wasamac2

Who knew that in early 2007 when I stole this 2002 GLE off the lot of a Lincoln dealership (for $12,000 w/ 52,834 miles) that it would cost me just as much to maintain & modify it as to purchase it....




Date: Item: Price:

8/31/2007 NEW OEM O2 Sensor Nissan Dealership w/ install $330.83
9/1/2007 Front Strut Bar $37.98
9/1/2007 Infiniti 5 1/4" rear door speakers w/ BBY install $84.45
9/13/2007 Wheel Balance Discount Tires $25.98
9/16/2007 194 warm white license place LED lights $19.97
10/10/2007 NEW OEM Cabin air filter Nissan Dealership $42.75
10/10/2007 Jiffy Lube Oil Change (Mobile Synthetic Oil 5W-30) $70.08
10/30/2007 4 Piece smoked front + rear bumper lights $58.98
11/1/2007 Professional Window Tint - Front 50%, Rears & Sunroof 30% $150.00
11/5/2007 Rear view mirror with compass & auto dimming feature $50.45
12/4/2007 Jiffy Lube Oil Change (Mobile Synthetic Oil 5W-30) $36.58
12/18/2007 Viper 5900 alarm w/ remote start & 1 mile radius w/ BBY install $483.01
12/21/2007 Leather case for Viper 479V remote $14.98
1/1/2008 K&N air filter $39.99
2/9/2008 Jiffy Lube Oil Change (Mobile Synthetic Oil 5W-30) $77.65
3/21/2008 Indicator Assembly Nissan Dealership w/install $104.60
4/7/2008 Fullers Carwash Oil Change (Mobile Synthetic 5W-30) w/ wash $72.08
4/16/2008 Silver G2 brake caliper epoxy paint $39.76
4/23/2008 NEW OEM Front bra $81.00
6/12/2008 Jiffy Lube Oil Change (Mobile Synthetic Oil 5W-30) $72.99
6/27/2008 NEW OEM Trunkmat $54.99
7/1/2008 NEW OEM Wheel locking lugs $41.70
9/2/2008 NEW OEM muffler Nissan Dealership w/ install $334.78
2/16/2009 NEW OEM valve control + canister Nissan dealership w/install $449.87
2/16/2009 NEW OEM traction control button (light burnt out) Nissan Dealership $44.24
5/20/2009 Jiffy Lube Oil Change (Mobile Synthetic Oil 5W-30) $72.99
5/21/2009 Passanger rear caliper - Auto Zone $89.99
9/25/2009 Jiffy Lube Oil Change (Mobile Synthetic Oil 5W-30) $72.99
11/13/2009 NEW OEM 2009 18" Maxima wheels + Tires $825.00
12/5/2009 Used OEM chrome door sills $44.95
12/14/2009 NEW OEM passenger side fog light $61.05
1/10/2010 (4) 15" warm white LED strip (under dash & under front seat interior lighting upgrade) $8.76
2/26/2010 Jiffy Lube Oil Change (Mobile Synthetic Oil 5W-30) $72.99
2/26/2010 4 Piece smoked front + rear bumper lights (again) $27.95
2/27/2010 (2) 7443 11W Amber LED lights (upgrade front turnsignal bulbs - not cheap LEDs) $40.00
2/27/2010 Used OEM MAF Sensor $48.48
3/14/2010 (2) 50W 6 OHM resistors $7.79
3/14/2010 (2) 7443 11W RED LED lights (upgrade brake light bulbs - not cheap LEDs $20.40
6/28/2010 Silver G2 brake caliper epoxy paint (again) $41.03
6/28/2010 (2) warm white 194 LED bulbs (upgrade headlight parking light) $9.30
7/14/2010 (2) warm white 194 LED bulbs (upgrade door courtesy lights) $15.00
7/14/2010 Stainless steel brake lines + D/S brake rotors $496.97
7/22/2010 Both rear calipers (O'Reilly Auto Parts) $112.48
8/5/2010 Used OEM clock (navigation integration project) $18.77
8/16/2010 Jiffy Lube Oil Change (Mobile Synthetic Oil 5W-30) $72.99
9/2/2010 (6) 3 SMT HID white wedge dash bulbs (brighter gauge cluster lights & light below radio bezel) $33.16
9/17/2010 JDM gunmetal oil cap $19.99
1/9/2011 NEW OEM D2R 4300k XENON replacement blubs $19.99
1/24/2011 Jiffy Lube Oil Change (Mobile Synthetic Oil 5W-30) $72.99
2/12/2011 Silver G2 brake claipter epoxy paint (again $37.89
5/2/2011 Tuffy Auto Service Center Oil Change (Mobile Synthetic Oil 5W-30) $53.16
5/14/2011 Passenger Front Wheel Bearing - Tuffy Auto Service Center w/ install $545.98
5/27/2011 Climate control replacement lights 3 Nissan Dealership $23.51
6/6/2011 Passanger side front caliper (O'Reilly Auto Parts) $34.99
6/17/2011 Dr. Colorchip paint system $68.00
7/11/2011 NEW OEM strut mounts, boots, bearing, tie rod ends, sway bar end links. $238.50
8/2/2011 Optima Red Top battery $161.99
8/2/2011 Tokico Illuminas Struts complete set front + rear $535.00
9/27/2011 Jiffy Lube Oil Change (Mobile Synthetic Oil 5W-30) $72.99
10/3/2011 Used OEM 350Z dead pedal $42.31
10/13/2011 Rear lifetime warranty rotors & pads (O'Reilly Auto Parts) $135.51
6/9/2012 Both rear quarter panel rust removal + paint, sunroof visor removal + paint, rear bumper painted $800.00
6/12/2012 Eastern Catalytic Converters (both precats), Walker exhaust pipe flange gaskets (2) $484.31
6/12/2012 NEW OEM Cabin air filter $15.66
6/12/2012 NEW OEM vapor cabister purge valve $42.99
6/12/2012 NEW OEM Nissan fuel cap $22.40
6/12/2012 NEW OEM fuel tank o-ring seal $7.84
6/12/2012 NEW OEM fuel pump filter, (6) NKG Iridium spark plugs, Victor Reinz intake manifold gasket set $102.41
6/17/2012 NEW OEM front crash zone sensor $209.29
6/24/2012 NEW OEM Gen 6 replacement valve covers w/ gaskets (both) $158.93
6/24/2012 Bosch O2 sensor (PN# 15224) $67.49
6/25/2012 VIAS Block Plate $24.85


