jzwu

I just got this flyer from a local dealer. Is this one of ways they use to make money on the "findings"?

Anyway I scheduled an appointment to see what they are going to find.

HogMaxFan

You don't have to buy anything. It's just a checkup to let you know some of the things you might want to do in the future.

jzwu

So this is common practice? Purposefully breaking something in the process?

RLW001

iTrader: (11)

They are not a charity, they are a business. They will find something or recommended something that is not free. Wake up.

HogMaxFan

Unless you are relatively good at working on cars, or can diagnose it by yourself, I highly reccomend taking it in to have them do their "100 point checkup".

jzwu

I have no problem with that. If there is indeed something needing repair all is fine.

But making things up or even purposefully breaking something is criminal, I would say.

sergey85

iTrader: (2)

yeh i bet they will probably find something wrong with your car

scarface4522

iTrader: (33)

i got the same thing, i was gonna go just to see what they say, but its basically guaranteed they will find "something wrong", think about it, there not gonna say ur car is perfect and theres not a thing wrong wit it

merlin2375

iTrader: (3)

One in every million dealers has an honest shop where they'll tell you the truth after doing the inspection. Almost all will definitely find something. Some will find LOTS of stuff, mostly unnecessary.

The usual culprits they "find": any bushing, motor mounts, shocks/struts, brakes

slickrick

iTrader: (12)

I did this last year for fun....they found alot of nothing. I asked if they checked any of the fluids and their response was "we only do a visual inspection we don't touch the car." Don't waste your time.

reeloop

iTrader: (3)

I'm sure they check your blinker fluid

merlin2375

iTrader: (3)

/\/\ bah, I've flushed and filled my own blinker fluid many times. It's not hard, anyone can do it!

wyche89

yeah, i don't really think it's a ripoff just by looking at it.. just don't pay them for anything right there on the spot! what you do is, just use it as a tool to alert you to any potential problems.. anything that they may "find," just investigate further yourself to see if the problem actually exists.. case in point:

i had an ongoing power steering fluid leak in my 2001 max.. during my 100 point checkup, nissan noticed it and said that the power steering return hose was leaking.. and it would cost me somewhere in the multiple hundreds to replace.. so i said, ok...

so when i got home, i popped the hood and decided to investigate it myself.. i noticed that the clamp that attached the hose to the bottom of the fluid resivour (don't know how to spell that damn word) was crooked, and there was fluid all down the hose... so i straightened out the clamp, dried off the hose, and viola... no more leak.. i fixed the "defective power steering return hose" myself for free

SoonerFan

iTrader: (5)

i think this is a good idea and i did it last year...why not let the experts check your car? its free. you then take their finding and do the work yourself (i replaced belts and pads)

SoonerFan

iTrader: (5)

and last year aound this time when nissan sent the letters out...we had a thread...and the year before...

wyche89

exactly... what they did in my situation was, they just saw that the power steering hose was covered in fluid, and the tech just marked it down as a leaky hose to avoid looking into it further, and to make the dealership some money off of another dummy who would just take the dealer at their word

wyche89

thats what alerted me to change my belts... and i knew it wasn't BS, because they said the same thing 3 seperate times i had my car looked at

SoonerFan

iTrader: (5)

it your job to check fluids....yes they do a visual inspection...but that reveals a lot.

if you people think you are experts, then dont go get a free check. but please dont waste our time with a thread when you have a problem

slickrick

iTrader: (12)

Did I say I was an expert? I was simply giving a description of what happened when I dropped mine off. Local dealership is literally a block away from where I work, so why not drop it off to see if they found anything obvious? They didn't..but it only had 45k on it at the time. The local oil change place I go to checks the fluids all the time for free, so I don't consider checking fluids by an auto place a "luxury"...even if its a free inspection.

SoonerFan

iTrader: (5)

so you are saying the free check is pointless because they didnt check your fluids?

slickrick

iTrader: (12)

Nah, just simply stating they didn't check them under this 100 point inspection (back then I figured they would have, since its an easy money maker to tell a customer they need a fluid/fluids change). If they found something blatantly wrong with the car, I'm sure I would have been very appreciative.

SoonerFan

iTrader: (5)

here is the special...no mention of checking your fluids for you

you will see that you cant check most of this stuff very well in your driveway.

SoonerFan

iTrader: (5)

but you are telling other people

just because they didnt find something wrong with yours. poor advice.

slickrick

iTrader: (12)

perhaps I was too vague and general in my posts, thanks for clarifying my posts to give correct information.

wyche89

actually it does say that they "thoroughly inspect" the fluid levels... also they can't check certain fluid levels (oil, tranny fluid) without touching the car, so that's B.S... when you're checking the fluids you check for 2 things... level, and condition.. they say that they check the levels, but not necessarily the condition.. although i don't see how that makes sense that they would check the level and not the condition

dineth00i30

can I take my infiniti? Or will they bull**** about its not being a nissan?

SoonerFan

iTrader: (5)

bottomline: yes, the service department uses this to create business and make money. and it works for 90% of owners.
for us on here, we can use this chance to get things checked that we either hadnt thought of or are unable to check at home. then we do the work ourselves. i see no downside of getting the inspection done.

Skorp1on

I took my my car for the 100 point check up. Dealer said I needed:

1. Replace DS Fog Lamp for $290.00
2. Replace Belts for $169.95
3. R/S Outer Tie Rod for $320.00
4. Alignment for $89.95
5. Power Steering Fluid Flush - $xx.xx
It's good that I know but as you can see it's way overpriced.

jasonmax

iTrader: (2)

I just inspected my valve covers was leaking which the dealer didn't inspect when they did the premium maintaince on my car.

jasonmax

iTrader: (2)

the same thing.
they did coolent, ATF and PS flush too.

wyche89

they said u needed to replace the entire fog lam and not just the bulb? why?

SoonerFan

iTrader: (5)

we know the service department charges more than it would cost to do it ourselves.....

jasonmax

iTrader: (2)

different dealers have different prices of parts.

SoonerFan

iTrader: (5)

regardless - the service department charges more than it would cost to do it ourselves.....

the main price is the labour

jasonmax

iTrader: (2)

no, I mean same parts cost differently in different dealers.

SoonerFan

iTrader: (5)

1. get the free inspection
2. order needed parts from dave
3. do work yourself

UGAd13

However, if you decide to go through the dealership for service make sure you ask specifically what they do. They like to sneak in a "flush" when they mean "drain & fill."

Lontar1

iTrader: (5)

is this Free service Nation Wide or Local..... I have been waiting to get one of those for a while and still waiting

jasonmax

iTrader: (2)

when they mean "flush", they usually put "using machine" in the description.

NIK_2021

iTrader: (2)

This is what they told me when I took my 2000 max.
replace starter - $630.89
o2 sensor- $451.31
replace ashtray and glove box light- $181.05 !!! (for two small bulbs!)
low side power steereing hose leaking- $335.79
needs rear main engine oil seal replaced- $1004.02

Can anyone let me know where the power steering hose is located so I can check it out. Maybe it's just loose (I should know where it's at but just to make sure).