aldixie

iTrader: (2)

Hi Guy's,

Just thought I would post a warning on here. The friday before xmas I decided to take my car to Just Brakes on 518. Mainly because my parents were over and I didn't have the time or place to work on the car. Plus they were doing a $99 service(My condo's don't allow any car work)

Anyway dropped the car off and told them to phone once they had taken a look at it. An hour later got a call, they said all of the hydraulics were shot and the rear cylinders were both popped. To fix the hydraulics would be $690. You can guess what my answer was.

Anyway picked up the car and went to Autozone to buy the parts, total cost $136. Starts to look a lot cheaper, anyway I took the car to a friends house, jacked up the rear and took the drums off. THERE WAS NOTHING WRONG WITH THE WHEEL CYLINDERS!!!.

In fact even the shoes were still new on the back. The only fault I could find was a slight mark on one of the front hoses. Even the front pads are good.

Will never trust that company!!

Alex

DENN_SHAH

iTrader: (1)

i have never been there & i wouldn't trust them.

the front pads on my car list for almost what they "claim" they can do a complete reline for.

i have always wondered,.. just what you would really get IF they did that $99.00 brake job, where im at, just a front reline, turn the rotors, repack the wheel bearings, new grease seal, clean & lube the hardware normally runs more than $99.00. we don't use cheap pads or shoes. cheap parts scare me.


i think a better slogan for them would be,...
"come to Just brakes, because We Really Break you over"

xtremeirocz

that whole gimmick is to get you in there , i took a 4th gen to one of them before and just wanted pads. got a quote for 600 because i need all four rotors lines this and this. anyway, decide to take the rotors to oreilly and have them checked and turned myself and do everything myself. rotors were fine. 16 bux to get them turned. 30 bux on pads and 5 bux in fluid and i was good to go. those guys should be reported because you know they do that crap to little old ladies that dont know any better

dizmo

i use to work there stright out of high school. yea they rip ppl off. i use to get so much side work from them lol . but yes they suck.

plndtx

If I remember correctly, back in 2002-2003 the attorney general of the state of Tennessee was looking into there business practices. The Tennessean newspaper did an undercover investigation too. They were doing the same thing you reported.
I also saw an article on the web that the state of Florida was investigating them.

I think you should contact the Texas state attorney general and report this!!

Zap Racing

They took my Mom for a ride a few years agom when she took the car there without me knowing it. $600.00+

I hate to say this about my mother, but she was stupid enough to go for it without checking with me.


There are honest companies/mechanics out there--JUST BRAKES IS NOT ONE OF THEM!!!

Zap Racing

I'm going to put a sticky on this thread for a while, because I want it to stay where everybody gets a chance to see it, cause I don't want other thirdgenners to get ripped off.

IF ANYBODY HAS A PROBLEM WITH THAT, THEN CONTACT ME!!!

(yeah right--like it will do any good!)

plndtx

Here are some articles of the investigation in Florida.

http://tampabay.bizjournals.com/tamp...4/daily27.html

http://www.doacs.state.fl.us/press/2004/06162004.html

Zap Racing

After thinking about it and remembering that "Just Brakes is a national company, I am putting a link to the appropiate national tech boards here on TGO. Thirdgenners everywhere should be aware of these rip-off artists!

We welcome anybody to post their experiances with their products or service in this thread!!!

luvofjah

iTrader: (2)

I live in the Tampa Bay area and they have been in trouble here too...

A friend of mine went in & quickly his $99 job turned into $1000... and they wouldn't put it back to gether...

