Brake Life

[chaseav]

Does anyone have insight on how long Airstream brakes (the ones they install on brand new 2015 Intl Signatures) will typically last? If I may, I understand it's going to depend heavily on many mitigating factors including payloads, the gradient of hills and of course the amount of miles driven but just generally speaking... 10,000 miles? 25,000 miles? Maybe they're 100,000 mile brakes.

Thanks!

[overlander63]

Checking them every 10,000-15,000 miles won't hurt. Between the auto-adjust and Nev R Lube hubs, worn brakes can sneak up on you.

[heitkergm]

That's why I don't mind having the old-fashioned hubs and bearings on my Bambi, which need regular re-packing. That gives an annual opportunity to inspect the brakes and bearings for wear.

After 10 years, I finally put on new backing plates, drums, and shocks, as the factory originals were worn out. At least I upgraded to auto-adjust brakes; and my annual bearing pack will give me a chance to monitor the brake wear.

If I had the never-lube bearings, I'm afraid I'd get lazy and never take the drums apart to check for wear.

[chaseav]

I ask mostly because I've never had them checked, nor do I plan to check them myself. My dealer is a solid 2 hr drive away but I am going to get up there in the next few weeks. Been saying that for a year! I'm probably pushing 15,000 miles for sure at this point. Thanks for the input thus far!

[PKI]

FC23FB with 25K miles just checked and replaced. They had more miles, but the magnets were wearing and would have taken out the drums. Use included six Continental divide crossings and some twisty roads.

Issue is that a big cost of the brakes is the bearing pack labor. So turning drums and installing new backing plates is cost effective to do when the bearings are packed if you pay for labor. If you do the maintenance yourself the leverage goes the other way. Worth your time to check more often and may be able to extend your brake life a bit. But you do have to check what you got.

Good luck. Pat