2008 Pontiac G8: Oil Change and Brake Check

Did they measure the rotor thickness with a micrometer? Or did they just give you the "It's got a bit of a lip on it" line? ("lip on the rotor" seems to be the brake world's equivalent of changing your oil every 3000 miles)

That's appallingly bad service. I hope you guys fill out the surveys that GM should be sending you after service visits, because these days dealers literally live and die by customer satisfaction ratings (and FYI, GM uses "top-box scoring" where anything less than "completely satisfied' counts the same for customer satisfaction purposes as not satisfied at all).

First off, if you look at the calipers, they are made by PBR, the same company that make Metal Master brake pads, and they also made the calipers on older Corvette.

I understand that GM dealers are about to run a brake pad replacement special for $74.95, but it would be extra to turn the rotors.

The real question here is this dealership one that is slated to be closed? I am dealing with a dealer that is closing and trying to get them to do ANYTHING is almost impossible, I have much better experience at a dealer that is staying open.

Least your key was covered under warranty. I had to pay for mine and it was very expensive.

Esoterica is right about those surveys. I had good service so I didn't mind filling it in, but if you don't or aren't "completely satisfied" they take it out of the service tech's pay.

Did they tell you they were going to charge you to look at the brakes when you dropped the car off? That seems totally ridiculous to me.

Fill out your CSI form that GM will be sending you! Writing a letter or going into the service department and complaining will not change dealerships, killing them on CSI really makes them change. (Wish it wasn't that way but it is)

trierack is a good place for brake pads/rotors.

$65 bucks to look at the brakes...what did he do, stare at them for an hour?

Aside from service, I still cannot find a reason why this car did not sell that well, other than a Pontiac Badge, and Lack of Navigation. Perhaps a lack of advertising???

RockAuto.com for your replacement parts...

So basically $107.64 for an oil change...

Love these posts that discuss service issues that we all face and hate.

Hope you guys at Edmunds write reviews of these dealerships on your own car dealer/repair shop review site.

I'm in Canada and Tirerack.com is the best place I've found, even with shipping/duty. I get my parts in two to three days. Never been let down.

tirerack.com doesn't list brake pads for the 2008 G8 GT. they do have "centric premium rotors", though, front for $73/ea. and rears for $69/ea, but not in stock till 7/31. they also have a much more expensive dba 4000 rotor in stock but they have "less then 2" of each...

a search of google centric part # 120.62114 (front) and 120.62113 (rear) only returns one web site with the rotors apparently in stock, but for $103 (fr) and $96 (rear).

rockauto has bendix pads pads in stock $64/$53 front/rear. summit racing has them for $52/$43.

personally, i'd rather go with hawk hps pads. (Front/Rear) HB606F.650/HB607F.616 $80/$73 online. (pfyc.com)

looking forward to the install!

I agree on the Hawk HPS. They are excellent pads for a street driven car. I am surprised that the brakes wore out so soon. At 40,000 miles my MS3 track toy is still on its original pads. The X3's pads/rotors last 60,000 miles, while my "drive it like ya' stole it" Club Sport needs only front pads at @50,000 miles and pads/rotors all around at 100,000 miles.

That dealer sounds like my hometown Chevy dealer(which Gubmint Motors just shuttered- no great loss)- back in the mid '80s it would take them 10-20 days to get parts for my 1974 Monte Carlo. In contrast, I could get most any part for my Bavaria 3.0 shipped from a PA dealer within 3-5 days.
As for service costs, the 5000 mile service for my MS3 is $75 at the dealer, and that includes six quarts of Mobil 1 5W-30, tire balance/rotation, brake inspection, and a battery load test. Still, you have to pay to play with most performance cars, and in the case of the G8, the key is to find a honest and competent dealer.

buybrakes.com shows 3 different sets of Hawk pads, and 2 sets by EBC for the G8 GT. Prices range from $89/set to $129/set. No luck on the rotors though.

This demonstrates perfectly why I can't bring myself to buy a G8. Parts were my biggest concern. For a dealer not to have brake parts in stock for Pontiac's "flagship" car is simply unacceptable. To ask a customer to wait 4 weeks is outrageous. So they are basically saying that if the pads were competely worn and in need of immediate replacement, they would make a customer leave their car for 4 weeks?

Ordering parts online is a solution for those of us that are comfortable doing so, but for people that don't have the time or knowledge to do so, the dealers are really going to make ownership a hardship for uneducated consumers.

