NoMotive

iTrader: (1)

I've had the SES light on for a couple weeks now, I doubt there is anything serious wrong with my car, the indicator is probably just trivial. Seeing as how the light has been on continuously, I figure i'd drop it by the dealership just to see what the hell its all about. The service guy asks me how many miles I have on my car, I tell him I have 36,500. He tells me that it'll cost me $105 for the diagnosis. Hmm, I'm going to pay you that much just so you can plug one of your computers up to it JUST to tell me whats wrong.

Realizing my dissatisfaction by the serviceman's proposal, he offers to bring the service manager out to discuss the matter with me. He comes out only to give the same jargon his subordinate gave me earlier. Oh thank you Irvine Nissan for always looking out for your customer's needs without trying to profit from their misfortunes. I think I can live with my SES light on and I think Irvine Nissan can do just fine without my measley $105.

IceY2K1

iTrader: (3)

Try AUTOZONE or your local auto parts store.

sloppymax

iTrader: (8)

im not suggesting to pay the 105 but if you want to keep the car, you should get the code pulled then decide if you want to repair it or not. a smaller shop should charge less or autozone does it for free in certain states. there are plenty of frivolous things the light can come on and plenty of serious conditions.

R.I.P. Grandma

Stop by autozone if you have one in your area and have them pull the code for free, if not find a mechanic who will charge you under $40 and see what the problem is, never let a stealership take advantage.

BM_00

If your engine is operating fine and you're not getting any bad smells and
all seems ok, it could be just you need your ECU reprogrammed/reset.
But, you should find out why the SES light came ON.

I'm amazed of how much dealers are charging for diagnostics in the states. Here in montreal, most dealers charge 35$ cdn (about 30 US) . The technician simply plugs his decoder, and waits for the displayed code within 5mins.

NuJerseyDrive

iTrader: (3)

Dealerships just take advantage of the general public who are less informed about what it is they are actually doing to diagnos the problem. I doubt most know that all the dealer really does is plug in the decoder and wait. 100 bucks for that?? Sad....

jc2k1

That sucks. I have the same issue with my SES light. Its been on for about 1 month now. I took it to a mechanic and got it reset for $40. So it all really depends on the mechanic also. But dealerships suck. They're all like leeches trying to suck out every dollar you have just for a simple check up.

5 spd

iTrader: (2)

the autozone down here in socal lets me use it for free with a credit card deposit. they can not do the labor anymore, due to some law, at least that is what I was told. so they let you rent the obdII reader for a credit card deposit. you just plug the reader in to your port underneath your steering wheel, and scan for codes. its pretty simple if you have the time. then from there, you can also erase the codes, and determine if you or a mechanic will fix the problem. give autozone a shot.

Santa29

iTrader: (1)

Yep, went to autozone today to get a code pulled. They do it for free, instead of letting me borrow it, the store clerk came outside, plug it in, scanned for the code. Pull it up and I aksed him to reset it which he did. Takes 2 minutes MAX, 100 for that is BS. GO TO AUTOZONE!

paralyse

Go to autozone if you want your code pulled using a generic scan tool that's about 80% accurate. Go to a real tech or a dealer if you want your problem diagnosed or fixed. Many techs at dealers don't or won't do anything for free, and they shouldn't, since they're not paid unless they run time. Next time go to your lawyer, doctor, electrician, or any trained specialist, and ask them to drop whatever they're doing, abandon their current work, and give you their services for free...good luck btw. That's what you're asking the tech/mechanic to do to your car, so why not.

Once you get the code, post here and we can help you figure out what's wrong.

tothamax01

make friends at auto zone. borrow OBDII. find it yourself.

sloppymax

iTrader: (8)

thats what i dont understand about some people. the light comes on and all they want do is reset it so it goes away. there is a reason the light came on and if you dont have the knowlege/skills to correct the issue then you should understand why dealers and some shops charge what they do. in some cases, the light will return after you reset it because the issue is still there and sometimes the light stays off but the code is still stored.

Menasor

iTrader: (2)

i don't blame you for being upset. $105 dollars is a bit much. The dealers around my area charge around $75-80 dollars an hour. Don't be surprise if the rates go up especially with minimum wage going up soon. It's not so much the technicians rather the dealer that is being greedy. What percentage of that 105 dollars do you think the technician is getting? Also in most cases it's not just about pluging in the scanner and pulling the code, they use it to run tests related to diagnosing the problem. Anyways, I am curious, what DTC did autozone say was stored in your ECM?

jrod1014

iTrader: (2)

When my previous Maxima (1997 SE) displayed the SES light I immediately took it to a local shop and paid a tech on the side some money to tell me what the problem is/was. I took note of it, THEN went to the dealer and did their checkup which was like $90 and ultimately got it fixed there (it was an O2 sensor). The dealer in my case gave me the $90 credit towards the work the car needed.

Dealers are always overpriced and sometimes think you are stupid. I baught a 2003 from a dealer in Atlanta and when I got it *surprise surprise* it came with ONE key and no remotes. After some *****ing, I managed to score some remotes from the Atlanta dealer. I then took it to a local dealer here and what they wanted to charge me was simply out of hand. It got me so mad, I told the guy to go to hell. Here is what they wanted to charge me:

+$80 to program the two remotes ($40ea)
+$57 blank key
+$10 to cut it
+$80 to program the two keys (since they have to be together)
+$80 / hour
+7.0 Sales tax
~$325
all becuase it was being done through the "company." Getting work done through the "company" is where it costs you I think. I talked to another guy there a week later and I was able to get all of the work done for $100+the cost of a blank key. The money went directly to the mechanic I just got no paperwork with fancy letterhead and whatnot. Obviously I didn't care. What I am trying to say with this is the work the mechanics do is 100% valued. THey are human; try going up to the techs directly and more often than not they will help you out for a fraction of the cost. The only drawback is that its not "guaranteed". But for little things like SES light checks and keys it isnt a big deal.

I30swimmer

um no.. what if its the cam position sensor.. your car could be running fine untill opps no cam damn..

BM_00

Yeah anything could be wrong. That's why he should find out soon why the light came ON.

aliti19

iTrader: (2)

My SES light just came on last night. Took it in the dealer today just to get the comp plugged into it. I've got 2 o2 sensors out, but i've gotta wait till a tech can look at it next week. (none on duty on saturdays) They said one bad sensor could be making the other one not work. Go figure. I'm just happy i still have the 3/36 warranty.

Lontar1

iTrader: (5)

?
This sound so beautiful... that's why a mechanic charges more an hour than a doctor....give me a break.... so if you get the SES on, will you pay 40 buck for a five minute work........

Menasor

iTrader: (2)

Is that all they charge is $40. In my area the gate charge is 76 to 82 dollars per hour. I got upset went to a doctor and all he did is check my ears and throat and perscribed cold syrup. Filling out the paper work and waiting took more time and all he took is 2 minutes to make a diagnosis. But what can I do, I had been sick for about 2 weeks. I had to pay him, even if it did take him 2 minutes. Same deal applys to the technician. Hes got to get paid for the time to diagnose the problem not just pull the code.