Mechanic sent me back with car with faulty brakes
New York Jul 25, 2026
Location: New York I got my car serviced at this private shop. My rear brake pads were very low, about 1 and 2 mm. I asked for a rotor and pad change, they convinced me to do the front as well , they were at 5-6, and I said why not and get it over with. The mechanic said that they were super shot and that they might have to do the calipers if they don’t close. I left and come back an hour later and I see that the mechanic had already picked up the calipers for both. I asked what happened and he said that one side wouldn’t close so he would do both rear calipers just to be safe. I asked him if it’s because the calipers seized up and he said, “tbh I don’t really know”. They quoted me $2200 and I ended up having them done. After the replacement, I come back and the mechanic is testing the brakes and says they’re a little soft. I test them and they were basically un drivable, no braking pressure at all. He tops up the brake fluid and told me he’s going to remove any air and goes to do that. He give me the car again and says it’s good now, I’m still a little hesitant. The mechanic was also in a rush and tell me to come back in a few days (I live in a different state and won’t be back until then) to get the air drained. I leave and as soon as I get on the road, the brakes feel horrible. The brakes barely slow down the car at all, the pedal is super soft, it takes pushing almost the whole pedal to stop the car going 20 mph. I call the mechanic and he tells me to come in tomorrow and he’ll look at it. I have work tomorrow in this other state and I can only be at the shop for a few hours before so I don’t be late. They were already super late on the brake change and assured me that they’ll be done earlier but took them 1.5 hours extra which caused me to be late to where I was going. I told them I would only do this brake change if they’ll be done by that time, but I understand things happen. I’m now driving the car back debating if I should pull over and get it towed because the brakes feel almost unusable, then I get a warning on the car saying “collision mitigation braking system problem. See your dealer.” I call the mechanic and he tells me that this was on from before I brought it to them. It wasn’t, the brakes were completely fine before just worn and there were no warning lights. They felt much better before. The mechanic now refuses to give me a refund so I can go fix it at the dealer. He wants me to come in tomorrow so they can look at it, but I will only have 2 hours before I end up being late to work What’s my best plan of action from here on?
