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30K Service, is this too much?

11K views 16 replies 8 participants last post by  mgthe3  
#1 ·
Just had my 2006 SL in for its 30k service.

Had Oil Change, Complete Induction Service, Power Flush Cooling System with Nissan Coolan, Complete BG Trans Flush 10 Qts, Brake system flush with new fluid and an air filter. All this for the bargain price of $582.00

Is this overboard? I dont mind taking care of the car, and to be honest I used to change all fluids in my Mountaineer yearly and that lasted to 187k miles.

Whats your opinion on this?
 
#2 ·
Backdoctor,
I think you need a proctologist on this one. :moon:

Complete Induction Service ?!? :rolleyes:

Power Flush Cooling System?!? :8:

Complete BG Trans Flush 10 Qts?!? :headshake

Brake system flush with new fluid?!? :8:

Your MO is only two years old with 30,000 miles. According to the most stringent manufacturer recommendations (Schedule 1) the only fluid that needed to be changed was the engine oil.

Induction service on a two-year-old modern car with only 30,000 miles is a complete waste of time and money.

The OEM engine coolant has a 4-year/60,000 mile replacement interval. Yours was at the midpoint.

Unless you regularly tow a 3,500 pound trailer up Pikes Peak there was no need to replace the CVT fluid. Nissan does not even recommend checking it's condition until 60,000 miles.

Don't even get me started on the brake fluid.

Did the dealer change the cabin air filter? Rotate the tires?

If you had an honest dealer he would have simply changed the oil, oil filter, engine and cabin air filters, and rotated the tires, all for around $100. That is all that is called for by Nissan.

Your dealer did what was good for him, not what was good for your MO. :4:

End of rant...

-njjoe
 
#3 ·
thanks for the reply.

The last oil change they had some guy come and take samples of the fluids out to compare to fresh fluids. The various oils did look cloudier and nasty, but wtf do I know.

Guess I coulda saved the money. I did read here somewhere that folks were changing the trans fluid at 30k. I didnt know the coolant lasted that long.

I am in south florida, could the heat affect it more here?
 
#4 ·
backdoctor,

sorry, but you were taken to the cleaners.....Joe explained it very well.

South Florida heat shoul dnot affect the cooling fluid. They typically last 100,000 miles/5 years.....
 
#7 ·
Backdoctor said:
I looked up the service recommendations online

http://www.nissanusa.com/owning/vehicle-care/maintenance.html

I guess they follow the Premium service?

The Nissan Service Manual, which is drafted by Nissan, lists only two maintenence schedules - Schedule 1 and Schedule 2. Nowhere in the manufacturer's documentation is there any reference to "Premium Service".

"Premium Service" was concocted by NissanUSA to generate more revenue for their dealerships.

Now having said all that, did you get your moneys worth? Did your dealer do all of the items listed on the 30,000-mile Premium Service list?
-Replace differential oil
-Replace engine drive belts
-Replace radiator cap
-Replace wiper blades
-Rotate tires

If not, then he has some explaining to do.

-njjoe
 
#8 ·
njjoe said:

The Nissan Service Manual, which is drafted by Nissan, lists only two maintenence schedules - Schedule 1 and Schedule 2. Nowhere in the manufacturer's documentation is there any reference to "Premium Service".

"Premium Service" was concocted by NissanUSA to generate more revenue for their dealerships.

Now having said all that, did you get your moneys worth? Did your dealer do all of the items listed on the 30,000-mile Premium Service list?
-Replace differential oil
-Replace engine drive belts
-Replace radiator cap
-Replace wiper blades
-Rotate tires

If not, then he has some explaining to do.

-njjoe
They did balance and rotate the tires. I hope they at least checked the differential oil. As for the wipers, I replaced them at the dealer earlier this year, wont make that mistake again, $60 freekin dollars for OEM wiper blades. As for the radiator cap, I'll have to find out about that one.. ;-)
 
#9 ·
I would *not* do the BG trans flush on the CVT. That flush uses normal ATF with detergents and pressurizes it through the transmission. Use only Nissan NS-2 CVT fluid in the transmission!
 
#11 ·
Backdoctor said:


I will check the bill again, but I believe they posted 10 qts of CVT fluid. I hope so!
If they used CVT fluid for the flush, thats a total of 20 qts they would need - 10 for the flush, and 10 to refill the system.
 
#12 ·
Backdoctor said:


They did balance and rotate the tires. I hope they at least checked the differential oil. As for the wipers, I replaced them at the dealer earlier this year, wont make that mistake again, $60 freekin dollars for OEM wiper blades. As for the radiator cap, I'll have to find out about that one.. ;-)
Who goes to a dealer for wiper blades (or tires, batteries, brake fluid `flushes,' etc.)? No wonder they took you to the proverbial cleaners on that phoney 30K service.
 
