Hi everyone, below I am going to tell you about my experiences with the dealership on my 60k maintenance and what they found. Please give me some help as I am not in a position to drop even more cash on expensive shop work. Thanks in advance!

I had them do my 60k maintenance minus the trans flush (i have a manual, and do my own redline fluid), engine oil, and air filter.

The dealership noted these extra things that needed to be done:

-Drive belts (alternator, steering etc)- they were cracking
-Brakes (Told me my rotors and axxis pads were "shot")
-"Induction Flush"
-Contaminated Brake Fluid

They did not swap out the water pump as it wasn't leaking and they don't typically fail on low output 4s. Not to mention they wanted almost $400 dollars for it!

I had them do the drive belts because they agreed to not charge labor and it basically was worth not doing them myself.

I called BS on the induction flush because they told me it would help with my MPG. My car gets around 40mpg right now. I know that probably seems absurd but its been documented by several people driving it. We've done the math on several trips with altering weather and loads. This car just doesn't use gas. 65mph plus synthetic fluids and an sri apparently does the trick. My question about the induction flush is this: I know there is carbon build up inside engines etc, but I'm pretty sure its nothing a little sea foam can't clean out. They did clean the throttle body. Should I reconsider not doing this?

They told me my pads and rotors were "shot", but they aren't squealing and they don't make any more noise than typical axxis pads do (a LITTLE grinding when coming to a stop). My stopping distances are excellent. I haven't checked the pads for wear, but they are almost a year old so I expect they are at least almost due for a change. Here is my question: If I grab pads and brembo rotors off of tirerack and do the install myself, can i install both at the same time? I've read conflicting things on here about bedding pads and not installing both simultaneously as this can cause rotor wear. Can I just swap both out at once?

They also noted my brake fluid looked bad. I admit, it does. I told them not to touch it as I have always wanted to learn how to do this myself. If I take a trip to wisconsin in a week and travel about 2,000 miles round trip, will that be an issue if I wait to bleed the brakes and swap the fluid after the trip?

Also, they came up with a slew of other things that were "advised" to do on the car. I declined those because it seems like they were fishing for money. My timing belt was the one thing I was worried about. Is there anything else aside from the routine 60k that I should think of doing?

Thanks!

 

Does anyone at least have any advice on the brakes? I need to take that trip soon and want to hear what you guys think I should do.

 

Timing belt is really the only thing I would be concerned about since I have heard of them failing shortly after 60K...

Drive belts, I have the originals on at 84K and they still seem to be in "decent" shape.

I have no idea about the induction flush...

Brakes I also am unsure of, I bought my car with 5x,xxx miles and I'm at 84K and I have yet to hear a squeak or grind... How long do they typically last on your car? Sorry for answering a question with a question.

Hope that helps....

 

You should be able to tell on the pads yourself, if they are ground to the backing plate... they are cached. As for the rotors, you may want to get a cheap electronic micrometer (~$20 I think) and measure the thickness. I dont know what the specs are for minimum thickness but looking around here you can probably find it. If your rotors are cracked or have serious surface abrasion, toss them. Also, the Brembo replacements on Tirerack are kinda steep. PM MAPerformance for some standard blank rotors, they will undoubtedly undercut the Brembos. Dont screw with your brake fluid, if the pedal is firm and progressive and you dont plan on running the car hard, you should be fine, but if it LOOKS like crap, dump it quick. I dont know about your other maintenance issues other than I dont trust the stealerships in any way shape or form... Good luck.

 

Thanks a lot! I am going to take the wheel off and take a look at them. I'm a little surprised (actually I'm really not) the dealership said they were in such bad shape considering they stop just fine.

To the question above about the brakes. How long they last really depends on how you drive and what kind of components you use. Stock pads and rotors will last a while but do not stop as well as some aftermarket parts. My axxis pads usually need to be changed once a year but they stop on a dime. If you never engine brake and stop hard on your brakes, they will probably need a change.

I was actually referring to the OEM replacement Brembos which are only $41 each instead of the slotted that are about 150. But thanks for the recommendation, I will check out that vendor as well.

Thanks for the responses so far guys