DIY: BMW 650i / 645Ci / E63 / E64 Brake Pad and Rotors

Thank you for the tops

Jorge

Originally Posted by Yorgi

Finally created an Adobe PDF version which should make printing the instructions a lot easier. Had to break it into 2 parts due to 7MB attachment limitations.

My friend you are brilliant!

Thank you so much for this write-up. It is so detailed and I was able to complete the entire rotor and pad job today in a timely fashion. Your tips about what to lube and what not to lube were excellent! This is a super easy DIY once you do one of the four corners. This is a fantastic writeup. Good work!

Excellent write up Yorgi. Thank you.

Q. I installed new pads (Cool Pads) and drilled/slotted rotors (Centric) about 3k miles ago and a brake fluid flush a week ago. After a trip to Chicago this weekend (Pothole Hell), i noticed the steering wheel vibrating when braking. Pinpoint of the worst vibration appears btwn 5-20 mph. My BMW mechanic swears my rotors are warped (hasn't looked but scheduled to) but I'm thinking this can't be, being that they are so new. Any thoughts about this... 14 hour road trip to NYC planned in 7 days...got to get the BATMOBILE back to optimum performance.

99.9% of the time "warped" rotors turn out to be brake pad deposits on the rotors. Deposits can form 2 ways:
1) From over cooking the pads (heavy repeated braking). The deposits will look like smudge marks on the rotor that almost look like streaks of burnt grease.
2) From parking the car with very hot pads. If you brake hard (say you live at the bottom of a large hill) then park your car with no chance of cool down. This can transfer a deposit on the rotors in the shape of the pad.

Take a look at your rotors with a flashlight and look for anything other than smooth perfectly bright silver discs. If you see deposits 5 or 6 consecutive stops from 60 mph down to 10 mph followed by a 10 minute cool down drive (no braking) should clean them up.

If you hit some pot holes on your trip this could have damaged a ball joint or other bushing in the suspension which will exaggerate very slight rotor deposits. Basically you feel no vibration before the pot holes because the suspension is tight with no play but then start to notice vibrations due to loose/damaged bushings. Slotted rotors can also cause slight vibrations on their own when you brake heavily. Worn suspension would also amplify the vibrations in this case.

Yorgi,

As usual, your answers are so in depth, that I definitely feel armed when I go talk to indy shops about any issue I'm having. I followed your instructions to the tee but after no improvement, I had the wheel taken off to inspect the rotors and hubs with more scrutiny. With disbelief, I ran my fingers along the fine grooves that have been etched into rotors that have only about 3k miles on them. I placed calls around town to see if I could have the rotors "turned" but because my rotors are drilled & slotted, the answer is the same. "Replace the rotor and pad."

Other than heavy braking while driving to Indy, I find it hard that this could occur so soon.

Nevertheless, thanks for lesson in "rotor run-out".

My trip to Gotham City on Tuesday appears to be foiled. The car drives supremely especially with all new coils and double platinum tip bosch plugs and a BG44 infusion. I was told I could still drive the car with no major concerns between replacement of rotor issue but the vibrating of the steering wheel is just too unsettling.

Fine groves in the rotors are not a big issue; they will not affect performance or cause vibrations.

When you take the car in have the mechanic measure the rotor runout. It takes 5 minutes. BMW recommends replacing rotors when there is more than 0.2mm of runout.

I know Yorgi was going to post a Brake Pad FAQ but I can't find it. Help anyone. Thanks!

Originally Posted by jaedude

I know Yorgi was going to post a Brake Pad FAQ but I can't find it. Help anyone. Thanks!

I started it but never finished it. Anything in particular that you wanted to know?

I've been busy goofing off with my 11 year old twin boys now that school is out.

Naw, it's ok. I researched through past posts and decided to go with the Axxis Deluxe Advanced Ceramic Brake Pads. Extremely happy! Now everyone can see my sweet azz Forgiato 22" rims without looking like they went through a chimney!

hey having trouble resetting the brake maintenance light. i was down to about 3000 miles left on the counter. replaced the front brakes and rotors, and now the counter says -9000 and it doesnt want to reset. the sensor looked to be in good shape and didnt cause a brake light before i replaced the pads. now i have a constant "brake" on the instrument panel, along with an alert that i need to change my front pads.. do i need to replace the sensor? even though it looked to be in good shape?

While I can't answer your question, I did want to say your avatar name made me smile.

Originally Posted by itscoo2pyopants

hey having trouble resetting the brake maintenance light. i was down to about 3000 miles left on the counter. replaced the front brakes and rotors, and now the counter says -9000 and it doesnt want to reset. the sensor looked to be in good shape and didnt cause a brake light before i replaced the pads. now i have a constant "brake" on the instrument panel, along with an alert that i need to change my front pads.. do i need to replace the sensor? even though it looked to be in good shape?

If the "BRAKE" light is on then there is a problem with the sensor. I did some tests with the sensors when I was doing my brake pad change and found the BRAKE like would go out by itself after you start the car a few times with a good sensor installed.

The -9000 is indicating you are 9,000 miles past the life of the pads. I guess that value is displayed automatically when the pad wear sensor is bad.

The good thing is the sensors are easy to replace after you pull the wheel.

Thanks for the info, that's what I was thinking too but just wanted to make sure.

Ended up being a bad sensor. Replaced with a new one and was able to reset the light. Thanks for your help

Originally Posted by Yorgi

Thanks

I think the 335i has the exact same front caliper and pad size as the 6 series. Rears calipers are similar but a little smaller. These instructions will work fine with almost any current BMW.

If you are doing the rear rotors, the torque value for the bolts that hold the carrier to the trailing arm is 65Nm (48 lb-ft) not 110Nm like on the 6er.

Yorgi - amazing write up, about to use it for the fronts on my 2006 530xi SportWagon
any guidance on the appropriate torque values for the bolts and rotor set screw, etc? thank you in advance!

Originally Posted by Tweezer

Yorgi - amazing write up, about to use it for the fronts on my 2006 530xi SportWagon
any guidance on the appropriate torque values for the bolts and rotor set screw, etc? thank you in advance!

Performed the service today on the fronts. Couldn't have done it w/o this DIY!

One thing to note: when replacing the guide screws after installing new rotors and new pads, the guide screws do not go in as far as they originally were. This threw me off until I figured out that this is a function of the added width of the new pads. Just a heads-up!

Originally Posted by Tweezer

...any guidance on the appropriate torque values for the bolts and rotor set screw, etc?...

Glad to hear the brake pad change went well.

All the torque specs can be found near the top of the page in Post #1 at the end of Section E.

These were great! Yorgi, you must be either an engineer or a brain surgeon to be able to document this is such great detail!

Did my rear brakes yesterday. Won't tell you how long it took to do the first, but the second only took about 90 min from first jack up to testing.

I used Hawk HPS, will let you know.

Also changed stock lines to SS, and installed Power Slot slotted rotors, and bled the system. My pedal feels a little soft at first application, but gets firmer if I pump a little bit. Any chance I screwed up the bleeding?

Going out now to try breaking in the pads again to see if that helps.

Thanks again. Looking forwad

Originally Posted by bcorwin

.... My pedal feels a little soft at first application, but gets firmer if I pump a little bit. Any chance I screwed up the bleeding....

That sounds like a problem with the bleeding.

I don't have time at the moment to do my brake bleed DIY but here is a reader's digest version of the manual method, which is better than a pressure brake bleeder.

The best way to bleed is with two people, one pressing on the pedal and one opening the bleed valve on the caliper. Start at RR wheel, then LR, RF and LF. Use a clear tube and catch bottle on the bleed screw so you can see the bubbles and fluid condition. Remove old fluid from reservoir and refill with fresh fluid - use turkey baster or large syringe.

1) Tell the helper to pump the pedal a few times until it's firm. Have them press hard on the pedal and hold.
2) Open the screw then close it again before the helper hits the floor with the pedal. The harder they press the better - it forces out the bubbles. (which is why the 2 person method is better than pressure bleeding)
3) Tell the helper to release then re-pump and hold the pedal.
4) Repeat steps 2 and 3 until you see lighter "fresh" fluid coming out (about 6 to 8 pumps)
5) Check the fluid level in the reservoir - do not let it empty or you'll have to start over.
6) Move to next wheel and repeat steps 1 to 5.

The front wheels only need 4 or 5 pumps since the lines are much shorter. It is key to close the bleed screw before the pedal hits the floor or you will suck in some air back into the caliper. You can have the helper yell "floor" when they bottom out but you should stop the pedal yourself by closing the screw before they bottom.

Yeah that's what I thought. thanks for the time. Looks like I just emptied the reservoir while bleeding, and will need to start again at the right rear and move to LR, RF, the LF

I am uncomfortable working on front of car while only supported by jack. Where do you suggest locating the jack stand. Since the bottom of the car is covered it is hard to find frame members, and the outer edge of the body seems to be all plastic except near the lift pad.

Ca I put the jack stand under the front wheel joint?

There are pads behind the front wheels and in front of the rears for jack stands or jacking. There are also a jacking point under the engine in the center and in the rear on the differential.

Let me be sure:

If I use a floor jack to lift the car on one of the rubber pads behind the front wheels, the only place to put the jack stand is somewhere under the middle of the engine?
Is there a cross brace or engine mount visible?