Lemon 2023 Nissan Frontier

[D60]

Look at all the cab-off work that needs to be done on HD pickup trucks these days. Ford techs must be pretty good at this type of involved work. Nissan techs? Who knows.

I dunno, cab-off is only half the story. You've gotta move axles, suspension, steering, motor, fuel tank, all harnii that run down the frame along with emissions and evap lines and other things I'm forgetting

I agree it's not rocket science but a careless tech will have the vehicle wind up with Eric O as he chases a single wire that chafed through because a harness was carelessly anchored

I still wanna see the alleged failure that would prompt Nissan to say, "One new frame comin' right up!"

 

[JimPghPA]

Whats the turnaround time for this repair, including getting the frame to the dealer, and then the time after it gets there to the time it is done for you to pick up? This could get end up being an extremely long time? Think months not weeks. Are they going to give you a loaner equivalent while your waiting for this to get done? I'm thinking that unless they are really treating you very well regarding a loaner, or a very brief down time of this vehicle, you should be pressuring you BIL for a way for you to get rid of that vehicle ASAP and at minimum cost to you. What they say now can get drawn out into a much longer time before you get that vehicle back fixed. This whole thing sounds like a really bad deal that they set you up with.

Expect things like, well its taking longer to get the frame then we thought it would. And after they get it in, the mechanic that does that is booked up until two weeks from now. And then there is a problem with _________ and we are waiting for parts to fix that. These dealers know going into something like this that its going to be much longer than the customer expects, but they don't tell you that upfront. They just keep giving excuses of why they are not getting it done now. SOP. I would be very surprised it it was back to you in less than one month, and would not be surprised if it took 2 months or much longer. Knowing this going in, you would be wise to bail on this if you can. Especially if they are not setting you up with a loaner that you are totally happy with.

 

[D60]

^^^ was thinking about shipping a frame, too. Unless they'll stick it on a car carrier to come with a new batch of inventory (doubt it) it's gotta go LTL Freight, and those guys could damage a Sherman tank shipped inside of another tank.

I swear all the freight companies deliberately try to damage things. I always figure it's some 19yo strung out on meth at 3a running the forklift at a big city hub loading trucks. He's pissed at his boss for being put on graveyards and truly doesn't care if he gets fired ;(

 

[Bladecutter]

I dunno, cab-off is only half the story. You've gotta move axles, suspension, steering, motor, fuel tank, all harnii that run down the frame along with emissions and evap lines and other things I'm forgetting

I agree it's not rocket science but a careless tech will have the vehicle wind up with Eric O as he chases a single wire that chafed through because a harness was carelessly anchored

I still wanna see the alleged failure that would prompt Nissan to say, "One new frame comin' right up!"

Is removing the rear axle on a pickup truck a hard job?
No.

Is removing a pickup bed a hard job?
No.

Is removing a fuel tank on a pickup that has had its axle and bed removed a hard job?
No.

Once the cab is removed from a pickup truck, is removing the engine and transmission and front suspension hard?
No.

If a tech can't remove parts from a 1 year old pickup truck, and install them onto a brand new clean frame in the next lift bay, then the problem isn't the pickup's problem, it's the dealers problem. They are going to have to fix any errors that their tech makes, while the truck is still under warranty.

Jobs like this always go to the most experienced tech in the shop because they want to decrease the potential of comebacks.

 

[Bladecutter]

If it is a manufacturer defect then the manufacturer should buy it back, no? I don't think the dealer (was it a Nissan dealer?) should even be on the hook for the repair.

There are no buybacks for used vehicles.
They will repair issues under warranty, but since the OP isn't the original buyer of the vehicle, they are only going to fix the problem.

Hell, this pickup may have been a buyback from the original buyer, and this dealer then bought it from Nissan, for all we know.
They may have decided to try selling it, hoping the OP wouldn't have noticed the flaw with the truck so quickly, instead of fixing it before offering it up for sale.

 

[dogememe]

I don't get how a certified pre-owned vehicle can have supposedly obvious frame damage to the point Nissan has no issue sending an entirely new frame. Aren't they inspected? You're telling me the vehicle passed whatever inspections new vehicles are subjected to, drove around an entire year without anyone noticing, was put through the CPO program, all with a defective frame? I'd love for them to SHOW YOU the issue in person or video/photos.

 

[AZjeff]

The OP doesn't say frame damage, he says they told him it wasn't welded correctly. A CPO inspection isn't going to look at frame welds. The first year history of the truck isn't known. Agree, if I had been told that my reply would be SHOW ME.

 

[Mathew_Boss]

Warrantied Factory Defect? Assuming no accidents. It's a '23.

op: Clean CarFax and not a branded title?

Yes, it was certified pre-owned at Nissan Dealer

 

[Mathew_Boss]

As a former dealer master tech back in the day, the success of replacing a frame is going to depend on how skilled and conscientious the tech(s) is/are. Since it was a used truck, I doubt they'll give you a 'New' replacement truck. What they do will likely depend on whether Nissan Corp. gets involved, or if it stays at the dealer level.

