How long should a complete brake job last?

Question

I bought a 2003 Ford Focus two years ago, and the first thing I had them fix were the brakes. It's been 30,000 miles of easy driving. Should I worry?

Answer 1

Every individual driver uses their brakes differently. Some are easy on them especially people who drive mainly highway miles and others do a lot of town driving which wear brakes faster because of repeated stops.
Off-shore brake rotors and drums are made with sub-standard material which rust, corrode, wear and warp easily- sad but true! American, Canadian and British manufactured cast iron brake rotors are made of much higher quality material and tend to be thicker when purchaced new. Companies such as Wagner AC Delco EBC (Britich) NAPA'S and Car Quest's best are cast in the USA and Canada.
Pad material differs greatly. Organic pads wear faster but are by far the cleanest and do no damage to quality brake rotors. Ceramic pads last longer but do dust-up slightly. They also wear rotors a little more than organic based brake pads.
Metallic ans semi-metallic pads grind, score and eat brake rotors to an early death. They are by far the most nasty dirty pads on the market.
I'm sure you've seen cars and trucks on the highway with red / grey / brown dirt and crap on nice aluminum wheels, bingo, you've identified metallic brake pads.
If you've ever noticed, Toyota's always have very clean aluminum wheels. They come from the factory with organic based brake pads. They must have a secret because their pads can go 50 -80,000 miles before they need to be replaced. Front and rear *vented rotor thickness on Toyota's is such that they can be re-surfaced at least twice of needed.

Answer 2

Complete Brake Job

Answer 3

Your life depends on a few inches of tire making contact with the road and good brakes to help make them stop, so you want to make sure that both your tires and brakes are always in good shape.

Since you claim to be an "easy driver" - - wasn't there a movie by that name? ;) - - and the car is a relative lightweight, then you probably need fewer pad changes, compared to a heavier car with a less careful driver (FWIW, my very heavy Ford Crown Vic has needed two brake changes in its 7 years).

According to the maintenance schedule, you should have the brakes inspected once every 15,000 miles. If you live in a State with annual safety inspections, then this should be done automatically; if not, many service stations offer free brake inspections (just keep an eye on them, as it's very easy to purposely damage a pad). Keep in mind that humidity and other weather factors can affect wear, beyond your driving habits.

Also, consider that some brake pads/shoes come with multi-year replacement guarantees, as some chain stores used to do (nowadays, you have to pay more for the privilege, which, IMHO, isn't worth it, because the pads are the cheapest parts of the service, which can cost upwards of hundreds of dollars). Regardless, always get all four brake pads replaced at the same time; that way, you won't forget which one was replaced, or which ones need eventual replacement.

Unless your car pulls to one side or makes noise when you apply the brake, or if the pedal seems "mushy", or goes all the way to the floor, or won't move at all, then you probably don't have a problem. A simple test is to go to a large, empty parking lot during a light rain, take the car up to about 30 mph, and stop as hard as you can. If the car skids by more than six parking spots, then consider the brakes (or tires) suspicious; less than 4, your brakes (and tires!) are excellent. Of course, don't do it if there's a cop around, or if you don't trust your driving skills, as it is certainly possible that you can crash into something or go into an uncontrollable spin, whether or not you have ABS brakes.

One more thing: when leaving the mechanic after getting a brake job, ALWAYS pump the brakes a few times IN THE MECHANIC'S PARKING LOT. You don't want to be on the road and discover that the brakes don't work, as has happened to me on THREE occasions!!! Don't let sloppy mechanics cost you your life!

In the attached link, you'll note that the tested 2000 Focus suffered premature brake wear (that doesn't necessarily mean anything; I'm just pointing it out).

Answer 4

Well ya old fart - hey ya did say Ur name was olfart didn't ya?
hope so, well I guess it all depends what "you" call easy driving?
My dad says he drives his car easy too, but he brakes too late and always heats up his rotors and they warp, so when I drive his car and stop casually you can feel a violent vibration through the car.
As for you sir...30000 city miles will be pushing your brakes reguarless how gently you drive.
At the very least you should have them inspected, and I would think by now cleaned, adjusted, and probly a new set of pads up front.
Front & back - if you have 4 wheel disc brakes.

Now if that 30000 is Hwy miles mostly you may be in great shape!
But I suggest you still go to your trusted auto spot and get them inspected to be safe!
If you have felt any vibrations, if the car pulls a little left or right when you apply the brake, or if you hear any squeaking squealing or grinding when you touch the brake peddle then don't wait for an invitation to go for service.

I hope I have helped ya somewhat :)

Answer 5

From my experience, a brake job should last about 30,000 - 40,000 miles. Are your brakes getting soft at all? In other words, when you hit the brakes, do you find your foot going farther than usual? That's a sign you need new brakes!

Checkng brake pads is not a big deal and most garages will check them for you for free. Or, you can take your tires off and pop the brakes off yourself. It's pretty easy and you'll save a *ton* of money if you need to replace them!

Answer 6

You do have a while left on the brakes whilst they start squealing. in spite of the incontrovertible fact which you should harm the rotors. If the brakes have in no way been replaced then you definately ought to have the skill to have the rotors machined fairly of replaced that's extra low-priced. additionally do not enable the pads get to skinny it ought to reason the caliper pistons from extending previous there cut back that ought to reason issues. so which you ccan carry off abit, yet not too long. try the bus or bike or carpooling, 3 weeks is in all probability to long to circulate on those breaks.

Answer 7

Nah. Your brakes are fine. If you're concerned then pull a wheel off to check the wear of the pads. I had a truck with 144K miles on it and I had the brakes replaced only once.

Answer 8

it all depends on the quality of the pads they used, some are good for a year some will last for 70-80 k. your doing good. if you need to add brake fluid to bring the level to the full line this is a sign you should consider the need for new brakes

Answer 9

on a focus the front brakes usually last 32 to 37k and the rear brakes should last 50 to 60 k

Answer 10

It also depends on what types of breaks you put on. I think Its hard to say if thats a problem.