How much for brake repair?

[citylifegirl]

Could someone please tell me the average cost of brake repair for a 2001 3.0 Z3?

[TexZan]

If you mean new pads only, pads/rotors, rebuild the caliper, flush the fluid, etc. Anywhere from $100-ish (a guess) if you do it yourself to many 100's I imagine for parts and labor at a good shop if you need a lot done.

What seems to be the problem?

www.texzan.com


97 2.8 Arctic Silver - Tanin Red interior with wood console - black top
Whalen Shift Machine, polished - Type II windscreen (non roll-hoops) - Bilstein HD shocks/struts
Axxis Metal Master pads - Brembo rotors - Doug Whalen seat bushings
Passenger Eject (unfortunately non-functional) - OEM Passenger Airbag Disable switch
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[ednew]

Could be a few hundred and up. I had my '2000 done a couple of years ago, and the independent mechanic said he would replace the rotors per BMW recommendations. Total cost was $700, which I suspect is about what the dealer would have charged. I expect you could get away with less than half of that for just pads.
Ed

[citylifegirl]

Worse case senario, if I would need rotors and pads..

[scottpettit]

auto parts store and Pep Boys, Sears, Firestone all will do the work. It is hard to say how much you will spend. I am guessing 5 to 7 hundred. However, all of that is a very easy DIY if you are so inclined.

Here is a website for parts if you want to go that route:

www.bavauto.com

Go there and enter the info on you car.

If you have a question, I'd be happy to chat with you about it.

209-480-2271 in Modesto, CA

Scott Pettit
www.bayareaz.com
www.zscca.org
www.zfest.com

[Serge]

at local independent shop but a mechanic specialized in BMW and some VW to ease en of month...

I got new rotor and pads, replaced oil brake and purged all over, new engine oil filter and oil change.
He did a good job, sandblasted the bracket, paint them and caliper (no rebuilt) and a new brake sensor
Total cost was $500

Serge

[Robert Platt Bell]

Chap pads can stick to the rotors and cause the infamous "wobble" that many misdiagnose as "warped rotors". I would avoid getting BMW parts from local auto parts stores and check out pelicanparts, ECS tuning and Bavarian Autosport.

$500 to $700 for a brake job? Ouch. I guess it has been a number of years since I've had to pay anyone to work on my cars. That seems like a lot of money to me.

If you drive carefully, you can get 50,000 plus miles out of a set of pads. Anticipate stops, downshift, etc.

In many cases, you can get away with replacing just the pads. If the rotors are thick enough and otherwise functional, I'd use them again and replace them with every other pad job.

Turning rotors has fallen out of favor in most shops. Avoid any shop that recommends it. All it does is remove material from the rotor and add shop time to your bill. Minor grooves and ridges do not affect brake performance.

If you drove the car until the brake pad sensor wore out and the light went on, you will need new sensor wires as well.

Flush your brake fluid every 2-3 years as well, as it will make all the brake components (calipers, ABS actuator, and even clutch master and slave cylinders) last longer.

Good Luck!

[Robert Platt Bell]

Here is a link to an article I found helpful and reflected my experience as well.

A local mechanic put on "parts jobber" pads to get the car to pass inspection.

Almost immediately, the car wobbled when you applied the brakes. I bought new rotors (probably unnecessary) and pagid pads from Bav Auto and the problem went away.

That was about 40K miles ago..... Pads still lave lots of meat on them.