Saikou

I apologize in advanced for the extremely long story to be told please read it for you own safety. I would also like to apologize for any grammatical mistakes and lack of flow that may hinder the reading experience.

Also note that this story had several other incidents that proceed this one, and that I do not wish to post them seeing as they will only be even more extremely long post stories .

So here it goes.
I had a 04 enthusiasts, right after purchasing it used with 36k miles I had noticed that my clutch was slipping within the same week that I had bought it. I then proceeded in asking others if I was just going crazy or are my suspicions correct. Some agreed that it was in fact slipping and others simply called me crazy, stating “Why would they sell you a car with a ****ty clutch, it’s pretty much brand new".

So I decided just to drive the car normally thinking it was all in my head. And low and behold my clutch blows while driving to a friend’s house; at this point I was confused and pretty angry. As this happens, in my mind I was thinking "luckily I had purchased a warranty" .

So I then irately walk to my friends house which is not close to say the least. He gives me a ride back to my car and we proceed in pushing the it to the side of the rode (it’s about 3am approximately 30-35 degrees Fahrenheit) and we decided to leave it there until morning and call tow truck then. He then kindly gives me a ride home, as the new day rises I proceed to calling my father to tell him just exactly what had happened to the car. He is shocked and offers to me one of his 12 yearly towing allowances since he has yet to use one this year, I gladly accept. He then asks if I had called the dealer ship as of yet, I simply replied that I had thus far not done so. He then says that they should be able to pick up my car free of charge straight to their servicing center. This would save my dad towing and save me the hassle of bring the car to my house then to their service center, when I could just have them pick up the car where it is now and have them take it straight to their location.

So I proceeded in calling the dealership and the man I had spoken to on the phone assures me that in fact it will be free and all they need is the location of the car. And to be at the dealership within the hour so they can run a diagnostic. So I arrive at the dealership and the man with the tow truck is there demanding payment the dealer then looks directly at me expecting me to pay the 300 dollars he is demanding for towing the car form San Jose to Fremont. I had told the dealer that I had been told it was going to be free of charge; they then proceed in telling me that the free towing service is only for “new” cars! I was not told that over the phone, they then apologize for not telling me and still have me pay for the towing. At this point I am extremely irritated. They then tell me they are going to run a 50 dollar diagnostic to see exactly what is wrong with the car, even thought I had told then for sure it was the clutch. They tell me to come back tomorrow to check the results.

So I agree and come back the following day, and guess what!? There diagnostic show that it was in fact the clutch! Wow! Thank you for making me pay 50 dollars for something I already knew and had told them previously. They tell me the repairs are going to cost $2000! For a new clutch to be installed, I was a little shocked brand new OEM clutch run about 500, correct? So that is 1500 in labor I wasn’t sure is that was normal, but I had told them I had purchased a warranty with the car, and I should not have to pay for the repairs. We then had a very long conversation with them telling me that the warranty is only for the engine and the transmission not the clutch. The clutch is a wear and tear item, and wear and tear items such as tires, windshield wipers, and clutches are not included in the warranty. I argued that even if the war was not on warranty the clutch should not give out with in the same week of purchasing the car, stating this is outrageous, but in the end but my words feel upon deaf ears and with them telling me there was nothing they could have done about it, and “sorry”.

SHOCKED AND EXTREMELY IRRITATED! In the proceeding that had just taken place not only did I have to pay for a useless diagnostic but also for the tow truck trick they had also played on me in addition to a refusal to pay for the replacement a clutch on a car that is less than 5 days old! But I decided to calm myself and simply pay for the repairs since I needed car to be fixed ASAP. Oh and another thing, they had also told me and each additional day that the car is going to be at the dealership is going to cost $100 for storage fee’s. I eventually shelled out for the repairs and had the car fixed, with only a Sorry from the dealer.


