Hey Everyone,
Yesterday, I finally got an opportunity to do some maintenance I've been waiting to get to for a few weeks, due to weather or being too busy, or some other reason. All I needed to do yesterday was change my oil, block off my oil cooler for winter, and I wanted to pop my wheels off to check the tread depth and brake pad status.
I do as much work on my car as I can myself. However, there are a few things I CAN'T do myself, such as state safety inspections. Back in the end of August, I had that done at a local Nissan dealership. (I just moved, so I don't really know the reputations of the independent garages around here...) I'd taken my Z to this dealership in the past for warranty services, and I'd never had a complaint before. They always seemed to do solid work, from what I could tell.
Now I do have a complaint, and I'm seriously considering contacting them. The first issue that cropped up was a horribly stripped lug nut. Whatever high school flunkie did my inspection stripped a lug nut on my rear wheel to a perfect cylinder. And this was on a factory lug nut. It's not like I had some oddball size on there. I've attached the result. It took me over an hour just to get one lug off. I didn't notice it last time I changed my oil because I didn't do anything with the wheels.
I considered contacting them about it and having them get it off/replace it, but when it comes down to it I have no proof that it was actually them. So, I moved on.
As I continued my work, I decided to check my tread depth, because when I had my inspection done the service rep told me all my tires were at 4/32, and I should think about replacing them around November. So, here we are, in November. Since that inspection in August, I've driven the car about 5,000 miles. Check out the photo of my tread depth. It's at about 7/32. So, in August it could only have been higher. This was the one that REALLY pissed me off. The lug nut was just a stupid mistake - someone not paying attention or doing something stupid. The tread depth was just blatant dishonesty. I am seriously considering emailing the service manager the pictures I attached here, and a scan of the service report noting that my tires were at 4/32 tread depth.
So, something that I was projecting would take maybe 2-3 hours took me ALL DAY. Maybe next year I'll apply for my own PA Inspection license...
(Note - I don't know why the tread depth pic is showing up sideways. It's oriented correctly on my computer. Sorry. Annoying.)