BoatBanter.com - View Single Post

Mr. Luddite

On 6/24/2017 10:51 AM, wrote:
On Sat, 24 Jun 2017 09:54:03 -0400, "Mr. Luddite"
wrote:

... for those interested in this saga. If not, ignore.

On Tuesday of this past week the service advisor told me they were
"finishing up" the installation of the new engine and would then road
test to make sure everything is ok. I said, "so it might be ready by
Friday?" (this is what Nissan Customer Service in TN had told me).
He said it would probably be done earlier than Friday, possibly
Wednesday after they tested everything.

Wednesday came and went. On Friday I received a call from Nissan again.
She told me basically what the service advisor at the dealership had
told me on Tuesday except now it would be next Monday, (June 26) before
I could get the car back.

I started getting a strong hunch that the new engine didn't solve the
"no heat" problem. The dots didn't connect.

So, this morning I took a ride down to the dealership. The service
manager/director was there. He was honest about it. The new engine was
in but the car still had no heat and they were back to square one.

I said, "I figured that" and reminded him of what I had told him back on
May 30th and what I thought was wrong. I said, "if you want to fix the
problem, you need to install a new heater control valve. It's mounted
on the firewall on the passenger side and has two heater hoses connected
to it, one in, one out to the heater core.

He said they checked for any faults with it in the ECU. I told him the
ECU wouldn't show a fault because the little motor that drives the valve
has an open winding. It burnt up, which connects the electrical burning
odor that I noticed the day I drove the car home (May 27th). I said the
12 volts would be applied, but nothing would happen to open the valve.
There is no positive feedback to the ECU that indicates the valve position.

It also explains why the electrical burning odor disappeared. Can't get
hot if no current is flowing in the windings.

I said if they warm up the car, set the temp to max and feel the hose
going to the valve, or measure it with an IR thermometer, it will be hot
on one side and significantly cooler on the other side of the valve.

The problem is that the dealership's hands are tied when it comes to
warranty work. They can't do anything unless Nissan authorizes it.
The service manager is more frustrated than I am. I think it's kinda
funny. They spring for a new engine (which it didn't need) and ignore
the customer input that was intended to help diagnose the problem.

Anyway, he asked me to call Nissan Customer Service and tell them
exactly what I had just told him. Turns out they are open today
(Saturday) but I had to leave a message. Awaiting a return call.

The coyote that chewed off 3 legs and is still in the trap huh?
I guess you can't fix stupid.
The real problem is the dealer would rather get paid to do the
unnecessary warranty work than to fix the problem. That is coupled
with engineers at Nissan who are just unwilling to admit there is a
hole in their MAP.
It may just be a "face" thing. No wonder they lost the war ;-)

Harry is right, go for a new car. You said you like your loaner. Go
for that one.

I had a long conversation with the service manager this morning and we
both decided to just let Nissan respond and do their thing. The Nissan
rep told me last week that if by the beginning of next week the problem
was not fixed they wouldn't "drag it out" any further and will buy the
car back.

He was very straight with me about how they work with the manufacturer.
They can't spend a nickle on parts or labor on a new car under warranty
unless it is authorized by Nissan even if they aren't looking for
reimbursement. It's the same thing if I had taken it to another
mechanic in a garage that does not do warranty work. Don't ever do
that. It will void your warranty. It's one of the first questions
Nissan asked me.

This particular dealership used to sell Lincoln/Mercury cars but ended
that relationship due to Ford not always honoring their warranty
obligations or being slow in delivering parts under warranty.

It just cracks me up because I am about 99 percent confident that I've
known what the problem has been since May 30th when I brought it back.
I must have mentioned the *electrical* burning odor at least four times
and assured them I knew the difference between it and a normal "hot"
odor of new pipes or parts getting hot for the first few times. As you
know an electrical burning odor is very distinctive. Anyway, we'll now
wait until Monday and see what Nissan says.

---
This email has been checked for viruses by AVG.
http://www.avg.com