Rafael

MurcoRS

So far, this is what I'm reading....
1 - aldixie decided to do the work himself instead of having a professional do the work. His rear brakes were perfect (after how many miles?) and in his OPINION, his front pads were fine as well. Did he disassemble the rear brakes to check for sticking or leaking within the wheel cylinders? Not from what he wrote.
2 - DENN_SHAH - The $99.88 offer cover "most vehicles" and if your car has an odd ball pad it probably isn't 99.88. The pads and shoes JB uses are made by Bendix, not cheap parts, and the prices are kept low by purchasing in bulk and stocking in each store.
3 - xtremeirocz - Did they say you NEEDED 4 rotors on your 4th gen, or did they RECOMMEND them? The rotors on those cars don't have alot of room between new and machine-to specs and OEM GM rotors made from 95+ have no chromium in them making them very suseptable to fin corrosion and warping.
4 - dizmo - A "wheel monkey" fresh out of high-school probably didn't listen and learn enough to know what he was calling "rip-offs" between taking side-jobs for himself and "ripping-off" his employer.
5 - plndtx - Investigated, but never charged with anything in either case.
6 - luvofjah - Those links were to the Tampa Bay stores, and I'm sure they put your buddies clunker back together...
7 - Zap Racing - they "took" your mom? You weren't there and didn't see what was wrong with her car and yet you assume she was taken? What kind of ego do you have that you would call her "stupid" for making an informed decision without calling you? And tell me where you acquired the uncanny ability to diagnose mechanical and hydraulic problems over the phone! Do your family members call you and then hold the phone up to the exaust pipe?!
Hello, I'm contacting you and it should do some good. People need to hear another voice to counter the typical uninformed, unknown web experts so often found in forums like these.
I think you should get all the facts about any of these stories before blasting any company.
Let's face it, any 3rd gen car is between 14 and 23 years old at this point and to properly fix any brake system that has that many years and miles of use is going to be expensive. Other parts do wear out in a brake system, not just pads. If you call slapping a set of pads and shoes on a car a "brake job" then you should do it yourself and pat yourself on the back. If it starts squeaking in 6 months, don't ask any questions, just do it all over again. And, you'll only have to do the front as chances are the back brakes will be perfect! Almost like they never been used!!
I'm willing to bet that most of your cars have hydaulic problems on them right now, but they stop for now so there must be no problem! Just read some of the posts on this board about brakes! I've stopped responding to posts as there are so many completely uninformed "experts" (with a few notable exceptions) lurking around here giving crappy advise!
If your oil pressure is low do you just put in thicker oil? Would you put in a new clutch without turning the flywheel? What do you call FIXING problems and what do you consider prolonging them?
Would you trust your life to 2 pieces of 1"x1/16" rubber that is 14-23 years old and has been pressure cycled over 1,000,000 times to over 500 psi and next to a hot exaust manifold the entire time? If your 3rd gen car has it's OEM master cylinder, you're doing just that every time you drive it! A better question is how many of you change your brake fluid every 1-2 years? Do you know what brake fluid does beyond relay hydraulic pressure? How many of you have even seen the inside of the caliper on your cars? If it is over 25K miles old It's ugly, especially if the fluid is that old too, I promise you. If they are OEM, they are REALLY ugly and I don't care how few miles are on the car.
Before blasting a brake shop contact some real informed people like the "Bendix Answer Man" or the tech department of any brake manufacturer or the OEM suppliers.
Just Brakes is like any large company. The more shops they have the more people use them and that always exposes a company to critisism, often unwarranted. And like any other large employer they will get some bad apples in the bunch and it sometimes takes some time to root them out for dismissal.
I am a Just Brakes shop manager, #614. My customers trust and goodwill are far more important to me than any amount of money they could ever give me. When it comes to FIXING their cars I will always SUGGEST a repair when I see a potential long term problem and could be considered to be "over-doing-it" by an uninformed observer. My customers questions are always answered directly and my opinions proven whenever possible. It's better to "over-do" a brake job and never have a warranty return than to go cheap and have mutiple problems.
I will be happy to share my resume with anyone who is interested and will answer any questions you may have of me.

aldixie

iTrader: (2)

In reply to MurcoRS,

I did take the rear brakes apart. The previous owner must of spent some money on it as the cylinders and drums were new, same with the shoes. The front pads I had replaced 3 months ago but I do drive close to 2000 miles a month in the car.

Alex

luvofjah

iTrader: (2)

I understand your feelins being that you are a manager @ Just Brakes. But I didn't deal with you. I deal with the people on Seminole BLVD in Largo who were under investigation along with 2 other JB...

Here is one of the many links (many others on google) about other areas....

http://tampabay.bizjournals.com/tamp...4/daily27.html

Again, no disrepect to you, if you lived / worked in the area I would be more apt to trust you, since you are a thirdgen member...

As in any industry, there are knowledgeable people who can help, not so knowledgeable people that don't help much, people that know a little that try and scam people... Unfortunately, no one wears a sign to distinguish one from another. So my apologies if you were offended, but I'm just sharing my experience.

