Car Brake Pads and Rotors Replacement for 2020 Renault Koleos

I have a Renault Koleos that I have for big service yesterday. During the servicing they called and told me I need to get the front brake pads replaced now or within 2000km of city driving. If I want to do it now, it would cost $900. I told them I will get it later to see if I can get a good price for them.

Now, my request to OzBargain community is to suggest the economical way to do it. I already spent $1100 for the big service. Is there a way to replace the brake pads from some other mechanic without breaking the warranty? Do you know of any places in Western Sydney or around where I can get it done cheaper?

Thank you

UPDATE:

I just checked the report. It is not just brake pads but also rotors.

Comments

  • -1

    Suggestions for Car Brake Pads Replacement

    Yes, do it.

  • $900 for just the front brake pads seems like a lot, is it rotors as well as the pads?

    • I just checked the reports. They mentioned rotors as well. Thank you

      • Still sounds pricey but that goes towards explaining some of the cost. As long as you're using a licensed mechanic it won't void the warranty so I'd be shopping around if I were you

        • -1

          Thanks very much. I will call few mechanics. I wonder if supercheapauto can do it?

          • +4

            @usbc activist: They could certainly sell the parts but I've never heard of them fitting brakes. As somebody said below a lot of mechanics won't be interested in fitting parts that you supplied however

          • +3

            @usbc activist: Don't buy parts elsewhere and take them to the mechanic. Just get them to supply and install.

            Best approach is to find a good mechanic with fair pricing, and have them do it.

            Asking a mechanic to use parts you supply is bad for them, because you mightn't supply the best quality part, or a part that either doesn't fit or only partially fits, or is just unpleasant to work with. Then they are expected to warranty their work on this unknown part. They also lose profit margin on your job as they split profits in billing across parts and labour. If you were to bring the exact same part they'd be using (not a cheaper crapper one), chances are you'd be paying a similar price for it as what they're charging, except the mechanic would profit due to wholesale, instead of some random company you found on eBay profits instead of your mechanic.

            Save yourself the effort in sourcing parts yourself, and don't dick your mechanic around, it'll cost you one way or another.

        • +5

          You don't want to brake the warranty.

          • -6

            @bargaino: It would be even worse to break it.

            • @JIMB0: Did you miss his pun?

              Or got it anyways but was still compelled?

              Glad to see you are finally occupying yourself with the big picture issues.

              • -5

                @Eeples: Do you realise that break and brake are not interchangeable and actually have different meanings?

      • -1

        Get a second opinion

        Try Midas - they are well priced for brakes and fairly honest

        Dealers have a habit of suggesting work that doesnt need to be done.

        At most the rotors will just need shaving.

        IMPORTANT INFORMATION REQUIRED! How many kms has the car travelled????????????????

        • At most the rotors will just need shaving.

          How would you know without seeing them?

          It's a European car. They are probably lipped like crazy & good for scrap metal.

  • -3

    I never give advise on an empty stomach. Once I have brakefast I'll chip in.
    OK, here goes.

    The correct answer is the best pads you can afford, ( DIY or mechanic fitted). Automotive Superstore has a good range and decent pricing.
    Or find the pads you want,shop for the price around the place.You may have trouble getting a mechanic to fit parts you supply,too.

    EDIT: Now the story has changed to rotors as well, I'd accept that quoted job and go for it.

    • -2

      What if op can afford solid gold brake pads?

      • They would be neither the best brake pads for the job nor would they be affordable.

        • +1

          Thanks for helping out.

      • Gold has a low melting point.

  • +1

    Was that dealer pricing? Try another mechanic. Getting someone other than the dealer to do brakes will not void warranty.

    It's normal to recommend rotors as well, especially from a dealer. A brake specialist might advise differently, but you don't want to skimp on brake servicing.

    • Thats great to know. I was worried about voiding the warranty.

      • +6

        Doing brakes/rotors elsewhere won't void the warranty. That's like saying you must use the dealer for new tyres because of the warranty.

