When Goodyear switched my rims out they said the rear brake pads and rotors needed replaced. Is 49K miles a normal spot to replace them??? My fronts are fine apparently. Just want to make sure they are not blowing smoke.

They quoted $525 + tax for the job. Dealership said it would be roughly $550 or so. Should I have the dealer do it since they work on Jags daily?

Thoughts please.

THX

 

That is "normal" for the X. I think I swapped mine out around 35k, and I know many others have had to change them with less than 50k.

Any mechanic worth his toolbox can do the job. Really, if you have basic DIY skillz you can do it for much less yourself. Plenty of support for you here on the board.....

 

Was it just your rears that needed it?

I might look to do it myself, we'll see.

 

the way to tell if they need replacing is to measure the thickness of the pads, not by mileage.
How many mm are left?

 

That I don't know. The lady at goodyear said the Tech that worked on my car said they were very thin. I trust them, I've given them good business. My wife has said since I bought it that you really have to push the brakes hard to get it to stop quickly. I kind of notice that as well.

 

Doing the rear brakes is easy. The hardest part of it all is pushing the piston back into the caliper. Even that isn't hard as long as you spend the $20 on the proper tool. These are slightly different than most vehicles as you have to push and twist at the same time. But, not difficult. Odds are, if you aren't feeling a pulsating in the brake pedal, all you need to do worst case is get the rear rotors turned to make sure that they are perfect. But, in most cases, unless there is significant grooving, even that isn't required. Turning rotors can normally be had for about $10 a rotor. new pads are going to be pricy, but not too bad (seem to remember about $100 for a good set of pads). So, for about $150 total, you can do the brakes yourself. If you lived near Norfolk VA, I would tell you to come on over and we would do it in my driveway. Take about an hour to do. I would even buy the tool as I am sure I will need it in the future for my jag.

 

I don't feel any pulsating. That being the case, if I get the rotors turned and get new brake pads that might do the trick? Thanks for the offer, I'm in Iowa but would take you up on the help if I was closer.

 

lol damn I'm jealous. All 4 of my brakes were shot at 35k miles. Dealer charged me $600 just to replace 4 pads.

I'm at 64k miles now so it will be time to replace them again soon.

 

jjones, yes, that is it. So, you can get off pretty cheap. The big thing is to specify that you are wanting a skim cut on the rotors. That will garantee your rotors will last as long as possible.

On a side note, what part of Iowa? I am possibly moving to Iowa here in another month or so. I am looking to move into the Storm Lake area for a job that I am interviewing for. If you have any helpful hints, it would be appreciated.

 

That quote is close to what the dealship gave me in 2007. Mine was $510 for the rears. I did them myself for the price of the pads, my rotors were in good shape and I didn't do them this time. My front were done a 40,000 which was before I bought the car. It had 57,000 when I did the rears. I have a small write up somewhere on the forum here when I did the job. Basically I didn't disconnect the parking brake cable or the brake hoses and used a cube adapter I bought at Sears to crank the pistons in. I used visegrips clamped to imoveable part of the caliper to brace against, so I could put pressure on the piston as I turned it in. You'll have to loosen the bleeder valve to relieve pressure on the piston so it can go in. Mine went in real easy once the bleeder valve was cracked. The whole job took maybe an hour.

Good Luck

 

Be thankful, I need a transmission at 55k...

I would buy the pads/rotors from an independent Jag supplier and do it yourself. You'll save $400, easy.
I know that Welsh has the rotors for $95 for the pair, and the pads were around $40.

 

I'll see about just getting the rotors turned and new pads then. Thanks for the info.
Good luck with your interview. Storm Lake is a very nice area. There's a nice college in the town as well. I'm in the Des Moines area.

 

Yeah, definitely DIY if possible. Rotors + pads= pretty straight forward job and basic tools. For the amounts I saw quoted on here, you guys could probably get Brembo big brake kits!!

 

Dealer I purchased the vehicle from in Cleveland stated I needed rear pads at 20k. I told them they were crazy. At my 30k service, I asked specifically about the rear brakes and was told they were fine. Imagine that.

I am about to turn 50k and just had my service done. The dealer here in Chicago told me my rears have about 10% left and the fronts about 20%. I don't recall what I was quoted. They also recommended changing the rotors at the same time.

Brakes scare me, as they are not something I want to mess up. Where you you recommend I buy brakes and rotors, and where you you recommend getting them put on?

Thanks!