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"BRAKE - Service Brake! Visit Workshop" message

93K views 63 replies 27 participants last post by  rudeney 
#1 ·
Hi there folks!

I just completed brake pads and sensor replacements on 2003 SL500. I replaced the worn stock pads with Akebono ceramics on all four wheels and installed brand new sensors. Now I have a dash error message in white text that will not go away.

The message says, "BRAKE - Service Brake! Visit Workshop". I thought this would go away after a few miles (as did the "worn brake lining" message), but I have driven almost 200 miles now and it is still there.

Any ideas how to get rid of the message?
 
#2 ·
Apparently no one has experienced this before, since I did not receive any response. However, I can almost guarantee you would because I took the car to the dealer and the SBC Hydraulic Unit was replaced. Apparently there is a ten year factory warranty/recall on that unit.

Dealer Diagnosis Print out:

CUSTOMER STATES "SERVICE BRAKE - VISIT WORKSHOP" MESSAGE IS ON.
INSPECT BRAKES.
FOUND SERVICE TIME OF PUMP HAS BEEN EXCEEDED.
ATTEMPT TO UPDATE SBC SOFTWARE.
PROCESS WILL NOT BE ALLOWED.
SCREEN SAYS "SERVICE TIME EXCEEDED - REPLACE SBC HYDRAULIC UNIT".
REPLACED SBC HYDRAULIC UNIT.
BLEED BRAKE SYSTEM.
PROGRAM AND ROAD TEST.

PARTS:
005-431-97-12 HYDROPNEUMAT
000-989-08-07-01 BRAKE FLUID
PARTS AND LABOR UNDER FACTORY 10 YEAR SBC UNIT WARRANTY.
 
#13 ·
Just had the exact same thing pop up on my 2003. After reading this post took it to the dealer. The SBC motor and pump are out and it's covered 100% by the dealer. They even gave me a ride home and are sending a car for this this afternoon when it's finished. My car is 9 year and 9 months old so I barely made it on this 10 year warranty.:D

Chalk another one up for the MB forums...this would have been a $5000 repair if I had to pay for it.:crybaby2:
 
#4 ·
Thanks for the post egwu :thumbsup:

I also got a malfunction displayed on the left in a 1" big bold white font "Brake " and " Visit Workshop ". :bowdown:

With no advice from within the owners manual and without an extended warranty on my 2003 SL500 , I was prepared to bit the bullet by having the dealer diagnose the warning . I was correct in thinking that it was the SBC pump failing. Besides the warning text , the only indication was that the brake fluid level was rising and lowering like the ocean tides .

Needless to say , I was extremely pleased to discover that M/B has warranted the SBC unit out to ten years from the manufactured date .
 
#5 ·
Yes, I think Mercedes really took it out of Bosch's hide to extract this extended warranty. Poor quality of this part really hurt Mercedes' reputation, but of course when there aren't little problems it's a great system.
 
#6 ·
can you elaborate on this error. My light just came on today and it was not red screen just a normal message with the work BRAKE in the left window followed by a Brake Service Visit Workshop in the right screen.

Was this part under full warranty? did you have to pay for the Brake fluid flush?
 
#7 ·
Reluctantly, I brought my car to the dealer to diagnose this problem. They confirmed that it was the SBC pump and that it was covered under warranty. They wanted to charge me for a brake flush. I declined since I can do that myself for a fraction of the cost.

No more error message and it did not cost me anything.:bowdown:
I love this benzworld, I was ready to open up my wallet until I read up on the failure here on this site.
 
#8 ·
Hi, I do have SL 350, 2005, just got the car out of workshop, I had the same problem with SBC pump, which is under warranty for 10 years. Workshop did programming and problem disappeared. But they told me that I need to replace the front brake disks, due to the thickness is 25.5mm instead of minimum 26mm. I would like to ask if you know what is critical thickness for front brake disks? Do I really need to replace them now, or I do have more time? :) Here they cost about 1 000 USD for front pair. Thanks for advise.
 
#9 ·
Unfortunatly, they are correct. According to the service manual, the rotors are supposed to be replaced when you replace the brake pads. So if you had replaced the brake pads, you should have replaced the rotors as well.

There are alternative places to purchase rotors, however, I am not sure if they ship to Dubai.
 
#10 ·
Dear Mkirincic Thanks a lot for your message. I will try to find ones in US through my friends, due to in official MB workshop rotors cost 2 000 USD, alternatives suppliers can provide for 1000 USD, anyhow I will change them, just wanted to confirm with experienced people. Here when you bring the car older than 3 years to MB workshop they give you a list that you need to replace half of the car :)) Thanks for advise. :)
 
#12 ·
I'm having a little problem with my 2006 ml350, 40k miles and warranty just expired..*Long story short 'brake wear visit workshop' came on had the front pads changed with sensor, also did rear sensor, all brake pads are fine... But now the 'brake wear visit workshop' comes on when I'm driving, sometimes when I *hit a road bump... *This disappears when car is turned off and happens again and again ...Dealer says its the brake sensor harness but they haven't checked yet... It seems they're guessing and I don't want to throw money away, the want to charge $400 to do harness, yea and if its something else.??.
What do you think it is? Thanks
 
#16 ·
Update: My INDY informed me that the SBC Pump was the problem and I had twenty days left on my warranty. I took the car to Mercedes and they claim they have not found the problem. I think they are trying to delay until the warranty has expired. Suggestions??????
 
