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used car brake issues. where do i stand?
Comments
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It doesn't sound like the MOT will be dodgy then.
Most large dealers sort any MOT advisories before sale, so having a clean MOT isn't unusual. With used cars, it's not unusual for something to develop later and require an advisory at the next MOT.
In this case, it just sounds like the brake discs either need replaced or worn down a bit - the scraping is because the surface is uneven. How I always dealt with that in the past was to go to an empty industrial estate at the weekend and perform a few emergency stops.
The rear drum needing adjustment isn't a bit deal either, any garage should be able to handle that. I'm surprised the mechanic didn't just do it whilst doing the inspection.0 -
im starting to wonder if anyone reads what i post. the dealer already said take it to get a report, which ive done, report says discs glazed and one scraping on the pads, not the back plate, it also recommends the discs and pads are replaced along with the dragging rear drums are stripped and air gap reset.
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tried the emergency stop thing as was suggested on an EV group. no change.
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Apologies, there is no facility on this forum to see only OP posts, I tried to skim through but must have missed that bit. Did they test drive the car or put it on an RBT? If they had found a safety issue, rather than just that they're coming to end-of-life or have been poorly maintained in the past, it would have changed your approach. Without that, it changes nothing on your position - you bought a car with a "noise", you now own the car. It does seem like you want someone else to pay for your motoring.
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surely if the indy found issues with the brakes which in there words "causing longer braking travel than normal" thats a safety issue? also the car was sold with the faults weve done about 1500miles since purchase and had it 5 months, i wouldnt have thought thats like asking them to fix wear and tare. plus ive emailed and nagged on the phone about this issue since we bought it. they seem to have done there best to ignore it, probably because they issue is not cheap to fix, even the indies quote is £600+.
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I think the issue is that we're trying to help you solve the problem, rather than addressing exactly what you asked.
What you want to know is if the dealer can be forced to replace the discs and pads under warranty?
The short answer is no. It'd come under wear and tear so is unlikely to be replaced by a warranty especially 6 months later.
Yes, the issue was present at purchase, but you were aware of at the time, and the only time you could force the dealer to fix it was before you paid.
Should the dealer have been morally correct to have the parts replaced? Yes, but morally and legally are not the same thing.So what are your options? You can keep going back and forth with the dealer and wasting time and money on reports, or you can accept that a 3+ year old car is going to need some maintenance money spending on it, and find an independent garage to do the work.
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But you're lumping it into one bucket - "issues". Some issues with brakes are not safety issues.
There does seem to be a trend nowadays of buying a car then inspecting it afterwards and hoping that consumer rights will fix everything. Appreciate that you went on a test drive, but given there was a noise, and you didn't act on it (properly), but still bought the car, yours is a milder form of the above.
Also it is worth pointing out, buying from a main dealer is no better than any other kind of dealer. Worse in fact, because they are inefficient and mostly trade on their perceived reputation rather than prepping cars properly and earning it from each and every customer. They are inefficient so won't take on after-sales goodwill stuff like this without a fight/at all.
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No, slightly longer pedal travel - or, actually I suspect, slightly higher pedal force required - is not a safety issue. You can still brake the car to EXACTLY the same level of retardation. You can lock the wheels. You can trigger the emergency brake assist.
You just need to press a TAD harder to do so, but still really not that hard at all.
£600 sounds very high for new discs and pads and a bit of adjustment of the rear drums.1 -
i did think £600+ was high, then i checked some prices of parts on gsf which was the cheapest and it comes to £342. the indy has quoted for VW stuff, i think so to avoid fitment/quality issues.
re the brake travel, i think he means how far the car rolls compared to what it should due to the reduction in braking efficiency. i did find it seems to not want to stop at times so have to use more pedal as you would say compared to my A5. my A5 with the same amount of pressure will slam stop on the spot. im guessing this is because the discs are glazed so dont have the same friction ability?
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I'm surprised the shoes in the rear drums haven't compensated. They should ratchet out as the linings of the shoes and inner contact surface of the drums wear. There should be a mechanism to take up this slack.
If there is a large gap worn and there is no more compensation in the adjuster or they were set up without proper initial adjustment, the gap and the effort of filling it as you apply the brakes would account for a longer pedal travel. The later, poor initial gap set should self adjust out though with use.
They would usually be initially set with a very light drag and backed off a smidge on the adjuster, then as described, they would self adjust as they wear.
I would also expect that if the inspection had really removed the drums to inspect the shoes, drums and gaps, they should have reset them when refitting. I reckon they have charged you for just spinning the wheels!
It doesn't sound right they have informed you of a braking efficiency issue with the rear drums that they claim they inspected and didn't reset them when they reassembled them after inspection, it's part of the reassembly process.
If it was mine, I would immediately bite the bullet and get the brakes sorted. I'd probably do it myself or get someone trusted to go through all of the system and replace and/or set up all of it.
Is there a service history with the car? Has it had any brake work? I would expect at least a brake fluid change every 3 or 4 years. Old contaminated brake fluid could also be account for a longer pedal.
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