moreace

I have a 2004 TL which just broke 40k miles (still under extended warranty).

The other night I started hearing metal on metal, assumed it was the warning clip that my brakes are low and so I went home and stopped driving. I am still on my original pads, but do mostly highway driving.

Went right to Acura the next day and was told the following after an inspection:

1) My rear pads are 100% gone and have been grinding for some time
2) My rear rotors are warped and down to 8mm thick
3) One rotor is apparently worse than the other
4) My front pads are 80-85% worn

This seems odd to me. Everything will be out of my pocket, nothing under warranty. They are quoting over $300 to replace the fronts, which seems high to me. Same for the rears (not including rotors).

My initial concerns, which they dismissed are the following (am I wrong)?

1) Front wheel drive with weight in front. In my experience the front pads should always go first in this situation. This was dismissed saying the pads are thicker in front and this is normal.
2) There should be a warning sound or some safety mechanism when your brakes are that low. All my other cars had a clip that made a noise when you were low. I confirmed with 2 friends I had driven the day before and confirmed there was no sound even though I allegedy had no rear brakes. Braking felt fine... no problems.
3) If one rotor is off worse than the other, than the rear brakes were not calibrated right.

There is enough here to make me feel that Acura should have some responsibility. Any thoughts, comments or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

avs007

FWD is irrelevant. Fronts usually wear faster because the most braking force is done by the front, because of the weight transfer. Not sure about the TL, but my G35 has Electronic Brake Force Distribution, which tries to more evenly spread the braking force. As such, I've seen the rear pads wear at a rate closer to those of the fronts. Then on top of that, I've heard that those who drive spiritedly, the rears have worn faster than the fronts, because the VSA/VDC can engage the rear brakes to keep the car inline. Not sure if this is your case, but I have seen the backs wear faster than the fronts, so it's entirely possible. Then again, the brakes could've been adjusted incorrectly and dragging....

Depends I guess... On my cars, the interior is usually isolated enough that I couldn't hear the brakes squeeling unless I had the windows down. Plus I have the stereo cranked up, so I couldn't hear it. Braking always felt normal, until the brakes were REALLY worn.

Which rotor was it? I noticed that on my cars the driver's side wears faster than the passenger side, which I'm assuming because I mostly drive my car alone, so most of the weight is on the driver's side.

I don't know. 40k is a lot of miles in my opinion. I replaced mine at 30k miles, and they were fairly worn, and I do mostly highway miles. (80 miles commute round trip)

However, Acura is ripping you on parts and such... If you have the skills (it really doesn't take much), do it yourself. You can get a good set of pads, like the Stillen Metal Matrix pads for like $50. You can also get replacement rotors for cheap. Heck, I can buy Stillen slotted/drilled rotors for $300 for a pair. You can get the factory rotors for like $160 for a pair. (These prices are for my G35, I'm assuming they would be similar for the TL. I haven't gotten rotors for our TL yet)

CobraGuy

A proper brake job is expensive. No question about it. $600 to $700 isn't out of reason if the job is done correctly with new parts...including all the hardware which should be replaced on all brake jobs. If you go to some jip joint like Brake Masters, they will throw on a set of pads for $79.95 and that's about it. You are getting screwed in the long run. Besides, most those places get you in the door with that price then after your car is torn apart, they bend you over for the full boat price. I've seen it many, many times. If you can do the work yourself, have the tools necessary to do the job, and the skill level to do it, you can save a bunch of money on labor and can probably cut the price in half. But remember...it's the brakes you're working on here...so make sure you're comfortable with what you're doing. Read the manual carefully prior to starting the job.

moreace

Thanks for your help everyone. I guess with my families experience we were just surprised a car could need rotors at 40k with no warning or problem braking.

MR1

40K is a lot of miles for brakes on an automatic. It does suck that you could not hear the wear indicators. I have seen/heard/paid higher than you were quoted. Doubt you will see any love from the dealer, some have theirs replaced @ 20-25k. whatever you do, have them repaired by someone that knows what they are doing.

lembowski

iTrader: (1)

If it is $600 to get stock brakes replaced, I might as well go for an after market setup for a few hundred more