Took my G37 to local Infiniti dealer to get new tires. Actually got a decent price on tires that were recommended by Consumer Reports (the shop was having a buy 3 tires, get 4th for $1 special, and after checking around, the price seemed reasonable)

When the shop called me back, I was told that my rear brake pads also needed to be replaced, and my rotors resurfaced. The charge was $342 with factory parts.

A few questions ...

My car has 31K miles. Is it normal that the rear brakes would go out that fast? I bought the car used (just over 17K) and am not an excessive driver. Who knows how it was driven before I bought it (it was owned by the dealership during that time, not by an individual)

Also, is that a fair price? When I called the service dept. back, I told them that I was going to shop around. He told me that there would be some places that would be cheaper but that they wouldn't be using factory parts. Do I need to use factory parts? How much of a difference does that make?

Thanks for any help anyone can provide.

 

It's certainly possible your pads could be ready for replacement, especially if you're not the original owner. Some guys drive the hell out of their cars and need new pads at 20k, some just drive leisurely and get 80k on a set.
You can always pull your wheels off and check the pad & rotor thickness to see what's left. If you've got a friend you can trust in the repair business it surely wouldn't hurt to get another opinion. There are pads and rotors that are better than OEM for similar pricing. For good low price rotors & pads KNSbrakes.com has nice pkg deals for your G. I like Stoptech pads, my rotors are basic modified Centric rotors but they work fine. The price the dealer quoted wasn't crazy high, but if you have a Journey you could get all the parts F&R for about $300, you might have a friend that does brake jobs and w/ all new parts it's pretty easy.
KNS Brakes

 

Totally. My 2010 has 27k miles and the dealer told me I needed rear pads and resurface rotors. They said I was at 3mm. Being a little skeptical, and the fact that I wouldn't get my brakes done at the dealer anyways because of what they charge, I took the car to a shop that I always go to. They confirmed that my pads were at 3mm and needs to be replaced. I purchased my own pads (Akebono ProAct Ceramic). They were $45 from Amazon. The shop charged $100 to install the pads and resurfaced the rotors. I specifically didn't want factory parts. OEM pads going out and squealing like a pig at 27k miles is horrible. With the Akebono ProAct Ceramic pads, it still came out less than what the dealer would have charged for their crappy OEM pads.

 

for 100 more bucks you could get new rotors and pads..

 

I've had my rotors resurfaced and even changed, four times now. The fifth time I complained of "warped" or pulsating during braking, they charged me LOL.
I think they resurfaced them for ~$200? Never had to change my pads though....im at around 32K miles. But as others said, your money is better invested in aftermarket options.

 

How do you like those pads?

 

I only have about 300 miles on them so far, but so far so good. No noise what so ever and no brake dust.

 

My local repair shop here in Mesa resurfaces rotors for $20 each if you take them in. As stated above, new pads should cost $40 to $45. As long as the calipers don't need new seals, which they shouldn't at your mileage, you can do the whole job yourself for less than $100. I'm always amazed at what some shops for simple brake work like this. It would be different if they had to rebuild the calipers and bleed the system, but just changing the pads and resurfacing the rotors is pretty simple.