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New discs & pads - Is this expensive?

8K views 34 replies 17 participants last post by  Tommy23 
#1 ·
Had the XE-S 4th service yesterday at my main dealer and it was recommended to change the rear pads (at 5mm) and discs.

They quoted rear brake pads £319.80, rear discs £321.91= £641.71 :roll:

I've no idea, is that expensive?

I'm happy to go to an independant but I feel more comfortable with original manufacturers parts and fitting if there's not much in it.
 
#2 ·
That does sound expensive. Also, based on comments in this forum, original equipment JLR discs are not particularly high quality and seem to be unusually prone to rusting badly. The pads do not produce as much dust as some other types, which avoids making the wheels dirty but maybe this is because they are harder and thus wear down the disc more.
Personally I would have no qualms with going for reputable make aftermarket discs and pads, fitted by an independant.
Incidently, did the dealership explain why new discs are needed? Are they scored, badly rusted or worn down to the minimum thickness?
 
#5 ·
Just had front and back discs and pads replaced yesterday. I sourced Brembo discs and pad online for £350 and an independent fitted them for £60. £410 all in.
 
#6 ·
Pads need replacing at 5mm.... they're only 50% worn 😂
 
#7 ·
Indianajons said:
UV Blue said:
Had the XE-S 4th service yesterday at my main dealer and it was recommended to change the rear pads (at 5mm) and discs.

They quoted rear brake pads £319.80, rear discs £321.91= £641.71 :roll:

I've no idea, is that expensive?

I'm happy to go to an independant but I feel more comfortable with original manufacturers parts and fitting if there's not much in it.
Pads need replacing at 5mm.... they're only 50% worn 😂
According to the dealer, my rear tyres needed replacing at 21,000 miles - it's now at 30,000! Plenty of wear still left.
 
#8 ·
Jeff123 said:
Indianajons said:
UV Blue said:
Had the XE-S 4th service yesterday at my main dealer and it was recommended to change the rear pads (at 5mm) and discs.

They quoted rear brake pads £319.80, rear discs £321.91= £641.71 :roll:

I've no idea, is that expensive?

I'm happy to go to an independant but I feel more comfortable with original manufacturers parts and fitting if there's not much in it.
Pads need replacing at 5mm.... they're only 50% worn 😂
According to the dealer, my rear tyres needed replacing at 21,000 miles - it's now at 30,000! Plenty of wear still left.
And you really do not want a JLR dealership to supply and fit tyres - they'll charge absolute maximum prices and you probably won't get a choice of tyre fitted. A much better deal will be available through a tyre specialist or online at somewhere like Blackcircles. With the latter you also get the chance to browse a wide range of tyres and read reviews/comments from other users.
 
#11 ·
I think the S might have bigger brakes and rotors than the other cars. I had to replace the R1 Concept rotors and pads that I had the misfortune to fit (dreadful quality but looked fantastic, as long as you didnt want them to stop the car they are perfect). My performance mechanics reckoned that the Jag OEM rotors for my car (the F Type which has the 380mm on the front and I think 326 on the back) were perfect because they arent too hard, so they are nice and grippy for someone who wants a nice drive but occasional enthusiastic run. The cost was quite high in comparison to aftermarket, but their view was to stick to OEM for the brakes though there were some brands out of Germany that they thought were good as well, at similar cost.

A lot of people on the F Type forum seemed to be wanting harder rotors which last longer, but personally I prefer the way the car stops with the OEM.
 
#13 ·
Be careful with pads as the harder they are they are made more for faster sporty driving. That in normal conditions you realise that they need heavier foot pressure until they heat up. I was doing a lot of driving in hilly/moutainous areas and the harder pads were great on downhill as the grip when hot was excellent. Around town they were still fine but I noticed a difference in the amount of pedal pressure needed. (Mintex)
 
#14 ·
chrisjp said:
That does sound expensive. Also, based on comments in this forum, original equipment JLR discs are not particularly high quality and seem to be unusually prone to rusting badly. The pads do not produce as much dust as some other types, which avoids making the wheels dirty but maybe this is because they are harder and thus wear down the disc more.
Personally I would have no qualms with going for reputable make aftermarket discs and pads, fitted by an independant.
Incidently, did the dealership explain why new discs are needed? Are they scored, badly rusted or worn down to the minimum thickness?
chrisjp - yes the discs are rusty which has contributed to the pad wear, the pads are at 5mm. I do like the fact that there is very little brake dust on the Jag, every previous car I've had have been a lot worse by some distance!

:D Thanks everyone for your input - very interesting and I take it all on board.
 
#15 ·
My discs could do with a tidy up, so I've bought some Apec pads for the front to see if they clean up at all. If there's an improvement, I might repeat the procedure until clean, and then fit Jag OEM's.

I don't have pitting or ridges (unlike my previous XE), just areas that don't seem to be swept. My logic is that cheap but decent pads as a cleaning tool might restore the discs to a good condition. Car has only done 11k miles!
 
