Sportskid1

iTrader: (1)

Long time observer but first post here. In the forums I discovered the TSB to replace the break pads on my 2008 IS350. My car only has 20K miles so I took it to the dealer and they said no problem as it was still under warranty. Get a call a few hours later and they said the rotors were slightly warped and needed replacement. I had my doubts on this so I asked if they could just be re-surfaced and they said they would give it a try. Go figured they were fine after re-surfacing. So I go to pick up the car and I get a $187.50 bill for the re-surfacing of the rotors. I thought this had to be a mistake. I spoke with my service adviser and she was pretty much clueless so I spoke to the service manager and he just gave me some BS of this was the shop charge and wouldn’t budge.

I might be way off but once the car is on the lift and brake pads removed isn’t it just 20-30 minutes of labor to pull the rotors off and re-surface them. It sounds like they are trying to recharge me all the labor they are already billing lexus to do the break pad swap. Does anyone know who I can contact to file a complaint or am I just overreacting on this?

laobo979

iTrader: (5)

You should speak to the the manger or contact lexus corp. But service is charged by the hr not minutes. Also that a bit pricey for re surfacing the rotors.

tenaciousF

iTrader: (1)

Sewell did it as part of the TSB for me (no charge).

calvin2376

iTrader: (2)

This just sounds to me like you're taking issue with what the dealer is charging for resurfacing the rotors. In that case, I'd just call around to other dealers in the area to ask what they charge for rotor resurfacing (completely ex-everything else, ie. the brake pad TSIB). If it's far below that, then you may have a reason to complain.

This is why you should always call the dealership and get an exact quote on the work (parts + labor, the latter both in dollars and hours) so you're not surprised when you arrive to pick up the car. When you called to ask them to resurface as opposed to replace, you should have asked exactly what that would cost. If the dealer quotes you a number, that's of course not set in stone, but after that point if they anticipate it to change significantly they should give you a call. If you just tell them to "go do X" without talking price, they'll "go do X" for as high a price as they possibly can.

You may very well be right that the job takes only 20-30 minutes. But the above poster is right, dealers charge by the hour and they also will often charge what the Lexus manual states a job will take, not as long as it ends up taking (especially if they haven't quoted you something up front). In addition, if the dealer does two jobs that require the same pre-work and one is covered by warranty and the other isn't, it's not like they're legally bound NOT to charge you for the pre-work and instead warranty it. I'm seeing the same thing with quotes I'm getting ahead of time for a spark plug replacement - some are offering to do it at a steep discount if I do it at the same time as the recall (which requires removal of the same parts), some aren't. The dealership could easily claim they did the brakes start to finish then when you called to have them resurface instead of replace, they had to get it back up on the lift, etc. This is shady and not ideal, but remember we're talking about car dealers here.

Find out what other dealers charge for this as your first step.

Kurtz

iTrader: (1)

Not only is that an insane price, rotors don't actually warp.

http://www.stoptech.com/tech_info/wp...rakedisk.shtml


Mostly "resurfacing rotors" does nothing useful but waste good rotor metal.

Gville350

iTrader: (10)

I was at the local dealership yesterday and asked about the "TSB" on the break pads and the front wheel paint bubbling. Mark (service advisor, aka pee-on) said that because my '06 is out of factory warranty that they would not honor the pad TSB? Is this right?

On a side note, I've got to go in for the fuel and MC "cap" recall.

laobo979

iTrader: (5)

He right if your nolonger under factory warranty you out of luck. It's not a safety thing cause it's dusty. Anyway it's on $70 for those pad which you can install yourself.

meangene

iTrader: (10)

TSBs are only good if you have a factory warranty...

To the OP my dealer said there was a slight vibration so they decided to resurface the rotors for me for free, but they did say I already had the new brake pads that don't show as much dust which I highly doubt.

I'd contact Lexus Corp and see if they can help you out.