Would you be willing to pay for an oil cooler as a factory-installed option?
 

Okay, we all know this topic has been beaten to death, with some folks insisting that an oil cooler isn't necessary unless you track your Z, and others insisting that one is in fact necessary, even for regular street use. This thread is not about that. Rather, the intent of this thread/poll is just to see if one way to potentially end all the bickering and recriminations is for Nissan to make it an option (just like Nav, Sport Pkg, etc.), the idea being that those who want an oil cooler could get one, and those who don't wouldn't have to. Everyone gets what they want, and the animosity would cease (hopefully).

Please keep discussion civil. We all have our opinions on this hot topic (no pun intended), and there's no need to re-hash them here. The sole purpose of this poll is to ascertain how many people would actually be willing to pay extra for an oil cooler if Nissan were to offer it as an option.

Edit: For the purpose of this poll, it is assumed that as a factory-installed option, an oil cooler would be covered under warranty and would not in any way void Nissan's warranty on the rest of the car.

Nissan has known about the issue for some time now, why should we pay for a product defect? Thats the way I look at it, the oil cooler should have come already installed as an OEM part.

No need for an oil cooler in New England............

As per the OP's request, please don't turn this into another thread like the ones we already have? :tiphat:

"Please keep discussion civil. We all have our opinions on this hot topic (no pun intended), and there's no need to re-hash them here. The sole purpose of this poll is to ascertain how many people would actually be willing to pay extra for an oil cooler if Nissan were to offer it as an option. <!-- / message --> <!-- sig --> "

I'm sure the reason for this thread is that Nissan states that the reason they didn't install the oil cooler, was due to it bringing the cost up on the vehicle to where it was outside of their target market.

That's total bull, since it wouldn't even cost the consumer $500, and I got more than that knocked off the MSRP anyway.

No, according to the OP: The sole purpose of this poll is to ascertain how many people would actually be willing to pay extra for an oil cooler

voted for option 1

voted for option 2.

NOTES: 500$ would be nice, but it's not reasonable to expect parts AND labor to cost that amount. I understand that if it were on all models that they may be able to get down to that point, but we're talking about an add-on. I would give it 4-600$ in parts (must include thermostat-style bypass) and the rest for labor. Then you're talking 4-6 hours at $100/hr (low average for most shops) for the install.

4-6 hours for a factory install on the assembly line???

^

after its built, ya upwards 1 grand...

however, factory option install at the plant, 500 would be sufficient...

Hmm....well Nav is an add-on. Do you think it takes them an extra 4-6 hours to install the Nav unit? I mean it might. I don't know. I'm just asking.

The way mechanics work is off of book hours. Regardless of wether or not the job takes 30 mins or 3 days, if the book says 4 hours, you pay for 4 hours.

I did the whole modshack oil cooler in about an hour and a half. Parts would cost Nissan less than 100. I voted #1, but I think 250 is more reasonable. There really is nothing to compare price to out there, but if you look at what they charge for trailering packages on pickup trucks, which normally included a LSD, trans oil cooler (closest to what we need), and a trailer hitch and wiring, its anywhere from 150-700 package depending on the vehicle.

How can you say that this is a "product defect"? I have never had any oil temperature issues. Let me say that again... I have NEVER had ANY oil temperature issues. So why would I want an oil cooler?

This debate only degrades itself when people say things like the quote above.

Voted... I would be happy to pay labor if Nissan ponied up the oil cooler and backed it with a factory warranty. I do believe Nissan dropped the ball in a huge way reference this issue. It currently appears Nissan has zero intentions of even locating the ball they dropped.

Did people even read the OP's post?

:iagree:

I have the NISMO which should of had it installed as part of the package. My answer is NO I would not pay for a Nissan option because it would probably be to expensive. There are many aftermarket oil coolers to choose from of very high quality.

Now if we are thinking about warranty on the Z as part of the package then that's another issue.:confused:

If it's factory-installed, it will be covered under warranty. That's the assumption implicit in the poll, anyway. Sorry I didn't make that explicit.

True, but also consider the test cars for magazine reviewers also had an oil cooler.

It's as if Nissan figured out that they could add some more profit to the cars and that they'd be fine without a cooler for 98% of the buying public, instead of having a slightly lower profit margin, and satisfy 100% of the buying public.

10000 370z's produced, 2% would be 200 cars. Actually, I think that's even a bit high. More like 0.5% would be the number of people who are unhappy that there isn't an oil cooler.

I'm not saying it is an issue, nor am I saying it's not. I do think it's a bit shady to give the magazine reviewers one thing, get the great reviews, then sell something different to the public.

