Porsche 911UK Forum

Welcome to the @Porsche911UK website. Register a free account today to become a member! Sign up is quick and easy, then you can view, participate in topics and posts across the site that covers all things Porsche.

Already registered and looking to recovery your account, select 'login in' and then the 'forget your password' option.

Brake pads warning message

John H

Well-known member
Joined
13 Sep 2011
Messages
438
Yesterday I was braking when a red warning message appeared briefly on my dash. It said - "Service" and something about brake pad replacement required. When I pulled over to read it properly it disappeared?

So I phoned my OPC today and asked for their advice. I bought my 997.2 GTS new from them in 2011 and my current mileage is just under 35,000. They said I will require brake pads replacement front and rear and that they can't do this without also replacing the discs at the same time. The total cost for this they estimate at around £1,800.

Must say this sounds a bit steep! Does this sound reasonable to those of you more mechanically minded than myself?

Your opinions would be gratefully received - many thanks...
 
Have they seen your car or did they tell you that they all need replacing over the phone as it's unlikely that the rears need replacing at the same time as the front. Also if your disks are still within tolerance + without heavy scoring you can just change the pads and sensors as these will be worn as your light has come on, you will probably need new shims as well if you want to keep them in. Personally I normally go with new discs when changing the pads but this is not necessary if they are ok as above.

Also If your car is out of opc warranty you might also want to look at other brands of disc such a Pagid or Textar which will be much cheaper for the same spec product without the logo.
 
£1800 is criminal, take the car to your local garage they will change the pads for peanuts. They are no more complex or involved than any other vehicle. Non Porsche pads and discs will not invalidate a used warranty.
 
John H said:
Yesterday I was braking when a red warning message appeared briefly on my dash. It said - "Service" and something about brake pad replacement required. When I pulled over to read it properly it disappeared?

So I phoned my OPC today and asked for their advice. I bought my 997.2 GTS new from them in 2011 and my current mileage is just under 35,000. They said I will require brake pads replacement front and rear and that they can't do this without also replacing the discs at the same time. The total cost for this they estimate at around £1,800.

Must say this sounds a bit steep! Does this sound reasonable to those of you more mechanically minded than myself?

Your opinions would be gratefully received - many thanks...

You'll almost certainly need pads at the front if you have tripped the sensor but other than that without looking at the wear on the rear pads and the disks then they are out of order to suggest you need £1800 worth of work without first seeing the car. If the disks are not lipped then you will probably only need pads.


OPC prices for front pads are around £220 per set and they will also replace sensors and fitting kit which are £70 & £56. You then need to add labour to this. Discs are around £200 each for front and £180 for rear. If you have someone local you could ask them to fit them for you and save a chunk on the labour rates.
P
 
I believe the message you saw was probably saying high brake pad wear. I had it come on during a track day and then went off when I was driving a bit more sedately afterwards.

Had my front and rear pads changed for £500 at an indy (genuine Porsche items), they advised the discs were fine and there was no need to change them too. The ones on ECP are probably cheaper but I'm not taking the risk of any brake squeal or loss of performance.
 
It could be something as simple as just a faulty sender wire or the sheathing is cracked and is letting water in.

Did the warning message pop up when it was raining, because if it had worn through the wiring, the dash warning would most probably be permanent?
 
Does a GTS have bigger brakes than a 'normal' car?

Mine on a 997.1 were done for about £1100 for discs and pads by my Indy. £1800 is bonkers, as is telling you need them without looking at the car. I would avoid this OPC like the plague!
 
GTS discs are 330mm, same as a Carrera S.
 
First of all you need a garage to actually look at the car and i would prefer an Indy for this sort of thing.

Its probably fronts as rears last a lot longer.

As the pads reach the limit the warning will come and go .

Im not a fan of just replaceing the pads , discs wear on the surface and you end up with a lip .. this will cut the sensor wires sooner if you just replace the pads .. they will take a while to actually bed in so brakes might be bad for a while.

Disc wear limits are 1mm per side so a total of 2 mm wear .. they pretty much last the same time as the pads .

Not with ceramics though.

If not under warrenty then non porsche pads / discs is what i would recomend at an indy.
 
Many thanks guys for your contributions...

I did check out various alternatives including a quote from an Indy. They looked at the brakes and confirmed that, due to some corrosion on the discs, it would be best to renew pads and discs all round. Their price was about £200 lower than the OPC.

Having thought it all through, I decided to go ahead with having it done at the OPC yesterday.

I'm quite glad that I did as they found a problem with a bolt thread which had sheared and resolved that at no extra expense.

I got the car back today with them having completed the initial 'bedding in' process. The brakes seem okay but certainly not as sharp as I was expecting! Maybe I will need to run them in for a while longer?

Not having kept my previous cars long enough to have first hand knowledge of what this entails, I'd be glad to hear any pointers from members who have done this?

Many thanks again - much appreciated... :cheers:
 
Many thanks deMort... :thumb:
 
I had my rear discs and pads replaced for £420 including VAT. Don't pay more than £1k for fronts and rears!
 
OK - where was that then? - were they authentic Porsche parts?
 

New Threads

Forum statistics

Threads
124,354
Messages
1,439,461
Members
48,713
Latest member
3sp1f8
Back
Top