Total in the last 5 years……. $9,011.70
Current Mileage: 99,756

Figure I am leaving out car washes, detail supplies, misc. fluids...

Does this seem a bit high?

lulz

Why do u have so much time to type this?

02whitemaximase

iTrader: (38)

Surprised you haven't done the power steering pressure hose. That another couple hundred only for the part.

Galactica

iTrader: (5)

Seems like a lot of your cost is excessive, especially the oil changes... The VQ35's eat synthetic so you've been wasting money on that and you'd have saved 20 bucks or more on every single oil change if you'd have just done it yourself. Why did you need a new muffler 4 years ago? Why did you spend almost a grand on new OEM nissan wheels and not find something used? Why did it cost 500 bucks for new rotors and stainless lines? One thing though, you've kept up on maintenance more than anyone I've ever seen, I'll give you that!

Amerikaner83

iTrader: (17)

Quoted are the extras that you didn't NEED....you can't count these in your total "cost of ownership" since they're upgrades or extras.

Delete the cost of the above (4,616.14) from your "cost of ownership" and you get the TRUE cost, which is about half of what you posted.

phatboislim

iTrader: (27)

JBeezy53

Paying labor cost is a good chunk of that. Also shop around for better prices and buy online. Looking at this you may be better off buying new and saving on maintainence costs. Some of those purchases have me scratching my head.

MoncefA33

iTrader: (6)

Crying like a btch over modding a car. Buy a Civic.

wasamac2

I am in IT - so most of my work week is figuring out how to be busy until the end of the week

I went to Jiffylube for convenience (I change the oil myself now, and it I'm a lucky non-oil burner)

Muffler broke at the weld point (Midas and Merlins said it was too rusty) , couldn't get anyone to weld and I don't have the equipment

Bought new 2009+ wheels because I needed tires, and my wheels were in bad condition. I thought $850 for NEW wheels & New tires wasn't so bad for OEM

SS Lines & EBC Rotors (package ebay deal)

Also my airbag light was going off, crash zone sensor was corroded pretty bad. Replaced - no more 6 blinks on the SRS

you should see what it cost me to keep my M3 in such condition.....

