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Brake job ripoff
JasonV
Member Posts: 2,480 ✭✭✭
A friend took his 2008 Ford pickup to local tire and brake place because his noticed his brake pedal seemed to be going a little lower than usual. It still stopped fine and made no noise or anything. He took it there because that is where he bought the tires.
This pickup gets regular maintenance at the Ford dealership and is in great condition mechanically. If there was something wrong I think the Ford dealer would have already found it.
I was sitting with him at work and he got a call that both front rotors and calipers and pads were worn beyond repair "dangerous to drive" they said. So he told them to go ahead and replace.
About an hour later they call back and said they went to test drive it and did not get around the block because the rear brakes were locked up. They worked fine when he dropped it off- how could they be locked up?
I just don't understand how all 4 rotors, calipers, and pads can all disintegrate at once. From the time is pulled onto the lot and when the place got it up on the lift every brake component on all 4 tires suddenly transformed into the worst possible condition.
While I was telling him he was getting ripped off and to let me fix it in one ear he was telling them to go ahead and fix it. Same as the front, new rotors, calipers, and pads. He gets the bill and it is $1600.
Here is the best/worse part- They charged him $75 per wheel for brake fluid. $300 for brake fluid.
I told him to get the old parts back- they didn't save them because the parts had to be destroyed to be removed!!!
And it gets better- he finds nothing wrong with this!!! Knowing zero about vehicle maintenance he just accepts it. We go on a website and I price all the parts and show him and he replies "well the labor takes all day". It don't take all day to do a brake job and labor isn't $400 an hour!!
His last pickup was a late 90s GMC and the same thing happened on that one but it was $750 for only brake pads.
These places are flat out ripping people off. I could start a business doing oil changes, tires, and brakes and keep BUSY. I am 100% for a business making a profit. But $300 for brake fluid? That place should be shut down.
I have a nice shop with an overhead lift and have offered to do it or show him how to do it next time but I doubt he will take me up on the offer.
This pickup gets regular maintenance at the Ford dealership and is in great condition mechanically. If there was something wrong I think the Ford dealer would have already found it.
I was sitting with him at work and he got a call that both front rotors and calipers and pads were worn beyond repair "dangerous to drive" they said. So he told them to go ahead and replace.
About an hour later they call back and said they went to test drive it and did not get around the block because the rear brakes were locked up. They worked fine when he dropped it off- how could they be locked up?
I just don't understand how all 4 rotors, calipers, and pads can all disintegrate at once. From the time is pulled onto the lot and when the place got it up on the lift every brake component on all 4 tires suddenly transformed into the worst possible condition.
While I was telling him he was getting ripped off and to let me fix it in one ear he was telling them to go ahead and fix it. Same as the front, new rotors, calipers, and pads. He gets the bill and it is $1600.
Here is the best/worse part- They charged him $75 per wheel for brake fluid. $300 for brake fluid.
I told him to get the old parts back- they didn't save them because the parts had to be destroyed to be removed!!!
And it gets better- he finds nothing wrong with this!!! Knowing zero about vehicle maintenance he just accepts it. We go on a website and I price all the parts and show him and he replies "well the labor takes all day". It don't take all day to do a brake job and labor isn't $400 an hour!!
His last pickup was a late 90s GMC and the same thing happened on that one but it was $750 for only brake pads.
These places are flat out ripping people off. I could start a business doing oil changes, tires, and brakes and keep BUSY. I am 100% for a business making a profit. But $300 for brake fluid? That place should be shut down.
I have a nice shop with an overhead lift and have offered to do it or show him how to do it next time but I doubt he will take me up on the offer.
formerly known as warpig883
Comments
The entire story is bad, (but) the $75 per wheel for brake fluid takes it over the top. The "we do not have the old parts." Is a dead giveaway.
At the very least, file a complaint with the Better Bussiness Bureau.
See my "Do not buy Auto Parts Locally" thread. Myself and a trusted friend will do the brake job on my Jeep, when all the parts arrive.
Problem with brakes and being a shop, the liability is extreme if the vehicle gets in an accident. $300 for brake fluid, how do I get in on that action.
Both my MIL and an Aunt (Both in their late 70's) Have been ripped off bad by these scum bags. Both of them went to a Firestone place around Atlanta Ga and not the same one. Its like these Firestone places have a business model of luring in Old Lady's scaring them and ripping them off for years with scare tactics like; You need new tires because these are 5 years old or you need a battery every 3 years. Brake jobs where they do nothing or just change the front pads when nothing is wrong.
