Fellow Maxima Owners, Please advise on this Price Estimate
 

Hey Guys,

I own a 97 Maxima SE. 140K miles and in excellent condition. A few days ago the service engine soon light came on.

I took it to a well known auto chain and mentioned these two things to them:

1. The service engine light is on
2. The exhaust makes a sputtering noise when accelerating (they did a smoke test)


These are the two codes that showed up: P0440 and P0325

Below is the estimate they gave me to repair the above issues:

[IMG]http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/...9/quotecut.jpg[/IMG]

Being the avid researcher I am, I started looking up prices on these parts online. I was shocked to find the Knock Sensor that they're quoting for $239 for $80 or less. Then over 300 just to install that part sounds ridiculous when from the tutorial posted here it apparently can be done in half an hour with no special procedures.

Like this one: http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/sk...gs+Best+Seller

I'm checking the other parts as well now.

What do you guys think of that estimate - are they trying to rip me off big time with their seriously overpriced parts and seemingly excessive labor costs?

Why are their parts so highly priced compared to online sellers? Would you pay this?

How much should this work actually cost? I found a tutorial for knock sensor installation on this forum and am considering doing this myself. I'm considering just buying the parts myself and then paying some mechanic privately to do the rest of the work - what do you think of this idea?

Please advise on the quote and what you would do in this situation.

***Clarfication: I have not paid a cent to these guys yet.

Thanks.

Judging by this quote they dont want to work on your car. Use this forum and you'll save alot of $$.

Please elaborate. Why wouldn't they want to work on this car - I'm pretty sure they're not allergic to money.

I know that mechanics/fraud seems to be a common combination as most consumers know nothing about their cars and spend whatever the shop charges. I'm much smarter than that and am hoping people here on this forum will be open and straight with me. This is an anonymous forum, no need to be cryptic here :)

Makes sense to me.

Your getting charged list price on parts, and in some cases maybe OEM?
I'm surprised the muffler is so cheap.
Labor rate must be in the range of $90/hr?
Apply book time to the job and there's your estimate.

Pretty cut and dry. Most is DIY and parts are available at discount prices elsewhere.
If your not a DIY mechanic, shop local mechanics.

One of my concerns about buying the parts myself is from where should I buy them? Any recommendations? I want to make sure I don't buy crap parts that will break shortly. I want quality parts at reasonable prices.

If anyone can give a total price on these parts if purchased online that would be awesome - I'm checking myself at the moment.

1. remove and clean your evap vent valve. Its on the canister behind the rear passenger tire. There are recent posts in this very forum.

2 fix all your exhaust leaks.

3 DIY tune up. NGK plugs of any type. air & fuel filter. oil change. PCV valve. clean IACV and TB.

4 clear codes and recheck.

The KS is often a bunk code, triggered by another legitimate code.

They are raping you, out of greed or ignorance.

Rape.

Thanks asand1 for your feedback.

When you say they're raping, What do you mean exactly? Please elaborate, as I don't really work on my car and thus have a harder time telling if I'm getting ripped off when it comes to car repair. What should this work cost you think?

njmaxseltd above said this quote makes sense so now I'm confused...which one is it?

***Clarfication: I have not paid a cent to these guys yet

I don't have to take my car to these guys, theirs bajillion car shops I could get this done at.

profound :rolleyes:

Hey guys how do you clear the ECU codes and does this have any negative consequences on the car?

I feel like just clearing the codes will fix all this if the knock sensor isn't actually bad. The exhuast issue is not a big deal and the car drives fine.

If I clear the codes, it should pass an emissions test just fine right?

Knock sensor- 13-20 shipped from ebay...instant savings... buy exhaust parts from ebay and do job yourself....hour or two and like 10 bolts and you just saved yourself 300... clean evap valve uave codes erased then check...that price is OUTRAREOUS... and tell the morons at the shop that you know theyre rapin you cause they didnt charge for intake and valve cover gaskets for that knock sensor...chances of them oing the job without removing intake.is pretty slim most shops arent that smart....so i wouldnt go to them to begin with...but if you dont wanna spend arm and leg do it yourself or go to a local small mom n pop shop....

FCP IPMORT.com has the knock sensor for $23. brand new in bag with Nissan sticker and part number. I havew one on my car and its just find. also it takes me less than 10 mins to swap them out using a swivel head, 12 mm socket, rachet handle, 24in extension ( could be shorter, but i use what i have) and a piece of electrical tape to hold the bolt into the socket.

Just about all of the prices seem high to me. If you dont want to do the work yourself then buty all of the parts they require and bring them to the shop. You can save a ton of money buying the parts yourself

people say oh theyre rapin you, but honestly bringing a car in to a shop is not the same as fixing it yourself. you cant just compare the two like that.

now im sure if you talked to the people at the shop that wrote you that estimate, and ask them to use aftermarket or LKQ parts, they will find what they can to make you happy. a lot of shops warranty their work, so unless you talk to them theyre going to automatically write it for everything they can find related, and usually oem to boot.

fyi, i'm selling genuine oe nissan ks for $40.00 shipped in the 4th gen classifieds

http://forums.maxima.org/4th-generat...0-shipped.html

oh, and by the way, the cheap knock sensor for $28+ (not $23) at fcpimports is NOT genuine nissan (it's mtc brand...probably cheap chinese). they do offer a good beck arnley version, but it's $86+.

By rape, I meant the KS and evap valve that are probably fine. Get the exhaust fixed first so your o2 sensors read correctly, then the evap valve needs cleaning and unstuck. The KS code may be a false code, you wont know till you fix the rest.

They are only doing what they know to do. They know the codes and the offending parts. WE know the quirks with the 4th gen maxima and can help you save some money.

