Nissan Consumer Affairs - Rant

bclarke22

All,

I have about had it with Nissan. I'm not a basher - I've owned a few Nissans - in fact my first 1979 280ZX ran like a tank. But I'm at my wits end.

I have been experiencing a hard start issue ( See thread in Engine/Drivetrain forum - Rough Start - Something Seems Wrong ) with my '09 370Z Touring for well over a year now. I'm in year 2 of a 3 year lease. The dealership cannot figure out the issue - they have just thrown parts at the car (Fuel pump, IPDM, ECU, Vent Tube assembly, replaced fuses, key coding system, Battery, etc etc). My car has been in the service department on at least 12 separate occasions (cumulatively over a month). I contacted Nissan Consumer Affairs due to the lack of the dealerships ability to solve the issue.

Since contacting Nissan in April I have had my file # transferred to 5 (count 'em FIVE) separate Consumer Affairs Specialists - each time having to re-explain to each person the details (which are now lengthy - 23 pages) of my hard start issue. I have now requested to speak to a supervisor on 3 separate occasions - which has been refused. They literally will NOT refer you to a supervisor. They claims to have a "process" in place that requires them to send an electronic message to the supervisor - and takes 4-8 business hours to process. Well - it never gets processed. Seemingly they work independently without supervision - they claim to not even know their supervisor name or telephone extension. How nice would that be?

The Consumer Affairs Specialists gather your information and document it - but don't seem to take any action. They fill out ficticious "paperwork" to escalate your issue - but nothing ever comes of it. They are full of promises to call you back - but never do. They use terms like "I apologize for the inconvenience" without really meaning it. I don't want apologies anymore -- I want some action!! "Sorry" does not start my car in the morning. Is that too much to ask from a major corporation?

I finally had a data monitoring device installed by Nissan (in an attempt to find the problem) - That was over a month ago - no results, no one seems to know where it is now?? Really?? Are you kidding me??

This is likely one of the most frustrating/comical/mind-boggling situations I've ever experienced in my 49 years of life on this planet. I'm SERIOUSLY concerned about the stability of this company. It is becoming brutally obvious that Nissan Corporation does not care about me (and likely you) as a consumer of their product. They are trying to wear me down with B.S., Lack of Communication, Incompetence, Red-Tape, Promises of Solutions etc etc etc. I am NOT GOING AWAY!! I call them back and ask them why they do not fulfill their promises to call me by noon, I call them for updates (that they cannot provide), I question their processes. I will not be defeated. I will probably never buy another Nissan ever again. But they do not care, someone else will...

Be aware of your specific states "lemon law" - I'm in VA. You have 18 months from the date you take delivery, you MUST contact Nissan Corporation in writing and advise them of the issue formally. Unfortunately I am a victim of listening to the Service Manager's promises of "Give them time...we'll make things good..." and time ran out.

Good luck to you all...you will need it. I feel better now

onzedge

^^the paragraph is your friend^^
Otherwise, interesting.

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Koni|Swift|Michelin|Motordyne|Berk|RJM Performance|Gates|SPL|Motul|Technafit|Ate Super Blue|Hawk
Tommy Kaira|Momo|Optima|Hella|Hotchkis|Red Line|ZSpeed|Stillen|B&M|H&R

Gunzero

:/// im sorry. none of the car manufacturers really care about anybody.

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bclarke22

onzedge - you are correct. I typed that in one breath Sorry for my lack of proper punctuation/grammar etc. It's months of frustration built up into one sentence

onzedge

Sorry man. I wanted to read it carefully, but on a Friday I need smaller chunks of words. I think you are getting screwed and, if I were you, would consider an attorney. I hate how companies don't just own up and make things right without all the BS.

Good luck, OK?

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Koni|Swift|Michelin|Motordyne|Berk|RJM Performance|Gates|SPL|Motul|Technafit|Ate Super Blue|Hawk
Tommy Kaira|Momo|Optima|Hella|Hotchkis|Red Line|ZSpeed|Stillen|B&M|H&R

shadoquad

Bad enough to buy a lemon, but then to get the runaround...

bclarke22

onzedge - All is good. I thought about consulting an attorney. But I don't know if it would do any good now. I'm beyond the confines of the VA "lemon law". Unless I thought I would reap some benefit, other than them taking the car back, I don't know if the cash outlay is worth the end result. Thanks for your input. Enjoy the weekend.

b1adesofcha0s

Have you talked to the people at the dealership about possibly trading for a different one? I realize that you are past the lemon law period, but maybe if they are cool they might do it.

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Project: b1adeZmobile 2.0 (2014 C7 Z51) | Corsa Xtreme Exhaust

Rui Z

It took Nissan about 10 months to refund my cancelled extended warranty. Yup, 10 months just for a refund. Good luck to you.

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bclarke22

b1adesofcha0s,

Yes I did - however I was not willing to extend my lease, which they wanted me to do. I have lived up to my end of the contract; Nissan should live up to their end - providing me with a car that operates properly. If they would have offered a new (comparable vehicle) with the same lease end date - I would have accepted.

gbrettin

Sounds like you need to find a better mechanic. Seriously. I think dealerships get ranked differently depending on knowledge set their mechanics provide.

Perhaps try a different dealership is what I'm getting at.

Cmike2780

It seems like they're trying to fix it at least. OP,Sorry to hear you had so many problems. Just remember though, at the end of the day, most of these guys are just people. Not the most skilled, but still....I digress. Their basic mentality is, if they can't find the problem in front of them, they can't fix it. Corporate should have treated you better, but it seemed like they were doing everything possible on their end. I doubt a supervisor could be of further assistance. Trust me, I've been in the same boat with my past car (Mazda). They were far less helpful than what you're going through with Nissan. They just flat out said they couldn't do anything to help me. After 6 trips to the dealer and still having issues, I decided to do my own research and told the dealer what part to replace. Whatyaknow.....problem solved.

Best of luck

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djpheer

For the record I have the exact same issue and Nissan cannot fix it. I have called literally 15 dealers accross 2 states to see if anyone has a solution to this problem and NOBODY does. So sad.

b1adesofcha0s

Man, that sucks. You could try to take it to a Nissan master tech outside of a dealership to find the problem and then have the dealership fix it. I don't know of any in VA, but Frank at Hill's Garage in Baltimore is pretty good from what I here. Also, which dealership are you going to in VA? If you ask around in the Mid-Atlantic section, there are plenty of people who can recommend a good dealership and who to talk to there as well.

Good luck man, I hope everything works out.

__________________
Project: b1adeZmobile (2009 370Z) | Uprev Tune by AAM Competition | Berk Exhaust
Project: b1adeZmobile 2.0 (2014 C7 Z51) | Corsa Xtreme Exhaust

bclarke22

At this point, I have a feeling Nissan would not honor further warranty work if I had service performed by anyone other than a dealership. I have ZERO faith in Nissan, Consumer Affairs and/or anyone affiliated with Nissan. They cannot fix my problem, have have denied my request to take the vehicle back. Which leaves me (the consumer) where??? This isn't some minor picky issue that I've made up or caused by abuse on my part. I've been extremely patient and accommodating - this has been happening for over a year now. And they've pretty much decided that that they are not going to do anything about it. As I stated earlier, I am one person...they do not care if I buy another Nissan.