Rafael

Pat Hall

iTrader: (31)

Now I don't want to get off on a rant here, but.......Lol. All I gotta say is thank the almighty that I know how to do my own brake jobs! That goes for all my family member's cars too. I'd never let them go to one of those overpriced brake shops. Hell, if I was going to spend $600 or better for a brake job, I'd just go for broke and buy a set of new brakes from the biggest rip off artists in the industry (i.e. Baer Brakes). They basically took the stock 1LE brake setup, put their special little name on it, and want roughly $2000 for the setup! What mr. brake shop manager also isn't divulging here is how much of a markup his shop puts on top of the original cost of the brake parts. A friend of mine got charged about $100 per rotor from one of these shops. I checked the local parts store, and I think they were about $45 a piece. I guess if you like spending double for the parts, and also paying labor costs so that some "technician" who is really a slob who didn't graduate from high school and only gets $6.00 an hour to install brakes, then go ahead, it's your money going down the drain. Anyone with half a brain can learn to do their own. And if you really care about your mother, you'd be glad to do hers too so the brake shop doesn't clean out her savings account! One last thing, Just Brakes doesn't have a monopoly on this overcharging thing either. A girl I know went to Midas for brakes, and wouldn't you know it, they quoted her that same, magical figure of roughly $600 saying she needed two new calipers, new wheel cylinders, power booster, master cylinder, lines, etc., etc. She brought it to me, and all I had to do was replace the front pads and rear shoes for like $50 total.

dizmo

ok the only reason i say that they ripped people off is because they bought all the parts through hi/lo (o' reily now0 and auto zone and maked it up . from a 10$ pads to 50 $ so thats what i mean when you can get the same parts for there for cheap. yes they did fix the brakes. but what ever i dont even know why im wasting my time . i do my own brakes anyways screw it good luck all ........

Pat Hall

iTrader: (31)

Hey dizmo, that's one of the main points I made in my reply to the post. It's highway robbery what the markup is on the parts when you go to those places. I could understand maybe a 10 to 15 percent markup for them taking the trouble to get the parts, but when you compare the parts store price to theirs, do the math, that's probably 100 percent markup or better!

DENN_SHAH

iTrader: (1)

MurcoRS, it sounds like you take pride in the shop you run & you have good people working there, you need to hang on to them.
not all places are like that, this includes Firestone, Goodyear, Midas, Just Brakes & all the other shops out there. i have seen too many things done by other shops that were just not right, such as rotors that were said to need replacement but turned fine with no chatter & were well above minimum thickness after being turned, rotors that should have been replace but were not, pads put on wrong, shoes put on wrong, brake hoses that should have been replace but were not, hardware problems, & the list goes on & on, & yes, some of this from the companies mentioned above.

i did figure they bought in bulk, from who i didn't know. bendix is a good product, i have used them myself & im sure i will use their products in the future, on my car & cars my family owns i mostly use Wagner SX pads. there are a lot of sub-standard parts out there that are bought in bulk, & i have never heard till now what brand of parts Just Brakes uses.

you won't find any hydraulic problems on my car. i flush it every 3~4 years & i use only DOT 4 fluid.

and so you know, the shop i work at, we are not the cheapest shop around nor do we want to be the cheapest, one of our replies about our prices is, they know what their work is worth,........

on the clutch & thicker oil questions, it depends on other things, but the quick answer is yes i have,... & with no problems over the long run.

MurcoRS

Have you priced all the components to do a complete 1LE conversion? Not using crappy "made in China" parts but top quality Raybestos, Bendix, or Wagner rotors, all new components including OEM GM calipers, etc. etc... They really aren't that much more...
Every business on the face of the planet marks-up the materials they use, it's a reality of business and nessesary to make ends meet. It costs me $810.84 per day just to open the doors to my shop (rent, utilities, advertising, big insurance dollars, taxes, maintenance, corporate overhead, office supplies, etc.) and that doesn't even cover the payroll, equipment, parts, etc.
In December my store did $52,456.00 in sales and after all of the expenses were paid the net profit was $2,122.00. That's a 4% return on the investment, hardly a windfall. Typically the price of most any auto repairs in a shop breaks down like this -
30% parts
30% labor
30% overhead
10% profit

BTW - The cost of the rotors I stock in my store is usually higher than the retail of the "wearever" rotors sold by Advance Auto Parts and are far higher quality.
Wow! Your jumping to some mighty big conclusions there. I'll take one of my 20-year-old employees who's been with my shop for 6 months and put his knowledge up against the most heavily ASE accredited and knowledgable brake technician in any dealership.
My guy will blow him away, hands down. Our technicians go through an average of 30 days training per year, know most every TSB put out by the OEM's, are far better machinists, and have far fewer warranty returns than other shops, including dealerships. GM doesn't even pay the dealers to machine rotors any longer. It's not because "it's unnessessary" as the service writer will tell you, it's because the techs were creating more warranty returns with poor machining! I have a copy of the GM memo about this!!
You'd think that, but look at some of the posts in the brake forum.