#16 ·
New pads are usually 10mm thick, so at 5mm they shouldn't need changing and you have a pad wear indicator to tell you when they do (2-3mm). If the discs really are that bad that they need changing, then obviously the pads will have to be changed too. If the discs are badly scored, pitted or worn thin, they will need to be changed but some light surface rust or heavy rust around the edges isn't really a problem. No need to go for grooved, drilled or dimpled discs unless you are racing and making the brakes glow.
 
#17 ·
There is something to be said for using a main dealer, yes they will always be more expensive for the hourly rate, but not always for parts.

There is some thought that the rear disk on one side was very stubborn to remove, therefore some very heavy whacks with a hammer may have been used. This in turn 'may' have had a detrimental effect on the bearings/internals of the differential causing the gears to become misaligned. Granted the dealer may have used a hammer fto persuade the disk off, but the jag tech would have a greater experience of what happens along the driveline. Imo not using a main dealer may have proved very expensive, especially if I had let the first garage repair it.
 
#18 ·
Guys, I would be interested in options on the state of my discs. These were taken 5 months after I bought the car from a reputable dealer. I feel they should never have sold the car to me with the discs in this condition. Any help greatly appreciated.
 

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#20 ·
KJW said:
They look absolutely fine to me. A bit of surface rust is normal.

What might be an issue is any scoring or excessive wear on the friction surface, and that can't always be picked up from a photo, but nothing I can see there would raise any concern.
Thanks for your reply. I'm getting juddering through the steering when braking. They say they will pay half with me paying £180 for non genuine front discs and pads. That's nowhere near half price to me😂
 

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#21 ·
OK. Fair enough. If they are juddering then there might be some run-out on the disks that you'd have to measure to appreciate.

Cheap pattern disks are quite prone to developing judder, so I might be inclined to hold out for genuine, or at least ensure they're going to fit a reputable make.
 
#22 ·
KJW said:
OK. Fair enough. If they are juddering then there might be some run-out on the disks that you'd have to measure to appreciate.

Cheap pattern disks are quite prone to developing judder, so I might be inclined to hold out for genuine, or at least ensure they're going to fit a reputable make.
Will do, thank you. Very much appreciated.
 
#23 ·
Most spanner monkeys will just wire brush the hub and slap on the new disc. This is NOT the way to correctly fit discs to hubs. The disc should be fitted to a clean hub and secured with wheel nuts to ensure it is flat against the hub. Then a dial indicator guage should be used to check the run out of the disc to make sure it is in manufacturers tolerances which are invisible to the eye as they are so small. This measurement is around 0.0005" (0.00254 mm) to a max 0.002" (0.050mm). It can then be secured with the usual 2 screws and the wheel nut securing it removed. If the "trueness" is not achieved a bit more wire brushing of the hub and a refit of the new disc again with more checking. Failure to get these tolerances will most often result in a warped disc. The measurement should be made at several points of around 45o at the outer edge of the disc. I know that loads of people will now say "I have fitted hundreds of disc without all that palaver" but that is the correct way of doing it.
Several years back UNIPART did instructional videos of certain jobs on cars. They may still be available to see somewhere like Youtube etc.
If you have them fitted incorrectly some garages will make the excuse that you have had them too hot when you stopped and the heat has warped them. That is a load of scrotum.
 
#24 ·
This YouTube video might be informative:



...my discs were always corroded at the edges from day one, I had two dealers look at them, with a view to changing under warranty, and both said it was normal and 'within limits' - meaning that corrosion of the discs on Jags is normal up to about 5mm from the edges of the disc. :roll: I don't think it affects breaking performance but just looks a bit unsightly. I have no juddering on breaking (possibly from a distorted disc - my thought on the OP who said they experienced this) so I'm happy to continue with my pads (5mm)/discs for a while longer (25k miles and hardly using the car at the moment!)
 
#25 ·
That is what not to do. The front hubs were filthy when the disc was fitted, Red paint all over his mitts and other areas (slapdash). This is a job that needs to be clean. No check for runout which is critical. To leave a broken off fixing bolt is slap dash work. No attention or mention of squeal shims or saying that they are built into the pads. No lube on the carrier pins (correct lube only). The caliper piston should be supported and not left to dangle on the hose. No mention of the excess brake fluid coming back up the system when the pistons are pushed back. This will make the master cylinder (MC) overflow brake fluid onto the paintwork arond the MC and damage the paintwork. The only thing in the video is the parts are the XE and specific basics (very basic too) He also didn't bother to use the correct tools for the job some of the time.This video I quickly found is of an unknown car but a much better effort from PAGID.
 
#26 ·
Interestingly, I noted that the front caliper carrier in the first video had FoMoCo moulded into it.
This name has always been used by Ford for all their parts, so the earlier XEs must have had other Ford parts in them, as well as the engines
 
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