On the charcoal canister behind DRIVER side rear tire. Use PB blaster or a good penetrating oil and take your time. Don't force it.
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Go to an exhaust shop and have it checked out. Buy an Ebay cat back if the total is greater than $150. Replace the exhaust manifold gaskets if needed.

DON'T WORRY ABOUT THE KS UNTIL EVERYTHING ELSE IS DONE.

Screw that. Thats what forums are for advise. Im sure you will fins every peice of info needed here for what you need and what you have to do. Ive had my car for eight years and havnt taken
it once to a shop til this year had a electrical problem couldn't figure out

Chrono I am faaar from handy with my car. I have a 96 Max with 258k. My car has had some issues. This forum has been a Godsend. Take the time to listen to these guys and you will save big $$$. I found aa Nissan mechanic (he does side jobs) and he was going to replace my Knock Sensor for $50 bucks and the part was about $25 bucks. Compare that to the almost $600 bucks you were gonna spend (tax.) That's what they mean by RAPE!

Where do you live? Oh and resetting the ECU - Easy as pie - search for it on the forums. I did it literally in 1 minute and I am sloooow!

Hey Captchaos, thanks for your words, I'm gonna look for a Nissan mechanic as well. I am in the Chicago Suburbs. If their's anyone who lives here and can help please let me know. Is their a Maxima group around Chicago, that would be cool.

Slightly off topic but related. A few weaks ago, I went up to Connecticut to change my nieces brakes. She had a nail in a tire so i took it to Pep Boys to fix the flat. While I'm there, i guy comes in with a Camry, I think an 01 and he's leaking antifreeze. I'm at the counter and they tell him him his radiator is gone, they recommend he changes all his hoses, the thermostat and a flush. All great recommendations and then they give him an estimate of almost 800 dollars. :eek: I understand a chain store has to make their money but Damn!!! That's a lot of money for what could basically be 200 dollars in parts including the coolant. All this for a job that could be done in an hour or two.

To the OP, if you are willing, try to do the work yourself. If it intimidates you and you can't be without a vehicle for a day or two, then try to find a local shop and buy your own parts. Be careful with going too cheap on aftermarket parts though.

i would have had no confidence to replace my struts, clean egr guide tube, and other small things if it werent for this forum. thats more than most people will ever do to their cars lol.

in addison here. what whereabouts you in

thats pricing for an oem like sensor and the work with it their charging is very dealer like (dealer takes off intake manifold to get to it to get more $$ :D).

muffler price is cheap because they're using an off brand but the really high price for the resonator must be oem. labour is like $90/hr

prices seem spot on for a dealer... but it isn't so it should be a bit lower.

it looks like they took a look at your car for a very short amount of time and then said you NEED all those parts. if they cared they would've ordered the gaskets and changed them and then cleared the codes to see whats up. if it re appeared then i'd look into an aftermarket KS and they go for ~$100 (non ebay) at an autozone or partsource (canada :) ). it could be the littlest thing sometimes like a gasket... check the resonator they charged you for, if its not rusted and holy then its still good.

They could take the tiny bit of extra effort and perhaps another 30 mins of their time to save you time and money but some places just don't really care.

Would a shop even consider using "your bought parts"? I think they would say if they did use them they can't warranty the work, then for some strange reason your car won't start after they "fix it" and you end up spending what they originally quoted and then some..:gotme: Learn how to do the simple things on your car, you will save money because honesty is becoming less common these days.

I say its highway robbery if you ask me. Two grand can get me another 4th gen easyy....

OK - I'm the OP - I'm looking for someone who can help me resolve these issues on my Maxima. I live in the Chicago Suburbs. I will pay you.

If you or you know someone who can work on the car please post here or send a private message. I'm looking to get the car fixed ASAP, so let me know right away.

Thanks



UPDATE:

I called the service shop to walk me through the quote in the first post here, and he told me the knock sensor has gone bad and that is "common on Maximas" and that the evap sensor code is due to issues with the evap vent valve so they must be replaced. He said that when you replace the evap vent valve you have to replace the canister as well or it will break.

The last part of the quote deals with the sputtering noise I hear when accelerating. He says this is due to the "pipe being broken" and that this is not critical. I then ask why the prices are so high and he tells me they're the same as the dealership and aftermarket prices - this didn't make sense as the prices are clearly less online. They said they don't allow customers to provide own parts.

What do you guys think of this? More BS or no?

If I were in your shoes I would fix all the things that you are able to DIY first, then come back to the shop to fix the things that you cannot do yourself due to lack of tools or knowledge.

But if you are not a DIYer, perhaps calling around for the best quote would be better? Like calling three or four nearby shops and say "hey can i get a quote for a new knock sensor, muffler, and ect. For a 97 maxima?"

Good luck!

Thats BS. It pretty easy to remove the valve, it will not damage the canister. I have never cleaned one but it looks straight forward.

wowww $1900 bucks thats a good chunk of cheese there,, also whats funny is that they are charging $314 bucks for labor on the knock sensor!! i have replaced like 12 knock sensors on maximas and its not that hard at all if u have the tools

Chrono - You are not too far away from me. I live just west of Naperville near Sugar Grove (straight down I-88). I can help you with everything you need.
Do this for sure: buy a Knock Sensor from Surban1. I can vouch for the quality of the product, you can't beat OEM quality at that cost. Once you get it, I can replace it in 5-10 min.
I also have a code reader. Hit me up. I'm definitely down to help out a fellow Max org'er!

That is BS, the only reason to replace the canister is if the thing is leaking charcoal bits in your vacuum lines. If you have no charcoal bits then your canister is still functioning properly. Trust the ORG!

The ORG is home to those with a PhD in VQ30DE; A32. Believe the collected data in this site, much of it is extremely reliable and will save you money.

Nice to see someone reaching out to help the op... anyone want to do my suspension ? :D hahaha