Full disc and pad replacement after only a year

[The Plumber]

Been having issues with the brakes since the end of July, encountering a shuddering particularly descending a hill. So had chance to get the car into the dealer today and they found the inner faces of all four brake discs heavily corroded, particularly the rear (one rear disc had started to flake).

 

Recommended replacing all four discs and associated pads and no not covered by warranty 

 

Thankfully the dealer is pretty good and offered without asking a goodwill gesture and additional parts discount that's linked to my service plan. However I will be taking this up with SUK, as even the dealer had to admit having to replace these parts for corrosion on a year old car, which is regularly driven with 12.5k on the clock is very unusual.

 

 

TP

[chrisgreen]

Interesting report. Seems a few of us have been having braking issues, including me.

Had the wheels off in June and the callipers apart. The discs are not brilliant, but still useable, and the pads had plenty of material left, but had caked everything in brake dust which was impairing performance.

Cleaned everything up which made a short term improvement, but I too think a pad and disc replacement is on the cards before winter, on a car that has done 18K.

Sent from my iPad Mini with Retina using Tapatalk, please excuse any typos.

[67igor1]

I had to change mine as well... All discs have been worn after 15k miles. I put Brembo stuff in...

tt user

[Stormchaser]

That's shocking. I hope they replace them at no cost to you.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[camelspyyder]

That's shocking. I hope they replace them at no cost to you.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

 Imagine how quickly yours are going to wear out, driving it like you stole it 

[firefox2]

I just had to replace my brakes front discs and pads and rear brake shoe kit in my fabia 2 years old 24000 miles.

This i am told is due to corosion but it's not like the car sits on the drive for days on end I drive around 60 miles a day.

It cost me £420 at skoda to have this work done a very expencive lesson but I won't be going back to skoda for new brakes again.

[67igor1]

I think it's issue with pads quality... They're to hard...

and discs have been eaten...

tt user

[chrisgreen]

It cost me £420 at skoda to have this work done a very expencive lesson but I won't be going back to skoda for new brakes again.

£420 - what a rip-off!

Why on early did you go to a main dealer for pads and discs? A decent independent garage (NOT Kwik Fit or Halfords) would have been half that, if not less, using OE quality parts that would not compromise your warranty.

[Stormchaser]

Imagine how quickly yours are going to wear out, driving it like you stole it

Ooh what do you mean lol.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Stormchaser]

I think it's issue with pads quality... They're to hard...

and discs have been eaten...

tt user

You're absolutely right. The originals from the factory are inferior quality and do wear out quickly. I've had this on all my Skodas.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[67igor1]

It cost me £420 at skoda to have this work done a very expencive lesson...

All Brembo parts for all 4 wheels cost about £ 135...

Next add some labour... £ 130

That's all...

tt user

[chrisgreen]

All Brembo parts for all 4 wheels cost about £ 135...

Next add some labour... £ 130

That's all...

Yep - that's about the right cost.

Sent from my iPhone 5S using Tapatalk, please excuse any typos.

[67igor1]

Plus... You got very good breaks now...

tt user

[eyegr]

That's worrying!

 

The Rapid is on the streets for at least three years, no? We should have had many more complaints by now. Maybe the problem is with a specific pad or caliper part number? Because there are more than three different versions.

[67igor1]

I've got Seat Toledo. Front pads are the same in Seat Mii, Skoda CityGo and VW UP

tt user

[FLAPPERJACK7]

Standing in a dealership or a field for a long time before it was purchased?

Sent from my SM-G900F using Tapatalk

[The Plumber]

Standing in a dealership or a field for a long time before it was purchased?

Sent from my SM-G900F using Tapatalk

 

 

Date stamps in the engine bay would suggest the car to have been no more than four months old when we bought it and for an unknown length of that time it had been in a dealer showroom and obviously shipping to the dealer would take up another three to four weeks from factory.

 

This is one of the things the dealer tech asked about the vehicle history (was the car bought from stock), which would suggest this angle might be a known issue.

 

 

TP

[The Plumber]

SUK rang me back following the e-mail; currently they say warranty claims are down to the dealer, while the dealer says they are following SUK warranty guidelines 

 

Anyway SUK suggest they are looking into my concerns, although they seem to be struggling with the concept that the brake parts are faulty due to an excessive rate of corrosion, as opposed to worn out, IMHO anyway.

 

 

TP

[chrisgreen]

Yep, that sounds like typical Skoda UK buck-passing nonsense. If SUK don't authorise a warranty repair/replacement, the dealer won't be reimbursed for the work.

Based on my experience dealing with SUK, I'm not surprised at the crap they are spouting on this occasion. Don't hold your breath waiting for a resolution.

[Stormchaser]

Exactly as Chris says.

Keep onto them. They always think they're non blameworthy for everything.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Matt17121991]

How long should these last? I've done 15k now and I'm worried by this to be honest, I don't exactly have the spare cash lying around for this either!

[67igor1]

How long should these last?

It's depend... how and where you drive...

Best idea: measure discs thickness 5 mm below edge...

tt user

[chrisgreen]

How long should these last? I've done 15k now and I'm worried by this to be honest, I don't exactly have the spare cash lying around for this either!

As Igor said, it's not an exact science - a lot depends on where you drive, how you drive, and how often you have to work the brakes.

If your daily commute is long and full of stop-start traffic, that will have an accelerated impact on your brakes, same if you drive like you stole it and have to hard brake a lot. If you are a low mileage driver that doesn't encounter much traffic, then brakes should last a good amount of time, but are then open to issues of brake disc corrosion (they rust up quickly when they get wet and left standing for a while) and brake pad degradation (again, pads left standing in the elements will eventually start to degrade of their own accord). Temperature also has an impact.

From my las two cars (both bigger, heavier front-wheel drive cars with heavier engines), in which I was doing over 22,000 miles a year - 70 miles a day commuting to and from work, easy run in the morning, stop start for 15 miles of the journey home (M25) - my discs were lasting in excess of 60,000 miles before needing replacement, and my pads in the region of 40,000 to 60,000 miles.

That said, unadventurous regular use in the UK on M, A and B roads normally should not result in major disc and/or pad wear or failure after 15,000 miles. Either some of us are suffering from a bad batch, or simply the quality of VW OE braking parts are not what they used to be.

Are you actually having any braking issues? If not, don't worry about it.

If you are having noticeable issues, get your brakes checked (not by a Halfords or Kwik Fit). It might just be you need a clean-up, as excess deposits of brake dust can bung up the callipers, affecting performance a bit.

I see you are in Redditch, I can recommend my favourite mechanics over in Rugby - they know Skodas, are very cheap, and won't try and sell you an unnecessary brake replacement if it is not needed.

[MickA]

I doubt they even inspect the brakes that thoroughly at the 1st service, they certainly don't touch them or strip and clean them. So a degrading set of discs/pads won't get picked up that easily. So a new car can go 20k+ miles before they are touched.

Not the way I like things done, mine get inspected by me every year and at least a glance over, including the rear face of the disc every so often.

Agree the OEM discs are rubbish, my Toledo is suffering from pitting and don't look as clean as my Mazdas discs after a drive and that's got a great deal more wear and years on them than the Toledo discs.

Edited 26 August, 2015 by MickA

[meb90]

I wonder if it is an OEM thing. My Octavia has now done just over 23,000 miles, in 16 months. It gets driven almost daily. But the rear discs look pretty awful to look at, and do have some slight ridges in them. I don't do much hard braking either. I was expecting to be told at the service that they needed replacing.

The front discs are fine, but I guess they do most of the work.

I'll admit I don't really know what the inside faces look like though!