libertarian

Hi all. I'm sure this has been covered many times but perhaps I have a slightly different angle. I just had my 65k service and no surprise - my brake pads are 3mm on the front and 4mm on the rears. The dealer wants $900 to replace four brake pads (rotors not included - they say they don't need to be replaced now...more on that shortly). That seems borderline obscene to me for brake pads but admittedly this is my first Euro car.

I immediately called the best non-dealer Audi shop here in Charleston and I am waiting on a quote from him. The funny thing is he told me the rotors should ALWAYS be replaced when changing the pads due to increased pad wear from thin rotors. The dealer and the outside shop both agreed that they wouldn't machine the rotors.

Any thoughts on a) the pricing of the pads and b) the rotor issue? I thought brake pads were pretty straightforward but apparently not. We have a very reputable local tire shop that also does brakes but not sure I should take my Audi there.

Thanks in advance!

DennisMitchell

I bought 4 sets of pads (front and back) with my TDI goodwill money earlier this year. The OEM pads cost about $200 plus tax for front and back.

The tricky part of the pad replacement is hooking up the VDCS computer and retracting the rear electronic emergency brake solenoid.

Warhead

Can you find out that the rotor thickness is on your car now? I am sure the dealer should of measured it.

MurrayA4

libertarian sounds like you've got a strange dealership there.My first reaction was wow impressive a dealer that's not going to swap out rotors unnecessarily - rare ! But then I read on and man that's rich $ 900 for a "pads only brake job".These guys know how to make some cash.As a retired garage owner my estimate would be around $ 450- 550.That's with OEM grade parts, Textar or Brembo and a thorough cleaning and inspection including electronic analysis of brake fluid H2O content.Go independant .

libertarian

They measured the rotor thickness and I have that somewhere - according to the dealer the rotors don't need to be replaced. The independent Audi shop says they absolutely should be replaced every single time.

Is there anything wrong with taking the car to a good, non-Audi independent brake shop or would you recommend against that and stick to an Audi specialist? It's just brakes we are talking about here, after all. But I'm guessing many here prefer to only deal with Audi folks.

Bob Petruska

Some questions......

How many miles on the Q5?

Has the Q5 ever had the brake pads changed before? How about rotors? If so, what mileage?

If you go to an idependent shop ask them how they are going to retract the rear pistons. They need to say that they are going to use a computer program, or power the piston motors independently, or remove them before they push the pistons in. If they say that they will just push the pistons in then walk away as they can damage the piston motors and controller to the cost of $1800.

I would say that the independent shop is smart in replacing both pads and rotors as they know you will most likely not return, as with just new pads the old rotors could pulsate, make noises, less brake performance, etc.

libertarian

The car has never had brake pads or rotors - 65k miles. The independent shop is an Audi specialist so not worried about those guys (still waiting for a price). Our local "chain" tire/brake place (good reputation) quoted me $700ish for OEM-equivalent pads and rotors - so roughly half of the dealership price for both. Whether they know how to work on an Audi is an entirely different conversation. I'm inclined to go to the independent Audi shop assuming their price is lower than dealer.

Thanks for the tips Bob!

Bob Petruska

I'd say go for pads/rotors seeing that you got 65K miles out of the first set! You must drive a lot of highway miles without braking a lot. If you drive/brake the same way you will have 130K miles when due for the next set.

Most Q5 owners get about 25K miles out of a set of pads, and replace the rotors every second set of pads.

Again, the local chain store needs to know how to do the rear brakes, the Audi specialists is most likely the place to go and be in the middle cost wise.

What this video...........

Greystoke

You should be able to do front and back with OEM pads and Zimmerman rotors at an Indy shop for less than $1000. If you order the pads and rotors yourself you can save some $. Try ECS as one source for parts. If your dash info screen has a "service brakes" indicator on make sure you buy new wear sensors as well.

Grey

MurrayA4

A lot of good advice but please keep your rotors, at 65k they're fine.The factory original rotors are excellent.Treat them like a good girl ! When it's time go with Zimmerman or Brembo.All the rest are inferior. Germans and Italians have a long, storied familiarity with the art of producing steel.Everyone else are still trying, within cost constraints.