$1100 routine brake service

[Wes325]

I was just informed this afternoon that my mom has just paid $1100+ for her routine brake service on her 2001 X5 3.0 :shock: The light on her dash had indicated that she was in need of a brake service. She went to the dealership for her service and the service manager at the dealership gave her a bill of $1100+ for the job. He told her that it needed new pads and when they replace the pads they have to replace the rotors because the rotors cannot be resurfaced!! The rotors were in very good condition and were thick. I have a hard time believing that they are unnable to turn the current rotors. The service manager said that the rotors did not have a minimal thickness measurement because they are always replaced when the pads wear out! Has anyone ever heard of this or did they just take advantage of a female customer that has a lack of automotive knowledge???? Thanks.
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Honda GL1800

[E30godz]

owned.

[Jordan]

Your mother got taken advantage of, seriously.... and $1100 for 4 rotors, 4 pads, and the minimal labor involved? bulshit.

[Rob]

Flow, like many dealerships, sucks ass unless you're 'down' with them

[MattM20]

ouch that sucks. i assume the car is out of warranty or else it wouldnt bother you this much

[Rob]

Do new BMW warranties cover wear items?

[Avus_325is]

Yes. My mom is looking at an X3 right now and everything is covered from bumper to bumper for something like 50k miles. They said, and I quote "All you have to put into it are tires and gas."

[bimmerphile]

Do new BMW warranties cover wear items?

It depends on if she bought the "Full Coverage" wty or not.

Apparently she didn't. That, OR she didn't pick up the extended wty, as tehy expire at 3 Years or 50,000 Miles, whichever comes first. During that period it's bumper-to-bumper coverage.

There's an option to pick up the extended warranty to extend it for 6 years, and 100k miles, but you have to do that before the original warranty expires.

Personally, I would call BMW NA, report it to them, so they can give me their sincerest apologies and say there's nothing they can do, and then report it to http://www.dealerrater.com/

Good luck. That dealer blows.

-Kris

[Z3Jonathan]

I don't believe brakes will fall under the free maintainance program. They may say "tires and gas" but you have to check the fine print -- that's all the matters anyways.

A brake job is one of those things that can be done by a DIYer, but most people go to a dealership either because A) they aren't a DIYer or B) Brakes are an integral part of having a safe vehicle, therefore only the dealership is capable of replacing them (although there is some truth to this statement, since you wouldn't want just anyone doing a brake job!).

[Sean]

Holy crap, they got screwed big time! You can usually get three sets of pads on a rotor before the rotor needs a replacement.

That sucks though. Damn dealers... :?

[Avus_325is]

You can usually get three sets of pads on a rotor before the rotor needs a replacement.

If you don't wait till the pads are completely gone and destroy the rotors to the point where they can't be turned, which is about the time my mom realizes her brakes need replaced most of the time.

[surebimmer]

That sound about right for dealership work out of warrantey. The shop rate at the dealer I work at is $140/hr. They would charge flate rate time, 1.5 HRS front, 1.5 HRS rear. That's $420 in labor, and new rotors, pads and sensor front and rear around $500-600 bucks parts. The rotor's will never be changed unless they are under spec. They should have quoted the spec's on there story. But the rotor's are always just at the spec or under in all the times i have seen.Yes starting in 2003 all new BMW's come with full maintance for 4 years/50,000 miles witch ever comes frist. In 2002 they had full maintance for 3yrs/36,000. Brakes are covered under this but can only be changed when the service light on the dash comes on, this means the sensor is worn.

Don't get me wrong I don't think anyone should pay this high of price. My point of view is only take your car to the dealer while your car is under warrenty. After that find a good independat or DIY.

You don't even want to know what that job would have cost if your mom's car was a X5 4.6is. The 4.6is has bigger rotor's front and rear and to due F&R brakes out of warrenty it's about $1800.

[Sean]

You can usually get three sets of pads on a rotor before the rotor needs a replacement.

If you don't wait till the pads are completely gone and destroy the rotors to the point where they can't be turned, which is about the time my mom realizes her brakes need replaced most of the time.

Where's the icon of the smiley hitting his face when you need it? :x

Yes, that would pose a slight problem... :shock:

[bimmerphile]

You can usually get three sets of pads on a rotor before the rotor needs a replacement.

If you don't wait till the pads are completely gone and destroy the rotors to the point where they can't be turned, which is about the time my mom realizes her brakes need replaced most of the time.

Where's the icon of the smiley hitting his face when you need it? :x

Yes, that would pose a slight problem... :shock:

[Sean]

You can usually get three sets of pads on a rotor before the rotor needs a replacement.

If you don't wait till the pads are completely gone and destroy the rotors to the point where they can't be turned, which is about the time my mom realizes her brakes need replaced most of the time.

Where's the icon of the smiley hitting his face when you need it? :x

Yes, that would pose a slight problem... :shock:

Thanks Kris! :D (crap, I didn't know that was in there... :oops: )