Twin Falls Automotive

The customer's wife dropped the vehicle off for the initial serviceShe informed us that they had just been told by a brake and wheel specialist ( [redacted] ) in town that there were no problems with their brakesOur technician verified the good mechanical condition of their brakes and noted a large amount of fine dust and dirt in the calipers and rotorsFine dust buiis a very common cause of brake noise in this farming communityRather than replace parts that haven't failed, we cleaned the brakes at all four cornersThis took time that we did bill them forThe technician then test drove the vehicle and noted that there was no longer any brake noiseThis resolution is evidenced by the fact that in the customer's own words, the noise didn't return for two days To sum up the repair: The vehicle was brought in with squeaking brakesWe verified no mechanical problem existed, as diagnosed previously by an independent shopWe DID see presence of a known cause of brake noise and addressed the only cause presentThe noise went away and stayed away long enough for us to have no reason to suspect any other concerns were present When the customer returned two days later, it was the husband, not the wife, that returnedThe husband speaks English much less fluently, was extremely upset, and was not communicating his expectations clearlyI attempted to explain to him why we did what we did and why I stand by my technician's approach to trying to save him time and money on parts we didn't feel necessaryHe didn't want to listen to any excuses and, instead, left before any further work could be discussedWe did our job ethically and appropriately with an interest in not wasting the customer's time or moneyUnfortunately, his car needed more work beyond the initial serviceThat does happen in automotive repair, especially regarding wear-and-tear items such as brake pads

The customer's wife dropped the vehicle off for the initial service. She informed us that they had just been told by a brake and wheel specialist ([redacted]) in town that there were no problems with their brakes. Our technician verified the good mechanical condition of their brakes and noted a...

large amount of fine dust and dirt in the calipers and rotors. Fine dust build-up is a very common cause of brake noise in this farming community. Rather than replace parts that haven't failed, we cleaned the brakes at all four corners. This took time that we did bill them for. The technician then test drove the vehicle and noted that there was no longer any brake noise. This resolution is evidenced by the fact that in the customer's own words, the noise didn't return for two days.
To sum up the repair: The vehicle was brought in with squeaking brakes. We verified no mechanical problem existed, as diagnosed previously by an independent shop. We DID see presence of a known cause of brake noise and addressed the only cause present. The noise went away and stayed away long enough for us to have no reason to suspect any other concerns were present.
When the customer returned two days later, it was the husband, not the wife, that returned. The husband speaks English much less fluently, was extremely upset, and was not communicating his expectations clearly. I attempted to explain to him why we did what we did and why I stand by my technician's approach to trying to save him time and money on parts we didn't feel necessary. He didn't want to listen to any excuses and, instead, left before any further work could be discussed. We did our job ethically and appropriately with an interest in not wasting the customer's time or money. Unfortunately, his car needed more work beyond the initial service. That does happen in automotive repair, especially regarding wear-and-tear items such as brake pads.