My car is at the local shop getting an oil change, they called to tell me its time to change pads and disc's (car has 38k miles, not sure if original brakes).

they're quoting me approx $1600 for OEM pads, discs, brake flush and labor. They will only use OEM products.

I wanted to see if it was worth investigating into aftermarket parts (granted they said they would charge me more for the labor if i bring my own parts).

What do you guys think? are aftermarket parts better?

 

I could see them not wanting to warranty parts you provide but I can't see why they would cost more to fit...

My indie Jaguar shop used OEM front discs and EBC Reds on my 2010 XFR. Can't recall the bill offhand but it was way south of your quote. Seems that brake maintenance is one of those bread and butter jobs that some shops love to charge more for....

 

my guess is they take a cut of the price of the parts, so if i bring my own parts, they miss out on that cut. Also, this is a Shell gas station that has a garage, i wonder if its because its a corporate chain?

im going to check my indie jag shop to see what they would charge.

regarding the EBC Reds, i see that name a lot. better than OEM?

 

I liked the EBC reds because they were "cleaner" than the OEM pads and less "grabby" at first application. You could still send your head towards the windscreen when necessary but it was less "tetchy" for want of a better word.

I would definitely seek out a good indie Jag specialist - mine did not indulge in huge part cost markups (in fact they charged me less for Jaguar discs than I could buy them for at the parts counter).

 

Way less dust from the EBC reds. They wear great too. A much better pad than OEM in my opinion. When my brake replacement time comes I'll be going with R1 Concepts, been dealing with them for a long time, nothing but quality products and service.

 

padding their labor cost with additional monies from parts would make me walk in a heart beat....the labor cost is the labor cost....should have noting to do with parts..... and on that note....i would just do it my self and save $1000 ......spend the money you save on some hookers ; )

 

I didn't know they make headers for XF's

 

I did the R1 concepts rotors (drilled and slotted) and some posiquiet pads (semi metallic). Parts came to about $800 (mine is a 2010 V8 SC so should be same as yours). Much prefer them to oem. And labor was a couple of hundred to fit - indy shop

Two questions - your car should have a pad wear sensor on front and one on the back - have they not triggered yet? If not you could be a way off needing brakes - how much is left on the pads? The sensors seem to trigger around 4mm so there is pad life left
And secondly are you sure you need rotors? People seem to swap them every time. If you are handy I'd suggest buying a digital caliper measurement tool and checking their thickness. You may not need rotors.

 

the sensor has not yet gone off. ive been told by 2 mechanics that the front ones need to be changed. i dont know the exact measurements of whats left.

 

I would get Akebono Euro Ultra Premium Ceramic if they are available all around for your car. My very close second choice would be Powerstop Clean Ride Evolution Ceramic. I have Akebono on the rears and Powerstop on the fronts (Akebono was not available for the front on my car). Both brands cut the brake dust to zero with no other side effects. I have over 40k miles and still have the original rotors, so you may not need any just yet. Also, even if your sensors aren't worn, you might want to order a set of aftermarket sensors because they break easily while being removed.

 

+1.
I've read nothing but good reports about the Akebono ceramic pads but unfortunately they didn't (and I'm pretty sure they still don't) make them for the XF front brakes other than the really basic 326 mm ones, ie the 355 mm or 380 mm front brakes.
So instead on my first XF (355 mm front and 326 mm rear) I put Powerstop Evolution ceramics, and I was very happy with them. Quiet, smooth, progressive (no more "on/off switch" type braking at low speed), and best of all almost zero dust.

 

Since your car has low miles, your rotors ... most likely the tears are still good. Did they measure the rotor thickness?

It's an easy job and plenty of videos. It takes a simple set of tools and a jack.

Save yourself a $1000 for upgrades and do it yourself.

 

I just paid Jaguar a tad under $2,000 for rotors and pads all around.