OEM Brake pads and Discs

[CliveM]

I understand the MB produce their own discs - and that alternative replacements are not recommended - Why are alternatives not recommended?

What are the current OEM manufactuers for brake pads. Is it still Textar , Pagid, Jurid

Is there any difference in use between these makes?
It it better to stick to an OEM producer rather than a third party?

 

[talbir]

Hi Clive

As far as I know, MB have never produced brake rotors or pads.

All the parts used are ATE, Textar manufactured.

I will reccomend you get the parts from MB, as some replica manufacturers give you something in a box with a Textar label and it may not be a true item. With MB you are guaranteed to have a quality part.

I do all the servicing on my MB's myself and have always bought brake parts (discs, pads, sensors, master cylinders etc) from Euro Car parts or equivalents. They offer the genuine parts (at reduced prices) or replica parts (I wouldn't reccomend these replicas).

The only thing I do purchase from MB when doing a brake job, is the MB anti sqeal paste for the pads, as it's only a few quid.

 

[Andy]

Hi

I have to disagree with Talbir, with regards to MB discs. As far as I am aware MB produce there own discs. I have not seen another manufacturer who produce brake discs with the same cross grinding as the genuine MB discs. I have found that in my experience the non genuine discs warp. I know a lot of you will say you fitted ECP discs and others with no problems. But I will stick to what I say especially with front discs. A lot of the discs have come down a lot from MB. Especially the non vented ones.


Regards

Andy @ www.mercedesservicing.com

 

[Arnie]

I am not sure about MB, but I know that others, such as BMW, may buy discs from Textar, ATE etc, but they inspect them, finish-grind and balance them. Many OEM discs are not balanced, and this makes a dfifference.

Also, "OEM" stands for Original Equipment Manufacturer, which does not mean that the part is necessarily the same as the Original Equipment. It just means that they are a supplier of Original Equipment, but what you buy in a box with the Textar label may well not be exactly the same product, same spec, same finish, same tolerance etc as that which Textar supplies to MB, BMW etc.

I would not take risks with saftey equipment such as brakes.

 

[jaymanek]

There are many differences. Take oil filters for example - Most manufacturers buy there filters from people like QH, but they are not the same as the ones they sell with the QH label on in motor factors.

The quality of the ones made for the manufacturers is usually higher - Infact, it would be illegal for them to sell the same stuff with different labelling.

Same with pads - I always find, if i buy OEM or aftermarket, they need to be ground down a little bit to allow them to travel freely.

Cheers

Jay

 

[talbir]

IT is a fact - Mercedes Benz have NEVER manufactured a brake disc - period !

Their suppliers off brake discs are the following companies :
ATE, Balo, Brembo.

Their suppliers of brake pads are :
Jurid, Pagid, Textar.


HOWEVER, Mercedes have a bespoke agreement with these companies on the design/specification of the discs - so if you buy an ATE disc it will not have the same grind/pattern as an ATE disc pursched from MB.

Going to back to what I said in my first post on this - I reccommend you buy from MB if you are unsure. But, any reputable supplier of ATE , Brembo etc parts , will give you a quality set of discs.

As for warping of discs, the original MB part no. stamped discs that came off my 560SEC last year, were pretty seriously warped. Warping tends to be a product of heat build-up/water/heavy braking activity all happening at the same time. Heat-treated brake discs, i.e. ones which are cyrogenically treated, are the only ones which will give 50%+ longer life.

 

[steved]

But if you dont buy origional Mercedes Pads...

You may have to clip the wear indicator wire to the rear pads as some aftermarket pads do not have that feature.
At least thats what my buddy did on his ML320.

 

[JimmyTD]

There are only a handful of quality brake disc manufacturers in the world, they make discs and sell them to car manufacturers aswell as aftermarket suppliers. All brake parts have to meet strict R90 standards and be within the same tolerances as OE equipment. You can safely buy any brake parts from a reputable motor factor and be assured that the quality and safety is not compromised.

Obviously like everything there are good and bad brands and generally speaking you get what you pay for. I would happily supply Delphi, Apec, ATE, Ferrodo, ABS, Brembo, Bradi, Textar or Zimmerman to any MB owner but would not recommend any budget range for anybody, even a Ford owner.

The same goes for filters, Coopers, Fram and Crosland are all part of the same group and supply many of the car manufactuers. Mercedes would not and canot make their own filters, they ask another company with the expertese to make them for them.

I have great difficulty telling customers that a Coopers filter is the same as a Fram, Crosland, Fod, Landrover, Ford etc etc. I have been to the factory and have seen them coming off the same production line, just painted a different colour with a different part number.

It is peoples belief that a MB oil filter costing £15 is better than a Coopers filter costing £4, perhaps I should charge more and people will think they are better. :lol:

The same goes for oils too, but I can't let out too many trade secrets.

 

[Arnie]

Jimmy,

Your first and second paragraphs contradict each other (with regards to the R90 standard and getting what you pay for) !

 

[andy_k]

I'd disagree with you there Arnie, far from contradicting himself I think Jimmy is right, complying to a safety standard is one thing but efortlessly complying and in many cases exceeding it will be a case of getting what you pay for.

Recognised quality parts will cost more because they are better engineered even though they share the same minimum safety standards as cheaper ones.

Andy

 

[Arnie]

Andy, I agree with what you say.

However, writing "...All brake parts have to meet strict R90 standards and be within the same tolerances as OE equipment...." implies to me that they are all made to the same very HIGH standards as OE equipment, which is not obviously the case.

... But maybe I misunderstood Jimmys wording.

 

[JimmyTD]

Andy, I agree with what you say.

However, writing "...All brake parts have to meet strict R90 standards and be within the same tolerances as OE equipment...." implies to me that they are all made to the same very HIGH standards as OE equipment, which is not obviously the case.

... But maybe I misunderstood Jimmys wording.

Yeah, Reading back through I see what you mean.

I think it is more a physcological thing.

If you were offered a set of front brake pads meeting R90 standards and packed in a nice box for say £12 and a set in a plain white box but also R90 approved for £6 which would you be happier fitting to your MB?

I would guess 8 out of 10 would buy the expensive set, it's just a common sense thing you think you are paying for better quality. The R90 standard states that brake pads must be within 15% of the OE equipment, standard manufacturing processes have a certain tolerance of probably 10% anyway.

This is just from my experience of selling aftermarket parts, people want to pay less but not too much less. I happily fit quality aftermarket parts to my own, my families and my friends cars but I wouldn't be happy fitting cheap brakes or cheap filters and lubricants. I agree it sounds somewhat contradictory but it is mostly physcological.

 

[Arnie]

Jimmy,

Interesting to know that.

I once fitted a pair of £14 vented front discs (made in Wales, I think), which had no markings on the box whatsoever. Apart from the lack of balancing marks, they were actually pretty good, to my surprise. However, there's always that doubt in the back of your mind that they might be substandard and fail unpredictably and that I should have gone for the OE versions.

With so many counterfeit parts coming in from Turkey and such places it's sometimes reassuring to fit genuine parts, especially for safety-critical items.