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BMW 3-Series Maintenance and Repair

5349 messages,  Last post on Apr 30, 2013 at 3:31 PM

You are in the BMW 3-Series Forum.

What is this discussion about? BMW 3 Series, Sedan

    
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Messages Page 343 of 535

#3421 of 5349 Re: Brake Pad and Rotor Replacement? [joyrider147] by roadburner

Aug 23, 2007 (5:43 pm)

Replying to: joyrider147 (Aug 23, 2007 2:47 pm)
Since you have a BMW with 4 sets of disc brakes, its good measure to replace ALL pads simultaneously at a total of 80.00.
 
Why? Every BMW I've owned going back to my 1973 Bavaria 3.0 has worn the rear brake pads at 50% of the rate of the front pads. Last year I replaced the original rear pads on my 1995 E36 and at over 103K miles they still weren't worn to the factory minimums- and this was on a tracked and autocrossed car.
 
...you'd have to replace ALL brake pads and ALL 4 rotors at an additional estimated 75.00 and more for a rotor...
 
That's somewhat high for a RWD E46; OEM front rotors run around $52 and rears go for about $42.
 
Keeping a clean, well-maintained and properly lubricated engine bay is not only one simple cheap solution to reduce excessive wear and tear, but also helps keep the vehicle's value up because it's clean and the engine bay has been routinely maintenanced, ensuring that most if not ALL accessories still work when you go to sell the car.

 
That's why I was able to sell my wife's 130K 1997 528i for twice what Carmax offered.

#3422 of 5349 Re: Finally Got My Lifters Fixed, But . . . [klinkerklu] by davidd3

Aug 23, 2007 (6:30 pm)

Replying to: klinkerklu (Aug 23, 2007 12:41 pm)
Wow! Thanks for the info. I assumed my car is fixed. Now I'm skeptical. All I can say for now is so far so good. It's been a few weeks and I haven't heard the ticking since the fix.

#3423 of 5349 Re: Brake Pad and Rotor Replacement? [joyrider147] by grantchstr

Aug 23, 2007 (7:48 pm)

Replying to: joyrider147 (Aug 23, 2007 2:47 pm)
24,000 miles on the car and no heavy driving at all is what I said actually. So the point about "depends on how much you drive per year" is obvious and answered.
 
And "depends how many times you use your brakes or how hard you use them" is obvious which is why I stated and repeat - no heavy driving. The car is mostly driven by a careful wife!

#3424 of 5349 Re: Brake Pad and Rotor Replacement? [grantchstr] by roadburner

Aug 23, 2007 (8:10 pm)

Replying to: grantchstr (Aug 23, 2007 7:48 pm)
The car is mostly driven by a careful wife!
 
My wife is "careful" too, which means she goes through brakes faster that I do! She applies them at corners I accelerate through and also tends to tap them if she sees ANY brake lights ahead. Urban driving combined with "cautious" driving can wear out a set of pads rather quickly.

#3425 of 5349 Re: Brake Pad and Rotor Replacement? [roadburner] by grantchstr

Aug 23, 2007 (8:58 pm)

Replying to: roadburner (Aug 23, 2007 8:10 pm)
Hey pal, if you notice I sadi this is a stick shift so that will mean LESS use of brakes. We are both from Europe so we both know how to drive properly - ie not the American automatic transmision/jam on the brakes all the time way of driving thank you very much!
 
I still have no clue whether pads/rotors will typically need changing at 30K, 40K or 50K etc etc.....

#3426 of 5349 Re: Brake Pad and Rotor Replacement? [grantchstr] by shipo

Aug 24, 2007 (8:56 am)

Replying to: grantchstr (Aug 23, 2007 8:58 pm)
"I still have no clue whether pads/rotors will typically need changing at 30K, 40K or 50K etc etc..."
 
And you still don't, and nothing anybody tells you here will change that fact. Like it or don't, your pads will wear out when they wear out. Of the mileages that you listed, you might get any of them, or more or less.
 
Best Regards,
Shipo

#3427 of 5349 Re: Brake Pad and Rotor Replacement? [grantchstr] by Mr_Shiftright HOST

Aug 24, 2007 (10:31 am)

Replying to: grantchstr (Aug 23, 2007 8:58 pm)
Too many variables to predict that. When will your shoes wear out?
 
I drive pretty hard and most of my cars need pads at the 30K mark or less. I never turn rotors regardless...either they are in spec and clean as they are, or they are too rough, and they go. If I stopped in 20 feet when I was 19 feet in back of a truck, I'd be very unhappy that I saved $200 on rotors.

#3429 of 5349 Re: Xenon headlamp problem [kominsky] by robl1

Aug 24, 2007 (11:30 am)

Replying to: kominsky (Aug 13, 2007 9:21 pm)
It was the ignitor in my case too but my dealer must not be very bright. They changed the headlight modules and the xenons. Headlight still didn't work so finally they changed the ignitor. Repair was under warrantee. Works fine now. I don't think I'd go for xenons on a new car. When a regualar headlamp goes out I can just replace it myself!

#3430 of 5349 Re: Xenon headlamp problem [robl1] by kominsky

Aug 24, 2007 (10:58 pm)

Replying to: robl1 (Aug 24, 2007 11:30 am)
Good to hear you got it resolved.
 
FWIW, my car has ~130K miles on it and other than the ignitor problem early on, the HIDs have been flawless. On my wife's Odyssey, with similar miles, I've replaced the halogen on one side twice and the other side once. So, based on personal experience, it seems that while the xenons are more complicated and would be expensive (out of warranty), they are more robust too. I believe in the future I'll stick with HIDs simply for the wider pattern... our area is loaded with whitetail deer and it's really nice seeing the green glow of their eyes BEFORE they make it to the road!

Messages Page 343 of 535

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