So I just bought my I30 from the dealer and it's already broke :(
 

I drove 60 miles roundtrip to pick up my '97 I30. When I was about 5 miles from home, I smelled a burning rubber type of smell but I ignored it because I was driving through an industrial part of the city, it seemed like a normal smell.

When I pulled in my driveway, all of a sudden my front speakers died. Then 2 seconds later, my rear speakers died. Then my ABS light came on the dash. At that point, I turned the car off. I went to turn my car back on and it wouldn't start. So I figured it was a dead battery. I popped the hood and it was some cheap brand battery I had never heard of.

So, I called the dealership and told them what happened and the owner of the dealership told me to buy a battery from Autozone and he'll reimburse me. I drove over to Autozone, bought the battery and came back.

When I hooked up the battery, I started to smell that burning rubber smell again. I looked over to the left and smoke was coming out of my alternator =( Bad alternator.

So I called the dealership and told him I bought the new battery and the alternator is smoking. He told me that he would take care of the problem. He just said to have the car to his shop on Monday (which, once again, is about 30 miles one way.) Stupid me, I forgot to ask him if he is going to cover the tow bill, which would probably be $100-$200. Sooooo, I've had my new, dead car sitting in the driveway all weekend and have to make arrangements to get rides to work, school, etc.

If he doesn't pay the towbill and everything related to fixing the alternator, I'm going to call my credit union and stop the check.

I think there is a recall on the alternators (at least there was on my 98). They apparantly can catch fire ;) Sounds like you were close ......

In any case, if yours has the recall, I'm sure they have to reimburse you for everything ... In fact, I think you could probably take it to any infiniti dealership and they will fix it free (if it's recalled).

A reputable dealer should pay for the towing and alternator.

Wow! Thanks so much for the post. I went to alldata.com and there is indeed a Safety recall for 97 I30s that deals with replacing the alternator! Too bad Infiniti is closed, I meant to call them to find out if my vehicle is covered.