Brake Wear

[seefive]

Hi

Last year's service bill on my C5 says

 

front pads 30% 9mm remaining

rear pads 20% 10mm remaining

 

So assuming front and rear are same thickness, this means 70% remaining and 80% remaining??

What does that translate to in terms of mileage? (ballpark)

 

Thanks

[citrophile]

Depends......

Biggest factor is type of journey. Lots of short journeys in town on busy roads will mean you use the brakes much more than long motorway journeys. I do 30k a year mainly motorway with little braking and my pads tend to last about 18 months, around 45k.

Other factors include how gentle or heavy you are on the brakes. I know someone who accelerates away from one speed bump and then brakes really hard before the next one.....!!

Also depends on quality of pads. Once bought a cheap set from halfrauds and they were knackered after 8k.

Having said that, I think previously my local garage have said they usually expect OEM quality pads to last about 15-18k in normal use

Rob

[Johndouglas]

As Rob says - much depends on your driving style. A new pad has 12mm of meat on it. It's time to change them when they are down to 3mm - unless they are cracked or damaged. Also the quality of the pads will have a bearing on their life. Front pads wear quicker than the rear ones. If you know when they were last changed, that should give you some indication of their condition - other than having a look.

[paul.h]

I would check the amount remaining does not include the 6mm of metal backing material, it would be better to be clearer and say friction material remaining x mm. As John says, new front pads have 12 mm friction material. The rear pads may be a bit less (shoes a lot less) but on the 2001 to 2008 C5 they have cut outs at the leading and trailing edges and they wear a bit wedge shaped partly due to the rear shims only covering half of the pad. To actually see the rear pads needs the pad cover removing since the ends have the cut out and if the rears are seized or there is corrosion on the caliper/suspension joint, the inner pad can be worn down without noticing.

[seefive]

Thanks for clarifying this