I hope I have posted this in the correct forum. Please forgive me if this is not the right place for this.

I recently bought a 2007 Mini Cooper (base model) used in January of this year. It now has just over 50,000 miles, and just this week I started getting the warning light to service the brakes. Upon visual inspection, the front brake pads appear to be getting fairly low, but the rotors appear fine and feel somewhat smooth. I have not heard any nasty noises yet.

I have done a few simple brake pad replacement jobs on other vehicles (honda's, dodges, etc.) -- so I first shopped pricing on replacement pads (and possibly rotors, if needed). I also want to switch to the ceramic type pads as I hear they produce much less dust.

I also called the local (well, 45 miles away) mini dealer and spoke to their service department, just to see what it would cost me there. I was told a front brake job would cost $575 (wow!), and that they replace both the pads and the rotors regardless. But they do not use ceramic pads -- only the factory authorized pads that come on the car to begin with. This seemed very high to me, and a bit strange that they would not even look at the rotors to consider turning them.

So my questions are this: Is it normal to just replace the rotors every time? Also, if I replace the pads and rotors myself, is it a huge deal to reset the computer / sensor with respect to the life of the brake pads -- or does that just magically happen? Or do I just have to fork over that kind of money for simple front brake job?

 

Most shops will not turn rotors anymore.
To much liability.
If you have done brakes before, a MINI is not any different.
You will need a brake pad spreader.
Many different shops have complete front sets as a package.

 

Honestly, I have just put in pads plenty of times. Really I can't remember a big issue or any issue with this process. The pads need longer to seat, but if you are not getting any pulses and it works to your standards, you are good to go.

I should add, this was always with a beater station car, not a mini or a car I drive hard. Shop around and price things out. Everyone is different, but doing in once and doing it properly is worth a bit more to most folks.

 

easy DIY job. Order some rotors and pads online.

 

From what I've read here, it's apparently normal for dealers to replace rotors and pads at the same time, to insist on OE parts, and to charge more than most independent shops do. The estimate they gave you sounds reasonable to me, at least for a dealer.

There's probably a legitimate reason (other than enhancing income) why they insist on renewing rotors with the new pads; especially if they tend to wear out at the same time. Pads wear out long before rotors on my other cars, however. If your rotors still have sufficient thickness, and are otherwise in good shape (no warping, heat discoloration, or significant cracks), it's okay to replace just the pads. There is a minimum recommended rotor thickness (which I don't happen to know), but feeling how much lip stands up at the outside edges gives a rough estimate of wear.

If you do need new rotors, changing rotors on a MINI (which I haven't done yet) is a bit more involved and time-consuming than just changing pads, but it's probably not out of your reach with a little guidance. If you don't want to take this on yourself, perhaps you can find a good independent local shop (one that knows MINIs) for another estimate. They should also have the tool for any necessary resetting.

 

Wow thanks for all the responses and advice. I do think I may just try it myself.

I had done a search before making this thread -- I guess I searched too broad of a term ("brakes") because there was a gazillion returns and I couldn't find anything specifically significant. After some further searching, I did find this thread that seems very helpful if anyone else is in my same boat...it's a step by step (with pictures) for replacing the pads:

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...073-post1.html


I don't think it shows how to do the rotors (and hopefully I don't need to at this point).

It all does seem simple enough -- my worries are the little trip wire that connects to the pads that signals the system that your pads are worn....but my other worry is just finding a way to reset the computer or whatever it is in the mini that tells me when my next brake service is due.

I will re-read this thread and the other one to see if that is addressed and I just missed it, but thanks again for the responses.

 

I had a local shop replace my brakes and new sensors on my 2008 base and as the sensors needed to be replaced also. Be aware of that. I also had "lifetime" Delco pads put on my car. They work great so I am not sure of OEM pads and the value. The best part is no brake dust at all. I had all four brakes replaced for $700.00. Again work great ..... and no brake dust. Hope this helps.

 

If it were my car, I would dump the OEM pads as they are dusty and grabby. It is possible to reuse the rotors if they are not worn.

Doing it yourself is not hard and you only need a c-clamp to retract the caliper pistons.

 

You might check Tire Rack Upgrade Garage, good sponsor of this site and good prices for quality parts. Akebono ceramic pads for $63 and Centric rotors for $51 each. A long ways from $575 and you shouldn't have the dust problem that you get from the OEM pads. Tire Rack is a reliable web source of MINI parts/tires/wheels.