I ordered and received the front only Rotex Brake Pads to reduce the dust. I searched the website and felt this was my best bet. My husband has little mechanic know-how, so I've made lots of calls to have the installation done by an auto/brake store. (I've not called the dealer yet) I get told emphatically that they will NOT do a replacement on a customer's own pads. I must purchase their pads.

I copied the DIY instructions on the site, but has anyone found this to be a problem? When I say I have my own brake pads they cut me off and act insulted! Geesh! I hate feeling so vulnerable.

Andrew's instructions have been copied to a document. On a side note, my husband gets peeved when I doubt his abilities, but I have many many examples and experiences with his frustration level and "bad moods" when he has to work on something mechanical. I prefer to let the experts to the work, but if those that have done the "job" can attest that someone with limited experience could do the installation, I'll certainly encourage him to give it a try...

However, these are my "brakes' we're talking about...eek!

 

Find a local mechanic you can trust, word of mouth is usually best.
Then become his customer I can't see why people will pay dealer rates for simple out of warrenty work like pads, oil changes, shocks, ect.
When you take you crossfire to the dealer you pay too much for some new kid out of tech school to put you pads on anyway.
Front pads is an easy job. Any local brake shop can do it also.
Good luck.

 

Brakes pads are fairly easy to replace, over time you do learn a few tricks. Depends how "limited" you mean... Air filter limited or beyond.

I agree with Stryfox; avoid the marital spat, find a real LOCAL mechanic, not the dealer. The local mechanic as Stryfox indicated will be best attained by word of mouth and will typically be the best price and do a good job.

 

I did call our local mechanic. They know us and have worked on all our cars. He flat out said "no". I guess they worry about the warranty issue associated with brake pads that are brought by the customer. From what I've gathered, it doesn't seem as if the installation is a big deal. I will keep calling. It's very frustrating, to say the least.

 

I am surprised by your mechanic's reply? I would not be to happy if I were you.

 

I wonder if he had been OK if he sourced the brake pads?

 

I went to my mechanic and asked if he'd get me the pads and install them. His response: "You get them and we'll put them on..."

 

No mechanic should have issue with installing pads regardless of their origin.

Warranty work is on their work... not on the pads themselves.

Call around to other shops (get referrals from other friends, etc.).

Other places to call are 'tuner shops' or 'speed shops' these guys generally do lots of high performance upgrades and would probably not have issue with the fact that you would be bringing in the pads.

Again, check regular/reliable mechanics in your area.

If you are really stuck... come to San Mateo and I'll put in the pads for you... the wifey and I will even take you two out to dinner on us.

 

I had rotex pads put on last spring and after calling around, I had one local chain garage tell me that they only install parts that they supply. I suspect that they want the outrageous mark up on the parts. I ended up having my pads installed by the dealer. They also made sure to give me back my old brake pads because they only had 10,000 miles on them. The interesting thing was that the price difference between the dealer and local shops was negligible.

Moral of the story - check with your dealer, they'll probably do it at about the same price as any independent garage.

 

Golfergal...I read through Andrew's instructions several times, and felt that I could take a stab at doing it myself. However, Andrew offered to put them on for me, and I jumped on his offer. I really wanted to do the work while Andrew supervised, but he was pressed for time so I "supervised" him.

The instructions are very detailed and anyone knowing how to read the instructions and follow them each step of the way will have no trouble with this job...the rears are so simple I think my wife could do them, after reading the instructions, of course.

The only thing that I would add is to clean and polish the wheels while they're off, and get a box of latex gloves from Sam's Club to keep everything a bit cleaner. The great thing is that there are no mechanic's secrets or tricks that Andrew picked up over the years that he forgot to add to the instructions. I've changed Drum brakes on many an occasion, but I was intimidated by the though of doing Discs...well, most people will tell you that changing discs are easier than changing drums...and now I'm one of them. Though I still haven't changed my own disc brakes I won't hesitate to do my Crossfire, or any other car in the family having seen the work done.

I also don't think that there is anything that should result in frustration...just ensure that everything lines up again to get the retaining pins through, and don't forget to do the wheel cleaning and polishing.

