ML63 discs and pads and skimming

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ab9758

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Joined
Mar 25, 2012
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85
Location
Central London
Car
CL500 (W216) ex-ML500 ML63 AMG and ML55
Just an update to a 2014 thread suggesting MB for brake pads and discs for ml63. I think mine is the standard with oversized 390mm front discs.

MB Temple Fortune just quoted £760 for the front disks and £400 or so for the rears, including vat but not the pads nor the fitting. Budget guidance for it all is about £2,000-2400.

As an observation, when I get a quote from fitters such as F1 Autocentre and even Halfords, of about £1000-1100, I'm getting used to the follow-up phone call ten minutes later that they actually can't get hold of the 390mm disks they quoted for and will have in fact to get them from Mercedes-Benz. Am still waiting for them to update the quote.

I'm toying with the idea of skimming the disks, with some knowledge of the downsides. I'm not intending any serious driving and will only do 2-3000 miles a year. But there's a garage in Park Royal that seems very experienced and skims mainly Porsche. Budget including pads and skimming is £400 compared with £2400 from MB. Am I deluding myself in trying to economise?
 
An old engineer pal of mine used to skim them for me in his lunch break. Charged me a tenner! :)

Take 'em to a local small engineering firm and ask them for a spin on their lathe.

Don't go beyond the min thickness!!!
 
I remember seeing this on Wheeler Dealers and being truly impressed at such skillful engineering.
 
Are the discs warped ? , which normally the only reason to skim them. If there is a "lip" on the discs then why not just get that machined off ?

Kenny
 
Can skimming restore warped disks? I had hotspots on front disks (k sports on focus), which would expand and contract with temp changes differently to rest of disk material. They went to bin eventually as I couldn't see how they can be fixed :(
 
There are quite a few places that will skim brake discs for you. What they should do is take the disc off and sand down the corrosion on the hub that's the usual cause of the disc becoming warped in the first place (although "warped" is a misnomer since it's really uneven wear on the disc caused by the run-out).
 
Can skimming restore warped disks?:(

Providing you are not going below the minimum thickness before they clean up then yes.

We used to do loads of them in RR , back in the day. We even used to make them from a seriously large piece of cast iron for cars whose discs were stupidly expensive. It must have cost a fortune for the material and man hours.

14"dia of cast iron bar plus the stainless for the 12 caliper pistons , on a Range Rover.

Kenny
 
Hi,
We had new rear pads fitted along with the rear discs skimmed a few weeks ago.
The rear pads on the side without the wear sensor were seriously worn (were probably sticking) and they started to grind about a mile from the workshop.
Here is a picture after they were skimmed:-
IMG_3542.jpg
Cheers
Steve
 
I had my front discs skimmed on the car, discs where very new but the guy who fitted them did not clean the hub face so vibrated damaging the face.
Problem was finding someone who could get the 390mm disc in.
M.A.D is the tool needed, and can do up to 410mm I think, mine cleaned up after I fixed the hub faces and now my brakes are silky smooth.
 
I'm assured it's the lip that's the problem
MOT advisory was

"Brake disc worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened Rear [3.5.li]"
 

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