I took my Ford Explorer in for this AMAZING $99 4 wheel brake job they advertize, if you've read this far and you're thinking about going to Just Brakes for the same deal. DON'T DO IT!!!
I was in the area and decided "what the hell!" I knew my brakes needed doing so I stopped at 'Just Brakes' Branch #22 for this great $99 deal, and so the drama began!
When this little fella took the calipers off I was watching him talk to the manager for about 30 seconds, then suddenly I was called over and they announced I needed new calipers, new rotors and new pads (the rotors were changed 10 months ago and I KNOW they are good).
Little did they know that I have a very good knowledge of cars and the warning signs ascociated with steering, brakes and engine failure. The manager 'Jim' tells me "to get your car 100% it's gonna be $287, so in shock I tell them I'll have to call the dealer. When the dealer agrees to cover the work this 'Jim' character suddenly tells me "don't forget to add the caliper rebuild to that which takes it to $470, and if the rotors are warped you'll need to add those onto the price too".
So I ask how much we are talking in a worse case scenario, his reply nearly choked me! $800!!!
Due to the amount of the claim, the dealer had to send a inspector out to look at the damage. As expected he said that there was almost nothing wrong with the brakes except a sticky caliper, something EASILY fixed by a good brake tech. So the claim was now at around $274, $99 of which was mine for the brake job they said they did.
I go and collect my car and drive it down the street, and almost lose control going around a corner (I NEVER exagerate!). These idiots had messed around with the brakes so much that they had let air into the steering system rendering it almost deadly at freeway speeds. Any car mechanic knows if you have the wheels off and repeatedly turn the steering on a Explorer thats off the ground, you're going to push air into the steering. There is no way they test drove the car after the work, so I took it back to the dealer and they corrected the work for free as a sympathy gesture. They found the steering was considered 'potentially lethal', and they had to remove the brakes pads and reseat them again with new shims (something that was supposed to have been changed!).
I want nothing more than this report to be a WARNING to other motorists NOT to go to these people, you really do get what you pay for!"PAY PEANUTS AND YOU'LL GET MONKEYS!".
Tou have been warned.
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