Barry Nichols inquires whether $500-$700 is too much for brake and bearing
work at the VW dealer.  I feel this is a religious question.  Some people will
want the confidence that comes from having the dealer do the work, especially
when brakes are involved.  On the other hand, none of the work specified is
unique on the Vanagon, so any competent garage could do it.  On the gripping
hand, rear brakes are a reasonable driveway project; not right for your first
experience of a wrench, but a good one for a savvy neighbor or VW buddy to
come over and supervise.

The only item that raised my eyebrows was the idea of machining the rotors
without replacing the pads.  Either you need new pads, or your rotors are ok,
too, says I.

It sounds to me as though the dealership read your instructions as implying
you wanted to go first class, spare no effort, excess of safety is no vice,
and responded in that vein.  The fact that you wanted to rotate the tires at
all, much less that you wanted the dealership to do it, was their first hint.

I don't disrespect that at all, and in fact I act that way often about the
Japanese cars that need to be commute-ready no matter what else is planned
for the weekend.  And that approach is expensive.

B.