edelson

I have a '99 ES300 that's been as trouble-free as one could ask for. It's also been treated very well and has pretty low mileage (~75000 miles). During a routine oil change (non-Lexus dealer) I was told that the rear brakes needed attention. Only 3mm on the pads and I was quoted $346 to replace pads, rotors, which includes labor. My inclination is to have serious work done at a Lexus dealer so we asked for a price from them. We were quoted ~$300 for just the pads and labor. We were also told that rotors almost never need to be replaced but, if they did, it would cost another $300 or so to replace them. Here's my question ... is it the case that rotors almost never need to be replaced? Are Lexus rotors made harder or so much better that they last for the life of the car? Note: My wife and I aren't 100% certain but we believe that we have never serviced the rear brakes before. Thanks.

The ES300 user's guide suggests that tires installed on the Lexus be no more than one speed grade below the "V" rated tires supplied with the car. Yesterday a tire salesperson talked my wife out of purchasing "Q" rated Blizzaks by telling her that she should not go more than 65 mph with these tires on the car otherwise she stood a good chance of a blowout (this despite the Q rating of 99 mph). As a result she will only consider "H" rated snow tires now. Is it unsafe to put "Q" rated snow tires on an ES300 and go above 65 mph? [Note that Lexus advises never to go above 75 mph on any snow tire.]