140k on my Envoy, not a problem and I barely change the oil under 10k



Not too bad for a 10 year driver

dwapenyi

iTrader: (3)

Fascinating detail you have in your car log. Here's my take on the oil changes alone.

In 46,922 miles (99,756-52,834) you did 12 oil changes with Mobil 1 Synthetic 5W30. That's an oil change every 3,910 miles.

Conclusion: you spoil your car. For that kind of oil change interval (4K miles), you can use regular dino oil.

DW

Child_uv_KoRn

iTrader: (7)

So actual cost of ownership was really only a couple grand. That sounds like a good deal. All of that extra money spent was your fault and not necessary.

Example: 5 qts of syn mobil 1/castrol with mobil/k&n filter costs 30 bucks. But you couldn't be bothered for 15 mins to change your oil and KNOW that the oil was changed correctly.
All the filters, gaskets, precats, etc was a waste, imo.

I hope you're not complaining b/c this car has been VERY good to you when you subtract everything that didn't need replacing (gut the cats, sure, but pay for replacments, not in a million years).

2damax

Man, some people are really giving you a hard time right now lol. He is not complaining guys. You choose to pay someone to do your work and you baby your car. That, plus your enjoyment with a little modding, made this a relatively expensive car for you.....about $5 a mile.

It seems like this car is not even your primary car (or you just never drive). So, with that said, I wonder how you treat the M3 haha.

Rods03Max619

iTrader: (5)

Agreed and I thought on Synthetic Oils can be in for 10-15,000 miles....

T_Behr904

They can, and even more. Some cars that use synthetic from the factory have 20K interval oil changes, or when the car tells you depending on your driving conditions.

T_Behr904

Jiffy Lube is also a rip. I don't know how they stay in business with what they charge for oil changes. A standard oil change at a JL here is $39.95. The full service Good Year right down the street charges $19.95.

MrEous

iTrader: (11)

A Maxima/M3/Envoy, all that money wasted plus being an IT guy and you're using a subpar camera phone (VGA?) to take pics...SMH



J/K

wasamac2

What a bunch of ball busters...

Maxima is a daily driver (about 6 miles to the train station each way) so miles do not add up quickly.... I get that I could have done the oil changes, or perhaps most of the dealership work but at times you have to just accept the charge.

M3 is a weekend warrior or garage queen and spends some weekends on the Joliet Auto Bahn. The M3 has 1/3 the miles as the Maxima and but adds up in preventative maintenance (knock on wood it has never had any issue - ever).

Envoy is my winter, road trip or for towing vehicle. It is not cared for at all; it is a beast and takes anything I throw at it. Besides adding differential fluid to the front leaky diff. and oil I am surprised that it does not have any rust, problems, rattles... Who knew that 10 years later this would be my most carefree vehicle.

You spend your money one way, I spend mine another. I just was curious if anyone was in the same ballpark as I am

Child_uv_KoRn

iTrader: (7)

Wait, so you haven't put many miles on it? What parts actually needed replacing?

B/c everything on that list minus struts and cats lasts well over 100k miles.
I see O2 sensors, struts, cats and wheel bearing as valid. All normal maint aside from cats (and we all know that story haha).

I'm not trying to be a **** at all, I'm genuinely curious. For it to need more than that would mean the car was abused badly before you bought it. Sounds like someone left it sit in salty snow, too

IHAVEA2KMAXIMA

iTrader: (7)

I stopped after the OEM lock lugs.

wasamac2

I agree, perhaps some replacements were unnecessary but...

- My lugs rusted
- Both front struts leaked
- Rear quarter panels & under sunroof visor rusted
- 17" rims started to peal - went 2009 OEM 18's w/ new tires
- Rear door bose speaker stopped working
- Gas valve and canister went bad - twice
- Light on TC button burnt out (could have left it I guess?!)
- Lights in climate control burnt out
- 2 O2 sensors went
- Precats shot
- MAF went - my fault w/ K&N oil
- 6 calipers went bad (5 in the rear also why G2 paint bought several times)
- Front crash zone sensor corroded
- Headlights started to dim
- Fog light took a rock
- Gas cap went bad
- Valve covers started to leak #5 & front seal
- Passenger wheel bearing literally self destructed - it was pretty bad
- Fuel filter replaced
- Muffler rusted out and split in two
- Cabin filter replaced - Twice (maybe unnecessary)
- Bose head-unit replaced - Twice under warranty
- Sway bar ends got tired
- Tie rod ends got tired
- Battery died - replaced with optima red-top (perhaps a bit extreme)
- Spark plugs since I'm pushing 99k & 11 years old
- As bulbs started to burn out I replaced with LED & resistors
- All fluids - (could have changed the oil less - maybe?!?!)