Kennerz

Just my opinion,

Not supporting the industry in any way, but from a sheer business perspective MurcoRS is absolutely correct.

How much do people think it cost to run a business? payroll and overheads, and indirect operating cost can be much higher than you would think.

As for us (thirdgen owners) most of us would be considered hobbyist/enthusiast. Most of America does not work on their own cars, many people just aren't mechanically inclined. Not to mention if you don't have the tools to work on the new stuff ( at least an OBDII scanner) many things can't be done by even your average backyard guy. (I remember changing my clutch on my LS1 in my driveway, not that hard but, a novice would most likely botch that job) I know we're only talking about brakes - but if you have ABS and don't know what your doing , there are many opportunities for you to screw stuff up.

As I said , in now way do I think to highly of most , but not all of the car industry.

But we have to remember we are car guys for the most part, and these shops aren't meant to cater to us

That being said - only as an last effort do I ever let anyone other than myself work on my cars. Always be suspicious - unless you know the people well, where ever you go..

Sonar_un

MurcoRS, Your car is absolutely beautiful and its a great piece of machinery.

I will agree with others on there that I wouldn't trust my car to any shop at any time, anywhere. With me being knowledgeable about vehicles and college educated, I have found myself to be at the mercy of a mechanic who figured that I would have been an easy sale.

From the financial information you provided its obvious that your particular shop has great people working and you value your customers, but that doesn't mean the same for the other Just Brakes shops out there. Charging people for parts that are not needed and overpricing other parts its just plain robbery as far as I am concerned. I understand your position as a business manager, I am currently employed at a small business and the techs that work with me are all highly motivated and if you put any of them up for a MCSE or A+ certification, I am 100% positive they will blow the pants off of any Microsoft technician or other so called "certified" technician. Also, our business has a hard time paying to have our doors open every day and our margins are quite low. Sure, there are other shops in our area which we KNOW rip other people off. Epically when other people are ignorant of the subject.

Thirdgen.org is an enthusiast community. That doesn't mean that we are all experts, but it does mean that there are plenty of us who know what we are doing and have had personal experience and knowledge of our subject. In this case it happens to be 82-92 Camaros and Firebirds. The also unfortunate fact is that since we own these vehicles, we don't have money to just throw around. I don't know about you, but wasting $600 on a brake job that could have been done by myself for a small fraction of that means that I was blatantly ripped off. I know I am a fairly competent mechanic and on my days off from the technology grind, I lend my services to a mechanic shop. I do this for fun and to gain even more knowledge of the subject and I am glad that this knowledge has helped me to be aware of the kinds of companies who do rip off their customers.

Now, while I was on my rant I forgot what my actual point was, but let me say this one last thing. There is good information out there and it takes a little time to sift through it all.

Pat Hall

iTrader: (31)

I do agree that it's expensive to run a business. I won't argue that point. I also agree that the so-called ASE certifications are basically worthless. I've been literally amazed at some of the morons out there who actually have one of their patches on their sleeve. Some of them can't even answer basic questions that any hillbilly mechanic knows. I do realize not everyone knows how to work on their own stuff, I just merely stated that I'm glad I do know how. I feel really bad for a lot of people when they tell me how much they spent at a repair shop. My dad is a good case in point. He taught me a lot of what I know about cars, but unfortunately, he's gotten to the age where he can't do much of the work himself anymore. It's probably an even worse feeling to pay those kind of repair bills when you know how to do it yourself, but aren't able to anymore. Luckily he makes enough money to pay the bill though! I do have to refute one thing Murco said though. Sorry dude, I didn't pay nowhere near $2000 for my 1LE brake conversion. If you're a good enough parts hound, you can manage to round everything up for quite a bargain. I got most of the parts from ebay auctions, and what I couldn't find there, I managed to get straight from GM. None of the parts I got are cheap knockoffs from China either. I learned the lesson of getting what you pay for a long time ago. All in all I'd say I have about $500 to $600 invested in my 1LE setup. So you see, I could've spent that same amount to have a shop completely redo the pathetic, substandard original brakes on my car. I think it's complete B.S. that a company like Baer takes the same brake setup that was offered originally from GM and slaps a $2K price tag on it. On top of that, I'm sure they'll tell you that you can only get replacement parts for their setup from their company. It's nice to have a stock, high-performance brake system that I can buy replacement parts for from any parts store for a fraction of Baer's cost.

