I am in of some advice. I took my 2011 f150 in for an mvi. I was told it needed front rotors and pads, also rear pads as well. The service advisor took me out to the truck on the hoist. He showed me the rotors that needed replaced. He pointed to a rust ring around the outside edge, left from the pads wearing in the rotor. The rotor looked fine to me as it was only wore in about 1/8". But the tech and advisor said to replace. So I asked for a quote for the work and said I will let them know. I still have a month before the mvi was due, and wanted to get the best deal on repair. I was quoted $640 for parts and labor with tax included. So I went to the truck, fired it up and got a "service advance trac" message. After showing the advisor, they took it back in. He came back an hour later and said they check codes, and found a TSB 12-11-18. Which required reprogramming the abs module. They charged me $65 for the update. Does this sound right? I thought when you take something in, and come out with a new problem, they would eat the cost... I guess I'm wrong.

 

am I is inspection, eh? Sounds like they were trying to do a brake job.

 

I think you have to pay for updates if you are over 3yrs or 36K miles...something like that if it's not an emissions problem.

If your front brakes need to be replaced I recommend using Powerstop rotors and Hawk ceramic pads. I put those in my 2013 FX4 once the stock ones warped. They stop much better and they haven't warped or given me any problems.

 

They probably set the codes when they backed it out. Seems to be a pretty common problem and probably something that Ford should have stood behind. However, given that they don't, the dealer needs to pay the tech and it wasn't really their fault.

As far as the brakes, rotors always have the rust where the pad doesn't hit. Were the pads worn out, or were they just basing the the need for a brake job on the appearance of the rotors? If the pads were worn out and the rotor is grooved, you need both. If there is still adequate friction material and just a band of rust, you need neither.

 

Yep motor vehicle inspection. The rotors looked good to me. I could live with having them replace pads. But rotors, seemed a little overkill to me. I will replace pads myself and go to a different inspection station.

Thanks for pointing that out, I had no idea. I always thought a TSB was, performed free. When I do a complete brake job, I will try the powerstop rotors.

Thanks for the help guys.

 

The pads are worn out, but they never made any noise. The groove is about 1/8". Still lots of meat left. So just replacing pads are not enough? I didn't know rotors only lasted one set of pads.

 

I see where you're coming from, tractorfan. Please note that our dealerships fix their own quotes. Allow me to document your feedback; PM your VIN, odometer reading, and daytime phone number.

Kwasi

 

Why couldn't the rotors be turned?

BTW ... When replacing pads, the rotors should be turned | replaced. Pad-slapping isn't advised and will decrease the life of the *new* pads.
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That was my thinking as well. The rotors have a wear mark for turning. Did the tech even mention that the rotors couldn't be turned? Mine were turned under warranty and I was told that they could be turned a couple more times as they only took the barest amount to smooth them out.

 

There was no mention of turning the rotors, just replace.

 

To help determine if your rotors need to replaced and simply turn them won't be acceptable, there is a minimal measurement that must be met. The rotor can NOT be any thinner then that measurement. That measurement number is stamped into the edge or the rotor. The measurement needs to be taken with a micrometer. Just get yourself one from a hardware or tool supply store and check the measurement when you do the brakes yourself. Keep in mind that if there is any scoring on the rotors the measurements must include the depth of the sore mark. Simply looking at the rotor is NOT an accurate way to tell if the rotor is good or needs to be replaced. With that said I always change out the rotors with the pads. Especially if they are warped. But that is just me.