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I went in for an oil change/tire rotation on Monday, December 5 and was told that my brakes and rotors needed replacement and a brake flush was suggested. I obtained a written copy of the quote, which was around $1300. I contacted another shop, Ralph's Muffler in Avon, who estimated the work to be about $800 (including brake flush, rotors, and pads). I called the service technician at Raymond's and asked for a better price since I've been a customer for several years. He knocked off about $200 and said the other shop probably quoted that price as they likely don't use the "better" grade of parts that they do. I was told that Raymond's also has a $127 hourly labor rate. I asked what the brake pad depth was and he said they were all at 2 mm. I decided to give Ralph's a try as I was told they were fair and honest and would not do any work that did not need to be done. As it turns out, I did NOT need new rotors or a brake flush and the back brake pads had more than half of their life left (greater than 6 mm). I only spent $128 yesterday, December 8, and they were also able to determine the cause of a rattling noise that Raymond's could not diagnose. Plus, they told me that the rattle was likely covered by my powertrain warranty and to contact the dealer to fix it.
In summary, Raymond's tried to sell me work that did not need to be done (rotors, back brake pads, brake flush) and LIED about the remaining life of the back brake pads. I don't know if this is something they do to every customer because they have a sales commission or if it's just because I am a woman and they think I'm an idiot (yeah, I'm going there because I've had this happen to me before), but it's extremely unprofessional for any shop to LIE to ANY customer about the work that needs to be done. Since I can no longer trust them, I am now questioning whether they actually did my oil change, tire rotation, and filter replacements on Monday.
If I were you, especially if you are a woman, I would steer clear of this shop and go to Ralph's Muffler or another shop that is honest and fair to their customers.