Brembo or genuine?

Yugguy

Torque King
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507
Location
Rugby (expat Preston lad)
Car
Merc C220Cdi Elegan
I'm going to need some new front pads soon, and there's a bit of lip on the discs so I think I'll swap those too. If they are the originals they've done 62k which isn't bad.

I fancy putting on drilled, just for the aesthetics really.

I can get a full genuine Mercedes AMG/Sport kit with drilled discs, pads, screws and wear indicators for £170, or I can get Brembo drilled discs, Brembo pads, screws and wear indicators for £135.

looking here:
https://www.bremboparts.com/europe/e...08/000054942-1

The physical specs for the front discs and pads for sport or standard are exactly the same so parts should be interchangeable.

I'm a fan of genuine stuff but Brembo are a good make.

Anyone got any opinions either way?
 
Brembo is indeed a good make Guy and has an enviable reputation as well as being the no1 choice for a number of Supercar manufacturers. The fact that the Brembo version is £35 cheaper than the AMG version just goes to show how much of a robbing Bandit that Mercedes is. Get the Brembo and stick two fingers up to Mercedes.
 
I would go with the Brembos unless they cost loads more than your other options but usually they compare pretty well on price as you've already spotted so it's a bit of a no brainer.
 
As we are just talking about pads and rotors, the only difference is the price. If you prefer OEM and don't mind the £35 premium then keep the car stock.
 
Don't mind the premium if the difference is justified, but if the goods have a manufacturers mark up on them (And a huge mark up at that) and there is precious little difference in performance then go for the named upgrade. AMG is a wonderful setup and has many admirers the world over, but many would take a dim view for being financially mugged for no good reason.
 
The thing is they are called "AMG" but like M sport, it's just a label applied to a standard car that has some holes in its brake discs and stiffer suspension. It bears no relationship to an actual AMG car in the same way that a 320d M-sport is nothing like an M3.

C63AMG discs are massive and understandably expensive.

The genuine "AMG" kit for mine from Merc costs 170, no different from the standard genuine kit apart from the drilled discs. Standard genuine kit costs 150, or I can get all the parts using Brembo drilled for £135.
 
Do you find much of an advantage to drilled discs? IFAIK they keep the pads clean, stop gasses building up but surely on a road car this is overkill. I'm interested to hear thoughts? If there are real benefits for my car I will consider getting some.
 
Don't know much about drilled discs but I'd tend to agree they're probably overkill for normal road use. The brake discs on my Audi are probably not the originals since the car had full Audi service history and anything it needed was done by them. It has the cleanest sets of discs I've ever had; on other cars I've owned the discs would turn rusty sometimes even overnight if it was raining but the Audi has sometimes lain for a couple of days and they remain clean.
So I'm not sure I would dismiss OEM parts as being over priced after all they have material specifications and qualified supplier programmes with their own quality checks they perform.

Remember VW's oil specifications for the PD engine the 505 and 507 series oils? There really was a difference ie with non-spec oil you'd get torn cams for the injectors and no warranty claims entertained.
 
So I'm not sure I would dismiss OEM parts as being over priced after all they have material specifications and qualified supplier programmes with their own quality checks they perform.

A valid statement I grant you buddy and up to a point I agree with you, BUT, there are many different motoring companies out there who supply OEM parts at a price that range between the sensible to the darn right outrageous. SAAB for instance brake system is a marvellous unit and will give you great stopping power with longevity at a very easy on the wallet price. Audi and Mercedes who I might add I have no personal experience on but I hear the feedback from friends and colleagues who own the cars, bottom line, there is making a profit and there is taking the chronic wee wee! At the end of the day it boils down to three things, OEM or Aftermarket, Budget. As long as you buy the best that you're money can afford (And one should never take a shortcut when it comes to the brakes) then you can do no more but sleep soundly that night secure in the knowledge that you have done the right thing. :)
 
Do you find much of an advantage to drilled discs? IFAIK they keep the pads clean, stop gasses building up but surely on a road car this is overkill. I'm interested to hear thoughts? If there are real benefits for my car I will consider getting some.

