My car is 2020 with 26,500 miles on it.

the dealer said the car needed a rear break job but said the fronts were fine.

with all the other cars I’ve owned this seemed strange because usually the fronts wear much quicker!

they cost was 995 to RESURFACE the 2 rear rotors and put new pads on.

This seemed expensive as the labor came to $435

Thanks,
-John

 

Can't see why your rear pads would wear b4 the front ones. Agree with you on this.

Did see the rear pads that they took off?

$995 sound excessive, even for a dealership.

Not knowing your wheel size, referencing FCPEuro, I can only estimate that a pair of new rear rotors and pads costs around $200 (if course the dealer charges a markup). Doubt this is more than a 1 hour job, but giving the dealer the benefit of a doubt, and giving them 2 hours for the job, the labor charge should be around $400 to $450. My gues is that a dealer might charge around $700 to $750 for this, although an indi's cost would probably be closer to $500.

There's a reason why they are called "stealerships".

For years, a neighbor of mine worked in a local garage during the day repairing cars, and then after 5pm, the owner let him use the shop for his own use. During those years, between late October and the end of March, I rarely saw him come home before 10pm, and he worked there all day Saturday, all while the shop was closed. Turns out, all he did after hours was brake jobs. The money he made, cash-only, funded his 25 foot boat, which was mored at a nearby marina, and his love for fishing from April through mid-October of each year. In retirement, he moved to be closer to the ocean, and made sure to buy a home with a large yard that had a detached garage. Why? You guessed it ... to do brake jobs, for cash, while in retirement.

 

Řegarding front:versus rear, I was told Volvos have a bias to use the rear brakes more than the fronts. This is unusual but apparently true.

 

I'm not saying this is incorrect, but I personally never heard of this bias, nor do I recall reading about this before. Would be interested to know of your information source. My 2020 V90 has front disc pads at 12mm and the rear pads at 11mm from the factory, which indicates to me that Volvo expects more braking force (and wear) at the front pads. Depending on the S60 model, it will either have 12mm or 10.75 front pads, and 11mm rear pads.

 

Agreed, that sounds quite excessive, even for a dealer. I did pads & rotors on all four corners on my daughter's 2013 S60 T5 (granted, not the same but probably really close). New high quality rotors & pads we're just under $300 (fronts are about double the $ of rears, mass, I imagine). There are a lot of different sizes for the same model, so just do your homework before you buy. The job was easy. Impact screwdriver is the only somewhat specialized tool needed on her model. Job took about 1.5 hrs max. Break them in & you're good to go. Look this up if you've never done it. Good call after all brake jobs.

Call around to local mom & pop shops. There's nothing special about Volvo brakes that should warrant that price.

Reference bias towards rear brakes (rear heavy proportioning): I have never heard this either, sounds counter-intuitive but I'm not a certified Volvo mechanic. Fronts wear more on all the cars I've ever owned & worked on. If there was a heavier emphasis on rear brakes, they would wear evenly IMO, not more so. Weight shifts forward as one brakes making the fronts work harder. Weight is in front too, so a significant rear shift of proportioning would make the rears more prone to lockup. This is a critical balance. I can't envision a scenario where rears wear more than fronts that would be safe on a front or mid engines vehicle (rear engine too, really). Just my 2¢ ☮️