Originally Posted by jewpac42

When did you have the work done? Seems to me we are missing some of the story, like how did you not notice a much stiffer pedal if there was no fluid movement?

Originally Posted by Mr. Xevious

there were 3 other calipers that the fluid could flow too.

more then likely it did feel a bit more stiff, but that might be "normal" after you just had your brakes redone at the dealership.

I am sure there was no reason for alarm when driving the car, well, that is until the whole thing caught fire.

Originally Posted by jhammer

So here's the update. The dealer in question is Steven's Creek Subaru in San Jose. I'm only naming them now because I wanted to give them a chance to make it right. They have not.

I'm outraged. Yesterday I had the car flatbedded from my house down to them. They called this morning totally disavowing any responsibility for the brake problem. They said that when they went to inspect the car, there was no clamp on the brake line and that they don't use clamps like the ones they had seen in my photos I emailed to them. They are refusing to pay for any of it. They claim either I did this to my car or someone sabotaged my vehicle.

Are you kidding me?

That clamp has been stuck on there since the day I picked it from their shop when they did the rear brakes. For it to all of a sudden "fall off" or disappear en route on the tow truck is absolutely impossible.

They want me to believe that I sabotaged my own car? What?! They want me to believe my car was sabotaged by someone else?! What a load of crap. The car has been sitting in my garage nearly the whole time I've owned it (a few months).

They are clearly trying to weasel their way out of paying for damage caused by their own incompetence and negligence. I'm trying to get Subaru of America involved, but this is an outrage.

Do not go to Steven's Creek Subaru in San Jose.

If anyone has any suggestions of other methods of recourse, please let me know. This is unconscionable.

Jonathan

Originally Posted by Mr. Xevious

I dunno.. claming your brake line would be something that you "might" remember to take off if you are doing something DIY.

Originally Posted by joltdudeuc

You're story isn't making sense now...

I know several employee's there, and to say those things with such heat and anger somewhat tips me off that you aren't telling the whole truth here.

Who clamps a line for doing just pads?

And again, if your wheel locked, just one wheel like that, you'd have made an instant left turn into the median or other lane. I kept thinking about that over and over again, cause when with 4 wheels locked and some locked slightly more than others my car will want to turn left or right slightly. locking 1 rear wheel like that should've meant an instant turn.

Originally Posted by Wingless Wonder

That's just a given for the past 6 years or longer. There are multiple older threads about Stevens Creek Subaru in BAIC. Search there for the threads, but most of the later posts (sometimes dozens) are just folks saying, "that's not right, that's messed up, yahda, yahda, yahda", so it becomes tedious to find later followups from the original member who posted the problem.

Originally Posted by jewpac42

I dont know if it would make an instant hard turn since it is a rear wheel, but it sure would pull that way, at least a little, not to mention under any previous hard braking you would think it would pull to the right since the left side doesnt have the same clamping force as the right side, at least I would think it would do that. As I said before, something doesnt seem right here and knowing the mileage between when the service was done and when the brake failure occured might shine some light on the situation.

Originally Posted by joltdudeuc

Their service and part dept are not the same anymore... I mean I was the one who nearly organized a boycott of them years ago, i hated that place... but I would go there for anything these days. It's NOT the same dealership it once was.

Originally Posted by jewpac42

Ive done brakes several times and Im not exactly sure why you would clamp a brake line to begin with.

Originally Posted by joltdudeuc

you wouldn't. Even after removing the line from a caliper there isn't much fluid that comes out, and to stop it you just tie the line up on the strut... there isn't any pressure in the line.

When I read his first post I thought he said they removed the caliper, but for pads no one would have removed the line...

Originally Posted by joltdudeuc

It would turn a lot, I mean... at the speeds he's talking about, A LOT!

What I don't get is why he had the worried approach to post 1, but later this vendetta tone.

Also, I hadn't noticed that he doesn't post much here... troll?

Originally Posted by jhammer

I was driving home yesterday from work and, at one point, had to brake hard when I was cut off. Didn't notice anything odd.

Originally Posted by I<3subie

I can see what happen now. Caliper banjo moved. When bleeding brakes. Forget to remove the clamp. Slowing fluid past that point. Draging the brake. As you drive the car using the brake some fuild is able to move past that point but not allot. Then once its full on that side of the line, The brake caliper begains to drag on the rotor. Once it drags it begains to over heat. Boiling the fluid and turning it to vapor. Causing even more pressure to build up locking the rear brake caliper.

Can anyone say brake horsepower... Looks like you make more then your brakes.. lol

Be glad it didnt start a major fire. Its not the 1st time I have seen that...

Stevens creek will not get anything from me unless they fix this problem. If they dont, I will never step foot in that place again.

With the economy this bad.. I wonder how many customers they can lose until they shut their doors.

Sucks as I'd drive down there to get parts on saturday. I have also test driven a few cars with them.. Looking to buy but now I will hold off.