The kicker was when I was ATL visiting my Dad my MIL came by to see him and take to lunch. We were driving in her car and there was a loud clank coming from the front wheel. I tell her to stop and let me check it out. I jack it up pull the wheel and the whole brake caliper is flopping around because there were bolts in the pins :shock: She told me she had just had a brake job done last week at the Firestone. I told her to fire them and gave her the name a reputable shop. I told her NEVER go to a tire shop to have work done, go to a Mechanic.
Next my Aunt was having problems with her car, she described what was happening to me and told me the Firestone guys didn't know what was wrong but did a "analysis" for $90. They quoted her $1500 to fix it. I told her to leave that place now, that what was the matter sounded like a bad Spark coil and to meet me at a Mechanics shop I know in Roswell Ga. She gets there they check it and yep she has one bad coil. They replace it and her spark plugs. Again I told her NEVER go to a tire shop for anything other than tires.
These kind of places really PO me.
When I was deployed my wife took her car to jiffy lube to get the oil changed. I get back from one of my deployment to OEF and have a few days off. She says the car needs to oil changed. She kept her receipts and they were charging her $50 for an oil change and Lube, filter and all this other crap. But what blew my mind is every 6 moths they charged her for a cabin air filter...................Her car at the time didn't have one.
I about blew a gasket right there. Needless to say I had a talk with the manager then I went on post reported them and had the place put off limits to all soldiers at Ft Bragg. 2 years later they were out of business :shock:
Before I deployed again I went to a Valvoline place talked to manager and told him what I wanted done while I was gone. No problems after that.
They told me the front brake pads and rotors needed to be replaced. North of $ 1,000.00. I had checked them before I took it in and there was probably .030" wear on the rotors, if that. When I called BS, they simply said it was their policy to always replace the rotors when they replace the pads. Let them know it was a stupid policy because now they wouldn't be replacing the pads.
Took it to Les Schwab, and they replaced the pads and trued up the rotors for around $ 225.00.
Some of these outfits are great. Others smell blood and go for what they can get.
Always a good idea to have a basic understanding of what someone is telling you to do.
Brad Steele
Way, way back (when younger/dumber) I took my Subaru Brat in to a Midas Mufflesr shop for something, I forget what. While up on the lift, they have me come out. Same old catastrophic brake failure eminent speech. Do you want us to fix/replace it? Ridiculous price. ("No.")
The next evening driving my 33 miles home around 10-11pm. Front end felt strange wobbly. Got out with a flashlight started looking thing over. They had only hand tightend the lug nuts.
I went back in the next day, and went off on that manager. Want to talk about "Catastrophic failure?" :evil:
Exactly. Send someone in there with a camera phone and take pics of their posted rates. They will have to verify the labor , how long it took and parts.
I'm imagining him as the person who got took for headlight fluid change.
1 born every 15 seconds?
Pretty much what I was thinking. I'd be getting the vehicle up on a lift and photographing (provide photographic time stamp dated proof,) the parts were not New.
Yes they are, but sadly with your friend's attitude, he is an enabler. Most of the driving public does not know the first thing about how their automobile works, and they don't want to know. This leads questionable repair shops to start picking the low hanging fruit. Most of these people are just begging to get porked.
While many of these places are ripping people off, the liability of working on anything that operates on public roads, as has already been addressed above, is extreme. I have 2 million dollars of liability coverage for working on heavy equipment. My insurance premium is $1500/year. If I want to work on ANYTHING that operates on a public road, that premium goes to $4000/year
Another thing that encourages over billing/selling, is a lot of these "techs" get a percentage of the parts they sell. 10% used to be standard.
As far as demanding to see the old parts, in this state you have to request the old parts back when you drop your vehicle off for service, not after the fact. Other states may be different. On the other hand, you could show 99.5% of the motoring public some trashed parts, and they would not have a clue if those parts actually came off their automobile. Back in the Chevy small block flat cam era, some mechanics kept a flat cam under their bench for just such a purpose.
On the fraud issue, sure report them to the state AG, but don't expect the AG to send in the state police SWAT. If however they receive lots of complaints they may start an investigation, so it's worth reporting. If you can prove fraud in a court of law however, you don't need the AG. Just take them to court yourself.
It was almost impossible to find compenent people. The scammers look and sound legitmate!
Asking a coworker or friend for a reference seldom works because most people don't realize the have been screwed and won't accept it as truth when it is pointed out to them.
Like your friend.
He will probably recommend that shop to anyone with brake problems.
I'll be 70 in September and I'll keep doing my own brake jobs and oil changes if I have to crawl on the floor on all 4's to do it before I'll let the thief's at these tire chain stores get a penny of my money.
I also make it part of my oil change routine to take a turkey baster and replace about half of the old brake fluid in the master cylinder every time I change the oil. That keeps the brake fluid like new all the time. That cost about a buck to do.