i had a full brake job done by ford dealership "A" a little more than one year ago, both front and rear. they replaced the rotors, pads, everything to the tune of $900+. now my truck is doing the same thing (pulsating and vibrating violently when braking), and i took it in to another dealership "B" to check it out. dealership B has told me that the front rotors are warped and shot, and cannot even be turned because there is not enough thickness left on them. the service advisor at dealership B even confided to me that the rotors looked a LOT older than one year after i showed him the receipt of work done by dealership A, and confirmed that he would be re-doing the same work dealer A had done.

i have my own ideas about what was done by dealership A, but my question is this: is there a SN or tracking or part number on motorcraft rotors that would allow me (joe public) to find out their date of manufacture? if so, where should i be looking on the rotor for this number and who (internet location?) should i contact to track it?

dealership B seems to be pretty helpful, and are in a different locale than A so hopefully they are not bound by some BS "code of ethics" to other dealerships, even shotty ones. but if i can catch dealership A in an outright lie about the work they did and charged me for, i would like to know. any other thoughts on this situation? thanks.

 

I was at an auto recycle place yesterday getting a price on a used flywheel. While standing at the counter in walks a guy from an autobody shop to pick up some parts. I know the shop in question but cannot say if they charged a new price for a used part. Did you see any of the parts before they did the work. Were they in the original box and unused looking. BTW they wanted $50.00 for the flywheel and the shop I was going to get to install wanted $140.00 that's a $90.00 difference. From now on I buy all the parts, fluids and get the mechanic to do the install while I keep a close watch.

 

i did not see any parts before the work, and i did not get the old parts that were supposedly replaced with new (like some shops and dealers do, putting the old parts in a box so you can see what was taken off). i probably signed something that said they did not have to return the old worn parts as part of the drop off paperwork at the service desk in the "fine print".

i am completely done with dealership A now, i took the truck back to them and they claim the rear brakes are shot again, needing new rotors/pads/everything after only 15 months and 21k miles of driving. in addition, their diagnosis was the truck needs a complete front end overhaul, total estimate $2400 (which included about $500 to redo the 15 month old rear brakes). had a big argument with the service advisor (or service shyster) about everything that must have led to year old rotors failing - driver error, lots of driving in the mountains causing overheating, etc. - but never the possibility that they might have done something wrong or that the rotors might be faulty. my online search for reviews on this dealer shows many other similar experiences with the service department, so i guess i should have checked. trying to find another shop now in the metro denver area to get a 3rd opinion.

 

Wow 2400.00. I had two lower ball joints and two outer tie rod ends repaced for 500.00 cdn. Would have been cheaper if I purchased the parts myself too. The shop labour was only 75.00/hr for 4 hours work. The rest was parts at his cost.

I would definately get another opinion on the work involved. If it drives straight when coasting and doesn't pull to either side then there should be no front end problem.

I would purchase rotors, brake pads and pay a local backyard mechanic to do the work while you watch. Heck you could even go as far as to offer to pass him wrenches and a cold beer too. This way he doesn't have to get up and he'll probably thank you for doing that.

Anyway good luck and I hope things work out for the better.