Kramerica

I've an '09 TSX that went in for oil change this a.m. at the dealership. They called & said I had 3/32 on the rear brakes and recommended changing the pads & rotors refinished, all for $300.

is this normal to need brakes on these at 25,000 mi? I have a 2002 Camry that is closing in on 100,000 miles and NEVER have had new pads yet.

princelybug

iTrader: (16)

Unfortunately, this is a known issue with these cars.

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

different cars are set up differently.
the TSX might have more rear braking bias than your camry.
just the way the engineers designed the specific car, and you cannot compare it to another, because its different.

Also, dealerships WILL up sell, even if you dont need it.
so, that means you will need to inspect your pads yourself or have some else look at them.

I also believe that there is a TSB on the matter. a known issue that the dealers will take notice of.
a TSB is different than a recall.
a recall is a safety issue and will be fixed for free.
a TSB or a technical service bulletin will out line the problem, but not for free

Kramerica

Found this: http://settlement-claims.com/accordsettlement/

Don't know if I'm eligible, but it was/is a known problem.

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

^before you start, have some one else inspect the rear brakes.
you might not even need new pads, as dealerships do like to upsell shit you dont need.

also, I just changed pads in my '12 kia sportage at 26k miles. although, they were front pads, 30k miles doesnt sound uncommon.

mrgold35

I had the same thing on my 06 TSX needing rear brakes after 30,000 miles. I replaced them with OEM and after 111,000 total miles on my TSX now, the rear brakes still have plenty of pad on them. I am still on my original front pads after 8 years.

acrdr

25 k on 1 set of rear pads on a tsx is good
they usually last 10-12k because of the problems they were having with rear pad wear

staro0989

iTrader: (2)

The issue is the caliper pins were incorrectly installed on the rear brakes from factory. Because of this, it causes rapid wear on the inner pad. To fix this issue, just switch the placement of the caliper pins. My 09 Accord has the same brake system as the 09+ TSX, so that is how I know. My brake pads wore out at 25k and 55k. At 55k I switched the caliper pins. Right now I have 126k on the same rear brake pads. Hope this helps!

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

^good shit!!!

staro0989

iTrader: (2)

ceb

Not quite correct. A TSB is far different from a recall as you said but sometimes they are done for free.

A recall is a collaborative effort between the company and the regulators (NHTSA for the US) to quickly repair a safety issue. The company says "we screwed up and we'll fix it for free" before the regulators make them do it and levy hefty fines.

A TSB is merely a message to dealers telling them about a problem or a common customer concern and telling them how to fix it or explain it to the customer. The TSB also tells the dealership how to bill the repair within warranty and if the free repair applies to out of warranty cars. For out-of-warranty cars you may have situation where Acura pays none, part or all of the costs.

A TSB can range from "tell the customer that some condensation in headlights is normal. Don't bill us or the customer" to "replace the brakes and correct the pin placement. For in-warranty cars, bill xx hours to account #xyz and for out-of-warranty cars bill xx hours to account #abc."

Those TSBs where the manufacturer foots all or part of the bill are called "hidden warranties."

TSBs usually include a VIN range to help the dealer and the customer narrow down the problem.

It should be noted that most TSBs can't be applied proactively (unless the TSB states "complete this action on the next service visit" or the like) as the problem may only occur in some cars within a particular VIN range or geographic location. You may see a TSB affecting cars within a specified VIN range "that were sold in the following states..." - this normally applies to some sort of corrosion or fuel quality issue.

Dealers routinely input your VIN into the "recall and TSB" database on any service to see if there are any open "campaigns" for your car.

It always is important to find out what TSBs are out there and how they are generally handled by the company. In this case (assuming the OPs car is in the VIN range - it probably is) Acura has identified a common issue, has a resolution and has fixed most cars for free. If the dealer is unwilling to fix it for free under the TSB (or the TSB doesn't apply to your car) then you can contact Acura and request that they fix it free.

I recommend including the following in any letter to a manufacturer:

1. Brief description of the issue
2. Brief description of the TSB
3. Why you believe it is the same and why you think the manufacturer should fix it for free. I've found things like "The TSB shows that this is a common problem affecting xyz in VIN range ABC. Although my car's VIN is DEF, my car exhibits the identical problem. Accordingly, the issue was not corrected for cars in my VIN and I request that you absorb the costs for this repair. Feel free to have a regional representative look at my car and verify the problem.

Good luck

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

Thanks ceb!

Kramerica

Yeah, what he said.

kickarsmann

It really depends how much you break, the mileage is irrelevant. If you live in the city and do a lot of stop and go traffic, you will wear out your brakes quicker than say you be driving cross country. That being said, when I got a annual inspection the mechanic said I should replace my rear pads soon. I had about 30k, I didn't want to buy some crap pads at Meineke so I got a set of Akebono dust free pads. They are great! highly recommended. When I took out the rear pads, I had 7 or 8mm of meat left. I didn't "need" to change it, but I did it on my own. Saved myself a ton of money by buying a jack and parts.

Kramerica

To update;

I e-mailed a letter off to Acura Client Relations, (via ceb's suggestions), and even though I don't qualify as I'm beyond the 3 year date in the settlement, they agreed to go ahead and reimburse me the max ($150) for the rear brake replacement anyways.

I was rather surprised. I really didn't expect much if anything at all, so I have to say that at the end of the day, Acura has a satisfied customer in me.

Geoff

ceb

My paypal address is....

I'm glad you got some relief. A nice letter can never hurt and can bring results.

How much is the brake job? Perhaps the dealership will follow Acura's lead and give you a deal too or maybe they have a coupon.

Please keep us posted on what the total repair bill to you was.

Kramerica

I think the rear brakes (+ turned rotors) was around $280.