As far as salty snow, yeah it is driven in the winter and salt does play its part, but it comes home to a climate and humidity controlled garage.

I guess it all wasn't needed but I like having the car in well working condition w/o warning lights on. Some middle aged woman owned the car prior and traded it in for an MKX - mechanically it was sound when I bought it.

MrEous

iTrader: (11)

I had hoped you would have taken my post as a joke...sorry you didn't.

tigersharkdude

iTrader: (20)

5$ a mile? Correction 5.21 miles per $1

and minus your mods..you are at 10.6 miles per $1

2damax

Oops i wrote it backwards. Suprised it took that long to notice lol. Thank ya

Prophecy99

iTrader: (1)

I think keeping that detailed of a list of you records for a car are amazing. I don't think many people take the time to record all of their mods/maintenance/prices/dates so closely. So props to that its impressive.

As others have said, when you take out the absolutely unnecessary items (aka mods/upgrades) i don't think it is too high. You have replaced all the normal items. One mod you could have saved on were illuminas (you paid 535, which IIRC is kinda high) but over all I think you did great

$4395+$12000 = $16395 for 5 years for driving a better than average sedan with upgrades/mods

Pretty decent.

Again nice thread. for what its worth I think it can help others because it's a an decent example for cost of ownership. It has mods/maintenance/upgrades.

Imagine if Roch had this list compiled, that would be something to see

Any more pics OP, nice garage.

BigLou55

iTrader: (6)

I think its great you keep a log on everything you've done to the car(I do this as well). But you spent a majority of the money on overprice dealer labor, overpriced oil changes at jiffy lube(most of them are known to be sketchy) and extras( like new OEM wheels) which isn't car maintenance. Judging by your garage, I doubt overpaying even hurt you pockets.

L_U_D_I_AMaxima

iTrader: (3)

yep.... i agree... I just want to see his face when he is trying to sell the car and cant even get half of what he spend on his "maintenance list"


I would love to see how you have "tuned up" the M3 with cheap Chinese LEDs and smoked lights...

165donaldw

You can't complain about mods. Thats all on you!!

Child_uv_KoRn

iTrader: (7)

Damn, I've had one 5th gen and two 5.5s and the only thing that failed was the cats (which took the motor out), the CD player in the 5.5s (also known to be junk) and a starter solenoid. Lights burning out that fast is kinda weird.

It sounds like she never washed it off in the winter and hit every curb she could find. And she must have had a lead foot if the cats went that early. If someone tells me a woman drove it, I get scared LOL.

wasamac2

M3 is all stock, no Chinese parts... Only complaint is changing rear differential fluid which smells like a combination of skunk + fart.

Are you kidding me... This car will be around for ever! Sell it - that's funny

tigersharkdude

iTrader: (20)

^well from the original post...this kind of looks like a complaint thread

wasamac2

I mean no harm or to come off as complaining, it was never my purpose. I simply put together the folder of paperwork I have for my vehicle to compare to others. The purpose of this thread was to basically compare my personal cost of owner maintenance and modifications. No complaints, except for the occasional SES light the car has been a dream and I will keep it rust free, trouble free and complaint free for as long as I can.
I loved the car in 2007, I will love the car in 2015. For a 2000's sedan it was thought up and executed quite well.

Prophecy99

iTrader: (1)

I can't even go into most Jiffy Lubes. I tried two places once in a pinch before a long drive and I couldn't clear my LTB from the little metal lip that surrounds the basement area in each bay.

Stonelove670

Atleast you have the fund to replace certain parts on your car even if it wasn't time,some people don't have the fund so they just talk oh such and such was waste of money. What the hell some people don't even take care or replace anything on they car so I give you 2 thumbs up for keeping your Max well maintain.

Maxident

Hey, don't forget premium gas at 17 mpg (at least that's what I get in mixed driving).

Child_uv_KoRn

iTrader: (7)

You, sir, have a very heavy foot like me

dfj240

iTrader: (1)