Had a similar soft pedal on my old Land Cruiser and it turned out to be a leaking caliper seal, not the pads. Shop caught it because they checked fluid level and looked for wetness around the wheels. Ask them to inspect the whole system, not just swap pads.

Mine did this on a Gallardo a few years back and it turned out to be a leaking line, not the pump. Shop quoted me for the whole pump unit until a second garage found the actual leak in about an hour. Get a second opinion before you approve anything.

The desert sand micro-abrasion point is underrated honestly, people focus on big rock chips but the gradual dulling from fine grit over time is just as real, just slower and easier to ignore until you notice your paint doesn’t look as deep as it used to.

Air suspension compressor duty cycle testing is the one people skip most often, and it’s exactly where the expensive failures hide on these Escalades. Ask specifically if they measure that rather than just eyeballing ride height, big difference in catching a failing compressor early.

Topping up refrigerant without finding the leak source is exactly the pattern that has you back at the same shop next month. A proper UV dye trace confirms whether there is actually a leak before anyone touches the refrigerant charge.