[markincc]

furious, i'm here to share our problems and advise.I'm a software engineer that has been working in automotive plants for the past 13 years so i know quite a bit about car assembly. Our vehicle is a 2004 se offroad armada built in june of 2004. My wife just picked it up after our umpteenth trip to the dealer. Ed Hicks nissan in Corpus Christi has been working on it lately and seems to go deaf and blind everytime we drop our vehicle off with them. Apparantly, they don't have access to the TSB as you and I do, because they don't perform them as I request. They just delivered the vehicle to my wife with fingerprints all over the interior and the carpets dirtied by greasy shoes. We just retained a lawyer and are trying for a buyback. here is a list of the problems we have
fuel door scraping paint and misaligned and missing rubber stop - 4 trips still no better
Airconditioning wont turn off on long drives. 4 trips and it is still just my imagination
Interior rattles, headliner removed 5 times, one door out of 5 repaired other doors don't make noise when at the dealer
rear air conditioing fan makes noise but no air comes out. they fixed this but claimed they did nothing
knocking noise coming from engine - this is just my imagination even though a TSB exist detailing the exact noise
drive line vibration under acceleration - this is my tires according to the dealer
rubber backing falling off of overhead storage and drink holder, they superglued these for me and made a big mess
broken plastic from previous disassemblies glued again
air conditioning condensor fan mounts replaced - did not correct knocking noise
brakes turned and finally replaced - have not tested them but so far so good
front door sagging, supposedly fixed now
seats squeaking - again, my imagination but they did perform tsb on front seat.
transmission shifting erratic, resolved with a pcm update. i practically had to bring them a copy of the file to get this done.
front fenders scratched by dealer during brushgaurd installation. "this was like that already" (i drove it for 12 hours before turning it in for dealer prep)

Don't let the dealers push you around. document everything and get a lawyer specializing in lemon laws. it will cost you about 400 and is worth every penny. just the mention of having a lawyer will make the dealer at least listen to your complaints. :boxing:

 

[casinojames]

Awesome post for unfortunate reasons. Good luck with this bro.

 

[92TripleBlack]

Have you tried another dealer? I have 4 to pick from and only 2 I would consider going too.

 

[markincc]

yes i have

Have you tried another dealer? I have 4 to pick from and only 2 I would consider going too.

originally we were going to townsend nissan in tuscaloosa, alabama. they were terrible - I'd urinate in my pants before asking to use their bathroom at this point. We tried Ed hicks and our first impression was good. now i'm furious after they covered the interior with sealant - aka grease. my problem is that Townsend (where i bought it) promised to install the factory dvd player as a condition of purchase. they sent it to a fly by night stereo shop that did a lousy job of installing it (long story) anyway, now if the muffler rattles, the excuse is my aftermarket dvd system that the dealer shamued me with :temphot:

 

[ggeorgie]

furious, i'm here to share our problems and advise.I'm a software engineer that has been working in automotive plants for the past 13 years so i know quite a bit about car assembly. Our vehicle is a 2004 se offroad armada built in june of 2004. My wife just picked it up after our umpteenth trip to the dealer.:

I am sorry to hear about all the problems you are having with your car, I know you are not slamming the door on the Armada, but it seems like its a dealer problem from begining, the dealer did hotrod it before delivering it to you. dealers like this one, gives a very bad reputation to Nissan, its a good thing you hired an attorney, and I wish you good luck, this dealer should be eleminated from the Nissan dealers, and by saying that this and that is your imagination, they are labeling you by being crazy if I may. again good luck and let us know the outcome :clever:

 

[markincc]

dealer partially to blame

I am sorry to hear about all the problems you are having with your car, I know you are not slamming the door on the Armada, but it seems like its a dealer problem from begining, the dealer did hotrod it before delivering it to you. dealers like this one, gives a very bad reputation to Nissan, its a good thing you hired an attorney, and I wish you good luck, this dealer should be eleminated from the Nissan dealers, and by saying that this and that is your imagination, they are labeling you by being crazy if I may. again good luck and let us know the outcome :clever:

