# Phaeton brake job



## unclebutter (Jan 8, 2006)

My Phaeton is in need of a brake job. VW service recomendation is to replace the rotors and pads. VW wants $1600 to do the job which seems really steep to me. Anyone had any experience doing it themselves or having another shop do it? Are there aftermarket rotors and pads that are better than OEM you can recomend? Thanks!


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## spitpilot (Feb 14, 2000)

*Re: Phaeton brake job (unclebutter)*

Wow. $1600!!!







..VW must be really proud of those Phaeton parts! Check out the good VW parts websites..if you want to go OEM...1stVWparts and Bud @ Checkered Flag VW (Search "Ask the VW parts guy" on the MKV Forum for contact info) are two dealers who do on line sales at about 25-35% off VW list. Plenty of good suppliers who sell OEM parts for VW's. For Rotors...Brembo, ATE, Zimmerman are good. Pads..I"ve had good luck with PBR Delux pads (Austrialian brake firm that's supplied my pads for decades, ATE and Textar are also OEM quality Just stay away from Chinese knockoff parts....Look at parts sites like Get Cool Parts...Stop Shop Drive, Autohaus AZ...and GermanAutoParts....all carry good OEM quality parts at good prices and some even give you free shippin..which is a real saving when talkin about brake rotors! Example Get Cool parts:
Front rotors Zimmerman $115 each, Rears ATE $61 each, Pads Front ATE $190, Rears Textar $51...so parts total would be $593,,.a good indy shop should be able to do brake job in 2-3 hours....say $100/hour total $ 893...if labor in your area is lower (expensive here) might even get it down another $100 or so! Half dealer quote!


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## GTijoejoe (Oct 6, 2001)

*Re: Phaeton brake job (spitpilot)*

$1600








wow..... but if you break it down it make sense.... like an A7 brake job.
~200 for each rotor
~200 for each set of pads (FR/RR)
~100 a corner for labor
thats just my guess....


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## NorthernGTI (Oct 26, 2005)

1600 really isnt that much if you think bout it.
2 hours for front(pads/rotors)
3 hours for rear(pads/rotors- turn back calipers)
So at 100$/Hour thats 500$. 
If pads are 150$/set - thats 300$
Rotors 400/set - 800$ 
Think about it. For me to do a brake job on my jetta 1.8T at the dealer it would be a little bit over 900$. So 700$ more for a vehicle which came with massive brakes, massive calipers, plus who knows what exactly they are doing and what parts they are using..
Not to mention maybe theres a brake flush in there which most places charge 100$ for..
All in all 1600$ isnt too much for a Phaeton..


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## kevinadamsvw (Oct 15, 2007)

thats about the price for a touareg brake change..\
doesnt sound too bad.. yeah its more that a normal car. but the pads and rotors arent cheap for those... and there is a wear sensor on each wheel i believe. i think brembo make the factory parts for the brakes on those as well as the touareg


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## spitpilot (Feb 14, 2000)

*Re: (kevinadamsvw)*

Look at the parts prices in my previous post..rear rotors ATE only cost $60....total parts...$600 or less....$1000 in labor to change brakes and even if you throw in a flush...all that on a rack shouldn't take more than 3-4 hours maybe less with a hot tech instead of a DIY guy like me who only does brakes maybe once a year...$1600 is the typical dealer megaprofit level pricing! http://****************.com/smile/emthdown.gif


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## NorthernGTI (Oct 26, 2005)

I dont think you understand how flat rate works spitpilot. Weather the tech does it in 5mins or 9 hours, he'll only get paid a certain amount.
Generally speaking its 2 hours for front and 3 hours for rear which puts you at 500$ in labour if not more(depending their labour rate).
Im assuming original poster wants brakes that will last a long time, therefore the price VW quoted isnt too expensive since they arent using aftermarket, they are using OEM.
The place I work at is a ATE retailer, and I can safely say that wagner rotors last longer then ATE..


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## spitpilot (Feb 14, 2000)

*Re: (NorthernGTI)*


_Quote, originally posted by *NorthernGTI* »_I dont think you understand how flat rate works spitpilot. Weather the tech does it in 5mins or 9 hours, he'll only get paid a certain amount.
Generally speaking its 2 hours for front and 3 hours for rear which puts you at 500$ in labour if not more(depending their labour rate).
Im assuming original poster wants brakes that will last a long time, therefore the price VW quoted isnt too expensive since they arent using aftermarket, they are using OEM.
The place I work at is a ATE retailer, and I can safely say that wagner rotors last longer then ATE..
 I know damn well how "flat rate works"...my water pump failed due to timing belt tensioner overtensioning the TB...Power Train Warranty covered both waterpump and TB system complete replacement....so they had nose of car off, and everything, and of course the TB off, waterpump outa there...I wanted thermostat replace too as long as they were in there...T stat was less than $30....but to R&R was $110..an hour's labor to take out two bolts, pop out t stat and oring..install and (maybe ) torque two bolts!





















How do you spelll "ripoff"...I'd bet good tech's consistently go 1.5- 2X flat rate...do 16 hours of flat rate work in an 8 hour shift!...You can get aftermarket parts that last and perform the same as the ones with the Audi/VW logo...some made on the very same production lines..as long as you stay away from Chinese knock off parts you can save $$$ and get good quality from several online parts sites! http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif 
PS: Even OEM VW parts (1stVWparts) are nowhere's near the #'s being posted here...front rotors $147, front pads $147, rear rotors $67, rear pads: $60....etc...$625-650...so that would leave $1150 for brake job labor..even at our outrageous rates here in the "golden state"..$130/hour....that's almost 9 hours labor...!










_Modified by spitpilot at 7:23 AM 7-27-2009_


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## NorthernGTI (Oct 26, 2005)

OP should post exactly what they quoted..


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## unclebutter (Jan 8, 2006)

*Re: (NorthernGTI)*

Thank you all; you've given me lots to think about. When you break it down I guess it doesn't sound all that bad. Yes, each wheel does have a brake wear sensor; that's why I am leary about taking it to an indy shop. One more question which may sound very cheap and inexperienced but I'll ask it anyway, why can't these rotors be turned as in a normal brake job and just replace the pads?


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## spitpilot (Feb 14, 2000)

*Re: (unclebutter)*

Sure they can be turned as long as after having done so the thickness is above the min stamped on the rotor. The only Indy shop I'd take it to was one that specialized in Audi/VW repairs...I know the B6 Passat now has an electronic parking brake and it takes a VAGCOM computer tool to reset rear pistons...thinkin your super fancy VW might also have same set up...If it does, I'd be afraid that any run of the mill indy shop would probably not know that and screw up the rear calipers.....$1600 is still way outa line given the prices I saw for your parts on 1stVWparts website (dealer that sellls online OEM VW parts)...$650..plus say $500 labor fo (5 hours should be enuff to do all four wheels for sure)...Your brake job should be around $1100 +/-. At $1800 you should ask the service adivsor to wear a mask while he waits on you....robbers usually do!


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