Replacement of front brake pads and rotor

JOHNM4843

New member
NEWBIE HERE. I'M WONDERING WHY I HAVEN'T SEEN ANY SLOTTED OR CROSS-DRILLED ROTORS ? ALSO IS ANYONE USING CERAMIC BRAKE PADS?
JOHN
[BTW, I'M NOT SHOUTING. I HAVE VISION PROBLEMS AND CAPS WORK BETTER FOR ME]
 

marklg

Well-known member
NEWBIE HERE. I'M WONDERING WHY I HAVEN'T SEEN ANY SLOTTED OR CROSS-DRILLED ROTORS ? ALSO IS ANYONE USING CERAMIC BRAKE PADS?
JOHN
[BTW, I'M NOT SHOUTING. I HAVE VISION PROBLEMS AND CAPS WORK BETTER FOR ME]
I think I saw cross drilled and slotted ones if you want to pay $1000 for brake parts. I wasn't sure that would be worth it. There are Ceramic pads. From what I saw, they have more brake fade in this application, at least according to the letter ratings. These brakes are not that big for such a big vehicle, maybe that is the reason.

I was looking for a solution to display everything in caps, and I did not find one. Some screen readers will read caps one letter at a time so someone that is blind may have a harder time reading caps. It's a difficult issue. I hope this is readable for you. There are apps to zoom in on the screen. I assume you have tried that.

Regards,

Mark
 

Midwestdrifter

Engineer In Residence
Slotted and drilled rotors don't brake any better with modern pad materials. At least off the track. They are more expensive and more prone to early failure, so I don't see any benefits for the sprinter.
 

SprintKon

New member
But have you seen this? The brakes on my 2005 Sprinter are in need of some care as I have a wobble in at least one wheel. I took off both the front wheels and found that locking screw to be welded over. I have not seen such a thing before and I am wondering if it is some signal to the next mechanic (me) to not use the rotors again because they have been turned? Something else?

I am thinking when I get the new rotors, trying to get the weld cap off with an angle grinder hoping to still get the Torx on it. If not, grind the whole head off leaving the bolt as an alignment stud.


This is a great thread, thank you to everyone for all the effort.Rotor wide.jpgLocking Bolt.jpg
 
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marklg

Well-known member
But have you seen this? The brakes on my 2005 Sprinter are in need of some care as I have a wobble in at least one wheel. I took off both the front wheels and found that locking screw to be welded over. I have not seen such a thing before and I am wondering if it is some signal to the next mechanic (me) to not use the rotors again because they have been turned? Something else?

I am thinking when I get the new rotors, trying to get the weld cap off with an angle grinder hoping to still get the Torx on it. If not, grind the whole head off leaving the bolt as an alignment stud.


This is a great thread, thank you to everyone for all the effort.
M I C - K E Y -M O U S E.

Boy, I have never seen that. Someone must have screwed up and did a quick and dirty fix. I would certainly replace the rotors and the screw. I hope that the threads and the hub is not buggered up.

Good luck to you, hope you get it out OK.

Mark
 

Midwestdrifter

Engineer In Residence
I think that bolt was seized, so they welded something to the head to extract it. For some dumb reason they then put the bolt back, and cut off the nut/rod they used to extract it. You can drill out the bolt, or weld a nut to it for extraction.
 

sikwan

06 Tin Can
ALSO IS ANYONE USING CERAMIC BRAKE PADS?

I am using ceramic pads. They are supposed to be less aggressive on the rotors, but I'm not at a mileage to give any data on it. However, they are less dusty than a semi-metallic and I like that.


Also, I'm not driving around a heavy load so factor that in before deciding.
 

220629

Well-known member
I think that bolt was seized, so they welded something to the head to extract it. For some dumb reason they then put the bolt back, and cut off the nut/rod they used to extract it. You can drill out the bolt, or weld a nut to it for extraction.
Welding a piece on was effective. Re-installing the same fastener...

M I C - K E Y -M O U S E.
...
Maybe it should have just been left out.

I would try tapping the lobes of the leftover weld in a counter clockwise direction with a caping chisel or dull punch. It may break the fastener loose to screw out.

That fastener is not a 100% critical part. It secures the rotor in place when the lug bolts aren't clamping the rotor. Once the wheel is torqued into place the fastener has no duty. If you can't source a replacement fastener it would be ok to re-assemble without it and install one after you get the part.

:cheers: vic

Added:
Assuming using tapping for removal works, use anti-seize on the MM'd part and tap it back into place just snug using a caping chisel, etc. Replace with a proper part when convenient.
 
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marklg

Well-known member
I believe they are P/N 001 990 09 14 "Pan Head Fit Bolt". Just a few bucks from a Mercedes dealer. Shipping will probably double the cost.

Regards,

Mark
 

Protege91

Member
Anyone know what happened to PoolMike's write-up, mentioned in the first post?

Thanks everyone for your posts.... I'm learning a lot. Trying to conjure up the guts to attempt a brake job on my motor home in the storage area parking lot with minimal tools. :) :) :)
 

israndy

2007 LTV Serenity
That drives me crazy. Why do people do that? Post them here and they are here until this site disappears. And it's free, unlike the Airstream forum that charges $20/yr to host your pics. Don't let your subscription lapse!
 

