ML350 Brakes

[Christian65]

I have an ML350 that eats pads for breakfast!

Has anyone had any experience of uprating the disks/ pads to increase breaking performance and reduce wear?

What pads would you recommend?

Car is coming out of warranty would anyone recommend a specialist in the Chelmsford Essex area?

ML350 2003 with 50k miles

 

[television]

You could try the EBC RED Ceramic, they last a long time and the wheels stay much cleaner.

Malcolm

 

[oigle]

You have a double edged problem If you use harder pads, you will destroy your discs more quickly. They are somewhat more expensive than pads. You may have to modify your driving style and use the brakes more easily, if you want them to last. The stability control system uses up rear disc pads too, if you are driving hard.

 

[Sprint'n'Go]

I find this strange as I have a Merc Sprinter and I would have thought the 2 vehicles shared similar brake parts as they must be a similar size and weight. In my case the brake pads wear pretty evenly front and back and last about 50-60k. Having said that I probably do a larger proportion of motorway driving than many people. If you are driving mainly in town and continually zooming from traffic light to traffic light and going round roundabouts then you will do far more braking than a vehicle cruising down the M1 for 2 hours.

I think OIGLE's suggestion about the stability control will mainly be relevant if you drive on loose gravel or ice when the esp will brake a spinning wheel to aid traction. This will probably have a minimal effect on the UK's mostly well surfaced roads.

I am always cautious about deviating from the manufacturer’s specifications especially with brakes (I always buy genuine pads from Merc but as they last 60k it works out cheap). Maybe you will have to accept this as a result of your usage driving style.

 

[oigle]

I think OIGLE's suggestion about the stability control will mainly be relevant if you drive on loose gravel or ice when the esp will brake a spinning wheel to aid traction. This will probably have a minimal effect on the UK's mostly well surfaced roads.

I would have thought that too, but my local MB dealership/state distributorship told me that ML's are getting much more rear brake wear now than what they did before ESP was incorporated in that vehicle. They can see no other reason for the extra wear. ESP does 2 functions - one is traction control which is what you are referring to. The 2nd is stability control which can be quite unobtrusive, applying a bit of brake here and there to keep the vehicle "pointed correctly". If one drives hard, then it could easily be applying brakes without the driver's knowledge. My rear brakes were gone in 42000km and the fronts were less than half worn. I tow a caravan which pushes the vehicle around a bit and probably triggers the ESP and thus uses the rear brakes. I'm going to deactivate the ESP when I tow in future, unless conditions warrant the use of same, and see what difference it makes.