I had a hearing with the BBB Auto Line on September 15. I requested that NNA buy back my car because I had my car in the dealership for repair 6 times for window grease/window timing
issues and I had my car in one time for the tire issue. Yes I know there are a lot more serious problems out there, but I had to at least try and I am glad I did.

The "non-conformity" presumption of the California Lemon Law for the same or similar problem is 4 times. NNA argued that my problems were insignificant but the arbitrator disagreed.

The arbitrator thought that 6 visits to dealership was excessive and that there could be many things causing the tire uneven wear issue and that since it has not been determined what is
causing the problem, it could eventually affect the use, service or value of my car.

NNA argued that the tire issue, whether it be cupping or feathering, is caused by the driver, driving conditions or how the car is driven. NNA is putting all the blame on the consumer. By
this statement I am assuming that NNA isn't ready to admit that there is a problem and that no fix is going to be available anytime soon.

Even after the hearing and I accepted the decision, I asked
the arbitration specialist what was going on and he said the same thing as above and same stuff he said at the hearing. At the hearing he even tried to blame the grease marks on the “California warm weather”. Our come back to that was we first discovered the problem in January at it isn’t very warm then.

The arbitrator ordered NNA to either replace or repurchase my vehicle. I choose to get out of this mess and have NNA buy back my vehicle.

I really didn't think that NNA would buy it back. I thought they would just continue to ignore me like I have been ignored for the last 4 months. But to my surprise, they followed through with
the award that the BBB mandated. And I was told by the arbitration specialist at NNA that they have to follow the BBB award or face heavy sanctions by the BBB.

I work in a law firm so I did have any attorney with me. It didn't cost me a thing. I argued my case but he summarized it at the end about the California Lemon Law. Which I believe really
made the difference.

For those of you with a lot more serious problems than mine I would recommend following this route. Some of you may think that the BBB Auto Line is a waste of time, but I am proof that it
isn't. Yes the program is a manufactured sponsored program, but the arbitrators are supposed to be impartial and are usually everyday citizens from the community with some sort of education
in what they are deciding on.

I received my check from NNA and they also paid off my car with the lienholder. I got back every dime that my contract was for except I was charge $354.00 for used mileage. This was
figured out per the California Lemon Law Code formula. The mileage figure that was used to determine this amount was when I first took it to the dealer complaining about window grease. Which lucky for me was 1100 miles. I turned in it with 11,000 miles. The difference I rode on their dime.

I am glad to be out of the Z. I wouldn't even think about buying a 2004 since I don't believe NNA has fixed the problem or that they even believe that a problem exists. My husband loved the car. There are way too many problems with it at this time. And customer service stinks at NAA. As a matter of fact I would never ever buy another Nissan or Infiniti again.

To find out how to open a case with the BBB look in the Warranty Information Booklet along with the Supplement to the 2003 Nissan Warranty Information Booklet. But note once you open
a case with the BBB the customer service representative at 1 800 Nissan1 that you have been dealing with will not be able to help you any longer. It goes to the arbitration department. You
may open a case with the BBB by phone. BBB telephone number is 1-800-955-5100. The BBB will explain their procedures with you over the phone.

So we are going to buy a new vehicle for me instead because my husband doesn't know what he would want to replace the Z with.

I wish everyone luck with their cars.

Sorry for the long post.

Wish me happy car shopping

 

Nice job! I hope Nissan reads this and gets the hint.

 

I would really love NNA to recognize this as THEIR problem and not the consumers who buy and use their product. I love the Z and hope they fix all of the problems and move on. Good work with the arbitration, it's people like you that make people like us satisfied customers by forcing them to step up to the plate. Thanks again.

 

LOL.. they are trying to blame us for the tire feathering? ID10TS

 

Man I hope Nissan reads this. If they try to blame us for the tire feathering (a sports car afterall) I will NEVER EVER buy another Nissan again - - speaking from someone who has owned 4 different Z cars!

When does that new Supra come out?

 

Geez, I love the Z and won't get rid of it, especially after I start to put a lot of money into it. But, chances of me not buying another Nissan are getting greater. I never had ANY problems with my Z28's, etc. that I have had with Nissan AND VW. It's my opinion that the "problems" with the Z are not huge enough to jump ship, but they are annoying and I am glad you got your resolution. I think I may go back domestic for future purchases. The Z will stay in the stable, though. The new Mustang is looking better and better and so are some of the more luxury oriented offerings from other companies.

 

We kept it as it came. We didn't modify it at all. So to us it didn't make sense to keep the car when we felt as though it would be in the shop too much.

I just felt I didn't get the car that I paid for. I am sorry but the maintence that would be involved with tires alone make me not want the car. I knew the tires would be high performance tires but come on too much is too much

 

Man. that is great news. I am going to follow your advice on this if Nissan doesn't replace my car. So far I have had the following problems.

(1) original tranny grinds in 2nd - replaced
(2) 2nd tranny grinds in 2nd gear - replaced
(3) 3rd tranny grinds in 2nd gear - Nissan says they will not replace again
(4) Window rolls down half way when the auto-roll-up is engaged - motor replaced
(5) Tire feathering - tires replaced
(6) window grease problem - have not taken in yet for this problem.

Do I have a case for the lemon law?? I'm in Missouri


I think so! Of course I'll have to take all my mods off

 

Take it to another dealer and have that tranny replaced again. ***** about every little problem and document it (like the window streaking, take it in!) and then afterwards if you don't get it all resovled go the BBB lemon law route.

I'm guessing the reason they may be stonewalling on tranny#4 is due to triggering the lemon law.