  • Set of Brakes + Rotors is roughly $300 to $400, plus labour (two hours maybe, an hour each side roughly). So $900 from a dealer probably isn't too bad, probably get it done for maybe $600-$700 elsewhere all up.

    • +2

      Two hours?! At home maybe.

      • +2

        Two hours at home? For a first timer maybe. I could knock it out in 1 hour.

        • I thought if you replaced the rotors you'd also wanna bleed the system as well. 1 hour is quite tight for that. For me who's done it a few times, 1 hour would be pretty pushing it for me.

    • more like 15mins for a mechanic

    • +3

      Thats if rotors actually need changing

      More likely just a shave

  • Also, how old is said Renault Koleos? Are we talking like 2022 Model or are we talking 2018?

    • 2020 Renault Koleos Intens

      • hhhmmm…. so going on 4 years. Still got 3 years warranty.

        Ring around for other local mechanics for it. Should be fairly basic. I did them on my old VE Commodore multiple times.

  • +6

    Such is the life of owning a Renault mate. I've been there too.

    • Some people just like Renault. Had a guy I work with blow a gear box, cost $20k to fix. Went and bought a 2nd hand Renault van (another about 12 months old, and 20,000kms) instead. Eventually fix the original van and sold it. Why he got another Renault, god only knows.

      • +5

        Maybe he's into Renault-vating?

      • The one I had was a car with many features. Clio RS. It was really fast too. Especially considering the price I paid for it. But yeah you pay way more in the long term. Numerous problems and once I fixed one, another one popped up. Constant money pit.

        • Clio/Megane RS is definitely one of the few Euros that I would own - if it was manual. Stupid French.

          • @MS Paint: Haha I know right. The worst issues I had were with the automatic transmission too. Would shift into neutral and not come out of it at random times. Good fun when you're on the highway. Would have been sweet if it were a manual

          • @MS Paint: Drove an R26.R on the ‘Ring in 2010. Super fun car, more playful than an Evo and when needed was very easy to adjust your mid-corner lines

        • +1

          I had a 10 year old Renault Megane RS. The only repair it needed was a new turbo solenoid (easy and cheap to DIY). It was only maintenance items otherwise (fluids, filters, brake pads etc). Had it for 7 years.

          • +1

            @eciuj: I'm jealous! They are fun cars, I'm sad I had a bad experience. Unfortunately 3 of my friends have had similar experiences to me, I feel you got fortunate!

  • +2

    Any interest in DIY? It's one of the easier jobs and you'll make a massive saving. I recently got back into doing my own maintenance and have since done pads and rotors on four cars.

    • Wow. Thats awesome. I don't have any experience frankly. Are there any youtube videos to see to assess my non existent skills against?

    • +9

      I agree but given the op even struggles to spell breaks brakes properly it's best left to someone else on this occasion.

    • +7

      I'd suggest DIY on something like brakes isn't a very smart idea for someone who is asking for advice on how they can get mechanical work done on their car. If they do something wrong it has the potential to kill both themselves and others. It would also void their warranty if something brake related were to happen further down the line.

  • +1

    I once decided to go down the path of penny saving so when my VW Golf had to have the rotors and pads replaced, i went to a large third party retailer using non-genuine parts. Turned out i saved around $160. I had to wait a few days. I also ended up taking the day off work since there was no proper waiting area. I also suspect they didn't last as long as the genuine products.

    Would i do it again? No, i didn't think it was worth the inconvenience. At VW, i setup my laptop on a proper desk and work away for the whole day and treat myself to unlimited coffees. At VW they also do it as part of the service, i didn't need to shop around and book another date in with another mechanic.

  • +5

    I'm genuinely curious as to how one can blow through brakes pads and rotors within 5 years. Maybe I don't drive much or carry much load but my 2015 Honda HRV with ~115,000KMs is still on the original brake pads and rotors.

    I visually inspected the front pads and saw probably 5mm of pads remaining, panicked and bought some Bendix pads ready to go… nek minute it's been ~1 year later with daily driving and it's probably down an extra 1mm. The rears… pfft the car will be scrapped before they wear out tbh.

