Brakes at 52k kms

[Tig-uan]

My Multivan has reached 52,000 kms, and brake-wear light came on indicating that brakes are near worn-out.
Spoke with a VW dealer service, was informed that VW policy is not to machine the disks: when they inspect at the brakes, they will decide if to replace just the pads or disks as well.

What has been peoples experience with brakes around 50,000 kms, did anyone need disks replaced? did you have your brakes done at VW Service or independent shop?
(My car is no longer under warranty.)

[fransnz]

Hi
I would personally check what the minimum thickness is aloud and the decide what to do.

1. Disks are near the limit the change them with better pads
2. Disks have lots of life just change the pads.

Vw pads are great at stopping but lots of dust. Theses days you get way better aftermarket pads.

[Preen59]

VW just want to replace your discs because it's fast and easy for them. They make a great margin on OEM parts and they don't have facilities to machine the discs themselves.

Take your van to a reputable independent mechanic and ask them to take a look. They'll be cheaper and do just as good of a job. No, it won't void your warranty, even if VW tell you it will. They're full of ****.

For reference, how many KM your vehicle has done is irrelevant to pad wear vs disc wear. They will wear at a certain rate depending on driver, conditions and vehicle. 50k km tells me you do a lot of stop-starting or you don't use them correctly.. I got 110k km and a track day out of my original brakes on the Caddy.

[Umai Naa!!]

Don't machine the discs.

If they're lipped, they'll already be close to the minimum thickness.

[The One]

Not too much tolerance for VW discs hence why they always get replaced, they are either excessively lipped or very close to the wear limit, machining them only brings them even closer to the already marginal wear limit.. You also need to think life of new replacement pads vs life of current discs (reuse), the discs will always go underspec before the new pads require replacing.. Best to replace all at once.

[brad]

VW discs don't machine well. A disc rotor is a heat sink. By machining it you reduce the mass of the rotor and the ability of the rotor to absorb and expel heat. So they are more prone to warping and getting hot spots.

Talk to Brakes Direct about some quality replacements - they'll be significantly cheaper than VW genuine.

Get the guys at Canberra VW Centre in Tuggeranong to have a look at them.

[Sunny43.5]

GSL Rallysports are Forum supporters they have a wide range for Dubs , I am about to replace my front disc's and pads with them as mine are now getting worn .GSL Rallysport - The Motor Sport Revolution!

[brad]

Brakes Direct = GSL Rallysports

[IN2VWS]

Had the rears machined on my T5 without any problems. My fronts are still the originals......at 105,000km.

[Sunny43.5]

I had mine done as well as the front was displaying a shudder on light braking , it was fine for about 6 months but has just lately started again . There was suspicion the front bearing were contributing but that's been cleared . Suspicion now seems to be one of two reasons for the shudder to come back . 1 / the rotor is not seated cleanly against the mounts possible surface rust causing it to be out of true . 2 / as posted here machining the discs removes the hardened layer and then it quickly goes out of shape again .

[brad]

if nothing else, this thread and any other "how many km did you get from your brakes" type threads proves there is no such thing as "normal brake wear".