HELP! My Z is BRAINDEAD!
 

So my brand new 2009 370z has had some trouble starting over the last few months. It's failed to start twice and I have jumped it successfully twice. But last monday night I leave work rather late (10pm). Car started fine, but in the middle of a slight left, my car jolts forward and then my HUD and trip computer flicker and then nothing. I attempt to crank while coasting, nothing.<br/><br/>Called a buddy who swung by with AAA (saved my ***), but AAA couldn't wake up my Z. So I park it and walk home in the rain. Next morning I attempt to jumpstart with another car. 15 minutes, still no pulse. Trip computer, odometer and HUD turn on, cranks but does not start.<br/><br/>So I call this place Tip Top Tow to get it into a dealership (both big mistakes). Flatbed shows up, winch has issues. The tow truck needs a tow truck, tow truck guy loses keys, etc but we get it to the dealership nonetheless.<br/><br/>Once I get there, Service Advisor said it was probably the battery or ECM/ECU, either way they would "proceed under warranty", but that I had to pay for the tow.<br/><br/>WTF?! WARRANTY COVERS TOWING.<br/><br/>I fight it, tow truck driver leaves with paperwork.<br/><br/>Tuesday, service advisor tell me it's not the battery then says he'll call back.<br/><br/>Wednesday service advisor says "there is no measureable oil in the engine" (I'm like "O RLY? Then shouldn't have drivable last 5k miles, not to mention I had my last oil change at the dealer and have paperwork").<br/><br/>Friday, walking to work, the service advisor calls and says they can't get a signal from the ECM/ECU and that it was gonna run me some serious time and coin.<br/><br/>I SWEAR I ALMOST THREW MY PHONE AT A PASSING COP CAR. So pissed.<br/><br/>The ultimatum was he wanted me to authorize an Electronic Wiring Diagnostic for $585 -OR- I could have it towed and not get anything done. Also he stated that the diagnosis may or may not verify that anything is covered by the warranty. Nevertheless, he needed me to decide by end of day Friday because they needed the space. So the decision is this: 1) Tow the car back to my place, and pay for both tows. Car still broken. Or 2) pay for the diagnosis, worst case scenario can't be fixed cheap and I still pay for tow under the warranty exceptions (what is not covered) and still pay for the tows.<br/><br/>BUT THE WARRANTY SAYS ALL LABOR, PARTS AND DIAGNOSTICS ARE COVERED! FML!<br/><br/>So I called Nissan's Consumer Affairs hotline. I'm told someone is looking into may case, awaiting good/bad news today (knowing my luck it's gonna be bad). The only thing that might hurt me is that I have aftermarket Stillen G3 intake kit (which my old mechanic says does not void the warranty).<br/><br/>Anybody out there have any advice? Anything like this happen to anyone else? Should I call the BBB and/or EPA?<br/><br/>

Lemon law that bitch and report the dealer to BBB if they do not want to warranty anything or give Nissan USA a call to see if they can do anything about it.

Absolutely don't have it sent back to you. What are you going to do with a dead Z? Invariably this will be a warrantied issue, regardless of what they say up front. I'd make Nissan USA aware of what's happening as you've done. If a car under warranty has an overt mechanical issue, the consumer doesn't have to pay for diagnostics, regardless of whether they show the problem or not. My wife's Altima had the entire steering column replaced due to a strange sound when turning the wheel. Warranty covered everything and the sound is still there. Your dealer is yanking your johnson.

honestly for dealers and service / attitude like that you should tell the local news to run a story on them for **** service.

that will get their attention.

Like lexus and toyota with the recall? Lady went to the local paper and the world about it. Free maintenance for us.

Alternator's ok?

You're in Los Angeles? Get them to tow it to Fontana Nissan and support a vendor. They'll take care of you.

And tell the dealer to '**** off' when you leave, and never come back. They're full of ****.

Give the service advisor your lawyer's phone number and see if he'll cover the diagnostics.
I'd go to the service manager, then to the GM and absolutely raise the roof. Warranty=no charge.

Yes - isn't warranty work reimbursed by the manuf? (Please correct me if I'm wrong...)