Therefore, that's why I say it'd not be an issue if the car's price increased $500 or less, and came with an oil cooler "as advertised" by magazine reviews.

I would have paid for the extra optional oil cooler for sure! I chose option 1... However, I have a huge 25 row racing cooler coming my way :D so I have no worries!

SyncroRevMatch Great, Oil Temp Not So Much
 

It bewilders me to think how much time and money Nissan must have invested in developing the SyncroRevMatch while ignoring this oil temp issue that they are obviously aware of, as evidenced by the installation of oil coolers on magazine tested 370z. Living in South Florida, this is a deal breaker for me. I would gladly pay $500 for a factory installed oil cooler. Should be added to the Sport Package in my opinion.

i dont need one. my oil temps dont get anywhere near that hot like some of you guys might be experiencing on the track.

imho, nissan should release a base Z with sportpackage, nismo sport dampers/springs, CAI/exhaust, and oil cooler installed and call it 'track' trim. no need for the heavy nismo decorations.

[QUOTE=kannibul;292689]"True, but also consider the test cars for magazine reviewers also had an oil cooler".








That’s because every “merkin” face magazine reviewer is going drive it like it’s in a demolition derby!

Merkin - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

If that's really the "deal-breaker" for you, I think you should stay away from the 370. Come on... talk about an over-blown issue. If you're going to be driving your 370 hard enough to need an oil cooler (read: tracking the car)... then you shouldn't be buying one.

I agree 101%

An oil cooler is also another point of failure. It could be that the benefits of an added oil cooler could be somewhat offset by the occasional oil line/oil radiator failure. That said, I'd go for option 1 myself.

$250 sounds about right for me for a factory install. It would cost them about $50 bucks with the volume they would do.

considering the validation (testing and documentation) nissan needs to do, the unit price might be that, but the labor and admin costs will boot it up to about a $500-650 option.

I put mine on for < $300. As a factory option, Nothing more than $500 would be a consideration and it would have to be a factory install, not a dealer install..

This is apparently the number Nissan had in their head as that is what was communicated to some of the Magazines. See the option list in Road and Track's full test on the 370..

$250 parts (*2 [low dealer markup]) = $500 parts

let's say 2 hours for install ($100/hr [low]) = $200 labor

plus oil = ~$50.

still 750$ parts and labor.

it's like cutting your own hair. yeah it's free and the $20 clippers will last a long time, but it still costs $20 each time you pay someone else to do it.

You didn't mention how Nissan would have a TON of buying pressure to get the oil cooler parts for next to nothing (compared to us @ retail), plus having some guy on the assembly line installing it at his regular hourly rate vs what we would pay for someone else to do it...plus the oil is next to nothing at Nissan's "cost".

End result, if we pay $500 for an oil cooler installed, it'd MAYBE cost Nissan $200. Probably more like $100.

then how can all the truck manufacturers put a transmission cooler in for well under 500? Its essentially the same parts.

I voted for #1.

There is no defect so there is no reason for Nissan to pay out of their pocket. These cars are made for the street and the oil temperatures are on the whole just fine.

If you intend to run the car at the tracks that is your choice. It takes the car out of the intended use as warranted by the manufacturer. And that is where the majority of reported high oil temps have been reported.

If you want to play then you are one who neeeds to pay....NOT the manufacturer and certainly not us customers as a result of people who think your way and then the prices get boosted up

Voted option 1. I think Nissan should at least make it an option.

Not starting a war here, but BMW saw fit to add an oil cooler to the 335i, even though it was not typically being driven under track conditions due to customer and magazine outcry; Mazda did it with the RX8 in adding a 2nd oil cooler. I do not get why Nissan does not at the very least offer it as an option.

ZKindaGuy,

I bet you owned a Yugo and liked it :tup:

I think people have to remember that Nissan had price targets to hit. These cars get judged relentlessly on price, and I think it was seen as critical for them to get under $30K base. They have to cut somewhere, and personally, I'm glad it was on the cooler for two reasons:

- 98% of people will never notice or care that their car doesn't have a cooler. That's a couple hundred bucks they could put elsewhere, like the interior.
- Of the remaining 2%, probably half of us wouldn't be happy with the cooler that Nissan put on there and would want something bigger. Then we would end up paying for a factory cooler we are just going to get rid of. I was glad to just get the one I wanted and have it put on.

I do think the fact that the Nismo doesn't have a cooler is inexcusable, but that's another story. Probably most of those owners won't get it near a track either, but it's pretty lame to advertise something for track use that can't go four laps without overheating.