    • +3

      If you do a lot of city driving and brake late then it's feasible. One of my cars is at 300k kms and original pads and rotors. But that's 95% regional driving and I use the manual gearbox to slow down approaching towns (original clutch also).

      • This! Plus it depends on the compounds of pads and rotors (euros use softer pads and rotors meaning they go through them quicker). Performance cars also use pads and rotors quicker because they are more aggressive.

    • +6

      Its entirely possible the dealer has exaggerated the wear to get an upsell. It wouldnt be the first time theyve offered a 'value add' at a relatively high price.

      Revent service they recommended replacing the wiper blades. $170 for $30 worth of parts and 5min work. Or the AC air channel freshen up for $59 which is 3 second squirts of some cleaner fliud into the air vents.

    • +1

      Driving habits ;)

      I see plenty of drivers accelerating towards red lights, then braking hard, etc etc

      If your driving a Euro, I am guessing you are pretty ignorant of any efficient driving techniques :P

      • +1

        These days its seems very common for people to race to the next set of lights gaining absolutely nothing in time just more wear and tear on their vehicle.

    • My family go through them super fast, also trying to figure out if its actually the driving habits, the mechanic, or the old age of the corolla somehow contributing???

      Seems like the they are either machined or replaced every 1 year, really adds costs to the 6/8-or-so-monthly service.

      Is there actually much of a difference between all the pad and rotor build quality? Maybe its the quality of the components the mechanic is using??

      • Sounds like definitely driving habits. There is no way their should be machined every year.

        • Yeah OK. Feel like there's a lot of looking ahead that happens, pre-emptive slowing without braking, as well as use of dropping gears down longer stretches, but maybe it's also the hilly terrain and the fact that its a lower car so less able to see ahead…

          Does low-light braking wear out more than hard-sharp braking? Assuming it does…

      • +2

        My daughters 2014 Camry (bought new for wife in 2014) has done 105,000km with 5mm still on the original brake pads :P

        • :o wow ya ok. How is her driving? And Hilly driving?

          • @Embaloo: All family members taught to drive efficiently, to the point none of us use brakes for standard left turns, crawling traffic, approaching red lights, etc …

            It helps fuel efficiency too (being smooth on brakes means smooth on accelerator too) …

            Good point, no hills around these areas!

    • Exactly. Last time I checked my rear pads, it had a little bit left (I was only eye balling), so I bought a new set of pads just in case. Five years later I still haven't replaced those rear pads and the wear on them was negligible last time I did tyre rotation.

      I do use a lot of engine breaking, I'm not sure if it's a big contributing factor of not wearing the pads as much.

      I've not bled my brakes for several years, will probably get to it at some point in the near future, replacing the pads and bleed the fluids together.

      Edit: so I'm suspecting people needing to replace their pads often don't really need them replaced. It's probably the dealers or mechanics trying to profit from them a bit replacing perfectly fine pads.

  • Depends on the type of driving you do and also the quality of the brakes. But I'm with you, I bought a second hand ute 6.5 years ago, put about 120k on it and still haven't had to change them. I even asked the mechanic last time because I was getting suspicious of how long it had been and he told me there's nothing wrong with them.

  • +5

    the old "your brakes need doing" scam upsell from dealers.
    get a second opinion.

  • -1

    Check if you can polish rotors then it will just cost half the price. Breakpad with quality made are as good as OEM.

    Give call to local mechanics and they have standard price for this 2. For my Subaru I was quoted around $1k but my local mechanic just did it for $ 450 front rotors and breakpad and rear break pad only.

    • +2

      I don't think shops machine rotors anymore. Easier, quicker, safer and likely cheaper just to replace them. Modern discs don't have a lot of extra meat to take off before approaching minimum thickness.

      • +2

        don't think shops machine rotors anymore. Easier, quicker, safer and likely cheaper just to replace them. Modern discs don't have a lot of extra meat to take off before approaching minimum thickness.

        All ways had mine skimmed on my 2007 Pajero at $30 a wheel. Still braked as good as new,

        • +1

          Not saying the process didn't work. I'm saying in today's market it's not financially efficient to machine rotors.

