)

3.) Use flat screw driver to push piston clip to compressed position. Place screw driver in the back side of caliper between rotor and inboard pad. Twist screw driver against pad and rotor to move piston.

4.) Remove front caliper clip with screw driver or pliers.

5.) Remove sensors gently by pulling on sensor to unplug.

6.) Remove black plastic caps on backside of caliper.

7.) Use 7 mm allen socket and/or 7 mm allen wrench to remove both long allen bolts.

8.) Remove caliper from rotor (do not allow caliper to hang by brake lines). Set caliper on top of rotor, securely.

9.) Remove factory brake pads. Install inbound "Rotex" pad into caliper (no clip is used for piston). Install outboard pad onto rotor bracket housing.

10.) Side caliper over rotor. Secure caliper by inserting caliper allen bolts into the rear of caliper. Make sure bolts are in place correctly. Then tighten 7 mm allen bolts firmly. (*Note: Caliper will seem semi-loose, but this is normal).

11.) Reinstall sensor wire.

12.) Reinstall plastic caps on backside of caliper.

13.) Reinstall front caliper clip.

14.) Reinstall wheel and tire. Hand tighten lug nuts with 17mm socket. The tighten securely with lug wrench. Lower vehicle with floor jack and retighten lug nuts when vehicle is on the pavement. Torque lugs to 81 ft lbs.

15.) Start car and apply brake pedal repeatedly until pressure has built up. Drive as normal.

 

I had my Rotex gold pads installed by my dealer. Front and rear took 1 hour, and I was charged $72.00 (hourly rate of dealer). The rotors did not need resurfacing, and if they did that would be an additional 1/2 hour ($36.00) in labor.

 

If you visually inspect your rotors, and see ridges and valleys on the surface of the rotor and also if you can feel these as well (remember that there are two sides of the rotor) then the rule of thumb is that you "should" resurface the rotor or replace it (ie: drilled or slotted rotors cannot be resurfaced). Thus you would or "should" replace or resurface both fronts or both rears as the case may be.

Now, if your rotors are clear and not blemished with ridges or valleys then you probably do not need to resurface them.

The second part of your question is... "Is $150 per set too expensive to resurface rotors and replace pads?" This would probably be a 2.5 to 3.0 hour job per set plus machine time and cutting tools. So three hours times the going rate per hour probably gets you about $150 per set with rotor turning.

 

The new pads generate more heat, for best results you should upgrade to slotted/drilled rotors, or you may warp the stock rotors. if you have any car experience, you can DIY. I don't have time so, I had the rotors and pads installed $100.00 bucks for the fronts.

my .02 cents

 

Got a question - 16k miles sounds awful early in the life of a brake pad to have to replace it. I know how you drive etc are factors but has anyone else had to do pads this early in the life of the car?

Pat

ps - Andrew thanks for the detailed how to. I'm going to tuck it away for future use.

 

I've never changed brake pads and rotors in my whole life...only with my crossfire! This forum had been helpful enough that it wasn't real hard at all to replace the brake pads and rotors. I don't trust the dealership to do the job and I would rather do it myself. It saved me $300 which also went to the new pads and Brembo slotted cross drilled rotors.

http://www.cardomain.com/ride/2053478

 

I just had the Rotex Gold pads put on the brakes of my car. I had Midas do the work so they insisted that they check out all four brakes. I have almost 13,000 miles on the car and the mechanic said that all pads and rotors were in great shape.

As it turned out, the Rotex pad doesn't have the mount for the electronic sensor that the factory pads have, so the mechanic drilled a hole in the pad to install the sensor. Everything works great.

 

I didn't have to drill a hole in my Rotex Gold pads. They had it out of the box.

 

one set i purchased for a friend...had no hole...so i had to drill the hole as well. but the set i purchased for my car had the hole pre-drilled. luck of the draw i guess.

 

A word about resurfacing; You can not only visually inspect a rotor you need to check the surface with a dial indicator. It does not does not take much difference in two parallel surface to not have even pressure and contact. Brakes wear in and can cause a rotor to wear slightly uneven and to get the best performance out of a new set of breaks you should resurface, or at the very least check it with a dial indicator. The breaks are one of the most important devices on your car. Visually you can check for grooves and burns, but uneven surfaces you need instruments.

 

Good advice. Personally, I resurface every time I put on new pads. That way they get a chance to get introduced on an even surface, so to speak. Putting new pads on a worn rotor will actually reduce your stopping power until the pads get a chance to get "bedded in" to the groves on the rotors.

 

at 30,000 miles i didn't want to take a chance at destroying my front rotors, so i picked up a pair of ebc greens. the rotors were in great shape, so i didn't resurface. well things were good for a week, but then the squeals started. it sounds like a dump truck when stopping. i usually resurface rotors every pad change, even if they only need a light cut. either these pads suck or i should have stuck to my usual routine?

 

Thanks Andrew for the detailed discription. I'm going to have to commit to the "Rotex Gold" procedure soon. The brake dust is driving me nuts.


By the way, Dan Root, empty your inbox!!

 

Patpur, I think most people are switching pads early is to avoid the black dust that the stock pads create. I changed mine at about 27k and haven't looked back - I should have done it on day one, I'm just a cheap *******. The stock pads I took off had at least another ten k left. I went with the Rotex Gold's @ about a hundred bucks if I remember right, I did it myself, and didn't machine the rotors. They're Awesome.

 

i highly disagree... most drilled/slotted rotors on the market are inferior quality compared to OEM and for street use, slotted/drilled rotors are not recommended due to lower durability... if you are going to warp your rotors from braking from high speed, it will happen on the OEM just as likely as the inferior drilled/slotted units, just don't do any heavy braking from 100 mph + and things will be ok... if an emergency happens and you do have to, you pay the price...

however, for looks, drilled rotors are great...