Good luck.

Nissan corporate said no new truck no extended warranty and no loaner is covered by the warranty. The truck is only a year old with 16k miles on it. It falls under the original factory warranty. I don't care I bought it used. It's new enough with catastrophic frame failure they should give me a new one. They can fix this one and resell to recoup some cost. I didn't pay for a rebuilt truck. Had I don't that I would have saved a lot of money.

 

[Mathew_Boss]

Whats the turnaround time for this repair, including getting the frame to the dealer, and then the time after it gets there to the time it is done for you to pick up? This could get end up being an extremely long time? Think months not weeks. Are they going to give you a loaner equivalent while your waiting for this to get done? I'm thinking that unless they are really treating you very well regarding a loaner, or a very brief down time of this vehicle, you should be pressuring you BIL for a way for you to get rid of that vehicle ASAP and at minimum cost to you. What they say now can get drawn out into a much longer time before you get that vehicle back fixed. This whole thing sounds like a really bad deal that they set you up with.

Expect things like, well its taking longer to get the frame then we thought it would. And after they get it in, the mechanic that does that is booked up until two weeks from now. And then there is a problem with _________ and we are waiting for parts to fix that. These dealers know going into something like this that its going to be much longer than the customer expects, but they don't tell you that upfront. They just keep giving excuses of why they are not getting it done now. SOP. I would be very surprised it it was back to you in less than one month, and would not be surprised if it took 2 months or much longer. Knowing this going in, you would be wise to bail on this if you can. Especially if they are not setting you up with a loaner that you are totally happy with.

Nissan shipped the frame 2 day freight. The dealership already has it. It's just a matter of when the dealership has time to do that extensive repairs. Nissan said they expect it to be completed by next Friday. I just don't want a rebuilt truckbwithna 1 year warranty and if I wanted that I could of saved a lot of money and bought a rebuilt title truck with a 1 year warranty 6 weeks ago and saved a boat load of money.

 

[KrisZ]

Sell the truck after they fix it. That looks like your only option.

 

[D60]

Bummer, it appears we won't obtain any solid tech from this thread because OP can't or won't ask to see the actual problem.

It would benefit the entire knowledge base of the internet to understand what exactly happened here, but it's looking like this will go down as internet lore of "one guy said....."

Also I'll say it sounds to me like Nissan is bending over backward to make this right. 2-day freight on a frame is $$$$$$$. If they do the swap promptly, there's little to complain about. You bought a used truck. A major (and, to date, mysterious) problem was discovered. Nissan is working seemingly quickly to fix the problem and return the truck to where it should have been. That's really all they can do.....

 

[Chris142]

I don't get how a certified pre-owned vehicle can have supposedly obvious frame damage to the point Nissan has no issue sending an entirely new frame. Aren't they inspected? You're telling me the vehicle passed whatever inspections new vehicles are subjected to, drove around an entire year without anyone noticing, was put through the CPO program, all with a defective frame? I'd love for them to SHOW YOU the issue in person or video/photos.

I guarantee you that they spent more time cleaning the truck than inspecting it.

 

[DuckRyder]

I would love to see the actual issue.

Frame swapping may not be that rare due to collision work. Not sure about Nissans but my friends at the GM dealer have done quite a few bye to frame horn damage.

 

[nascarnation]

Curious, anybody know who Nissan has for their pickup truck frame supplier?

 

[Pablo]

I guarantee you that they spent more time cleaning the truck than inspecting it.

Bam. Close this thread. Question has been answered.

 

[ARCOgraphite]

NHSTA needs to be informed of major defect

 

[IndyIan]

Is removing the rear axle on a pickup truck a hard job?
No.

Is removing a pickup bed a hard job?
No.

Is removing a fuel tank on a pickup that has had its axle and bed removed a hard job?
No.

Once the cab is removed from a pickup truck, is removing the engine and transmission and front suspension hard?
No.

If a tech can't remove parts from a 1 year old pickup truck, and install them onto a brand new clean frame in the next lift bay, then the problem isn't the pickup's problem, it's the dealers problem. They are going to have to fix any errors that their tech makes, while the truck is still under warranty.

Jobs like this always go to the most experienced tech in the shop because they want to decrease the potential of comebacks.

It's not lego, and there's hundreds of little plastic pieces to hold wires and lines designed to be assembled easily but not taken apart. I'm sure there's an easy order of disassembly and reassembly too, but it might not be documented?
It would be interesting to see what toyota supplied in addition to the frame for their frame recall, probably dozens of little finicky parts, alignment guides, and a set of detailed tested and refined instructions!
You would think a tech would get lots of "extra" time to do it right the first time, but maybe their experienced guys don't want the potential headache?

 

[KrisZ]

All you need is a harness that rubs against something and few months/years down the road you are chasing electrical issues. But by then who’s going to remember the frame swap?

 

[Mathew_Boss]

NHSTA needs to be informed of major defect

Done this morning