 

~ this is more time consuming than the pad change itself.

being who i am... (mr. clean freak)... i have to clean every nook & cranny on both sides of the rim (old tooth brush)... including tar removal... then a nice coat of wax for protection.

 

Tell your local mechanic that you want these pads because they are the ones you want not because you are trying to save a few bucks. If he says no then you need a new mechanic.
If he won't take the time to find out what you want and is too pig headed to listen to you about the pads before making a decision, you need a new shop.

 

I know it's hard for most any "guy" to understand what it feels like to be treated like an idiot simply because of my gender, but in making these calls, that's exactly how I felt. They were condescending and down right rude, to say the least. I am going to have my husband make the next series of calls, and I bet he will get someone to listen.

As for our local mechanic, well, I've never been the one to deal with the guy. I will certainly have my husband explain that I bought the pads as a replacement to cut down on the brake dust. I never figured it would be a big deal to get them installed. I am expecting a call from my dealer tomorrow on my 'cracked' S and to set up an appointment to have that replaced. I'll go ahead and ask about the brake pads then. Geesh, it's ridiculous.

As an 'aside': I am a confident person in my every day life and can ask questions and assert myself in a variety of situations. However, the technical and mechanical parts of owning a car can be very frustrating. I wish my husband was more interested in this world, but he isn't. He just didn't get the "car" bug that many on her have. Oh well...he's good at lots of other things!

 

Yeah, I didn't marry my wife for her cooking or house keeping skills...

One of the coolest women I knew when I was younger was a total gear-head (and drop dead gorgeous). She and I were very good friends. I haven't seen her for years, but anyone can learn and she was more of a gear-head than most of the guys I knew... and most mechanics. Matter of fact, last i heard she was a certified mechanic working at a high end custom shop.

I wish you good luck with the brake pad installation quest.

All the best ... *HUGS*

 

DChrysler installed mine without any problems...took about 45 minute’s total.

 

Get this...local mechanic quoted my husband $200.00 to do the brake pads!!! I didn't go in, as I was dropping him off to pick up our Jeep that was getting an oil change. I about croaked! I now suspect the outfit is ripping us off everytime we venture in for any sort of car issue.

They said they would have to re do the entire brake system...my car has 11,000 miles on it! I can't stand car mechanics. As far as I'm concerned, they are 99% shysters that prey on innocent people that are at their mercy. At this point, I'm going to live with my freaking brake dust.

Have yet to ask the dealer. That will come tomorrow. Crossing my fingers...

 

~ i wish a forum member who lived close to you could help you out... ...the install is cake. 15 minutes max a corner.

personally i would do it for free... as a fellow crossfire owner (& avid golfer).

 

Thanks, Andrew...Just got off the course. I shot a 3 over for 9. I threw away 3 strokes that should have been easy pars. ARgh!

Yes, the brake pad issue is ridiculous. I have printed out your directions and given them to my husband. He doesn't feel confident in doing the work, but maybe if I prod him a bit, he'll give it a whirl.

I'll just have to keep cleaning my rims, in the meantime.

 

I had never done a brake pad change, followed andrew's instructions ...1 hour total. Just make sure you have a torque wrench $30 and a caliper spreader $10 bucks at sears.

 

Biggest keys with doing ANY kind of mechanical work...

ALWAYS pre-read and re-read the instructions before starting.

Make sure you have the right tools for the job (torque wrench, caliper spreader, etc.)

While following instructions... be patient and work through each step slowly.

After you do the first front wheel, the second will go more smoothly because you already have 'experience' doing one. The first rear wheel will be a little tougher because you are doing a slightly different assembly, but you have experience with the front wheels so that will help. The last one should be a piece of cake.

You can help out by doing the cleaning of the rims as your husband goes through each brake change. Always remember to give words of encouragement and calm.

Or... you can do the brake change and he can do the cleaning...

Last thing... if whoever is doing the brakes is a little questionable about a step... before beginning work... ask here or do some googling for answers (using a torque wrench for instance). Everyone has a different experience level and even a person who barely knows how to use a screwdriver can do this job. It's all just a question of proper instructions.