This type of thing is going to become commonplace when Pontiac dealers disappear, and you are forced to take the G8 to a Buick/Cadillac/GMC dealer for service. If common parts aren't available now, that certainly won't change in the coming months.

so true

What a story! Here's how it should be done - This past Friday I took my 2008 Lexus ES350 (14,500 miles) to the local dealer here in orange county to complain about a shudder from the front end/steering wheel while braking at highway and city speeds. I pretty much knew it would be a 'turn the brake rotors' and be done with it job. But no, they also changed the brake pads and shims on all four wheels - a complete brake job. Total cost: NONE - fixed under warranty. That's how you make you're customers happy. GM needs to adapt someday...

I live about two blocks from Martin and have used them for years with very little in the way of problems. True, my newer GM cars require nowhere the amount of service as my GM cars of 15 years ago or so.

My 2009 G8 GT has required nothing except the key fob replaced, which was replaced promptly at no charge at Martin.

One of the car wash kids over at Sepulveda car wash tossed the keys a little far and they landed on a surface that was a little too hard.

The service writer you choose makes a huge difference in the quality of the service you'll get. Give Reggie a try. I think you'll be much more satisfied.

You guys really should call the coporate office and complain.

Ideally, service quality at a dealership should not vary depending on the service writer. The dealer should have standard operating procedures in place to ensure that all customers get the same level of service. GM really needs to learn this.

A car wash broke your fob and GM replaced it under warranty? I would have asked the car wash to pay for a replacement. Fobs are fairly resiliant...they must have tossed it pretty hard.

Actually, your brake inspection should have been done for free! GM dealers are supposed to do a multi-point written inspection anytime a vehicle is brought in for service, as they do when I bring in my Trailblazer. Also the rotors would be covered by warranty, but not the pads.

+1 to ryster's comment... if you can't even get common brake parts for a G8 now at a Pontiac dealer, what will happen at the other GM dealers that never carried this car to begin with once the Poncho dealers are gone?

The service experience here sounds awful.

"if you can't even get common brake parts for a G8 now at a Pontiac dealer, what will happen at the other GM dealers that never carried this car to begin with once the Poncho dealers are gone?"

Exactly. I'm going to mention this incident in my next column. FOUR WEEKS to get consumable items such as brake pads?

ryster

Martin does have one service writer that's more excuses than action. I just stay away from him as I can't stand his attitude. Reggie, however, is just great. Makes all the difference in the world. I know it shouldn't be this way but is it.

"A car wash broke your fob and GM replaced it under warranty?"

All the way across the lot and missed the guy they were throwing it to. It didn't break open or anything, but that's when it started getting loose.

I can't say anything else about service on the G8 GT because I've yet to have anything go wrong except the key fob. True, they had to order it, but it took two or three days to come in. I'm going to call them tomorrow about brake pads. I just don't believe four weeks.

Why can't I edit these damn posts? I hate typos.

$65 for a brake inspection for a car that's under warranty? I'd have told them to shove their $65 where the sun don't shine!

$65 for a brake inspection for a car that's under warranty? I'd have told them to shove their $65 where the sun don't shine!

Please change those rotors! Do not resurface! They are only $69 at gmpartdirect.com. A pad kit is $90.

I just got off of the phone with parts and they did have them and are now out. They have them on order and they are in stock at the Lansing, MI distribution center. Take 3-7 days to get them here.

Unbelievable. This is why I won't buy a G8 and I wish I had more reason to because I like it, but I want to own the thing long-term and the parts issue is not an incentive to buy it.

Didn't this G8 have one initial service problem, I think it was the traction control or something, and the dealership had to finally swap a part out of another model on the lot because of a problem getting the replacement part? Good grief! Seems like it would be worse after Pontiac dies and there are no parts available in the states.

BS. I've kept a 61, 63 and 66 full size pontiacs on the road for many many years and still can find parts so I don't think I'll have all that much problem with my G8.

"BS. I've kept a 61, 63 and 66 full size pontiacs on the road for many many years and still can find parts so I don't think I'll have all that much problem with my G8."

Were your 3 '60's Pontiacs designed and built in Australia by a separate subsidiary, share nothing with other US GM cars other than essentially the major powertrain, sold in relatively small numbers, and were discontinued after 3 model years? Try finding parts for a Pontiac Lemans or a Merkur Scorpio. The Saturn Astra will be likely be the same story.

@blobster - you're right, Edmunds has already had this problem once before trying to get the traction control issue fixed.

40+ years old, built in Pontiac, MI, shared little, not even the frame with other GM cars and my option combination sold in exceedingly small numbers. I would have fewer problems finding parts for a Tempest/LeMans/GTO because they were sold in pretty significant quantities and aftermarket support has just about anything one would need.