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Car Forum / Saab Cars / October 20049-3 break rotors - are they routinely changed at 20K miles?
I just got back from my dealer after a 30K mile scheduled service. I have a 2002 9-3 conv. The dealer claims that my break rotors are thin and need replacement, for $600. The dealer claims and I quote "SAABs have very thin rotors and they cannot be machined. It's routine to have rotors changed at 18K-20K on a SAAB 9-3 and I did very well reaching 30K. Right now, if I slam on the breaks, there's a chance the rotors may shatter". I am a bit suspicious because this is my second 9-3 conv. (the other a '99) and I never had a problem with that one, I had Midas change my pads at 36K miles. I also owned over 10 cars and I never heard of rotors needing replacement every 20K-30K miles. I specifically asked the dealer to check my pads/breaks during the 20K mile service and all was good then. I asked whether it would make a difference had my pads been changed back on the 20K service and the dealer said "no, it wouldn't SAAB rotors need to be changed all the time, even if you change the pads. Is this guy for real or am I being taken to the cleaners (I haven't authorized the job yet BTW). Thanks, John > I just got back from my dealer after a 30K mile scheduled service. I have a > 2002 9-3 conv. The dealer claims that my break rotors are thin and need > replacement, for $600. It's a 45 minute job with normal hand tools. The most "exotic" thing is a 5mm (7mm?) allen wrench. > The dealer claims and I quote "SAABs have very thin rotors and they cannot > be machined. Wrong. Find a better dealer. > It's routine to have rotors changed at 18K-20K on a SAAB 9-3 Wrong. > and I did very well reaching 30K. Right now, if I slam on the breaks, > there's a chance the rotors may shatter". Never heard of such a thing. > I am a bit suspicious because this is my second 9-3 conv. (the other a '99) > and I never had a problem with that one, I had Midas change my pads at 36K > miles. I also owned over 10 cars and I never heard of rotors needing > replacement every 20K-30K miles. I just helped a friend do front rotors on a 9-3 with 30,000+ miles, and the old ones are still well within spec (and he drives city miles almost exclusively). The pads were half gone. We did brakes because he wanted ventilated rotors, so we did the whole thing (both sides, pads and rotors in the front) in well under an hour. 150 bucks worth of parts (ventilated rotors from eeuroparts.com and pads from same). > I specifically asked the dealer to check my pads/breaks during the 20K mile > service and all was good then. I asked whether it would make a difference > had my pads been changed back on the 20K service and the dealer said "no, it > wouldn't SAAB rotors need to be changed all the time, even if you change the > pads. Find a better dealer, this one is trying to take advantage of you not knowing the car. > Is this guy for real or am I being taken to the cleaners (I haven't > authorized the job yet BTW). Good. Don't. If you want step-by-step instructions let us know, it's not difficult at all. Do you have a measuring device to measure the brake rotor thickness? Are they pulsing (warped) or badly grooved? Dave Hinz I have 50,000 miles on a 99 9.3 and the rotors are original and still straight. I expect them to be still straight at 80,000 miles. John >>I just got back from my dealer after a 30K mile scheduled service. I have a >>2002 9-3 conv. The dealer claims that my break rotors are thin and need [quoted text clipped - 46 lines] > > Dave Hinz Dave, thank you very much for your answer. I could smell a rat from a mile away. Unfortunately the very reliable and classy SAAB dealership I've been using since 1998 has been bought out by a Pontiac dealer. This was my first visit to the new dealer and it left a bad taste in my mouth (I was actually yelled at by the kid who fetches the keys to the cars because I couldn't understand something he was mumbling from 30 yards away!!!). Anyway, I must've seemed stupid enough to the slick-o at the dealer's - the funny thing is that the breaks work like a charm, no sign of trouble, no sounds etc. The car is a lease-I got another 1.5 years/18K miles to go. I don't have much of a taste for the new models so I might end up keeping it thereafter. I may very well end up changing the rotors and pads myself if/when needed - the eEuroparts prices sure seem reasonable. I would *love* instructions about the job. Again, thanks a lot. John > Anyway, I must've seemed stupid enough to the slick-o at the dealer's > - the funny thing is that the breaks work like a charm, no sign of > trouble, no sounds etc. I should have mentioned - my 9-5 has 90,000 miles on the original rotors. Pretty sure it's exactly the same brakes. > The car is a lease-I got another 1.5 years/18K miles to go. I don't > have much of a taste for the new models so I might end up keeping it > thereafter. I may very well end up changing the rotors and pads myself > if/when needed - the eEuroparts prices sure seem reasonable. I would > *love* instructions about the job. Again, thanks a lot. I should start putting these on a site. Tell you what, let me get the tool sizes down and then I'll write something up. Bug me in a couple days if you haven't seen something please. We're very close to having a new baby, so my schedule is somewhat in flux at the moment, so if I drop out of sight for a while that's why. Dave Hinz BTW, not grooved from what I can see, certainly not pulsing. At $150 in parts though, I don't even mind changing them myself, especially since I might keep the car. Thx >Good. Don't. If you want step-by-step instructions let us know, it's >not difficult at all. Do you have a measuring device to measure the >brake rotor thickness? Are they pulsing (warped) or badly grooved? > BTW, not grooved from what I can see, certainly not pulsing. At $150 > in parts though, I don't even mind changing them myself, especially > since I might keep the car. Just as an additional data-point. I would *never* change a set of rotors pre-emptively, unless there was some visible or measurable problems with them. The minimum thickness spec is primarily to prevent someone from turning (shaving) the rotors down too far, which would make them highly likely to then warp. If the rotors are not warped (pulsing during braking) or cracked I would leave them alone. Check your pad thickness occasionally (periodicity is spelled out in the service schedules) as they *do* need to be changed before they are 100% worn or you will cut the life of the rotors down dramatically. YMMV, -Fred W Maybe, just maaaaaybe, if you ran metallic pads and drove with your foot on the brake pedal all the time.... agree with the others. Total cobblers. Cheers > I just got back from my dealer after a 30K mile scheduled service. I have a > 2002 9-3 conv. The dealer claims that my break rotors are thin and need > replacement, for $600. My girlfriend bought a 2001 9-3 coming off a lease a few months back (around 30k miles). She took it to an independent Saab specialist (which has done excellent work for me in the past), and they told her that the rotors and pads both needed replacing. There was significant brake pulsing, and the rotors were rusty and visibly worn (there was a thick ridge of metal around the edge of the outward-facing friction face of the rotor). The rotors were too thin to be machined. It's impossible for me to say whether this is a normal characteristic of the 9-3's brakes, or if the previous owner was fond of braking hard and fast. But I have read many articles on this group suggesting that the 9-3's rotors wear out quickly. YMMV. John |
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