LONG STORY SHORT DON’T EVER PURCHASE A CAR FROM SUPERIOR NISSAN OF FREMONT BECAUSE THEY ARE NOT ONLY UNREASONABLE RUDE PEOPLE BUT JUST PLANE SUCK! Their whole “mission statement” of not being happy until the customer is happy is just a joke! Screw them they suck.

JasonT

There must be some kind of coverage for a vehicle that rolled off the lot 5 days ago, I mean really. Lemon Law or something. On your warranty does it list all "wear and tear" items specifically? Seems to me like if there was that kind of loophole for dealerships regarding clutches, we'd hear stories like this all the time on used manual shift vehicles.

DavesZ#3

iTrader: (26)

Unreadable

Azn_Empurio

iTrader: (3)

that is DISGUSTING
i wouldve flipped out
isnt there a way he can get his money back? thats ****ING ridiculous

Sean

lawyer

photo2u

iTrader: (14)

Friend,

some nissan dealers suck. Their service department also sucks. doing a clutch on a 350z is not a big deal. Many japanese service shops could have done the same job just as good. I had a very bad experience from the car sales department at performance nissan. I took the car 3 times for a paint chip repair. The service department did a very bad job, the body shop did a terrible job and the manager insulted me by making a bunch of misrepresentations. Long story short, It took 12 days to get my car back.
I will never buy another car from that dealership. Their Nismo parts department is great. Andy, and all of the guys are super nice, I have returned several items and they have been nothing but nice about it.

George from Pasadena,

Eazzy

iTrader: (8)

True, but I stumbled through it with the help of my cursor . If your Dad needs the security of 12 tows a year, then he needs a new car or a chill pill. You should have just taken one of them and played it safe.

That was the first of valuble lessons learned from this little adventure, now you know and those lessons can be applied to 1000s of other adventures you will have in the future.

Hire an attorney if you want, but the dealership relizes you wont, so either prepare to make a statement for the good of mankind ( by means of an expensive legal battle ) or chalk it up to experience so it doesnt happen again

davidv

iTrader: (2)

There is no clutch warranty on a used car.

But considering the time that you had the car, the seller should have given you a break: free towing and free labor for the install. Your cost for the incident is by-the-book, but the seller has lost your business forever.

Jason@Riverside

iTrader: (5)

It will not have factory warranty coverage...

since it is a wearable part...

You can TRY getting it warrantied at any NISSAN dealer, they may beable to pull some strings for you... IF they are willing to... but good luck...

They do have to have the vehicle in operational order, but that does not mean that all brake pads / clutch parts etc need to be like new... as long as they work...

Once you sign and take delivery for the vehicle, thats it, if you didnt notice a crack in the front headlamp before you signed that paper, they cant do anything for you...

alot of used car dealers have a warranty of like 3 week 3000 miles or something, but usually that does not cover wearable parts like a clutch etc anyway...

your best hope is getting the service department there to help you out...

Vas@Extended

iTrader: (17)

I kinda had the same problem... I dont know if you know this.. but... if you bought the car from a nissan dealer, which u did " Superior Nissan"... Nissan is responsible to fix the car for free within 60 days of purchase ( IFFF you purchased it from a nissan dealer, which again, you did!) Make sure you tell em that!!.

- My story

Well im not gonna go into a lot of detail but.. I had a problem with my car, it was making a weird noise.. so I brought it to my local Nissan dealer/service.. and they said it was a "front bearing".. and they will not fix it for me.. Because your car is within the 60 day warranty, and you bought the car at a nissan dealer so that dealer HAS to fix the problem for you at no charge.He even showed me the paper that... nissan will pay 100% of parts and 100% of labor, if the car was purchased at a nissan dealer within 60 days.

Bumpinjeep

iTrader: (3)

I would have a SERIOUS talk with the GM of that dealer and if you have any lawyer friends get a notorized letter from them stating everything. That should do the trick.

