DIY Versus Dealership: How Much You Can Save On A VW GTI Brake Job

Negative stereotypes affect just about everything we can get our hands on, and that includes European vehicles. Common criticisms surround their complex technology, expensive parts cost, and general drain on the wallet. That can be true for certain models, but the days of overly-complex systems requiring an engineering degree to fix are well in the past. That's opened up European vehicles to those with a tighter budget as maintenance and service repairs can be performed at home with a moderate selection of tools for substantial cost savings.

Telling you that you can do one thing without providing evidence isn't really how we roll, so we've used a MK6 Volkswagen GTI to show you exactly what we mean. Taking your car to the dealership for service and maintenance is the tried and trusted move, but that's where a lot of the "expensive" Euro ownership stigma comes from. Servicing your car yourself, whether an oil change, filter change, or brake job, cuts a substantial cost from the overall job total, and that's made even sweeter when your parts carry a Lifetime Replacement Guarantee. Just how much, though? Keep on reading to find out 

How Much Will It Cost To Replace The Brakes On My Mk6 Volkswagen GTI?

The Mk6 GTI isn’t anything fancy or over the top; it’s the kind of car you’re just as likely to find roaming city streets as you would in a middle-class suburban neighborhood. They’re nicely sized, quick, well-built, and represent an average Euro vehicle in terms of the components in question. This also directly applies to the succeeding generation of GTI. The Mk7 GTI brake job is nearly identical in both parts and procedure to the Mk6. 

Taking your GTI to the dealership for a brake pad and rotor replacement is a good way to ensure the job is done correctly and relatively quickly. However, a VW dealer brake service uses genuine parts and a specialized technician to install them, costing you a hefty chunk of change. Genuine parts are manufactured to Volkswagen’s specs and have the VW logo applied, causing a significant cost jump. The best alternative to Genuine parts are OE parts. They’re made by the same manufacturer and are identical parts, save for the VW logo printed on them. Eliminating the VW logo lops a considerable cost off the top of any job as only the part manufacturer has to make a profit. Those savings are passed to you in the form of lower pricing. 

Just how much do OE parts reduce the cost of a Mk6 VW GTI brake job? Below are the splits between going to the dealership for a brake service and the part cost for performing the job yourself.  

Getting to that conclusion wasn't too difficult as all we had to do was go to parts.vw.com and make the list. What we ended up with was nearly $800 in parts before any of the labor and fees were factored in. 

Then, going by the CT State Average Labor Hourly rate of $85.15/hr and an estimated 4 hours of labor for the service, the labor was going to add on another $340 to the job cost. At over $1100 for a dealership front and rear brake job, that's nearly a mortgage or rent payment for many out there. Luckily, we have just the parts to ease the blow.

Along with individual parts, our extensive parts catalogs also contain complete kits designed to make servicing your car even simpler. We carry several brake kits for the Mk6 GTI with varying parts suppliers to accommodate different situations. The kit closest to a dealer service contains a mix of OE and OEM parts, so quality is never in question, while coming in far under the cost of Genuine parts. The front brake service kit costs just about $225 while the rear come in at about $130, saving you over $400 in parts cost. 

How To Replace The Brakes On A Mk6 Volkswagen GTI

Our value propositions don't just end with a better price and fewer clicks. We're DIY enthusiasts just like you, and we're happy to share our knowledge and expertise along to you. Below are a couple of videos detailing just how to replace the front and rear brake on the Mk6 Volkswagen GTI.

While the cost-saving measure is being applied to a GTI in this article, it applies to any make and model you can think of, especially with companies that offer powertrain warranties. Nearly ten years ago, this Mk6 GTI benefitted from a powertrain warranty, not a bumper-to-bumper. A powertrain warranty typically only covers things like the engine, transmission, and differentials as they relate to the powertrain. Services relating to other parts of the car—the interior, suspension, and brakes—aren’t covered under that warranty, leaving the owner to foot the bill. Oddly enough, though, VW’s powertrain warranty contains some bonuses, including brake jobs, among several other things. It lasts three years/36,000 miles, whichever comes first. Beyond that line, all repair and service costs are up to the owner. 

Replacing and repairing your vehicle yourself is the easiest way to circumvent paying those exorbitant service costs. With fast, accurate, and easy OE and OEM parts from FCP Euro, you'll always have what you need. Plus, with the Lifetime Replacement Guarantee, you'll never have to worry about future brake service costs again. 

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Written by :

Michael Roselli

Michael Roselli is FCP Euro's Content Director