2001 E320 CDI, is it easy to replace brake fluid?

[shadowfax2k]

Hi guys, been told by an independent MB garage that my brake fuid needs replacing and its going to cost £130.00 !! They say they cant just drain it off, they have to use the on board computer thing to do it, is this true?

Cheers Guys

 

[television]

Is your car a 210 or 211 with SBC brakes

 

[shadowfax2k]

Hi there, Its a 210, not sure what SBC brakes are ??

 

[television]

Hi there, Its a 210, not sure what SBC brakes are ??

If you have a 210 its just like any other car to change the fluid.

You can do it yourself with a one way bleeding kit that cost around £7 and it takes about 1 hour allowing foe the wheels being take off

 

[Parrot of Doom]

£130 is a bit of a ripoff. If you have a mate to help its easy (he pumps the brake pedal to push the old fluid out, while you hold the bottle near each caliper), if not then as Malcolm has said buy a bleeding kit.

Loads of guides on the internet, for instance:

http://www.clarks-garage.com/shop-manual/brake-01.htm

Just make sure you buy the correct fluid - it will be printed very clearly on the brake fluid reservoir cap.

 

[David Nock]

Soooo ....for clarity, having bled old style non - ABS brakes loads of times, but never an ABS system, the ABS makes no difference to the normal procedure? Isn't there an ABS pump somewhere in the system to pulse them?

 

[television]

No problem there Dave the fluid just passes through it, just do it as you always used to

 

[jberks]

Call back and re-check. I'm pretty sure the main dealer only charged me £40-£60 (2000 E240). £130 is way over the top so there's been a misunderstaning somewhere.

 

[television]

Call back and re-check. I'm pretty sure the main dealer only charged me £40-£60 (2000 E240). £130 is way over the top so there's been a misunderstaning somewhere.

Garages use pumps and have a lift, and should take max 20 mins

 

[toby1]

Hi guys, been told by an independent MB garage that my brake fuid needs replacing and its going to cost £130.00 !! They say they cant just drain it off, they have to use the on board computer thing to do it, is this true?

Cheers Guys

You say this is an independent MB garage. I would call your local MB dealer and ask for a quote. Without knowing where you are in the country, i.e. who your nearest dealer is, I could check for you on Thursday via MB menu pricing.

But as previous replies say, I would find someone else. £130 is too much for a bread-and-butter operation. Any competent garage can do this.

 

[shadowfax2k]

Ok guys, cheers for that, i am in Chester, i will give my dealership a call, see what they quote.

Also, the indy that quoted me the £130 for the fluid replacment, they chage £85 an hour !! have also mentioned that the polly belts need replacing, what would you say is a fair price for this??

 

[Parrot of Doom]

If they charge £85 an hour, the fluid costs about £10, so where does the other £35 appear from?

Go elsewhere.

 

[jberks]

the indy that quoted me the £130 for the fluid replacment, they chage £85 an hour !!

Sounds like the have delusions to me. I have a local Stratstone sattelite dealership near me. It was built as a sub branch to the main MB dealership but didn't get MB approval so they took down the MB signs and operate as an indie. Basically an MB dealership without the badges. As part of the same chain, I suspect that if need be, they have direct access to the dealership kit and information. For all this, they charge less than £50 per hour, around the same as the main Leeds MB specialist.

With the 3 year discounts the dealers now operate I suspect your indie is more expensive than the dealer!

 

[television]

Sounds like the have delusions to me. I have a local Stratstone sattelite dealership near me. It was built as a sub branch to the main MB dealership but didn't get MB approval so they took down the MB signs and operate as an indie. Basically an MB dealership without the badges. As part of the same chain, I suspect that if need be, they have direct access to the dealership kit and information. For all this, they charge less than £50 per hour, around the same as the main Leeds MB specialist.

With the 3 year discounts the dealers now operate I suspect your indie is more expensive than the dealer!

What I find interesting is that there seems to be more indies in the North than there are down South. Though the SW is an expensive place to live, the wages paid down here are among the lowest in the country

 

[David Nock]

No problem there Dave the fluid just passes through it, just do it as you always used to

Thanks for that. I run a newish CLK, dealer serviced plus a 23 year old non - ABS Mazda RX7 which I have worked on from new (only goes to garage for MOT). All our other ABS cars have been company maintained. So I must be the only DIY enthusiast never to have bled an ABS system!

 

[shadowfax2k]

Contacted local MB dealer, they can do it for £58 ! sounds better !!

 

[mattkh]

Garages use pumps

Hi
Are these pumps to suck the brake fluid from the nipple end.?

 

[OlafMaxwell]

Bleeding brakes

I have had mine done and the guy in the dealership no longer recommends the traditional way of doing it. Continuous pumping does in the master cylinder seals and they tend to fail in the nearer future. Much better to use the dealer, there have been problems with ABS pumps in the W210. Having often done the traditional method on older cars in the past I have to agree with him.

Same too, if you are replacing brake pads, when you are pushing the pistons back into the caliper, better to open the bleed valve and let off the fluid, don't pump it back up to the master cylinder.

 

[television]

I have had mine done and the guy in the dealership no longer recommends the traditional way of doing it. Continuous pumping does in the master cylinder seals and they tend to fail in the nearer future. Much better to use the dealer, there have been problems with ABS pumps in the W210. Having often done the traditional method on older cars in the past I have to agree with him.

Same too, if you are replacing brake pads, when you are pushing the pistons back into the caliper, better to open the bleed valve and let off the fluid, don't pump it back up to the master cylinder.

Clamp the pipe, then undo the bleed nipples always on a 10 year old car, and better way of doing it on the newer ones