Ted

 

I think you may be right. They might be afraid of trigging a lemon law.

I don't understand why more people aren't using the BBB to get NNA to either buy back or replace their vehicle.

I see so many people on this forum with a lot worse problems than mine and as I said in my first post my car was bought back.

I am now a proud owner of a 2004 MBZ CLK 500. The Z was my husbands car. He will be looking to replace the Z within the next year. Maybe by then the Z will have worked out its problems.

 

I read your story... I am really glad to see that you were able to get your money back =)

How hard was the battle to get this done though and over what kind of time span? Because it sounds really intimidating to me to have to go to court with these guys.

 

I am interested in hearing this too...I've had all the problems you have described and I'm THIS close to calling it quits too... =(

 

First of all, I didn't go to court. This is one way to resolve your dispute without going to court.

The BBB Autoline is a manufacture sponsored program with impartial arbitrator from the local community. Information is in the owner's manuel.

I opened my case with the BBB on August 11 had my hearing on September 15. On September 19, 2003 the arbitrator made his decision. I turned my Z into a local dealer on October 6.

All you have to do is call 800-955-5100 and open a case with the BBB. They contact NNA. NAA has a certain time frame to answer. If they dont (like they didn't with me) the BBB with set an arbitration hearing at a local BBB office. Most likely NAA with appear telephonic. The BBB has 40 days from the date that the case is open to the decision of the arbitrator and they are pretty strict on that limit.

 

Did you contact Nissan first? I've had it with this car too, and am starting to look into what to do about it.

 

Yes I went through the process with NAA. I opened a case, got a file number, spoke to the same representative. I could never get her to call me back. So finally I decided to stop leaving messages. I would just keep calling until she picked up.

I even wrote a letter requesting NAA to buy back my car. They keep on saying that it was with the arbitration department, waiting for a decision. Actually another consumer rep had told me to go through the BBB because I had asked what is taking so long for NAA to decide what to do with my situation.

 

I am interested in hearing this too...I've had all the problems you have described and I'm THIS close to calling it quits too... =(

 

Well, I to am working with the BBB on my car. It as been in the shop 11 times and I just made my 6th payment. NNA has been very helpful in helping to get my car fixed, but I could never get them to send my case to their arbitration department. I even threatened to sick my lawyer on them. I finally called the BBB, started a case file, and the next day my case was in arbitration. If that doesn't work then I'll get the lawyer involved.

All I'm asking is for Nissan to admit that I got a lemon and buy the car back from me. If anyone would like to try the BBB, just call 1-800-955-5100. They will send you some information and request that you send back repair orders, sales contract, etc. Also, the same day you first call the BBB they will contact NNA on your behalf. That should get things rolling.

Rich: Yes, there have been alot of problems with the new Z cars, most of which are not widespread. Don't hesitate in buying one just because some of us are having major issues. If you really want to be safe, buy an '04. As far as I know there have been no issues of interest with those. To give you a reference, my car was #8758 off the line and I'm having alot of problems. A friend of mine got one of the first '03 Z cars to hit the ground and has had zero problems. Buy a Z car and run the hell out of it.

Good luck!

 

dthoman,

glad to have read your story. I also have had my Z in the shop 6 times (with proof) for the pull to the right and tire feathering.

The Nissan rep checked the car one last time about 2 weeks ago and said there was nothing wrong. Well I wasn't there and he left, I picked up my car who's alignment is in "specs" and drives "perfect" per this Nissan rep. I knew that was BS. Well, as expected, the car still pulls to the right.

So I told the Nissan arbitration agent in charge of my case that I wanted to meet with this guy. I am meeting this guy so I can show him that the car pulls to the right and that it is not suppoed to do that.

Since you work for a law office, I hope you don't mind me asking for some advice. My question is: Should I cancel the appt since I'm sure nothing will be done to fix the problem and he may claim it's normal (wouldn't suprise me)? This means I would go to arbitration next. By canceling the appt, I would save time by going to arbitration sooner.

Thanks in advanced.

What sucks the most is I have no idea what I would replace the Z with. And yes, I'm requesting that they buy back the car. I'll miss my Z but I won't be getting screwed by Nissan as they are screwing many Z owners.

Thanks in advanced.

Carlos

 

I'm with you, I have no idea what I would get if I don't have my Z car any more.

 

Rich,

The Z doesn't have any more or fewer problems than other cars on the road, especially sports cars. I've had my share (grease, BOSE, tires, etc.) and had to complain about these as well.

What's different now is what you're looking at. The forums that enthusiasts like us put together to discuss our cars on the Internet. It is the most powerful consumer tool on the planet!!!

I now go into my dealer's service department armed with service bulletins, and the experience of hundreds (or thousands) of consumers with the same issue(s) to help me get results.

If you look on any forum sites for other cars out there (S2000, WRX, Corvette, etc.) you will find that there are design issues with every one of them and that they are having exactly these kinds of discussions.

Are there lemon Zs out there? Yes. Are there lemon SL500s out there? Yes. A small percentage of any production vehicle will turn out to be lemons, and for those cars we have lemon laws.

I am truly grateful for every word posted on this and every other thread concerning the Z, I wouldn't let it deter you from getting one. Most of us realize that when buying a first production year car we will get issues. I think that you will find that most of the issued discussed are resolved in 04 (like the BOSE stereo.) Other issues may take several model years to fix, and if these issues concern you, then you should look for a different car. The power of the internet is at your disposal.

I watched this forum for 5 months before I made my decision to buy my Z. So I knew about the grease issue and some others that manifested early. You should do the same with each car you are considering for purchase.

Just my $0.02.