:iagree:

wow.. id def take it out of there and bring to a reputable dealer that you know will do the right thing. why would you have to pay a dime??? makes no sense.

help need legal advise too.my car is now at the dealership because one of the rods is hitting the spark plugs from what they say. and one the service manager pulls me aside and asks if i drift the car or over revved it.i was kind of offended because i think this guy thinks i drive like there no tomorrow. maybe im young and asian but i definitely work my *** off to have nice things and value my belongings. it felt like profiling. my gas mileage is 22.1 mpg city driving and theres still a good amount rubber on my tires with 18000 miles and he told that that those tires are good for 15k. i believe just by looking at that could tell someones driving habits and i have a perfect driving records no accidents or tickets.advise anybody pls?

Just tell him you don't drift it or over-rev it, then make them fix it.

OP, don't let the dealer charge you a penny. Make sure all your paper work is in order, especially all maintenance work done by the dealer just in case a "computer error" suddenly erases your record. Good luck and make sure Nissan USA knows the vehicle is dealer maintained in case oil change issues arise.

In my experience, I got the same story initially from the dealer when my airbag light started flashing. The whole we'll diagnose the car, there is a potential charge if it is not under warranty. I was initially perturbed by the whole "not under warranty talk" but I knew it was covered so I signed off confidently. I wouldn't move it, who is to stop them from putting in the computer that it is not a warrantied issue and later have another dealer give you a hard time. Ask yourself if you did anything wrong, abuse etc if not then stay confident the warranty will cover it and you can look at the dealer later and say "I told you so."

Dealerships will grill you for potential reasons to put it on you. Just stick to the facts that you put in your post and you'll be fine, I hope its a quick fix. Remember to void the warranty a dealer must show that your direct actions caused the issue. If your car isn't modded and you don't drive like an *** it'll be ok.

+1 for having it towed to Fontana Nissan
Chris the mechanic there is very knowledgeable. He works on the 370s and GTRs.

http://www.the370z.com/members/xdesl...l-possible.jpg

redwolfmendoz.. It is the alternator. Same thing happened to my 350Z when I bought it new years ago. The dealer replaced the alternator for me under the warranty.

pull out your 9 and bust a cap in them beeches

That's a hell of a first post

This and that is it. Of curse you should of taken it when the problem started. But either way its under warranty.

Kenchan, the Service Advisor said the alternator was fine along with the battery being fine, this was last Tuesday 09/21/10.

Update: I got a call from Nissan Consumer affairs. Nice of them to call me and leave a voicemail 2 minutes before end of business day. Anyways, I should be able to get a ruling today.

I did my research on The California Lemon Law. Before I can pull that card, it states that a) there must have been more than one repair attempt by the manufacturer or b) must have been out of service (while at the manufacturer) for at least 30 days. So far they haven't even touched it, because they want to get paid and it's only been 7 days.

This is a sad turn of events for a diehard Nissan fanboy...:shakes head:

> pull out your 9 and bust a cap in them beeches

Haha. I would, but I sold my Berreta 92FS. However I have a Kimber Custom II that's eager to bark. lol :)

92FS :drool:

Update: Just got off the phone with Stillen. The dude there says they haven't heard any issues with any of their products voiding any of Nissan's Warranty. Also says "if anything it might be a blown MAF Sensor, but since the Service Advisor at Santa Monica Nissan and his team say they aren't able to get a response from the computer it wouldn't the the intake's fault anyway. It's just a set of pipes, flanges and filters. No wiring required."

Also tried calling the Nissan Consumer Affairs rep back just now. She game me a bad extension. Anyways, someone else at NCA said the first rep updated my case saying that she wasn't able to reach the service dept at Santa Monica Nissan... ??? So I guess they're gonna try and contact me again in 2 days? Or maybe the service advisor is ******* me (and my rep) around.

I have a shattered knee from snowboarding. Walking 6 miles to work sucks. The only way to get around here is by bus or walking. Parking is a biatch. But Nissan won't offer a rental until they determine something IS IN FACT covered by the warranty (and even then they said the rental is for 1 day)...

ANGRY. RAGE. GOING TO SUE. COLLECTING TESTIMONIES AT THE MOMENT.

Unleash your fiery rage on them.

sorry to hear about your troubles. being without your z sucks.
anyway if it's under factory warranty your covered.
that dealership is full of --it! stand your ground.
and once you get your car fixed right spread the word about those crooks.
tell anyone who will listen,news bbb,etc.
then write a letter to the GM at the dealer and tell them to kiss your -ss.