Rknrs_92

They got me as well. I was in Houston when the wife called and said the 2001 Ram lost the brakes. I needed it to haul the thirdgen to the track that night so I told her to take it to JB in Bryan. Just like everyone else there was a $600.00 price tag. I had my Advance buddy drop off parts and the tag was still insane. This argument about this brand is better than that is also crazy. I have raced with wearever brakes for years with not one single failure. I understand the JB managers issues of overhead and feel bad that he is being forced to live on $2400 a month, but then again thats probably profit after his paycheck is written. The problem I have is that everyone gets stuck for the same basic $600.00. Can anyone identify one $99.00 customer? Mr. Manager you will get rich off of one customer but you will get richer off of many customers to include return customers, but then again return customers is probably something JB does not have much experience in. If your overhead is that high, one may suggest a business management class at your local community college rather than "zapping" your customers with an inflated price tag to cover your poor business practices. As for my knowledge of cars, who cares! I built it and I'll see you at the track! Next time I'll make sure the wife takes the truck somewhere else and when I see you at the track I'll have at least $600.00 more in my pocket.

Pat Hall

iTrader: (31)

Hey Rknrs_92. Amen brother! I think the $99 customer is a complete fallacy and fabrication!

BigBadLou

iTrader: (3)

I agree with MurcoRS on the numbers and the need to price repairs the way they are. But I strongly disagree that this incident was caused by just a bad apple employee. I've observed the operation of many repair shops and it is common practice to perform unnecessary repairs to warrant profitable time. Meaning that repair shops (not only automotive) will lie to their customers just to get a job and get paid. It's nothing new, nothing illegal. Immoral? Sure. But I doubt there's a law against people lying. If it was, we would have to turn the whole world to a big jailhouse.

Take it easy, guys, and just be on a lookout next time! Or at least go in with a specific description of the task you want them to perform. And be there when they look at the car initially. That way you can make sure they understand what the hell they're doing. Better yet, stay the whole time of the repair, if you have the time. You can never be careful enough. Especially with brakes.

Kennerz

Babylou,

If some one lies to you, and you pay for it , and you can prove it ... Yes there are laws against that, that what laws are for.

Sorry maybe I misread your post, but someone decieves you getting unnecessary work done. And somehow you can prove that the work was unecessary. you can sue people for that stuff, and these days is a shop get caught can get punative damages (punishment$$ charges) for ripping people off , and lose their business licence.

Only hard part is you have to prove it.

BigBadLou

iTrader: (3)

You are right, that's the biggest problem, proving that somebody stole from you (in any form). And it's really not easy.

That's why you either do it yourself or you need to watch them work on your car closely, the whole time. So why not do it yourself?

This is also one of the reasons we have TGO. So that we can share advice on how to do things and how to do them right. I can tell you, without TGO, even I'd be lost sometimes! So thanks for being here, y'all!

3.1EyeCandy

iTrader: (3)

I'd like to say that I fully support Murco. I worked in a auto repair shop up here in Arkansas and witnissed firsthand what places can get away with and the attitudes that people assume toward ALL repair shops. My boss, the best mechanic I've ever known did not on any occasion - ever - in the time I worked there rip anybody off. I've seen him personally show someone how to judge a rotor. I only wish he was still around to work on my cars.

The best advice I can give to somebody looking for a place to take their cars - ask around. And don't be dismayed if you call the place and they are booked up. We were booked every day - sometimes weeks in advance. People knew we did quality work (and lord knows we didn't charge enough). Heck we were cheaper than most and our parts surcharge was 50% of the cost. People would come in whining because they could get it at Autozone or Napa cheaper. Where do you think the business buys it from? Same place. Do we get a discount? heck no. That's a myth. The only place that gives a discount is a dealership.

I feel bad for those of you that "got ripped off." But I've seen too many people think they were getting ripped off by our shop and try to not pay and just take their cars back. I had them sign a waiver saying we weren't responsible for their inability to have their car fixed. What happens when Joe Schmuck says "aw all I need is pads" when he needs alot more? He takes his car, gets in an accident and kills somebody and the first place he looks to place the blaim is the shop that told him he needed more work.

