Brakes pads worn out at 27K miles??

next_ceo

New member
On my instrument panel "brake pads worn symbol" goes on every time I drive, is this normal for a Sprinter to have worn out brake pads at 27,000 miles? I am shocked if this is the case. They do look to have wear on them but I'm really clueless to what they actually should look like when they are new(as far as thickness goes). Please let me know.
 

jdcaples

Not Suitable w/220v Gen
On my instrument panel "brake pads worn symbol" goes on every time I drive, is this normal for a Sprinter to have worn out brake pads at 27,000 miles? I am shocked if this is the case. They do look to have wear on them but I'm really clueless to what they actually should look like when they are new(as far as thickness goes). Please let me know.


You should have them evaluated by a professional to verify the instrument panel feedback. At that point you can take the correct action.

Oh, to answer your question: In North America, it's not uncommon to hear of people disappointed with the longevity of the pads and rotors.

-Jon
 

SprintED

New member
It is very possible that your brakes are toast...as mentioned by Jon...brakes seem to go fast on some of the Sprinters in North America.

Ed
 

Altered Sprinter

Happy Little Vegemite
two mill is the absolute cut off point for pads, maximum safety thickness. information sourced from bosh Euro 2 long life pads, I do not know what the US version is for a minimum thickness saftey margins.
Richard
 

northener

New member
I have 47k on my 2006 and they are highway miles. My foot is gentle on the brakes and throttle. Right rear now squeals on first use and once pressed into service a bit more stops squealing. I wonder if I can have a faulty squealer for there is no dashboard light. This has been for the last thousand miles or so. thanks, paul
 

mobileoilchange

New member
I said this time and time again. But some people think im crazy.
the brakes on these sprinters suck!
what do i know i only service 20 something of them.
 

mobileoilchange

New member
the wear sensor is a wired sensor that is made of plastic. once the pads get worn down to a minimum, the plastic gets worn away by the rotor and once it hits the wire part of the sensor, it activated the icon on the dash telling you the pads are in need of change. when you do your brake job, youll need to replace the sensor on each wheel you service. They are 8-12 bucks each and clip onto the steel backing plate of the brake pad itself. but they will not come with the pads. you must buy them additionally.

I stated on here a hundred times that sprinters eat brakes for lunch. and they are JUNK!
i will never buy the oem pads again. I use Monroe or bendix. the monroe in my opinion are better and the drivers like them also. price wise depends on your neck of the woods and what calipers your sprinter has. mostly cost between 50-70 bucks per axle set. the rotors are 80-90 per rotor IF you have a single rear wheel. the 3500 duallys are more. The 2007-2008 now use brembo brakes. Brembo is a brand of brake that are very good. but on the fleet i service, the newer sprinters only have 15000 miles or less. so its hard to tell if theyll be any better then the 06 and older sprinters.

ps paul
sprinters dont have squealers. rear my above comment. the squealing you get is from the pads vibrating in the caliper. to stop this you can either apply anti-squeal to the pads steel backing plate, or shims.
 
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jdcaples

Not Suitable w/220v Gen
the wear sensor is ...
8-12 bucks each and clip onto the steel backing plate of the brake pad itself. but they will not come with the pads. you must buy them additionally.

i will never buy the oem pads again. I use Monroe or bendix. the monroe
...
mobileoilchange,

if you're able, would you post part numbers for the correct wear sensors
and the Monroe part numbers for the pads
you prefer that fit the T1N generation of North American Sprinters?

It'd be easiest to find these in the T1N Database area

Thanks

-Jon
 

next_ceo

New member
mobileoilchange,

I am assuming you live in Australia because Bendix brake pads are not available in US according to google. I still have to check with monroe. I believe I have the ATE calipers, I wonder what most people use for that caliper...
 

talkinghorse43

Well-known member
On my instrument panel "brake pads worn symbol" goes on every time I drive, is this normal for a Sprinter to have worn out brake pads at 27,000 miles? I am shocked if this is the case. They do look to have wear on them but I'm really clueless to what they actually should look like when they are new(as far as thickness goes). Please let me know.
I wouldn't say it's normal for that kind of brake life. For example, my first set of front pads and rotors went 107k miles and the rears are predicted (by measurement vs miles data) to last over 200k miles; and, many others have reported much more life from theirs. Of course, some have reported life on the level of the 27k you're talking about here. It seems to me that life depends on the way they're used and that they really don't tolerate overheating. Overheating causes the pad material to become glassy and brittle resulting in increased wear rates.

