DAE notice how every shop around here tells you to replace brake pads at 3mm? My van's been fine at 2mm for months, no noise or issues. Why the rush? | Auto Mechanics - Opinions Matter
Yeah, it's all about that safety buffer. Think of it like tire tread, you know? The legal limit is 1.6mm, but everyone says change at 3mm for good wet weather grip. Pads wear faster near the end, and if one pad is thinner than the other, you could hit metal on metal real quick. Shops just play it safe so a routine pad job doesn't turn into a rotor replacement a month later.