paulL wrote:

I had an MOT in March where I was told the front brake pads needed replacing, which they did. The car was booked in the next week for a yr3 service where I was told the front brake pads were 30% worn! I had only done about 100mls since replacement!

All at the forum's favourite dealer. Just goes to show it is only an estimate and they are all the same!

Im one of those drivers who doesn't really know what a brake pad looks like, let alone a worn or unworn one.

I just trust the dealer (that I bought the car from and take to for everything!) would be honest when the pads or anything else needs replacing.

I think I have only changed all the pads once and I've done 46k miles so I hope my dealer is being straight with me but it makes you think.

Doesn't just happen at LR dealers. Mum bought a Y plate S40 1.8 Sport and before it was delivered they replaced the rear discs and pads and put 4 new tyres on. 1stservice was done at Arnold Clark Volvo in Aberdeen and they told her the car needed new front pads (fair enough) and new rear discs and pads!!! She called me and told me so I called Clarks and asked why they were needing replaced. "Oh it's the age of them Sir. The discs are all rusted and have lipped quite badly." Oh well thats ok I said. Better call VCUK for the warranty on then. " Excuse me Sir?" Then went on to tell him they were a year old with less than 4000 miles on them fitted by the supplying dealer itself a Volvo dealer so they should be covered under warranty and perhaps I should call Volvo to inform them that they have a lot of possibly substandard rear discs in circulation....... Suddenly they were rechecked and found that "it was the wrong car they checked for the discs"................ Paperwork error sir. Nothing wrong with yours....... What a shock  Current, M135i in Estoril Blue with more extras than the cast of Ben Hur.

535d m-sport Platinum grey and a few extras.... Gone

X5 3.0 sd in Space Grey, 20's, Dynamic Pack, Memory Pack, Media Pack, Tow Pack, Rear DVD, Panoramic Sunroof, Steps, 7 Seat Pack, Reversing Camera with moving lines, programmable park heat, etc etc etc - Gone

Range Rover Sport Santorini, privacy, dvd, towpack GONE!!!

the sensor has always saved me, i refuse to believe uneven wear can get that great (it needs to be 25% uneven.... offside vs nearside). Those that haven't had a sensor come on either had a faulty one (also unlikely) or it wasn't replaced correctly (the sensor) when the pads were changed.

this is one of the most common dealer scams out there and really me off as it catches out the vulnerable who don't know any better. I was told by (E18 - Woodford) that my pads had "tens of miles left in them" and they then did another 2500 before the light came on. Newport tried a similar scam. Each time they first told the girlfriend, who naturally agreed to replace the pads (there was a strong implication of the danger of not doing so) - fortunately I intervened both times and avoided the unnecessary expense.

telling you the discs are lipped and need replacing is another common scam.

Thanks all for your encouragement and support, I had wondered whether it was me, and that the dealer was right.... As you asked, the dealer was James Edwards in Chester, who incidentally, have still not offered any explanation or offer of compensation (other than "bring your car in and we'll check the pads again!!). I'm so fired up by your comments that i'm seriously thinking of taking it up with Land Rover direct - does anyone here have any email details for the main customer service department?

Thanks again