brake pads

[Giodog2000]

Hi All , I'm a new member here and also a new owner of a bmw 323i year 2000. The warning lamp for brake pads just came on . I need pads and would like to know where to buy good parts (pads in this case) in Montreal but don't want to go to a bmw dealer . Please let me know what you guys suggest me to buy and maybe an idea of price . Thanks !

[Emre]

Hi All , I'm a new member here and also a new owner of a bmw 323i year 2000. The warning lamp for brake pads just came on . I need pads and would like to know where to buy good parts (pads in this case) in Montreal but don't want to go to a bmw dealer . Please let me know what you guys suggest me to buy and maybe an idea of price . Thanks !Is this a 100% street car? I find factory BMW pads (esp. Pagid) work VERY well on the street...probably better than any aftermarket pad on the market. If you're looking for a good street pad with good cold bite and low dust, the Hawk HPS and Carbotech Bobcats are the best I've ever used.

I would avoid EBC GreenStuffs, as they really only work well on lightweight cars. And stay FAR away from PBR/Axxis/Repco products (i.e., Metal Master, Deluxe, or Ultimate pads). They suck big time and are VERY hard on rotors.

BTW, since you're warning light came on, you will need a set of front and rear brake wear sensors. You'll need one of each (front and rear). You can order any of this stuff through a BMW dealer using your 15% parts discount for BMW Club of Quebec members.

Emre

[Giodog2000]

Hi Emre, thanks for answering . Yes it,s a street car (with the sport look lol) Basically , should i buy the pads and sensors at a dealer or are they available elswhere? And also can you give me an idea of the cost for those ?

[Emre]

Hi Emre, thanks for answering . Yes it,s a street car (with the sport look lol) Basically , should i buy the pads and sensors at a dealer or are they available elswhere? And also can you give me an idea of the cost for those ?For an E46, front HPS pads should run about $75 USD at TireRack. The sensors should be under $20 each. Figure another $10-15 for brake fluid.

Emre

[Giodog2000]

TireRack????

[Emre]

TireRack????www.tirerack.com

Is there any particular reason why you are avoiding the dealer? Don't forget, BMW Club of Quebec members get a 15% parts discount.

Emre

[Giodog2000]

I'll call the dealer to compair prices .... Do I only have to mention that I'm in the club to have the discount? Any BMW dealer?

[Emre]

I'll call the dealer to compair prices .... Do I only have to mention that I'm in the club to have the discount? Any BMW dealer?You'll need to show your membership card to get the discount. As far as I know, all the BMW dealers in the Montreal area will honor the Club discount...but you should ask ahead of time just to make sure.

Emre

[Giodog2000]

I called BM on Jean Talon and he is charging me 308.50 +Tx to do the job (including both sensors) witch is pretty good I think ...

Will I receive the card at home ?

Thanks again for all the info Emre I really do apreciate ;-)

[Emre]

I called BM on Jean Talon and he is charging me 308.50 +Tx to do the job (including both sensors) witch is pretty good I think ...That sounds fair if it includes front & rear pads, both sensors, brake fluid flush, and labor. Having said that, changing pads is a 5 minute per wheel job. All you need is a set of box-end wrenches and a c-clamp.


Will I receive the card at home?Have you registered and paid through PayPal?


Thanks again for all the info Emre I really do apreciate ;-)No prob.

Emre

[Nano]

I don't have a card either, lol.

paid witt paypal

[montreal_bimmer]

yo get it done by bmw....... hawk hps are squeeky, all aftermarkets that are "dustless" and better performing than OEM will be squeeky.

[Giodog2000]

Thanks guys! ;-)

[Giodog2000]

Thought I'd give you an update on how it went at the dealer for my brake pads ....First of all I went at BMW CANBEC dealer on Jean Talon . Had to be there at 8:45am (Got there 10 min early) . I mentionned to the gentleman that I wanted to wait for the car and he told me it could take until noon so I decided to call my wife to pick me up . At 1pm I called to see where they were at and he said they had just started the oil change. At 2 pm they called to let me know they couldn't change the pads because the discs had to be replaced . I said fine do everything and I'll come pick it up later . Thats where it got ugly . He told me I couldn't have the car before tomorrow afternoon . Someone asked me on the forum why I'm avoiding dealers well thats why ...they charged me 68 bucks for the oil change and 40 bucks to check the pads (witch i knew needed to be changed ) and because I didn,t do the work cause they took too long I end up paying 40$ so they could tell me something I already knew. Back to square one .... I hope someone will reply to this telling me Canbec is the worst BMW dealer ;-) OH btw replacement plugs(bougies) 25 bucks at dealer . Same ones at Lavigne auto parts : 11 bucks.

[montreal_bimmer]

stealerships suck man, if you think canbec is bad, then dont even bother with jalbert. anyway, i bring my car to BMW Park Avenue, and there are a couple private shops you can bring your car to.

where do you stand right now?

[bmwqc]

You should use the dealer only for warranty-related issues. Anything beyond that, an independent BMW specialist garage can do the same job cheaper (and maybe even better). You might wish to get the club members' recommendation on some of the more reputable garages in town.

About 10 years ago, I took by car into Canbec during one of their "free
BMW inspection clinics". They basically ignored the little problems I pointed out to them, but instead tried to encourage me to do some seemingly unnecessary (and expensive) work, which I confirmed later on, that would have been totally uncalled for.




bmwqc

[Giodog2000]

Well , right now I'm thinking to buy the parts I need and bring it to a good friend of mine in St- Eustach(a little far from home but maybe worth the trip) . He,s the owner of a 5 door general mecanic garage. He does a great job on my Yukon truck. If you have sugestions on a good kit (disc , pads and sensor) not too expensive let me know or I'll just get the original kit from BMW... Let me know what you guys think .