Update: 8 days after towing my baby to the dealer.

No response from anyone at Nissan Consumer Affairs. I've been given 4 bad phone numbers/extensions for who to call. NCA says they can't reach anyone at the service dept, service department not calling me back. And each time NCA leaves a voicemail (because they like to call at 5:59pm PST) they say they'll follow up with me in 2 business days.

I've since dusted off my old 2001 Ford Focus (meaning I took it back from my dad lol). It's crap-tacular but it beats walking.

I thought of Lemon Lawing my car maybe to get all my money back (and close the loan on it) and using that money to patch up my Z32.

I thought about calling up the service dept and just telling them to go ahead with the diagnostic, hoping that the warranty will reimburse me - but they can't do anything until NCA gives a ruling.

Why does this have to be so difficult? :eekdance:

Isn't offering a warranty and not honoring it fraud? Would a call to the attorney general help?

Man this whole thing blows! Not getting a good feeling about Nissan Corporate when I hear things like this. Good luck, man!

You could have the work done, but don't pay a penny and fight it afterwards.

As long as your confident that nothing you did damaged the car, it should be covered by Nissan. Try not to do everything over the phone. Go down to the dealer, speak to the manager and tell them Nissan Consumer Affairs has been trying to contact them. They should have easy access to a Nissan rep anyway, so getting things squared away should be a no brainer. Make sure you don't leave dealership until the rep and service manager talk on the phone.

Update: 10 days after towing into dealer.

I got a call from like the 3rd rep at NAC. She called late evening (as usual per these aholes) to introduce herself and assure me that everything was going to be okay - you know, that whole fake customer service pat-on-the-back deal - but that I needed to explain everything all over again (GROAN).

After repeating myself for the 3rd time, she said that she would be calling me tommorow (09/30/10). When I asked what time she would call me, she said she couldn't. When I asked her to at least ballpark it for me (like say "oh you know, between 12-6pm") she said that it would be a legal issue.

LEGAL ISSUE? Just to tell me what time I would expect her call? I work all day and go in and out of meetings, sometimes I stay late at night - why is a simple heads up such a hassle?

Anyway, it's like 3pm - still no call.

Thanks for all your advice bros. This is what I'm gonna do. If/when this rep calls today, if I don't like the tone of her voice or if she starts to give me a bunch of crap I'm going to call both the BBB and the EPA and try and get in contact with KCAL and KTTV (Fox). Not only that I will head straight into the dealership and start yelling at managers for this outrage/disrespect and how the service advisor basically told me to F*** OFF.

Last week he said, and I quote "you can pay the $585 for the wiring diagnostic, or you can have it towed out - it's really up to you"...

Spread the word.

Update: 13 days later. The NCA rep called me back. She said the final decision was the I or someone else jump-started the car incorrectly and that damages to my car are not covered under the warranty.

FML

Just got off the phone with the BBB. They said I had to fill out a complaint form and wait 2-4 weeks.

Sorry to hear that...Sucks man, hope you get it all worked out in the end.

Did you jump start it?

Time for a lawyer...

Why did you need a jump start in the first place?

How could you jump start the car wrong ? Dude I would not leave the service department until I got a written document on " what you did and how it caused your issue " and what is it that's actualy broken or malfunctioning . Sounds like an ecu issue to me.

This is crazy talk.

That's BS.
They are trying to catch your words and kick your car from the dealer by one of your arguments. It should be covered by the warranty, don't take your car out of the dealer, leave it there until everything is solved.
If they continue to argue, then send a letter to Nissan USA, and get oriented with a lawyer.

Is there a reason why you didn't call roadside assistance vice calling a tow truck yourself?


+ to -. It happens.

As a result of incorrect boosting maybe?



What about the oil or lack thereof? What did the dealer say about that?

so due to jumpstarting the car wrong,somehow it used up a measurable amount of oil. doesnt make sense.first they say your problem was not enough oil and now its beacause of you jumpstarting it wrong. get a written report from them on their findings of the oil consumption,then get another written document of why their voiding your warranty due to jumpstarting it wrong. then read them back to them together.if still doesnt work, read it back to a lawyer.they'll definetly hear money coming through their pockets. i got written reports on me and now their giving me a whole new engine and never questioned me again.