The car is a 1992 230E auto (124) with ventilated discs. About 3 years ago I replaced the front pads in about one and a half hours in a very straightforward and logical process. All was fine. Now they need doing again, and I want to replace the front discs which are probably original. The Haynes manual suggests 2 calliper bolts, and 2 disc screws. Is it really that easy? Has anyone experience of changing front discs. Does anything stick, or cause concern. I can't believe it is that easy, although most things on this model are very straightforward. Europarts suggests discs and pads for £80.
Advise welcome.
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Get replacement screws from dealer - you may chew the heads and need to drill out.
Discs will likely stick to the hubs. I use a 6" angle grinder and cut a groove a few mm deep (not all the way through) in the disc running between each wheel mounting hole (there are 5, of course). Then *gently* tap around the disc to free it. This method avoids having to belt the disc like hell with a hammer!
Rest should be easy.
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My personal preference is to get brake 'consumables' like discs/pads from the MB dealer. Last time I checked and with the discount offered there was very little in it price wise either.
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Yes it is that easy unless, as Aprilia says, the discs don't pop off easily. I too use an angle grinder on really bad ones rather than hammering hell out of them.
As Norman says some MB parts from the dealers are actually good value so worth asking. But the discs/pads at £80 from EuroParts will be OE/OE quality so no worries thay would be junk.
M.M
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Surely if your taking the discs off to change them a belt with a hammer is not going to make any difference and saves all the grinding.
There is no doubt the screws will be as if they are welded in place so either an impact driver or a sharp drill bit will be needed. I recently did the dics on a Pug 206 and even the impact driver couldn't be used effectively as the screw heads were "torx"??? and my driver bits were either phillips or flat head. They had to be drilled. Pretty easy but make sure you go in straight so as not to damage the thread in the hub.
Once drilled I just whacked the disc with a hammer and out it popped leaving a lttle bit of screw behind in the thread which was removed with long nose plyers.
When putting the new screws in I used some copper grease so perhaps they will undo next time.
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This is my great fear, and I am not sure whether to do the work. My local independant garage has quoted about £195 to do the job. I can do most jobs myself, but the thought of a stuck disc is worrying. The job looks very simple, and the pads are simplicity itself, one nut, raise calliper, take out old discs, squeeze back piston, and fit new pads. one and a half hours maximum. The disc screws are fairly large and cross-headed, but if they are stuck on at least the garage can fix it..
When I last replaced the pads, I used Europarts Textar range (£18 + vat). When I took out the old ones, they were Textar but with a Mercedes Star on the back! (original equipement). I found them very good. They bedded in very quickly and have lasted 32,000 miles and three and a half years. I have always bought Europarts stuff, but the best quality. Their exhausts are very high quality, strong and heavy. I find their products very good, and it allows an avenue away from Mercedes monopoly.
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ECP will sell Textar or ATE pads (both OEM suppliers).
Spend £10 on a cheap impact driver (to free the disc screws) and spend £15 on a cheap angle grinder. £2 on a few spare disc screws.
Take your time - don't thump away on a stuck disc for half an hour. Cut the grooves with the angle grinder as I said and the heat and weakening will result in the discs coming off easily.
£195 for the garage to do the job is a bit OTT. Even buying the tools you'll be able to do it for half that, its really not difficult!
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MW, You really don't need to worry. When I did the 206 it was the first time I had done discs and I have to say it was dead easy. Once the screws are out, by whatever method, the discs, although stuck, only required a gentle wack and they were lying on the garage floor.
Think of the money you will save. Lot's more beer tokens by doing it yourself.
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DennisO
I have changed discs on quite a few MB's. If his discs are the originals then they will not budge even with many heavy clouts from a sledgehammer (spalling the wheel bearings in the meantime).
Have the grinder at the ready.....
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Yes, its just like changing the pads, but you need to support the caliper, and remove the two bolts which hold the caliper bracket to the strut.
Then you need to remove the screws that others have given plenty of advice about. I didn\'t have any trouble with these after heating them and using WD40, I was able to reuse them undamaged.
Good luck.
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Sorry Aprilia, I defer to your greater knowledge on Mercs. As I said, I've only done it once on a 206 and they came off really easily. However the grinding shouldn't put him off the job. Just a little more graft I guess.
When I have to have the discs done on my SL your advice will come in useful
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DON'T just push the pistons back into the caliper. This will send old deposits back up the pipe into the master cylinder. The correct thing is to release the excess fluid via the bleed nipple.
IME starting the caliper bolts can be tricky, because the pipes tend to hinder getting the alignment right. Carefully start the bolts with fingers only until you are sure the thread is not crossed.
Otherwise the job should be straightforward. Clean away rust from the hub and lightly remove any machining burrs on the new disk, or it may not sit true.
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In the end pressure of time and the worry of a problem meant I went to the independant garage. He was surprised at the prices at Europarts and reduced the final job to £150 including VAT. Did a good job, charged 1 hours labour at £40 (in outer London). Said the screws (which were allan keys) and the discs came off easily. Car even pasted the MOT as well!
Thanks for the views. He did say that Mondeo discs can be be difficult to remove?
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Glad it worked out. Sounds like they've been replaced before, they would orginally have had cross-head screws - Allan screws were substituted later.
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