I partly blame myself for trusting the dealership in the first place. :fullofit: However, the dvd install may be causing rattles in the overhead console (i doubt it at this point ) but the doors and seats have been the biggest issues all along. Our lemon law qualifying problems are the rear door rattles - and the ac compressor clutch sticking and ace in the hole which i won't advertise. Thanks for the sympathy - this site is great btw ADDED: If our nissan did not rattle so much i would rate it as the best thing with 4 tires under it (okay, it has 5 under it) nissan has to prove to me that they are serious about customer satisfaction. we had several nissans before this which were great. Working in the automtive assembly industry i have seen how pressure to get to market can quickly win over quality problems. Nissan knew they were sending problems out the door. I am certain of it.

 

[ggeorgie]

really, you don't have to blame yourself for trusting the dealer, you paid dearly for your SUV, and the dealer shouldn't give you the nightmare you are having. good luck with the lawyer

 

[Houston_Rider]

Mark, I'm in CC....

I bought in Victoria, but Ed Hicks has serviced it 3 times for brakes.

I'm really, really close to going the Lemon route for my '05 brakes. I'ts been in 4 times for the brake shudder, the first time (4,000m)they told me the upgrade had already been done and asked me who torqued the wheels down to 160lbs plus? I told them I guess nissan did. They said all they could do is turn the rotors and after 3 days of checking it out and telling me to come pick it up, they needed another day because the service guy forgot to do the work.They did however say they replaced the front rotors. 2nd time (11,000m) the same shudder. I took it in and they said the rotors were at 160lbs+ of torque. (I think their wrenches are screwed). They said they turned to rotors and sent me on my way. Its scheduled to go in late next week for guess what? Brake Shudder..(17,000m). I contacted Nissan Corp for the 2nd visit and they said a Regional Guy would call me but I never heard anything. I like the car, but can't stand having to take it in all the time. (btw, i've put 17k+ on this since Aug '05).

Can you lemme know who is handling your lemon suit? (pm me if you prefer)

Thanks!

 

[ockevin]

Also remember to print out the TSB before you go to the dealer. If they dont have acces to them, they are a liar. It comes up on the Nissan computer.

I did bring the TSB's with me to the dealer and show them I know what I am doing and correct about the sounds and problems.

I did have one problem that the dealer said there is no fix for...my front seat moved excessively from side to side. I called Nissan Consumer Affairs and they took care of the problems in 24 hours and authorized a brand new seat to fix the problem. They even called after the new seat was installed, to see if the repair was acceptable to ME. Nissan also authorized a rental for me.

I think the problems that most people are having are related to Dealers' not fixing the problems. Nissan has given the dealers the tools to fix them and the local dealer chooses not to do it correctly. I would report the dealer to Nissan Consumer Affairs , (as I did for a dealer that I purchased the car from and had problems). Nissan then suggested a different dealer and took care of making an appointment for me and arranged a rental for my bad experience at the other dealer.

Good luck....

 

[Ericmabrams]

Kevin is correct. The '03 nissan 350z's had problem after problem. It turned out that the cars were actually bullet proof, it was the dealers all along. Your bet bet is to work with Nissan Consumer Affairs. They will assign a case worker, contact the dealer manager on your behalf, authorize repairs, and will go out of their way. I've had 3 new nissan trucks and one 350Z since 2000. I've had small issues on all of them. Brake shudder has been a problem across the nissan line. It's been a problem with the 2000-to present frontiers since day one. However, for them there is no fix. If you are seriously in love with the car, you can always purchase a brake kit for $1,500.00 and cure the problem for good. Sure it's money that you should not have to spend. But, it increases performance over stock, looks really cool, and will solve your problem for the life of the automobile.