#17 ·
Run back to your indie and ask for a print out of the SDS (diagnosis) report. You could also capture a screenshot of the SDS report with a cellphone camera or something. Take that back to the dealer as evidence. And when they are done replacing it, ...tell them to go screw themselves. I too think they are stalling for time. Even so and it becomes evident after the warranty expires, they still can't escape the fact that you reported the malfunction BEFORE the expiration date.

Luckily I had mine replaced under warranty by the dealer a couple years ago.
 
#18 · (Edited)
Brakes

That is exactly my plan for FIRST THING Monday morning. This dealership quoted $ 2243.00 to repair my tire pressure sensors, ordered the parts on line from www.O&EWheelsllc.com - $ 168. and had them installed and the tires filled with nitrogen at John Miller Tire Company $ 20.- total cost $ 188.00. I saved $ 2000. and did not have to deal with the Stealership - Priceless. I will update this post until the issue is resolved. Thanks for all the responses.
 
#19 ·
Brakes

Bottom line, The MB Dealership performed the following service:

Parts 008-431-98-12-88 REMAN HYDRAUL Warranty
008-431-98-12-70 CORE HYDRAUL Warranty
000-989-08-07-01 BRAKE FLUID Warranty

000-430-07-12 OPERATING UNIT $ 1290.
LABOR 398.81
SHOP SUPPLIES 27.92
TAX 143.55

I don't know if this was a square deal or not, I plan on taking the work order to my INDY and find out how badly I got taken.
 
#20 ·
My INDY stated that the dealer had replaced both parts and while he was not able to verify that I needed an operating unit that the price was fair. I totally distrust the dealer but will have to accept this repair and hope I never have to return to the Stealer. I do trust the INDY.
 
#21 ·
Update: The new part lasted less than 30 days and now the dealer states my warranty has expired. I reminded him that he had replaced the part less than 30 days ago and he stated again, out of warranty but he was checking with MB to see if they would extend the warranty. Is it Mercedes policy that once you leave the dealership forget about it there's no warranty???? Anyone else had a similar experience?
 
#23 ·
Interesting thread, first the fault reported while under warranty must hold up, their delaying tactics would not stand up in court. If the Dash lit up Brakes or Service brake it is recorded in the car.

We in the UK now have to pay for this pump some £1300 in most cases.

There are tools on the market now that will re set the timer, but this could be a dodgy thing to do.
There are 3 parts to the whole thing
The PCB is hardly likely to fail
The motor,
This has carbon brushes, and at some point these must wear out, and the motor stops.
The pump,
The pump has to build up a pressure of near on 250bar in the reservoir tank, 160 bar used on each wheel cylinder. It has to build up this pressure within a time limit, it is first activated on the "wake up" you open a door and the pump starts to charge, if the required pressure has not been obtained within a certain time the message "start engine comes up". there have been 2 recalls for this where each time the running time on each running cycle has been increased.

Now in the USA the pumps are starting to run out of guarantee, If the re set tool is used to turn of the message, it could be a sitting time bomb.
When the SBC brakes fail you only have what equates to about 10% braking on the front wheels only.
 
#29 ·
Does the SBC unit have to fail during the 10-year extended warranty period before MB will replace it? My car has only 40,000 miles on it, but it was built in March 2006 ... so I'm just a few months away from the end of the 10-year extension. Naturally, I'd like to have the SBC replaced under the warranty, but so far I've had no brake warning displays on the dash. My luck: the warning will likely appear on April 1, 2016. I could drive the car to a dealership and tell the nice service writer: "Hey ... the red brake warning light came on yesterday evening, but it was out when I cranked the car this morning. I think the SBC needs replacement." But I trust that the MB diagnostic equipment would disclose that the light never came on. There goes Plan A.

Any such thing as Plan B? I have only a few months remaining on the warranty,
 
#30 ·
Mine failed at 10.5 years point, and dealer refused to honor warranty, but offered to do it half off (about $1300)

I was going to raise a stink about it, but found a brand new pump on ebay for 300 bucks.

put it in, cleared codes, drained the system, then sold the blown pump for 150...

I was out of 150 bucks, and 2 hours of work, it worked out better than dealer and service hassle...
 
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#32 ·
And you'll know it failed when you hit the brakes, and there is no boost... Then YOU WILL KNOW IT FAILED... you car's front facia will know as well...

please dont use these hack jobbies... the pump is WAY TOO CHEAP, compared to the cost of a headlight and bumper, or worst yet, somebody's life...
 
#34 ·
Lucky you, Bob, GO Blue!

kbob, I have the same situation with C249F on my 2003 (out of warranty). I thought about getting a tool from eBay to reset the counter but decided against it. My opinion is that the unit will fail sometime (apply Murphy's Law) and without knowing exactly when, it is safer to replace it now. These tools only reset the counter which clears the dash display message but do not address the physical problem.

bayhas, spot on!
 
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