#13 ·
nafddur said:


Who goes to a dealer for wiper blades (or tires, batteries, brake fluid `flushes,' etc.)? No wonder they took you to the proverbial cleaners on that phoney 30K service.
What can I tell you. Time is a precious commodity. I really dont have a lot of free time to go to a tire place for tires, oil change place for oil change, etc.

I also had the grill replaced under warranty due to delamination. My oil change was free as it was my birthday, and I got 10% off the rest of the service. I also have the tires rotated every other oil change, not at 7500 miles as they recommend as the dealership is a 30 minute drive, and an extra trip for that is a waste of time.

I kept my last SUV for 187K miles, I plan to keep this one a while, so taking care of it in a time efficient manner is important. Can I get stuff done cheaper, yes. I used to use a local oil change place for flushes and such, but I didnt think they would have the CVT fluid. I dont have the time to do mechanical things on my own. If I had known the wiper blades were THAT expensive, I would have gone to the local parts store. I never dreamed they would cost that much. Live and learn.

So its nice to be smug and judgemental from a distance, but poor manners such as that are at a premium from people who are anonymous via the internet.
 
#14 ·
There's nothing wrong with going to the dealer for service. What IS wrong is when they see it as an opportunity to take advantage of the customer. If the customer likes the way the vehicle operates which is using all OEM or OEM-spec components why not go to the dealer to replace those components with OEM ones? If the price difference between the OEM and the aftermarket part isn't excessive, why risk it?

I personally do not visit the dealer for tires or batteries but only because I know how competitive those industries are and I'm almost certain I can find a much better price than the dealer. If the dealer is within ~$20 of the lowest price I find though then I consider it breaking even after spending time looking up stores, calling around to get the best price, and dealing with poor CSR attitude.
 
#15 ·
I think in the end, while dealers *should not* rip their customers off, they also offer busy customers a convenient service - that of factory trained technicians working on your vehicle, and you don't have to worry about them using the wrong parts. Of course, any *good* independent shop would do the same thing, but I can understand how some people would rather "set it and forget it" with regards to maintenance. This doesn't give the dealership an excuse to charge crazy high prices, but the expectation should be that one pays more for the convenience.

The way I see it, the time people take to research what their vehicle really needs, is a way of paying one's self by saving money on repairs. For those people who spend no time worrying about their vehicle, their time saved is translated to the additional cost at the dealership. Its nice to be able to get advice on forums like this, but it is no substitute for spending a little bit of time and flipping to the back of the owners manual for the maintenance schedule.
 
#16 ·
Backdoctor-

Many Nissan dealers do not have a good reputation when it comes to service. It is a shame, because you would think that they are the people best prepared to maintain and repair your MO. Many dealers, like mine, are poor trouble-shooters and always try to upsell services you do not need.

In an ideal world, with honest Nissan dealers, you would be able to drop off your MO and say simply "fix it", and they would repair whatever was wrong without recommending "throttle body cleaning" and brake overhauls and tranny flushes.

That is why I recommend finding a reputable mechanic who can do the non-warranty work on your MO. That way you will not be spending "$60 freekin dollars for OEM wiper blades". Ask your friends and co-workers and see who they use for non-warranty work.

Years ago I was referred to a mechanic who ran a two-man garage located in a dingy part of an industrial park. The building had no waiting room and the bathroom was something out of a horror movie but there was a one or two week wait for an appointment and they did excellent work at a fair price. The place never advertised their services and relied on word-of-mouth. I was able to drop my Jeep off and say simply fix it and knew I was in good hands. Too bad I moved from there. I would have trusted them with my MO.

-njjoe
 
#17 ·
Along the lines of your last post...

I had a mechanic that serviced 3 cars I had in a row.
They were located in a little place on Buford hiway here called Mechanicsville. It has shop upon shop for everything under the sun.
Folks from all over the south still go to several places like Doraville Drivelines, the best dam suspension/driveshaft place around.

Then my shop retired its mechanics (grandfather/father) and started using their son.
The last thing I took them was a chevy crewcab dually. It needed a water pump. I had already purchased the hoses for the radiator from me looking at it... and I placed them in the front passenger seat when I dropped it off.
When I picked it up, there sat the hoses right where I had left them.
I opened the hood when I got home....
The altenator bracket had been removed and put back on upside down.
The fan was barely on the clutch with two of the four metric bolts having a standard nut air hammered about 1/16th from touching its mating surface.
I took it back and showed them.
The guy says, I'm sorry, the mechanic is legally blind.

I said, no sheet. :headslap:

They didn't offer to fix it right.
They never saw me again....and....I have done all work on my cars since.
It's a bytch, but it is done perfectly.

Besides, I have two male slaves called 15 and 18 year old sons.

I do 30% and supervise the other 70%.

:2: