Hi Everyone,

I own a 2009 Honda Civic DX-G which regularily serviced (oil changed) by Green & Ross. Currently it's about a 1 year and 4 months old and has 61,000km on it. I know it's a high amount of clicks for the time I was driving but it is what it is.

So, I was at Green & Ross the other day for an oil change and here is what they recommended me to do:

Transmission Flush flash - PM_synthetic: $169

Install and Balance Two Tires: $237

4 Wheel Alignment: $79.95

Front Dis Brake Pads - Replace Minor: $491.69 - Below is breakdown
install 2 rotors= 21.56
caliper slider service both sides= 64.67
SP8 Brake Cleaner= 14.95
Brake Pad Ceramic= 99.86x2
Front Disk Brake Rotor= 91.48x2
Labour= 107


Clean and Adjust rear brakes: $68.85

Brake Fluid Flush: $79.95

Estimate Total: $1290.52 (maybe also +HST)


Now, I don't mind paying for the service but this is a new car and I am inexperienced and don't want to be over charged. I see that brakes are now done but why change the rotors? This is a new car and I have had to change rotors on very old car once and only when I was driving it with brakes done for over a month when it reached the rotors.

Also, they suggest that I flush the transmission fluid while Honda should actually ask for that service in the odometer and the "Wrench" but that never came up.

In addition, should I change only two tires like they say? Trust me I have been driving on all 4 tires the whole time :-)

Plus, I don't know who else to go to for these services. I want this to be done by a Honda accepted service center due to warranties.

P.S. Honda is asking for $721 for 4 tire change and Green & Ross for $621 for same tires!!!!????


Thanks

 

I work at Acura and we recommend a lot of things to sell to people. They may not NEED it now but we try to sell anything that is going bad since we get paid money for selling stuff. The reason the. I'm assuming the reason they are saying 2 tires is that becase your allignment is off your tires are worn very severely in front/back. With the brakes, I'd recommend you ask to have them measure your rotors and see if they can turn them on the brake lathe to save some money. What's the mileage on your car?

 

Thanks for feedback. 61,000km as mentioned. bought as new 2009 june.

What should the measure be for rotors to not need any replacement?

 

It's obvious whether tires are worn out or not. Go out and look at them. The front tires on a car normally wear a lot more than the back because they have more weight on them, are connected to the engine to do the driving, they do all the turning, and most of the stopping (same reason the front brakes almost always need replacing before the back). Typically when the fronts wear out I buy two new tires and put them on the back, and move minimally worn used back ones up to the front. If the tires wear more on the inside or the outside edge, an alignment is going to be necessary. Also the tires that come with a new car usually aren't very long-lasting. They are just on there to roll it out of the showroom.

With a little more effort you can inspect the brake pads yourself and confirm if replacement is due. When the situation is caught before they wear down to the metal and ruin the rotor, a simple "slap on" of new pads is all you need. Rotors can and do last through several sets of pads. I've also never seen brake pads sold any way other than in sets of 4, you buy one set and it is enough for both front wheels.

Transmission flush is a pure upsell that can do more harm than good. Drain and refill (like changing the oil) with the specified fluid. True that leaves a lot of old fluid in the transmission, but since you do it frequently enough it doesn't matter that only part was replaced. Third-party fluids, synthetic or not, cause a lot of trouble in older Honda automatics. I don't know if the new ones are still like that.

 

Thanks for the great feedback. I think Honda has to show me that Transmission fluid flush is needed so I will definitly ask them to just just the fluid like you said "drain and refill" (hoping they won't charge me again just as much).

About the rotors, before my pads were done (before they started making noise which is yesterday) the guy from Green & Ross told me that rotors need change as well which is weired on a 1 year old car with no pads ever changed yet. So, if I ask them to tell me the rotors millimeter measure, what should it be at to not require a change?

Also thanks for the tip on the 4 set of brakes.

P.S. Would Caliper slider service be a necessary service when changing brake pads?
And do I need that "Clean and adjust read brakes" and "Brake fluid flush" ????? LOL sounds like upsell again to me if I only need front brakes only.

 

Hello,
I like to keep up with the service on my cars too. I think the sealership is trying to up sale you alittle bit. I get my tires from Discount Tires they have the best price on tires in my area. I do most of the service on my cars so I save alot of money there. With that many miles you do need a trans service and I would look at other repair shops for the same service and tell the Honda stealership the cost and see if they will match the price. Keep up the service on your car and try to keep down the cost. Keep us posted on the progress. Thanks 2010civiclx

 

Caliper slider service should be done. They get all the corrosion and **** out of the slides, lube em up, and lube up the any moving part. This stops future problems from pads hanging up and braking uneven on the pads or whatever. I think we do it like every 30k for our B services. And the measuring and cleaning of the pads/rotos should be them measuring pads and rotors, giving you a mm measurement as to how much life is left and I'm assuming the cleaning is doing a brake service of lubing it up and stuff.

 

I guess I missed on those lube ups and services of brake parts in the first 60,000km as I thought all service needed will show as the server "Wrench" just like the oil change. Thanks for the tips.

 

As an Old Retired mechanic I do a lot of my own service & work. But there are times I just don't have time or want to work on my stuff. We have 4 vehicles, a 98 Jeep GC 5,9 Limited, a 97 Blazer 4x4, 86 F250 4x4, & of course my Mom's 90 Honda Civic. So all older stuff. I have a shop that I found that does my work when I don't want to. To find a reputable shop ask friends, parents, family friends, & just plain people who services there vehicles. Ask parts house people, etc. Then go talk with them. Tell them what you expect from them. Ask questions. If they aren't willing to talk with you then walk the hell out.
Remember good shops charge money. But Good shops are way cheaper even if their hourly rate is higher because they do what is needed. They aren't trying to sell you crap. The shop that does my work will warn me about something that is marginal so I can get it on my schedule to fix or have them fix it. They will say "this is getting bad so maybe the next service maybe you should think about fixing it. It isn't serious yet". They never give me a written "fix order". They know if there is something that is in need of serious repair or is dangerous they will call me ASAP. They won't even fix what I took it in for until they hear from me.
So shop around.
I go to several tire stores to check prices. I ask, "is this your best deal?" On the Honda this summer I needed tires. They had been on the car for 10 years, had plenty of tread but the rubber is OLD. My wife was going to be on the road with it. So I checked the place I buy most of my tires. They gave me a fair price. I went to a shop that an old friend worked at in another town. They gave me a price of $15 more than my normal shop but the tires were Kumho the other shop were Primewells. Well lets see an 80,000 mile tire VS 40,000 for $15 for a set of four. But I had to work the owner a little. But he came through. So now I buy my tires from him. But I check around still to keep him honest. Go to Tirerack.com & check what they sell for that gives you a base to work from. I do the same with parts. I have accounts in several Napa stores. Yet I will get stuff from Autozone, or I will buy from Rockauto if not in a hurry.
The computer is a great tool for price checking. Also go to Yahoo.com & look up shops in your area. See what people have to say about different shops.
I know this was long but I hope I have helped educate some of you younger guys & gals.
I post here because I get a lot of good info & there are people here who want to learn. Not the norm on all sites like this. I'm an old man 60+ so I have some experience in life.
Thanks for a wonderful group of people.