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Made the mistake of getting my state inspection and an oil change at the dealer. They told me the front rotors were rusted and the pads were "at 40%" and that the breaking would be impaired. I'm not knowledgable about cars and agreed. Was that a reasonable repair to have done?
I don't have the time or inclination to become an expert in car repair, but is there a generally good way to know when I can trust what the shop says? I'm guessing there isn't but was hoping I'm wrong.
Made the mistake of getting my state inspection and an oil change at the dealer. They told me the front rotors were rusted and the pads were "at 40%" and that the breaking would be impaired. I'm not knowledgable about cars and agreed. Was that a reasonable repair to have done?
I don't have the time or inclination to become an expert in car repair, but is there a generally good way to know when I can trust what the shop says? I'm guessing there isn't but was hoping I'm wrong.
For what it's worth, it is a 2012 Camry Hybrid.
Thanks.
All rotors rust.....pads at 40% means you have 10-20K miles left predicated on where and what you drive in....there would be no reasonable rate at this time. You need to do nothing at this point except go on yelp and tell folks EXACTLY what you just said and how a PARTICULAR TOYOTA DEALER was about to rip you off....yeah, maybe something like that.
All rotors rust.....pads at 40% means you have 10-20K miles left predicated on where and what you drive in....there would be no reasonable rate at this time. You need to do nothing at this point except go on yelp and tell folks EXACTLY what you just said and how a PARTICULAR TOYOTA DEALER was about to rip you off....yeah, maybe something like that.
That's sort of what I figured. Lesson learned. Just wanted to be sure before never going to the dealer again. Shame is I have a mechanic I trust but I was bringing it in for a recall.
Wait...did you fail the inspection because of these things or did they just mention them in passing?
No. It was something I'm pretty sure that didn't cause me to fail inspection. They did not make it entirely clear, though. I think that might be by design.
If you bought the car in 2011 and have never done a brake job, then it's not far fetched to need one soon. You can always get a second opinion at Midas or some other indy garages.
Made the mistake of getting my state inspection and an oil change at the dealer. They told me the front rotors were rusted and the pads were "at 40%" and that the breaking would be impaired. I'm not knowledgable about cars and agreed. Was that a reasonable repair to have done?
I don't have the time or inclination to become an expert in car repair, but is there a generally good way to know when I can trust what the shop says? I'm guessing there isn't but was hoping I'm wrong.
For what it's worth, it is a 2012 Camry Hybrid.
Thanks.
Did they say it needed replacement or you assumed and approved the repair?
That's sort of what I figured. Lesson learned. Just wanted to be sure before never going to the dealer again. Shame is I have a mechanic I trust but I was bringing it in for a recall.
Thanks.
Sorry to say it but, it was a total rip off....you can let pads go down to 1/8th of an inch and still have a couple thousand miles to go before you should replace them although I would not recommend it....if you replaced two rotors and pads you shouldn't have paid more than $300 even at a dealership but, the repair was completely unnecessary.
Just remember, dealers make exponentially more on service than they ever do selling a new car. Used cars too. Much more margin......repairs are a gold mine usually wrapped around a blanket called "preventative maintenance".....this is not to say that some is not necessary, it certainly is but, many cars will go quite a bit further without it as much as they go with it.
If you keep a car for a LONG time, it's worth keeping the PM's up....by that I mean, in excess of 150-200K miles.....if you flip them as soon as the note/lease expires, do as little as humanly possible outside of oil changes...all cars will last 5 years for the most part, lemons notwithstanding, but, to go past 150K usually takes a car that has been maintained and not abused before big money repairs set in.....
I have several over the 200K mark that are going very strong and I will simply run them until they die of old age (15-20 years) or become too expensive to bother. Most folks can't/won't keep a car that long. They need something "different" to pour their money into. So be it.....just remember, it's transportation and for every dollar saved today, it's worth $8-$12 some thirty-forty years later towards retirement, kids, vacations, better cars? etc......your call.
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