Usually, pads should be replaced when the lining is 2/32" thick. In my case (and others too), the outboard pads wear faster, so the measurement is not hard to do. My front pads were 17/32" when new. Also, since MB has designed the system such that rotors and pads reach discard thickness at about the same time, you have to be concerned about rotor thickness as well. For instance, the front rotors on my '02 with 16" wheels start life at 0.86" thick and reach discard thickness at 0.748" thick.
 

mobileoilchange

New member
talkinghorse i totally disagree...

I wouldn't say it's normal for that kind of brake life. For example, my first set of front pads and rotors went 107k miles and the rears are predicted (by measurement vs miles data) to last over 200k miles; and, many others have reported much more life from theirs. Of course, some have reported life on the level of the 27k you're talking about here. It seems to me that life depends on the way they're used and that they really don't tolerate overheating. Overheating causes the pad material to become glassy and brittle resulting in increased wear rates.

Usually, pads should be replaced when the lining is 2/32" thick. In my case (and others too), My front pads were 17/32" when new.
Today 01:15 AM

For 1)
the outboard pads wear faster, so the measurement is not hard to do.
if your pads are wearing more on one side then the other you have caliper slide problems.


2nd
Also, since MB has designed the system such that rotors and pads reach discard thickness at about the same time, you have to be concerned about rotor thickness as well. For instance, the front rotors on my '02 with 16" wheels start life at 0.86" thick and reach discard thickness at 0.748" thick.
in every sprinter i service, not one of the rotors wore good. the pads are alot harder then the rotors. in fact in the sprinters i service with the oem rotors and pads, the pads eat the rotors way before the pads are in need of replacement.
 

bikerjoe

New member
Every time I do my brakes, I replace the rotors, pads and sensors together. at 73K miles, I have gone through the originals and I'm on my SECOND replacement set of REAR rotors, and my THIRD set of replacement FRONT rotors. I live in The Peoples Republic of Commiefornia, so a lot of my time is spent braking on downhills. My first set of front brakes (the originals) wore out at about 26K. The second set lasted about 25K (to 51K), and the third set wore out at 70K, only 19K of use!

I am not impressed with the Sprinter brakes, but they are DIRT SIMPLE to replace! I can do either front wheel in about 15 minutes, from rolling out the jack to lowering it again. The rear brakes take a bit longer.
 

Altered Sprinter

Happy Little Vegemite
Simon you just Rock:rad:
Matches with Aus Sprinters, in fairness they are running 2500 units! big call for a US market
Richard
 

mobileoilchange

New member
simon and richard.
I LOVE the brakes on the sprinters....the faster they wear out, the more money I make!!!! yeeeeeeeeeeeeeee haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!! :cheers:

I tried telling everyone before that the brakes on the sprinters "the USA version" anyhow are junk.
 

talkinghorse43

Well-known member
Every time I do my brakes, I replace the rotors, pads and sensors together. at 73K miles, I have gone through the originals and I'm on my SECOND replacement set of REAR rotors, and my THIRD set of replacement FRONT rotors. I live in The Peoples Republic of Commiefornia, so a lot of my time is spent braking on downhills. My first set of front brakes (the originals) wore out at about 26K. The second set lasted about 25K (to 51K), and the third set wore out at 70K, only 19K of use!

I am not impressed with the Sprinter brakes, but they are DIRT SIMPLE to replace! I can do either front wheel in about 15 minutes, from rolling out the jack to lowering it again. The rear brakes take a bit longer.
Braking on downhills will definitely heat the pads and probably overheat them resulting in glassy, hard and brittle pads and much reduced life. I know some have the opinion that engine braking will considerably reduce tranny life, but it seems to me that the Sprinter was designed to utilize engine braking to augment the service brakes. Just consider how the cruise control functions and how it controls overspeed by downshifting. Also the design of the NAG1 that makes it so easy and natural to change gears on the fly. And the fact that the T1N engine/turbo is configured to provide nearly 70 braking hp as supplied from the factory. Anyway, I use engine braking to help the service brakes. When we towed a car (on an unbraked tow dolly) from San Francisco to Boston (plenty of mountain interstate downgrades with a GCVW of 12k lbs), the brake wear rate actually decreased because we were careful to go very slowly downhill and used engine braking whenever possible. Your downhills are probably more severe than the 5-6% interstate max grades, but you're likely braking less mass and 1st gear is available and could be used if you can tolerate going very slowly down them (might have to touch the service brakes now and again to keep rpms in check).
 

next_ceo

New member
Mechanic told me I need new brakes, so I ordered a set of Brembos for front and rear ones from a general parts store. Does anyone know if 04 Sprinters have EGR valve problems? I found out that 04s have the redesigned engine so does that mean the EGRs don't go out on them?
 

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