Replacing the brake discs on a Focus
I have used the same mechanic for a number of years as he was going on his own from leaving a Ford Dealership. He always had good prices and did evening work, which suited me. About 18 months ago I had braking judder which he said was warped discs. He replaced discs and pads and the car was fine.
Just had interim service before mot due in jan and he said as an advisory note he noticed the discs were worn and may be pulled up on MOT. After 18 months!?
He said there was a groove on disc - I looked at said groove and it was there but it's not deep. I'm a precision engineer so I know depths and sizes. This groove is probably no more than .15- .2 mm deep.
The edge of the disc has a slight lip but no more than .75 mm.
I'm not a speeder and heavy braker. I got speed camera flashed and did the speed awareness course and it's transformed my driving after 20 years. I stick to limits and observe them.
From this I know my brakes and discs should be lasting a lot longer.
Has he used inferior products in first place? How much for replaced discs and pads in your opinion? I might even have a go myself.
Just had interim service before mot due in jan and he said as an advisory note he noticed the discs were worn and may be pulled up on MOT. After 18 months!?
He said there was a groove on disc - I looked at said groove and it was there but it's not deep. I'm a precision engineer so I know depths and sizes. This groove is probably no more than .15- .2 mm deep.
The edge of the disc has a slight lip but no more than .75 mm.
I'm not a speeder and heavy braker. I got speed camera flashed and did the speed awareness course and it's transformed my driving after 20 years. I stick to limits and observe them.
From this I know my brakes and discs should be lasting a lot longer.
Has he used inferior products in first place? How much for replaced discs and pads in your opinion? I might even have a go myself.
Asked on 12 December 2011 by danny p
Answered by
Alan Ross
Well unfortunately brake wear is very difficult to quantify.
Mileage/ weight/traffic conditions /town/ country roads will always give a varying amount of break wear as of course does the driving style.
Given that you have seen the groove, if you consider it ok then allow the car to go to its MOT and see what result it gets.
As for inferior parts, again it is not possible to clarify, although as you can see on line there are quite a few suppliers of these parts.
The labour time required to replace the front discs and pads is 1.1 hours so it would depend on what your mechanic is charging per hour (£40?) and where he acquires the new discs and pads (would not have thought from a Ford dealership).
As for DIY then yes if you feel confident, however you may want to get a Workshop manual before you start. One other thing is only do one wheel at a time so you can use the other one as a reference in case you get confused.
Mileage/ weight/traffic conditions /town/ country roads will always give a varying amount of break wear as of course does the driving style.
Given that you have seen the groove, if you consider it ok then allow the car to go to its MOT and see what result it gets.
As for inferior parts, again it is not possible to clarify, although as you can see on line there are quite a few suppliers of these parts.
The labour time required to replace the front discs and pads is 1.1 hours so it would depend on what your mechanic is charging per hour (£40?) and where he acquires the new discs and pads (would not have thought from a Ford dealership).
As for DIY then yes if you feel confident, however you may want to get a Workshop manual before you start. One other thing is only do one wheel at a time so you can use the other one as a reference in case you get confused.
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