However, contact Nissan Consumer Affairs. If you mention you've retained an attorney they are no longer authorized to assist you, so keep that bit of info in your back pocket. Just find a nice agent and stick with him/her.

On the 350z boards there used to be one individual agent that everyone would call. It's to bad that there is not an agent's extention posted here that we can all use and trust. It made a great difference when everyone began contacting Nissan Consumer Affairs. All of the sudden 40 grand sports cars, turned into driveable machines, and have since stayed that way.

MY two cents,
Eric

 

[leigh]

I totally agree - it IS the dealership - I never realized what a fantastic dealership I had until I read all these posts all these past few months about the Nissan nightmares - I bought my 04 in December of 03, and the only problem I ever had with it was the brakes. I've never experienced any of these door problems, rattles, knocks and seat things that I've been reading - mine's been perfect. But my dealership is awesome - the brake shaking and dust I had to repair in 5 trips (I think) but the last time they put the "real" brakes on it - but they always went above and beyond with my car and me - they always washed it, filled it up with gas and one time gave me a gift certificate for dinner! I just can't believe these dealers who brush you off and leave dirt and grease all over everything! They definitely should be reported - I wrote a letter to Nissan praising my dealership for all their service. When I buy another Nissan, and I will, it will definitely be from Sutherlin. I hope everything works out for you and you either get yours fixed or another one and hopefully, with a pleasant experience!

 

[Campfamily]

In my experience, Nissan Customer Affairs is no more effective than the dealer. They promise call-backs, then it never happens. When you call their extension, all you get is voice mail. I had an issue with my Maxima, and after getting no satisfaction with the dealer (Miller Nissan in Van Nuys), Nissan said they would look into it. Took nearly three months to get any action out of Nissan (eventually, they agreed with me, and I got my $900 back). Nissan customer service is pathetic, not only at the dealer, but at the manufacturer as well. They need to take lessons from Saturn. Their service was so good, they achieved a near cult following around a line of crappy cars! Imagine how good Nissan would be if they had the Saturn customer service, and the awesome Nissan product!!!

Keith

 

[jim ballardjim ballard]

tires

In your quest, you might mention that the tires they put on the Armada during manufacturing aren't rated to tow the 9100lbs that Nissan brags about. I bought my car specifically to tow a horse trailer and recently discovered the tires I have been towing on aren't safe for it. I have been in contact with Nissan (1-800-nissan1 to open a claim, they of course say they are fine) NHTSA at 1-888-327-4236 to open a claim, they are now investigating it, and Continental tires at 1-800-847-3349 who said, "No those aren't the right tires to be towing that amount, they aren't rated for it." You might want to call the NHTSA and get on the books for the tires as well as all your other issues. Whew, I thought we had problems between the brakes, gas guage, trailering harness and now the brakes. You've got us beat by a long shot! Good Luck with the lemon law!!

 

[BlakSpyda]

Damn Good information.

Thanks for posting it.

 

[bluenoser]

understand

I partly blame myself for trusting the dealership in the first place. :fullofit: However, the dvd install may be causing rattles in the overhead console (i doubt it at this point ) but the doors and seats have been the biggest issues all along. Our lemon law qualifying problems are the rear door rattles - and the ac compressor clutch sticking and ace in the hole which i won't advertise. Thanks for the sympathy - this site is great btw ADDED: If our nissan did not rattle so much i would rate it as the best thing with 4 tires under it (okay, it has 5 under it) nissan has to prove to me that they are serious about customer satisfaction. we had several nissans before this which were great. Working in the automtive assembly industry i have seen how pressure to get to market can quickly win over quality problems. Nissan knew they were sending problems out the door. I am certain of it.

I have had a few of the same problems, but thankfullt O'Reagans Nissan In halifax has been a godsend. We have 2 nissan dealers, one in hfx and one in Dartmouth, and the one in Dartmouth I wouldn't take a bicycle too, but O'regans has treated me like gold, and tomorrow is my first " brake judder" appointment, so we'll see :2cool: ...