          • +2

            @MS Paint: My mechanic told me it is like $20 difference now, $80 machining $100 new or something like that

  • +1

    It's a Euro, am surprised it's not going to cost more :P

    • IIRC the Koleos is just a Nissan XTrail with Renault's bodywork and some interior styling, but the mechanical brake parts would be common to Nissan.

  • +6

    I have a Renault Koleos

    My condolences.

    • I loved mine. Kept it 12 yrs. Only minor things to do.

      • +1

        It's like the infinite monkeys with infinite typewriters thing. They were going to make an ok one eventually.

    • +1

      What's wrong with the Koleos?

      I suggested it to someone, they ended up buying it, and it's serving their needs just great.

      • -1

        It's a Renault.

        • +1

          Why comment on things you're not familiar with? Koleos is a Nissan X-Trail with a different skin and interior.

          People who say X brand is unreliable usually don't have much knowledge of automotive industry. Sure some models are bad, or even very specific engines or gearboxes.

          Personal experience, least reliable car in the family was a Mazda but the most reliable one was also a Mazda. Renault (Megane RS) was among the most reliable ones after 7 years and many track days.
          Toyota (usually a safe choice) started burning oil at 80,000ks.

          • -1

            @Wnabet: I'm very familiar with them. Firstly, the X-Trail, and more specifically, it's CVT, is crap, engine is also a gutless turd. Secondly, the good thing about an X trail is that it doesn't have a french interior, with everything in the wrong place. When buying a koleos, it's just a worse X-Trail, which wasn't good to start with.

            I've got pretty decent knowledge of the automotive industry, and French cars are by and large crap. There is the odd gem, but even then they do things to ruin them. They do things for aesthetics when they should just make them work, look at citroen, spend about 10 trillion dollars on engineering the steering wheel hub to stay still, but make an unreliable shitbox.

            Having said that, I would still purchase a french atrocity over a Holden Cruze, Captiva, Mazda cx7, Nissan Murano etc.

  • +5

    Suggestions for Car Brake Pads Rotors Replacement

    Finally someone used the right spelling for car brakes

    I need to get the front break pads replaced no

    Oh, nevermind.

  • Could be an upsell. Check your pads to see how many mm of pad is remaining (inner pad will be harder to check but should be close to the outer pad). Most pads will have a wear indicator that screeches when it makes contact with the rotor, or will have an electronic wear indicator that will come up on the dash. Even when they notify you, you probably still have a few thousand kms of pads left.

  • +1

    My experience based on a Camry: DBA front rotors pair for about $200. Brake pads $70 for Bendix, $110 for genuine Toyota from the dealership. Labour took about 30 minutes last time I did it at the mechanic. Give it an hour. In my case I have covered 70K so far with another ~20K left on the rotors, so not bad for city driving.
    You will not void the warranty as long as it's done by a licensed mechanic using reputable parts - which for example DBA and Bendix are. Keep all receipts as evidence.

    The mechanic will most likely not give you a "squeal free" guarantee if you bring your own parts.

    Definitely worth shopping around, but as others have said above the entire experience may be hit and miss.

  • +8

    Mechanic here
    If you want to keep your warranty, there are 2 things you must do:
    1. have all work done by a registered mechanic with invoice provided
    2. use parts that are genuine or oem equivalent.
    The second one is crucial. If you intend on buying the parts yourself, you need to make sure that the manufacturer certifies that the parts are OEM equivalent. Not the seller. Then you would need to get them fitted by a registered mechanic. Most will not fit supplied parts, because their insurance will not allow it, because they are in effect certifiying the parts and become responsible for them. Every industry body advises mechanics to never fit supplied parts under any circumstance. This cannot be avoided by signing anything either, because that would violate consumer law.
    When a mechanic supplies and fits parts to a vehicle that you have told them is under warranty, they are certifying that all parts supplied are OEM equivalent and are fitted as per manufacturers guidelines. This can mean that for example the wheel bearings are removed and regreased, as are silders etc. Failure to fit as per manufactuers specs will void your warranty. You will be covered by the mechanics insurance as well.
    Don't try to save a few dollars and end up voiding your entire warranty. By all means get other quotes, but don't listen to non-mechanics about something this important. And manufactuers will use any means possible to avoid warranty, so don't think its minor. Myself, I only use genuine filters and parts while a vehicle is under warranty to make sure. For example, very few oil filters are certified as OEM and have insurance cover. Ryco does, but other brands made by them do not. In the event of a warranty claim, it is up to you to provide PROOF that all parts fitted are OEM quality. If you can't, you have no warranty.

