Brake pads worn

[DannyMurphy]

I have an 09 c5 exclusive

Sometimes when I brake, most noticed from high speed to low, and like slowing for a roundabout, the on board computer flashes up brake pads worn, but goes off str8 away. Should I be worried about this or is it a simple glitch, as brakes feel as good as they ever have.

[Xantidote]

You need to check the brake pads, and probably replace, unless there's another problem. If you leave it, I'd expect the warning message to become more frequent, and if you continue ignoring it, you'll end up with the metal back-plate of the pad coming into contact with the disc, which gives nasty grating noises and then maybe a need to replace discs as well

[Northern_Mike]

I have an 09 c5 exclusive

Sometimes when I brake, most noticed from high speed to low, and like slowing for a roundabout, the on board computer flashes up brake pads worn, but goes off str8 away. Should I be worried about this or is it a simple glitch, as brakes feel as good as they ever have.

You need to check the brake pads visually. There is no other option. It doesn't matter whether the warning is a lie...

Modern brakes, in my experience, don't really lose much performance until they are completely knackered. My Berlingo has just gone past that time..

[DannyMurphy]

Should I still check them even though it flashes up and disappears as quickly? It doesn't read as a fault either when I hit the "check" button on the dash.

[Northern_Mike]

Should I still check them even though it flashes up and disappears as quickly? It doesn't read as a fault either when I hit the "check" button on the dash.

Yes. You should.

[Xantidote]

Until you look at the brake pads, you won't know exactly how worn they are, and until then, you can't make a judgement as to when you need to change them.

And whilst you're there, you can also cast your eye around for anything else that might not be quite right, such as a CV boot that's splitting - a watchful eye is no bad thing.

[Hell Razor5543]

A warning light is just that, a warning. It is telling you there is a problem. It might be a worn cable rubbing on a disc, it might be pads running out of friction material. The system doesn't know, it just knows there is a problem, and you need to know about it, and investigate.

Recently I was at CitroJims' place. One thing I wanted to find out was why the side airbag was lit. We found that the left pillar ECU was not communicating with the main ECU. I don't (yet) know if I have a faulty ECU or wiring, but I wouldn't have found out with the Lexia. All Gracie could do was to tell me there was a problem with the side airbag system (the light), but until we checked we didn't know what the problem was.

[Old-Guy]

If you do as suggested and look at the pads, you'll find that the 'sensors' are just solid plugs on the ends of the cables to the pads. When the friction material wears down enough, every time you brake hard(ish), the 'sensor' is earthed to the disc and the light comes on. [Shimple]

You do NOT want to wear pads down to the backing plate so that you have steel to steel (disc to plate) - you'll have a lack of brakes and will need a new pair of discs. A worn-out pad = Defective Brakes = Unroadworthy Vehicle. The police may seize and crush unroadworthy vehicles.

[DannyMurphy]

Have it in for a service this week anyway so ill get them looked at
Not worried about the police as I live in Ireland, the Garda are a little more relaxed