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Brake work and customer service - fleet services - anaheim, ca
FLEET SERVICES
3520 E Miraloma Ave, Anaheim, CA 92806
REVIEW OF BRAKE WORK AND CUSTOMER SERVICE
I drive my 2003 Monaco Motorhome about 2500 miles per year. Usually one 1800 mile trip and two 350 mile trips. Sometimes a little more.
Janurary 2013, at 42,997 miles, one ABS sensor failed on my motorhome. The sensor melted due to excessive heat. FLEET SERVICES, 3520 E Miraloma Ave, Anaheim, CA diagnosed the problem. According to their itemized invoice, they replaced both rear calipers, turned the rotors, replaced the wheel seals, and bled the brake system.
In July 2015, at about 50,000 miles, another ABS sensor failed, with about 7,000 miles on the "new" calipers, ABS sensor, and brake job.
At the end of my trip (50,507 miles), I went to Fleet Services and requested analysis of the problem and determination of root cause. I asked them to consider replacing the failed parts under warranty, or under terms of good will. Fleet Services refused this request. They cited various causes, unrelated to their previous work, that could have caused the failure of the brakes they installed.
Taking them at their word, on July 24, 2015 (50,507 miles) I again paid Fleet Services to work on my brakes. According to their invoice, they again replaced the calipers. They installed new rotors (the rotors they worked on previously were apparently somehow damaged by my new calipers and pads) and they serviced various other components affected by the apparent failure of the brakes they installed previously.
On 8/20/2017, at 55,527 miles, I was driving north on Highway 395 at Topaz Lake near the California/Nevada border. I heard a rubbing noise in the area of the driver side wheel. I stopped the coach and inspected the left front wheel area. The left front brake caliper had fallen off its mount. The top bolt had come out of the caliper assembly, allowing the brake caliper assembly to fall forward and rub against the inside of the wheel. Further inspection of the brakes revealed that the other new (driver side rear) caliper had also lost the top bolt and fallen forward against the inside of the rear wheel.
On both the front and rear wheels, driver side, only the bottom bolt was keeping the brake caliper attached to the mount. Both bottom bolts were loose. Closer inspection of the rear caliper showed that this caliper had been off the mount and rubbing against the inside of the wheel for many miles. There was considerable wear on both the wheel and the caliper, with a deep wear channel worn into the body of the caliper. Further inspection of the rear caliper showed that the blue thread-lock fluid applied to the upper female thread on the caliper was still intact, bright blue, and unmarked.
Total miles from the second brake replacement to failure of the front brake was 5,020 miles. Judging from the visible wear patterns on the rear brake and wheel, the rear caliper either fell off long before the front brake fell off, or it never had a top bolt installed at all.
Emergency repairs were completed in the middle of my trip.
I consider myself and my family fortunate to be alive after this incident.
Based upon Fleet Services' refusal to consider an adjustment or a review of the causes during the first failure of their work, I did not bother to contact them about the second failure.
CONCLUSIONS
I will no longer take my coach to Fleet Services in Anaheim, due to excessive risk. Fleet Services specifically advertises expertise in brake work on large vehicles. Many of these vehicles are commercial trucks working on our roads every day. I consider it a reasonable conclusion that they are unwilling or unable to do large-vehicle brake work in a competent and safe manner, thus risking the lives and safety of all people in or near such vehicles worked on by Fleet Services.
Further, Fleet Services customer service is poor. Their response to my request to review my original brake work in light of short-term failure was met with flat refusal consider a review, and a condescending attitude during discussions of the cause of the first failure of their work.
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