zayas21

96 Cherokee Country

Recently brought in the Cherokee to a shop to fix brake fluid leak out of the back rear drum and they quoted me at 600.00. They said its a $12 part that controls the brake fluid that went but due to liability they have to replace the entire rear brake drum shoes and hardware which costs 600. Has anyone heard of this "liability"? Are they just trying to make a buck off of me or is this a genuine thing regarding brakes? Also said front brake pads are low but the rotors need to be changed and the heater control valve needs to be changed, a grand total of 900.00!

Gee oh Dee

Seems over priced. You should be able to do most of that yourself.

weebur

Run, don't walk away from those thieves.

Brake cylinders: 2 @ $10
Shoes: 2 @ $20
Complete hardware kit (both sides) $18.00
Drums cut: $8 per drum (O'Reillys)

With moderate mechanical skills this can be done by yourself (and a helper) in an afternoon for about a hundred bucks.

Your situation is a prime example why we need to learn how to repair our own vehicles. The tools you buy will pay for themselves many times over.

I know of a local shop that told a woman she needed to have her engine rebuilt. They tuned it up and then painted the engine...then charged her several thousand bucks. There's a lot of really good and honest shops out there you just need to shop around till you find one.

RTorrez1

WOW!
They are really trying to rip you a new one. Get it back and take care of it yourself. It really isn't that hard of a job. Just watch where you take off the parts from or take pictures and put it back together the same way with the new parts.

zayas21

thanks guys for all the help, after reading I picked up the truck without them touching it and I'm figuring something else out. I have worked on the truck a bunch and have mechanical skills I just now live in an apartment complex that wont allow me to do any work on it for fear of fluid leaks etc. I've never touched brakes so I wasn't sure what to expect. Do appreciate the help!

BODCherokee

Brakes on my XJ were way to easy, you can even bleed the system with gravity, doesnt get much easier. Biggest piece of advice when rebuilding the rear drums: one side at a time. If you get stuck putting it all back together, just look at the other side that you havent dissassembled yet. I rebuilt most of my brake system, drums, rotors, pads, shoes, hardware kit, wheel cylinders, calipers and all rear axle brake lines for less than $250 or so. It can be done in one saturday.

kjc

That sounds waay overpriced. Since you may not be able to diy, i'd suggest you take it to a specialized brake shop like Midas. Not really as cheap as diy, but a free estimate might give you a much more reasonable price than a general repairs shop. I've seen several smaller shops that specialize in more specific repairs like tires,brakes,lube etc. Usually, if that's what they're geared up for, the prices are much lower.

gpeade

The only thing that shop is telling you correctly is to replace the shoes along with the wheel cylinders. The brake material will absorb the leaking fluid that falls on them and...well I think you know how effective a greasy brake show would be.
It's a simple fix and one bit of advise, only disassemble one side at a time. This gives you a reference to how it all goes together if you get stumped. You will also need to bleed your rear brakes after replacing the cylinders.