So I took my car in for the 10k service and they are saying that it 'could use an adjustment of the rear brakes'. I'm really wondering if this is one of those "he's getting his service for free, lets see what we can charge him for" items. The brakes feel fine, sound fine, and look fine as far as I can tell. I'm not a trained mechanic.. but I'm also pretty used to every place that does oil changes etc often finding small minor things that could use adjustment. Any thoughts?
If the rear brakes need adjusting at 10k they should do that for free. The rear brakes get about 10-20% of the braking load... and on a hybrid system the front brakes are good to over 150k miles... I would complain about inferior quality and make them re-check it. I bet they find that it's fine.
The rear brakes don't require adjustment. If the service adviser actually said "The rear brakes could use an adjustment adjustment", he is tying to con you. OTOH, The parking brake mechanism that applies the rear brakes when you stop on the parking brake pedal does have an adjustment. It is unlikely at 10k miles but possible that the parking brake mechanism could use an adjustment.
You make a valid (if not incoherent) point. I forgot the rears are drums. They have an auto adjuster (which is what I think you were trying to say). Every time you drive in reverse, the rear brakes automatically adjust themselves.
They did that to me on my first service (the 5k) and when I picked up the car and he told me they where and to quote "Way out of adjustment". Its just something they do to charge toyota a couple extra dollars. Theres nothing wrong with them there scamming toyota. If been working on cars for almost 20 years.
I've found that many drum brake systems could use a turn or two of the adjuster wheel at every scheduled service. The "c" uses a conventional drum brake system, so I think it's a legitimate service. One way to tell whether the rear drums need adjustment, is to see how many clicks are needed to fully engage the parking brake. If it is more than 5-6 clicks, your rear drums can benefit from a minor adjustment. Lastly, self-adjusters are rarely found to be as effective as advertised. iPhone ?
If this car is "Way out of adjustment" after only 10k miles... there is a major flaw in this cars braking system. The maintenance cycle for it is not even mentioned until after 100k... so how would we know it to be out of adjustment?
The Prius C uses a conventional drum brake design. It has a self adjuster and when used properly, there's no need to perform a manual adjustment. The dealers lube techs might not even understand this. They're reporting incorrect information and the SA is passing this on to the customers. Lube techs are not the same as line techs. They're lower paid bodies to perform the mundane service or Lube Oil and Filter changes. The line tech are the guys that actually work on the cars and fix them. No shop has higher paid techs doing freebie services. As for the self adjusters. They are not ineffective. They work as designed. The majority of vehicle owners know nothing about the cars they drive and some don't ever want to. Some are into it. I would say 80% to 99% are clueless beyond gas, oil and air. The self adjusters won't activate without proper use. That use is backing up at a speed of about 10 MPH and firmly standing on the brake pedal. This will take about 3 applications, depending on the amount of adjustment needed. This should be done at monthly intervals. It's quick, it's easy and you will feel the pedal get firmer when the rear shoes are properly adjusted. No need to have anyone monkey with your brakes. Just do the self adjusting proceedure as outline and you'll be all set. The dealers try to make out like they're doing you the biggest favor of your life by telling you the rear could use an adjustment. I'm not sure what's actually covered, but I wouldn't let anyone adjust my brakes. The self adjusters will keep them set properly. Someone that's unsure of what they're doing can cause uneven braking from improper adjustment. It can lead to pull, abnormal brake wear and even loss of MPG's if it's to tight and drags. It could go unchecked and cause drum and shoe damage. Use your self adjusters. that's why they're there. It's simple and effective and you'll be glad I told you how to DIY I have attached a diagram of the rear shoe setup on the C, so have a look at the design. Then, no one can tell you lie's at will The statement about checking brake adjustment with the parking brake is somewhat correct, but it can also be a misleading test. Always use the self adjusters first. Then you can follow this procedure to check your parking brake for proper adjustment.
