Brake Tip

If you or your customer owns a 2008-2010 Dodge Journey or Grand Caravan they need to start using the emergency brakes. Chrysler has gone back to the emergency mechanism inside the rear calipers rather than shoes inside the rear rotor which seems to have taken over as the most widely used system. With the caliper doing the work it requires the piston to thread out when the cable is pulled. If you live in a flat part of the world and don't use the cables regularly, things will get sticky. The first time you park on a hill and pull the cable everything comes out but never goes back in properly. Chrylser recently had 5,000 rear rotors on backorder and we've been ordering from across the country to keep stock on the shelf. My son in law required a complete brake job [pads and rotors, front and rear] on his 2010 Journey at 20,000km. This tip won't help the front but might keep the rears working a bit longer.

Check The Wear Pattern

When changing pads it's a good idea to check the wear pattern. The pattern will help point you to related problems in the brakes whether sticking calipers, calipers that are not sliding or rotor issues. Check the link labelled 'Disc Pad Wear Diagnosis' under our Useful Links.

In or Out

A few times this past week we ran into parts that are on our shelf but not in the manufacturer's online catalog for the year, make and model required by a customer. We salvaged some sales by cross-checking with other brands that we don't carry but have more up to date catalogs. Thank the Lord for the internet.

On the other end of the spectrum we find listings for a newer vehicle and then no warehouse shows them as a 'good' number. In one instance last week I went looking for a master cylinder and every fax I sent to the warehouses of the company that had a part number listed came with 'not a good number'. When things were quiet I went back to the catalog site to do a screen capture to send in and the number had disappeared.

11,000 Parts for 2011

Raybestos announced recently that they have more than 11,000 brake parts listed for the 2011 model year. That 11,000 parts just for brakes, for one year only. And you wonder why no auto parts store has what you need every time.

2010 Canadian Vehicle Sales

The Good Car Bad Car Blog has Ford ranked as selling the most cars in Canada for 2010. They added 18% to their 2009 sales numbers, almost the same percentage that Toyota lost. Read more...