Just wanted to post because this really grinds my gears as it is borderline elderly abuse/scamming.
The mother (late 70's) of my significant other has a decent low mileage 2012 Infiniti EX35, good condition and has only had a couple small issues over the years. Since its an older Infiniti it goes to her "I know a guy" who works on pretty much anything with wheels but doesn't specialize in any make or model. She took it in for routine oil change before a 400 mile round trip down to Florida and was told radiator was cracked as it was spraying coolant on the engine. Due to time crunch for the road trip she was not able to have him do the ~$1300 radiator replacement so was given dire warnings of driving it to Florida and back as it might run out of coolant during the trip.
I didn't know this until the car returned from Florida after the first round trip and I called shenanigans and wanted to take a look. Popped the hood - coolant bottle is at full mark with the blue Nissan long life fluid (some crust around the cap) I opened the high pressure cap (car had sat for over a day at this point so was stone cold) and all looks clean and full of Nissan blue. I see the coolant spray on the engine cover and trace it back to the radiator bleed screw on the drivers top of the radiator. Looks like someone cracked the screw while it was hot, let it spray a bit then closed it back up. We wiped down the bleed screw and the spray on top of the engine cover and it has not returned even after the same round trip to Florida, coolant level in bottle still at max. I have advised other half and mother to skip over this mechanic moving forward but to get quotes to have coolant flushed as it is due if not slightly past due (10 years is interval on Nissan long life coolant). Infiniti dealer wants $150 for a coolant flush which is not bad at all, I am going to recommend them inquire about a brake fluid, trans fluid and rear differential fluid change as well as none of them have been touched on this car.
On a positive note they both now agree this mechanic they have trusted previously can no longer be trusted and are just as pissed off as I am. I have advised the Infiniti dealer will probably come up with a laundry list of recommended repairs on a 11 year old car but I have much more faith they won't create urgent issues to make a buck. Unfortunately it appears there is not a single independent Nissan/Infiniti shop in Atlanta so it either the dealership or an all Japanese makes specialist.
Watch out for your friends and family. I'm glad this was brought to my attention as I'm sure the radiator replacement would have happened if I had not caught wind of it and checked into it.
The mother (late 70's) of my significant other has a decent low mileage 2012 Infiniti EX35, good condition and has only had a couple small issues over the years. Since its an older Infiniti it goes to her "I know a guy" who works on pretty much anything with wheels but doesn't specialize in any make or model. She took it in for routine oil change before a 400 mile round trip down to Florida and was told radiator was cracked as it was spraying coolant on the engine. Due to time crunch for the road trip she was not able to have him do the ~$1300 radiator replacement so was given dire warnings of driving it to Florida and back as it might run out of coolant during the trip.
I didn't know this until the car returned from Florida after the first round trip and I called shenanigans and wanted to take a look. Popped the hood - coolant bottle is at full mark with the blue Nissan long life fluid (some crust around the cap) I opened the high pressure cap (car had sat for over a day at this point so was stone cold) and all looks clean and full of Nissan blue. I see the coolant spray on the engine cover and trace it back to the radiator bleed screw on the drivers top of the radiator. Looks like someone cracked the screw while it was hot, let it spray a bit then closed it back up. We wiped down the bleed screw and the spray on top of the engine cover and it has not returned even after the same round trip to Florida, coolant level in bottle still at max. I have advised other half and mother to skip over this mechanic moving forward but to get quotes to have coolant flushed as it is due if not slightly past due (10 years is interval on Nissan long life coolant). Infiniti dealer wants $150 for a coolant flush which is not bad at all, I am going to recommend them inquire about a brake fluid, trans fluid and rear differential fluid change as well as none of them have been touched on this car.
On a positive note they both now agree this mechanic they have trusted previously can no longer be trusted and are just as pissed off as I am. I have advised the Infiniti dealer will probably come up with a laundry list of recommended repairs on a 11 year old car but I have much more faith they won't create urgent issues to make a buck. Unfortunately it appears there is not a single independent Nissan/Infiniti shop in Atlanta so it either the dealership or an all Japanese makes specialist.
Watch out for your friends and family. I'm glad this was brought to my attention as I'm sure the radiator replacement would have happened if I had not caught wind of it and checked into it.