Saikou

Sorry for making it hard to read, but I did try to talk to the GM when I was there he "was there at the moment please try again later." I then called the next day and was put on hold several times and told they were extremely busy with other customers and I will be called back with in 10 minutes. Irritated I still waited patiently for an hour still with no call, so I decided to call then back, they proceeded in putting me on hold and telling me another gentlemen will call me back. With in 10 min, so I decided to wait again and guess what no one called even with in the hour yet again. I finally call back discussing my patient with them and them and ask to speak with the GM he respond "Do you think he really has time to speak with customers?" and I respond "if he really cares about them, then yes he should make some", he responds by hanging up on me! After that I was extremely pissed, but I had to go to work, after that I had calmed down a bit and never spoke of it to anyone again.

bailey bill

Well, Im sure you won't like this answer either, but....

1) You bought a used, 2+ year old, high-performance sports car.

2) You did not read your warranty agreement.

3) The clutch is a "wear-and-tear" item. Even Nissan only gives you 12 months/12K on the clutch on a NEW car.

4) Sometimes life just ain't fair.

bill

Ztalker

they did you wrong.

Eazzy

iTrader: (8)

I think that goes without saying. Its the latest fad and unlike the Hula Hoop it will be around for awhile. Too bad that one of the first lessons in life over 14 years old has to be, Watch your *** when dealing with "legitamate" Companys

Zya123

I would have not paid the toweing guy, and I would have not paid anything, If the car is less then a week old of you owning it and somthing like that happens they should take care of it, I would get a lawyer and get your money back, If that ever happends to me I would probally end up in jail because I would be breaking alot of stuff at that dealership for screwing me over, My window motor died and I had to pay a deductable and I was really pissed about that small thing but if something major happends with in 3 months it should be free. I have a feeling if something like that happends to me I might be in the same place you are in because Already from my dealer i have seen them try not to fix something for free.

cali_z_owner

1) They should not have asked you to pay 300 in towing after they explicitly TOLD you it was free over the phone. They are a business and should be accountable for information they provide regarding their own policies with regard to any business transactions. It doesn't matter what their "rules" are, used or new, they told you it was free so they should have paid for their mistake. You should not have paid a dime, they would have been forced to pay the towing service.

2) They should not charge $100 a day for storage. You just bought the car less than a week ago, and they're giving you no breaks what-so-ever. Thats ridiculous, you're spending a fortune to fix the problem. Its a clear and obvious attempt to squeeze every dime they can from you.

3) The amount they charged for the service is highly suspect. The receipt should give you an itemized breakdown of the service and parts charges. You may want to look over the receipt very carefully.

4) As others have mentioned, you may want to talk to a lemon law attorney. The car you bought should have been a "certified used vehicle", which I believe means that the dealership is required to perform a full inspection of all of the components of the car among many other requirements.. I would assume that they cannot call a car "certified" if the brakes are shot, tires are bald, or in this case, the clutch is on its last leg. I may be wrong, but its worth investigating.

http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/vctop/d05/vc11713_18.htm

I spoke with a lemon law attorney briefly over the phone regarding my 350 and the infamous tire-wear/alignment problem and he spared no detail in telling me how expensive a lawsuit against a car manuafacturer can be, and told me that Nissan is one of the worst manufacturers to deal with from a legal standpoint. However you might be a strong case since your car is a "certified used vehicle".

I used to get my service done at Superior, not anymore. Unfortunately, I've found that the 3 Nissan dealerships I go to in the area (Falore in Sunnyvale, Superior in Fremont, and Magnussen ..out of business) are all shady.

Kevins350z

iTrader: (36)

**** that's where i bought my car from...in fact i went back there for my first oil change and they charged me $75 for sythetic oil + made me waited for almost 2 hours! i was so pissed and never returned since then.

Kevins350z

iTrader: (36)

is there any good and mods friendly nissan dealerships in the bayarea? i wanted to fix my rear axle clicking so bad..

Kevins350z

iTrader: (36)

btw, who did you talk to in the service department? i forgot the dude's name but he was not very friendly to me when i asked for the $5 discount from their advertising..