    • +3

      but don't listen to non-mechanics about something this important

      This is probably the best advice you can ever receive on car advice on the internet. When I was younger I obtained and used ‘bro internet advice’. Would have been much cheaper and faster if I took it to a professional in the first place

    • Hello, thanks for the comment.

      I believe I need to replace my brakes and rotors for my mazda 2015 cx3. I'm out of warranty. But my car subtle shakes when I brake from doing 60+ KMPH

      Last December 2023, my local mechanic machine my rotors and replaced front and back brake pads but my question is

      Can I purchase my own parts such as brake pads and rotors and give it to the mechanic to install?

      I don't trust my local mechanic anymore after few services, been ripping me off. For example he charged me $80 for a cabin air filter + $30 labour when this year I literally purchased a cabin filter for $25 and installed it myself under 2 minutes.

      • +1

        For example he charged me $80 for a cabin air filter + $30 labour when this year I literally purchased a cabin filter for $25 and installed it myself under 2 minutes.

        That's not unusual. It's also the reason why so many people DIY. Majority of maintenance tasks are piss easy.

        • Yeah, it's crazy how much stuff people can DIY on a vehicle. For the average person like me, go for the easy stuff and if you're confident and have the right tools, and if you're ballsy, go for the other stuff.

      • If you don’t trust him go elsewhere.

        Not many mechanics are keen on installing stuff that you supply.

        • +1

          for sure, why is it that mechanics are not keen on stuff we supply? I get the warranty stuff and understand they will knock back customers, but if I am out of warranty and insist to use my parts, I am paying for their labour but one thing comes to mind is that they can't make a nice profit from their own provided products.

          Either way, my mates dad is a mechanic and he agreed to install my front rotors and brake pads for $150 if I supply the parts, which is reasonable. I could technically DIY it as people from other sources say it's not hard to do but I am not confident unless someone is guiding me and it's brakes, if I stuff it up….yup.. not risking it.

          • @hasher22: Its because of the Australian consumer law and liability insurance. If a mechanic fits supplied parts, they are warranting that the goods are fit for purpose and will last etc. They cant get out of this by getting the customer to sign something either. So if there is a problem, they end up being liable for the part. Insurance companies will not provide liability insurance for customer supplied parts either. So the mechanic could end up losing everything in the event that the part causes an accident or death. It is not worth the risk.
            Why dont you take your food to a restaurant and get the chef to cook it? Its the same thing.
            Parts are not just parts. There are differences between years and models and brands. A mechanics supplier will not only warrant that the part is correct and provide warranty, but will usually cover labour in the event that something goes wrong. If the part causes a major problem, it will be covered by either the supplier, manufacturer or the mechanics liability insurance. A consumer does not get this protection if parts are not supplied and fitted by a licenced mechanic.
            Then there is the issue of proper fitting. some cars require for example a computer to remove and fit rear brakes. When doing rotor changes, wheel bearings shoud be repacked and slides greased.
            Then there is oil. 5w30 is a common oil. But there are 8 different variants just in this grade. Use the wrong one and you can stuff up your engine (and I have seen this too many times). Some engines can only use the manufacturer oil as there are no suitable aftermarket ones.
            I have seen so many repairs needed due to back yard mechanics or you tube watchers who think that they can do it themselves. The vast majority cant even pick the correct parts let alone fit them.
            A mechanic will often have have 100k of equipment. My scan tools alone cast over 2k a year to just update. Add in overheads, insurance and wages and all of this needs to be covered. We make money on parts and labour, just like builders, plumbers and electricians do. We are experts in our field. I often laugh when someones mate buys a cheap scan tool, and they get a code for an oxygen sensor, so replace it. The problem is rarely the sensor, but they dont understand that the scan tool only tells you a code to help you diagnose the problem. They dont diagnose the problem. This is where knowledge comes in.