There have been instances of radial cracks in drilled discs:eek:

Dimpled discs are a much safer choice if you must have that look ;)

FWIW I have slotted rotors |B

https://www.google.com.au/search?q=drilled+brake+rotor+failures&biw=1680&bih=926&tbm=isch&imgil=3wjYHSYM7vrO4M%3A%3BCKcOL_R0H2jslM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.mye28.com%252Fviewtopic.php%253Ft%25253D72346&source=iu&pf=m&fir=3wjYHSYM7vrO4M%3A%2CCKcOL_R0H2jslM%2C_&usg=__BcB6hcObGXKMXj1yyt4IjrAEcyo=&ved=0ahUKEwi90N_g7bLPAhVEJJQKHfc6ChoQyjcINA&ei=JiLsV72lHsTI0AT39ajQAQ#imgrc=3wjYHSYM7vrO4M:
 
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Drilled discs are nothing new - They were standard on the 32GTR and that came out late 80s. There is no history of oem ones cracking and they have had time to do this obviously.

My car was probably on its orginal discs (approx 55k miles when I imported it)They were worn quite a bit but no cracks.The new discs were ordered through nissan and arrived in Nissan boxes with part number . They came drilled (yes with chamfered holes)
The v spec 32gtrs had upgraded brakes which were coincedently brembos.
On to answering the ops question . I have no doubt there is little difference between the two options.
You may well get a better guarantee if you fit the amg ones and it would be all oem bit thats only any use on resale and if the rest of the car is stock and it has service history
 
Aye, I've heard of issues with cracks, you'd hope that a good make like Brembo, or genuine drilled discs from Merc, would be ok though? Brembos I know are chamfered. Some of those images look like home-made drilled discs - holes right next to the edge and stuff.

The car is stock and has full MB dealer history. That said I will be using merc specialist independents going forward. I do use genuine oil and filters though. These don't seem to cost much more than pattern parts. I got 7 litres of genuine MB oil and a filter delivered for 49 quid from a merc dealer which I thought was reasonable.

I hope to keep the car for 8 to 10 years so resale value isn't as big a worry. When I eventually trade in I don't think the brakes will make much difference really.

I think I'll go with the Brembo kit come pay day.

Obi I can document the change when I do it and you can put it in your tech guides if you want?
 
Some of those images look like home-made drilled discs - holes right next to the edge and stuff.

I don't think the normal rules for edge distance would apply, the outer edge of the disc is not going to be a bolted joint either in shear or tension. Looking at the edge distance for the wheel bolt /stud holes, they're nothing like the 1.25 - 1.4D that you'd expect.
 

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Aye, I've heard of issues with cracks, you'd hope that a good make like Brembo, or genuine drilled discs from Merc, would be ok though? Brembos I know are chamfered. Some of those images look like home-made drilled discs - holes right next to the edge and stuff.

The car is stock and has full MB dealer history. That said I will be using merc specialist independents going forward. I do use genuine oil and filters though. These don't seem to cost much more than pattern parts. I got 7 litres of genuine MB oil and a filter delivered for 49 quid from a merc dealer which I thought was reasonable.

I hope to keep the car for 8 to 10 years so resale value isn't as big a worry. When I eventually trade in I don't think the brakes will make much difference really.

I think I'll go with the Brembo kit come pay day.

Obi I can document the change when I do it and you can put it in your tech guides if you want?
Yes please that will be great!
 
I took out the front pads on mine at the weekend since I’d never looked at them since I got the car. Surprised it’s only single piston callipers, thought they were twin pistons. Each calliper has four retaining bolts onto the carrier bracket instead of the usual two, they were T35’s and QT (Quite Tight) as opposed to FT. Stripped them all out and wire brushed them clean, bags of meat left on them, found slight wear ridges on outer edge of discs so cleaned them up, re-assembled and bled with no drama.

Have you got all the hardware and bits you need? Check out the part number of the flex hoses in case you need them and have the Merc spares dept on speed dial.

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Yugguy, shame I didn't see this thread before.

Last year I bought some GTT Tuning discs (Renowned Mini Specialists) and some Kevlar pads that come with it.

From the outset, They were so much better then OEM but if I drove the car hard then they faded very quickly.

Fast forward to my last few updates and I purchased some green stuff pads and MTEC Drilled (chamfered holes) and Grooved discs. Bled the system and the braking is immense. They stop you dead in your tracks. MTEC Discs alone were £120 for the Mini. I recommend those once the Brembo's are perished.
 
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