Protege91

Member
He used a free picture hosting site that held photos temporarily.
That explains the photos disappearing--I've seen that a lot on here, old posts where the content exists the the photos are at dead links. But my question is, shouldn't the writeup itself (minus pics) be here somewhere? I searched thru all his posts and couldn't find it.
 

sikwan

06 Tin Can
But my question is, shouldn't the writeup itself (minus pics) be here somewhere? I searched thru all his posts and couldn't find it.

I think it was removed. It's very hard to follow a writ-up when most of the text relied heavily on missing pictures. This is why (probably) hkpierce replaced it with this one.
 

Protege91

Member
I think I'm going to tackle my brake job myself on my 2006 T1N motorhome. I've read a lot on here in this thread and others--thanks y'all for the info!

Question about sizes for rotors/pads so I order the right parts. I crawled under mine and eyeballed the calipers. They all seem to be the Bosch 2-piston system. What surprised me is that the same hardware seems to be on the front and rears! There is a slight Bosch model # difference left-to-right, but on each side the front and rears are the same! I didn't expect that; I swore I saw people referencing Bosch front and ATE rear. But even the famous europarts-sd parts chart implied that within Bosch, I should expect a difference. Am I crazy?

Also, it appears I have studs and lug nuts. Every YouTube video and discussion I've read here had me expecting screw-in bolts holding the wheels on. I had to have missed a few posts explaining which models have what.

OK time to read up on this "bleeding" concept. I always skipped that step in the past on other vehicles (not that I'm experienced but did 2 brake jobs on my friends cars 10 years ago, knowing that I would never ride with them again). It seems more important now that I'm older and smarter and driving a rolling house on mountain roads. :thinking:
 

220629

Well-known member
...

Also, it appears I have studs and lug nuts. Every YouTube video and discussion I've read here had me expecting screw-in bolts holding the wheels on. I had to have missed a few posts explaining which models have what.
Dual rear wheels? You have a 3500 model Sprinter.

...OK time to read up on this "bleeding" concept. I always skipped that step in the past on other vehicles (not that I'm experienced but did 2 brake jobs on my friends cars 10 years ago, knowing that I would never ride with them again). It seems more important now that I'm older and smarter and driving a rolling house on mountain roads. :thinking:
Open the bleeder screws BEFORE you compress the caliper pistons or you risk moving contamination back up into the CAB aka ABS module.

Brake fluid flushing is recommended on a 2 year schedule. While you are doing the brake job it is a good time to renew your fluid.

:cheers: vic
 

Protege91

Member
Thanks Vic. Yes I have a 3500, forgot to say that. I didn't know that drove the difference.

I'd prefer not to renew the fluid at this time. Why, you ask? Because I had the fluid renewed at the MB dealer 15 months ago (30k miles ago) and then again at Upscale Automotive/Sprinter Store in Tualatin, OR 9 months ago (15k ago) since they found +4% water content.

I'll plan to take your advice and open the bleeder valve for the piston compression to avoid killing the ABS. Seems like a nice logical step without overkill/waste.

Question, would you recommend attaching a tube and catch jar or just let the fluid fall onto a rag or something? I have no clue how much fluid to expect when I compress the piston.

Thanks for your time!
 

220629

Well-known member
...

Question, would you recommend attaching a tube and catch jar or just let the fluid fall onto a rag or something? I have no clue how much fluid to expect when I compress the piston.

Thanks for your time!
I always use a tube and plastic container. I dump SMALL amounts like that into my waste oil. Technically that isn't allowed, but if it is a very small amount...

It is best to save it as a separate liquid waste and dispose of it during a municipal toxic waste disposal campaign.

:cheers: vic
 

Protege91

Member
I always use a tube and plastic container. I dump SMALL amounts like that into my waste oil. Technically that isn't allowed, but if it is a very small amount...

It is best to save it as a separate liquid waste and dispose of it during a municipal toxic waste disposal campaign.

:cheers: vic
What size tube would you recommend? 1/4"?

Luckily here in Columbus, OH the hazardous waste facility is open 5-6 days a week. One thing we do right! Hopefully auto parts stores would accept it too along with used oil. Because with all the places I'm NOT allowed to work on my RV, I'm probably going to have to service it in in the woods somewhere, or an auto zone parking lot.

This country needs to offer convenient and free methods of disposing of these things if they want to discourage people from dumping them in the trash or in the woods. It should never be difficult to do the "right" thing.
 

marklg

Well-known member
What size tube would you recommend? 1/4"?

Luckily here in Columbus, OH the hazardous waste facility is open 5-6 days a week. One thing we do right! Hopefully auto parts stores would accept it too along with used oil. Because with all the places I'm NOT allowed to work on my RV, I'm probably going to have to service it in in the woods somewhere, or an auto zone parking lot.

This country needs to offer convenient and free methods of disposing of these things if they want to discourage people from dumping them in the trash or in the woods. It should never be difficult to do the "right" thing.
I just went to Home Depot and got a couple sizes of vinyl tubing and saw what fit. Was only a few bucks. I used glass jars to hold the waste brake fluid as it may attack some plastics. I eventually poured it back into the metal cans the new brake fluid came from and my city did take it as hazardous waste with no issue. I flushed the system using one of these:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0002KM5L0

Turns it into a one man job. I do understand it does not flush the ABS parts. I don't have a scanner to do that, but I figured I changed probably 90% of the fluid.

Regards,

Mark
 

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