Rant mode off...but I'm with Sonar and Murco on this one.

MurcoRS

Oh boy, here we go again!
First off - "Lost the brakes" is pretty vague. Let's be more specific so I can address your question with answers...
Second - Is it a 1500, 2500, 3500, 4x4, how many miles, you obviously tow with it, ever had any hydraulic work, even a fluid change?
Third - $600.00 sounds cheap to fix one of those. I'd guess a 1500 2wd used for towing to be much closer to $900.!! They have phenolic pistons in the calipers that need to be replaced every 50K miles (GM, Ford, and Chrysler ALL specify this in their service manuals - they start swelling and distorting around that mileage) and the rotors are junk from the factory. Avoid the 04+ F150's as well - rotors are $270 EACH and will need to be replaced every 30-40K miles. WORST BRAKES EVER!!!
Then you're not going very fast or have been incredibly lucky. Right now I have 2 pairs of rotors hanging on my wall of shame, both Advance junk, with radial stress cracks from 13 second cars used in drag racing. They have more lateral run-out, fewer cooling fins, and are made of lesser grade materials. If you have IROC rims and wearever rotors make POSITIVE the hub is actually making contact with the back of the wheel. I've seen these rotors unmachined hubs actually stick on the wheel center 1/8" off of the hub!
That $2400 is AFTER payroll (I thought I said that) and Im on that payroll too. Also, my store average for brake repairs is about $400. Today I had a $710.00 Sebring, a $742.00 Cavalier, $198.00 Town Car, a $643.00 Malibu, and a $99.00 Camry.
As for the $99.88 customer? He will have a late model better quality car with under 40K miles and has maintained his car well with regular brake fluid changes. I had one tonight, a 2002 Toyota Camry SE with 65K well-maintained miles. The OEM brakes were perfect and I told him so, yet he still wanted new pads and rotor machining even though he had no issues. He was MAINTAINING HIS CAR!!! Imagine that!
So, according to your logic, I should do the absolute minimum to a customer's car to get them by even if I see something that could cause potential problems in the next 10-40K miles and not even suggest a preventative repair? So this customer will be happier when they do have a problem that I foresaw and didn't give them the opprotunity to fix it? So, I'm either a rip-off artist or an incompetent technician in your scenario. Thank you for the advise but I'll fend off the idiots and fix my customer's cars properly. They will be much happier in the long run and they send me more business all the time. My store's sales and customer counts were up 19% in December compared to 2004.
I have a BS in economics from William & Mary and a long history as a business manager with 12 staight years of double-digit growth in my background. What is your business record? I'll be happy to share my operating statements with you so you can show me where to cut my expenses.
Obviously, you don't... But one of us has to know them!

MurcoRS

Thank you! Your's is pretty sweet too!
I've owned my car for almost 16 years now and am intimately familiar with brakes on it, the ones that came with it, and pretty much anything on the subject. Several local members on this site have been to my shop on my only days off (Sundays) and been helped by me at no charge.
Only you can rip-you-off in that scenario. I don't hold guns to peoples heads and the customer always has the option to say, get this.... NO! If you can do your brakes - DO THEM! I'll give you all the technical advise you need for FREE as my time allows!

Look folks, I work 70+ hours a week 6 days a week dping what I do. I fix on average 40-50 cars a week and have nearly 0 customer complaints. The ones I do get are from those who come in with a "I know more than you" chip on the shoulder or those who simply refuse to listen to logic. I fix peoples cars so they don't have to worry about the #1 safety feature on their cars - the brakes, for a long time. I take my work seriously and have an awsome responsibility to my customers and my community driving safety. Repair for repair and service for service I am the CHEAPEST of my competitors by 20-50% and thats fact. I'm not the greatest brake guy out there but I constantly invest in tools, equipment (about $55K so far) and educating myself to become the greatest out there one day. As for my "$600" repairs? What you don't here about is how many people in desperate straights I help every week. The 85 y/o widow who's never had to repair her car alone. The single mom who needs more repairs than she can afford. The young couple with an older car and little money. I spend alot on helping those people too... Go easy guys, I'm only here to help those who cannot do it themselves and I do the right thing for each of my customers. I don't plan to see their car again for 40K+ miles (other than fluid changes) and my customers wouldn't have it any other way.