      • Do you buy your own meat and take it to a restaurant for them to cook it? Same thing.
        If a mechanic fits customer supplied parts, under Australian Consumer law they are in effect certifying that those parts are correct and suitable. They then become liable to warranty them. No insurance company will provide liability insurance for customer supplied parts, so if anything goes wrong, it could end up bankrupting the mechanic. It is not worth the risk.
        Not all parts are equal. There are plenty of fake brand parts, and plenty of poor quality ones. Warranties from retailers and manufacturers do not apply if the parts are fitted by non qualified people.
        Your mention of the cabin filter is not applicable. What was the brand and model of the ones the mechanic used? It would have come from a supplier who covered any issues if they developed. The labour would have been a minimum charge and covers all liabilty etc. Buying a cheap filter and fitting it yourself is not the same thing. I presume that you complain that you could also buy food cheaper than a restaurant sells it for as well?

        • Way to gaslight…… my god. You just repeated what the other person said but in your own words. Congrats

          Do you know everything about life and everything in it? No you don't…..

          Furthermore, there are dessert chains that actually accept sealed products for you to mash into their desserts, there are coffee places that accepts bringing your own coffee cup and some coffee joints deny this because of hygiene as they don't know where their cup as been, whereas other stores give a discount if they bring their own. Makeup artists as well, they prefer to use their own make-up kit but some customers deny it because of health reasons and suggest to use their own make-up, some make-up artists agree to use the customer's products.

          You can't say not all mechanics will not accept customers bringing their own parts. Go to airtasker, there are alot of licensed mechanics (yes, they actually have their own legit garage) that are willing to install customer brought own parts and that's their decision.

          This restaurant accepts customer's own caught fish and they cook it for them. With your argument, who knows what they did to the fresh fish or how it's kept throughout the day until the customer is ready to hand in and cook it for them, the business took on the risk.

          What I trying to say, there's always exceptions.

    • If you want to keep your warranty, there are 2 things you must do:

      Pads & Rotors are considered a wear item so your advice isn't relevant. What warranty are you referring to?

      You might be a mechanic but your knowledge of consumer law & warranty is a bit rubbery

      • when it comes to consumer law I listen to the industry bodies that Im a member of. Thier legal advice to members is to never fit supplied parts for the reasons stated above. The insurance companies that supply our liability insurances also say the same. I trust that their specialist lawyers understand the law a lot better than anyone else.

        • Then you should be more specific in which warranty you are referring to.

          I'm sure the MTA (is that the industry body you are in or is it the MVRIC or the SAE?) have great legal people who know their stuff but I think your interpretation of what they told you isn't quite right.

          Have a good day

  • +1

    DIY. It's not hard. They can only void the warranty on related components. If your engine blows up they'd have a hard time pinning it on your brake job.

    • I don't think the OP would have a clue, even with YT help

  • my mechanic's usual price is $300 per wheel as I remember (could be less, both ? I remember something about ~$100 per rotor from Repco, can't find the invoice now), supply and install of rotor + break pad, I haven't had a Renault Koleos though.

    normal service is $150

  • +3

    this is a prime example of this place seriously not knowing anything

    the Koleos is a T32 Xtrail underneath.

    Go to an independent preferably someone who has worked on an exotic suv like an Xtrail (!!!)

    get it done there

    they are not too expensive but they arent super cheap either

    the Koleos and Xtrail eats rear pads and rotors because it relies on them to maintain electronic stability control.

    • +1

      And just for comparison if it helps OP, my old T32 Nissan Xtrail had the rotors changed at about 80,000km/7 years old, and it had started to show some mild brake judder through the steering wheel when braking steadily from 100kmh.
      More recently VW said I would need full pads and rotor replacement on a TCross at 40,000km/4 yrs old. I then took it to an independent mechanic that was part of the Bosch approved service network, they replaced the pads and said rotors were fine.

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