Last week I went into my local Lexus dealership to have my brake pads replaced, the dealer also mentioned that the calipers were freezing so they replaced those as well. I picked up my car and the brake performance was horrible. I nearly had to push my foot to the floor for the car to come to a complete stop. I took my GX back to the dealer and they flushed the brakes multiple times in hopes of remedying the problem. After those efforts proved to be unsuccessful, they are now telling me that the brake booster needs to be replaced (part #47050-60081). They want over $3k for the part! I've done some googling and see it's available for $2k online but can I put any of this problem on the dealership for failing to do something correctly during my brake maintenance? I want to ensure that I'm not forking over $2,000 for a repair that I may not be liable for. I'm shocked that this part went out from the time the mechanic test drove it and when i picked up the vehicle.

Thanks in advance for any insight.

Vehicle: 150,000 miles. 2004 gx.

 

It is a tough argument because they have been known to fail right around the same time yours has. BUT...it is not that common and someone on one of the forums I belong to just went through this repair last week! Based on the little that I know ....if the booster failed you would have a rock hard pedal that did absolutely nothing. If the master fails I believe that it would create the symptom that you are currently experiencing. Either way though you are out of luck because they sell it as one unit. BUT AGAIN....it was working properly when you brought it to them and after they performed a repair on the brake system it no longer functions so there is some liability there. If they tried to flush and fill multiple times and you still have a weak pedal....I am going to say that the master is out. So...problem is that you are both right so maybe if you can get them to agree to splitting the cost with you ....it might be the best deal for both of you. You could start by offering them $1000 and they cover the rest and hopefully it works out.

 

I agree. Offer to split some part of the cost with them.

It's rare for them to fail, but our vehicles are at the age where it can happen.

Chip H.

 

That is exactly what the service rep told me was performed. The master, is the master cylinder? So, if I'm following this correctly. I should offer to pay $1,000 of the $3,500-$4,000 repair? If they decline and counter with half, should I attempt to get the labor for free and buy the master brake assembly online for $2,000? I would imagine this isn't a very labor intensive repair since it's a massive part that is being replaced.

 

It's probably more labor intensive than you think - it has to be unbolted from underneath the dash (super awkward to get to) and unclipped from the brake pedal. And you'll have to drain the fluid first. The good news is there's no large vacuum dome to maneuver out from under the cowl.

Here's the parts diagram:

http://www.lexussouthatlantaparts.co...rimLevel=19100

Chip H.

 

I think you should start with offering $1000 as your half of the repair. If they decline and offer something else...I think you will need to decide for yourself if you will be ok with what they offer

 

When you say "flushed" them, did they Bleed them of air? Was it all 4 calipers or 2? Are you losing any fluid, as in pumping the brakes with the engine running, in park and pushing down on the brake pedal, up down, hold, up any combo, then seeing if the fluid level changed? If they only did 2 calipers, and are only bleeding those, air can still get into the rear lines sometimes, then they need to air bleed all 4

 

Wht didnt the tech test drive it and tell the service writer? Why would they let you pick up your vehicle like that? IDK, if it were me, I know its a pain but I would do some research! I would not pay them another dollar! I hope you used a credit card!

 

yes, bleed is what I meant to say. The word had escaped me. It was only the front brakes that had the work done (pads/calipers). I haven't seen the car in a few days. It's been at the dealer since Monday, they haven't called me in a few days so I'm not sure exactly how to take there lack of follow up to get the repair done. I'll follow up with them to determine if all 4 were done. I'd hope a dealer service team is this smart.

 

I would first talk to the tech, ask him what he did, then repeat some of his words, and say, oh yeah, you said you bled them X amount of times, right? Just the fronts right? If he did the rear ones he would tell you if not, talk to the service manager. What about a defective part? Meaning caliper, it happens. IDK, to me something doesnt sound right.

 

That is great advice. Thank you. I've left two voicemails with my service rep and he still not called me. I do know they ordered in some parts as they were troubleshooting before they determined it was master cylinder. I can't recall what those parts were now. So what you are saying is when they installed new calipers (aftermarket/non OEM) they could be causing the master cylinder to not function? It's just weird that the vehicle performed fine on the test drive with the tech then the master cylinder went out before I even started driving it off the lot. I'm not knowledgable enough to know how/why that is possible but just seems highly unlikely. Thanks again.

 

That's a crappy situation and that's what shops will do, if their diagnosis/repair was incorrect, they'll try to convince you it needed that repair plus another to cover their ***.

It's difficult to know, I personally think they should eat the replacement of your calipers at the very least since that was not what was originally wrong. I tend to think someone in their shop botched this whole job and ruined your master cylinder in the process (if it does indeed need a new master cylinder.)

You went in the shop to simply get the brake pads replaced and now you're looking at a pretty expensive rebuild of your whole braking system with a new master cylinder, calipers, pads, etc. Were you having any issues before this?

My instinct is to take it to another dealership and get a 2nd opinion and get another set of eyes on it. Also, I know I would be looking at maybe buying a master cylinder from a salvage yard.

 

I failed to start from the beginning. My original visit was ONLY to have recall work done on the side airbags. They came back and said my front pads were worn down to 3mm and calipers were freezing. The rep told me the calipers may unfreeze after the tech could get in there and try to clean them up and avoid the replacement. Do you believe that the freezing of the calipers may have been the result of something else? I was experiencing no issues with my brakes when I brought in my GX for the recall work.

I agree with you though, I feel like someone did something wrong but I have no idea how to prove it. The only other Lexus dealership close is owned by the same group, so I'm not sure that will help my cause. Additional feedback would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for being generous with your time and thoughts.

The calipers were $320 of the $630 that I paid.

 

Here is a quick summary of the work they performed:

Disassembled calipers.
Removed the brake pads
Unsuccessful at unfreezing calipers.
Rotors removed. Bolted on new calipers and installed new pads.
Resurfanced the rotor.
Flushed the brake system (front only), took multiple attempts
Tech test drove vehicle to burn in the new brakes.
VEHICLE PICKED UP AND THEN DROPPED OFF AT DEALER
Two brake flushes on front and rear. some improvement.
Replace the seal on the brake lines on the master cylinder (slight seeping was occurring)
Pressure was being lost on the master cylinder.
Diagnostic was to replace master cylinder.

After all that, the service rep does not think they are responsible at all for the master cylinder going out. He claims that this issue is due to age/mileage of vehicle. He offered to save me money on labor by going from $119/hr to $85/hr (2 hour job) so we are taking a whooping $70. Am I best to concede and order the master cylinder online to save $1000 verses the dealership price?

 

If it is seeping, of course that is a issue. BUT, Is it enough to give you no pedal? It has to be done, so have it replaced and go from there. I dont know how the pedal feels, so its hard to tell. I would buy a Lexus part online and either have them install it or bring it somewhere else. I would talk to the service manager, ask why he hasnt called you, if they inspected it, why didnt they see it and say you are contacting Lexus Corp. Something still doesnt sound ritght. Did you get to look at the brakes with the ties off? bleeding a system should not take several attempts. Something isnt right!