2013 Jetta Sportwagen brake parts & bleed question

hangman

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 27, 2013
Location
long island, ny
TDI
2013 VW Jetta Sportwagen
I’m still quite new here. I have a 2013 Jetta sport wagon TDI.
Right now I’m at 80,000 miles. Up until now all of the routine service was done at the dealer. I plan on doing my own maintenance going forward.

I saw some interesting videos on the Mityvac products, including model which is designed to bleed out brake lines. I’m planning on buying it because it looks like it works well. My next question does anyone know what he bleed sequence would be for the wheel calipers?

First of all can anyone recommend a good source for a service manual that I can buy for this vehicle?

Is there a general rule on the mileage life expectancy for the factory brake pads on these vehicles? I have the dealer do the 70,000 mile service and didn’t mention anything about the brakes. So I’m assuming that they’re still pretty good. Is there a recommended part number or supplier for either the brake pads or the calipers for this vehicle ( when I actually need to replace the pads)?

Thanks!
 

cliballe

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 21, 2010
Location
Tennessee
TDI
2010 Jetta
I use a Motive Products Power Bleeder (European Black Label, #0109) and it works very well, and I have multiple adapters I use on different vehicles.

The Bentley Service Manual is the only reasonably priced manual for these cars. I have one and it recommends a LF, RF, LR, RR bleeding sequence, but I always do the "standard" RR, LR, RF, LF and I haven't had any issues with the multiple bleeds I've done.

I had ~124K miles on mine before I replaced the rear pads, and the fronts still have plenty of life left. You ought to be able to get a good idea of your pad life just by looking through the wheels, and keep in mind that the inner pad usually wears a little faster than the outer one that is visible. I bought a genuine VW service kit from ECS Tuning which came with rotors and all the single use hardware which is convenient. You shouldn't need to replace the calipers unless you have leaks or torn boots. For a rear pad change you will need to purchase or rent the piston retracting tool... the rear caliper pistons must turn clockwise as they are compressed. For the front calipers you can use a regular c-clamp to retract the pistons.

Hope this helps.
 

meerschm

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Apr 18, 2009
Location
Fairfax county VA
TDI
2009 Jetta wagon DSG 08/08 205k buyback 1/8/18; replaced with 2017 Golf Wagon 4mo 1.8l CXBB
I had good luck with alldatadiy.com for tech data. includes updated service bulletins and wiring diagrams you can zoom in on.


idparts offers a good range of affordable brake parts.


I liked their house brand ceramic pads. much less brake dust than the oem.


if no one told you, be sure to use the parking brake once in a while. it adjusts the rear brakes.


if you never use it, don't be surprised to find one pad more worn than the others, and the need to replace them early.


otherwise, it is not unusual to see well over 100k on the original brakes.



if you are up for DIY, not too hard to jack up the car, take off a wheel, and examine the pad thickness, and condition of the inside and outside of the disk. make sure to block the wheel on a non-jacked side, and don't get too far under the car with it only on the jack.
 
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