Thinking of purchasing 03 Q45

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Qship-Dom
Posts: 14
Joined: Mon Dec 29, 2014 12:00 pm
Car: 2003 Q45 Base

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I have been reading a lot of the older threads and have decided to ask if this is a good purchase. The car is a 2003 Q45 base model 57xxx miles for 10000 (including tax,tags, and title) I am just wondering if there is anything I should consider before purchase. I am supposed to go and pick up the car later today. I have already done a test drive and really like the car. It rides smooth the engine is quiet and it is cosmetically sound. the car was originally from florida then came to north carolina. Im assuming it was an older persons car due to the mileage and the condition of the interior and exterior. It has carfax with 2 owners. I' guess Im just looking for some input if the is anything I should be worried about with the upcoming mileage and if i should get the $3xxx warranty, 3years or 36000 miles.


Qship-Dom
Posts: 14
Joined: Mon Dec 29, 2014 12:00 pm
Car: 2003 Q45 Base

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Qship-Dom
Posts: 14
Joined: Mon Dec 29, 2014 12:00 pm
Car: 2003 Q45 Base

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any help or input would be appreciated

justjuiceit4
Posts: 219
Joined: Sat Mar 12, 2005 5:53 pm
Car: 1993 Nissan 240SXs, (Coupe and Convertible) 1994 Infiniti Q45
Location: Atlanta

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I would get the warranty. Some of this generation are oil burners and burned as much as one quart every 100 miles!
2005-q45-with-63k-miles-using-oil-t592556.html

BadQ45t
Posts: 3249
Joined: Fri Jul 26, 2002 7:54 am
Car: 21' Leaf SL Plus (wife's car)
05' X-Terra S 4x4
97' Q45t SOLD! Miss the old girl
84 300ZX (Original Owner)
2016 Mercedes Benz S550e V8 Power and 35 MPG
Location: Half Moon Bay, CA

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Sorry that nobody is chiming in...I really like this version of the Q45, for sure it is a pretty rare car and your friends will not know what the heck it is...the issue with car is oil burning as mentioned. I would ask for service records and then I would probably purchase the warranty and specially ask in writing that if the car burns oil that it will be covered. These cars typically do burn oil like 1 quart at least every 3k, so you will need to stay on top of that. Some folks on this board were burning much more than that which prompted Infiniti to replace entire engines.

Overall that is a heck of a lot of car for 10k at that mileage. There are not very good 10k options that would give you this much power/luxury.

lmheim
Posts: 41
Joined: Wed Feb 26, 2014 8:23 pm
Car: 2002 Q45

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I bought an 02 with 51,xxx last Feb. I like mine a lot. No problems - just regular maintenance (brakes, fluids, tires). It does go through more oil than any other car I have had - about a quart every thousand miles. That is a slight hassle. Gas mileage in-town is 13-15 and 24 hwy at 70+mph. I drive mine very easy and have never pushed, raced, floored or modded it. The only things I would consider are (1) make sure the low beam headlights work and are aimed correctly. There is a lot of info here in the forum about the ballasts dying so that is a common problem. (2) replace the trunk lid struts with stronger ones. Again you can find info here about doing that.(3) If you are a competent DIYer, I suggest hard wiring an iPhone/iPod connector into the cassette deck. Detailed how-to is here on the forum. (4) This is really nit picky, but the "BOSE" label on the front center speaker grill is chrome paint which reflects enough glare onto the windshield to be distracting to me, so if that bothers you too you can black it out or scrape it off. (5) I permanently removed the plastic cover thing under the engine. It was a real pain to take off and put back on when doing informal engine inspections, changing the oil, etc. (6) Make sure the starter is good. It is a real pain to get to if you have to replace it. I have an intermittent problem with mine that I am certain is the solenoid, but you have to replace the entire starter so I am putting that off.

Hope this helps.

Dachristianman
Posts: 64
Joined: Thu Apr 12, 2007 12:43 pm
Car: 2002 Q-45
Contact:

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They're good cars, but do have quirks. Finding parts can be tough sometime due to the limited number that were made. Oil consumption is the biggest thing. I've owned 2, and both smoked periodically at startup with is very annoying/embarrassing. Enjoy the car, it is a lot of car for the money. My heated seats are less than stellar and my dynamic cruise doesn't work. I'm not willing to pay $250 for the radar module box to fix that.

@Imheim......I've replaced my starter on my '03. Not an easy job, but not impossible. Mine was intermittent. I had to click the key 3-4 times to get it to catch. Sometimes it would catch on the first try, other times it would take 30 seconds of clicking. I got tired of that and replaced it. Found one on a junkyard website for $25 used. When it arrived, it was a remanufactured OEM that looked brand new. Stealership wanted north of $700 to do the job. I think I could do the whole job again in a couple hours. You have to have enough socket extensions to access the starter bolts from the front of the engine. That was the only way I could get to that top starter bolt. I think I put a write-up someplace on this site.

Tom

Qship-Dom
Posts: 14
Joined: Mon Dec 29, 2014 12:00 pm
Car: 2003 Q45 Base

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I ended up getting the car, it has stellar ride quality. I heard about the oil consumption... I guess I'll just have to keep a quart in the trunk. I also got the warranty, it was 24 months or 30k miles. There is a rattle coming from the trunk area which is very annoying but I only hear it when going slow our over rough road. It's more like it's coming from right near the passenger side back seat head rest (parcel deck lol). I'm not sure if the warranty would cover it since it's just an annoyance but the dealership guys seemed pretty friendly and willing to help so maybe I'll have them look at it. On the down side I started hearing a strange noise when the car is cold. I'm afraid it's the trans... it started a week after purchase, like a grinding noise when going from first to second when engine is cold while driving very slow. I'm glad I got the warranty! Other than that I love the car, I always drive slow throughout town and don't plan on abusing her. It came with carfax reports from 2 owners and some service records. CD player kinda sucks...

Dachristianman
Posts: 64
Joined: Thu Apr 12, 2007 12:43 pm
Car: 2002 Q-45
Contact:

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Congratulations! The link above didn't work, but it'd be nice to see some pictures.

The ABS will make a noise between 10-12 mph once per start-up. I'm not sure what causes it to do that, but it makes a very distinct "grunge" noise that lasts about 1 second. That may be what you're hearing.

Tom

justjuiceit4
Posts: 219
Joined: Sat Mar 12, 2005 5:53 pm
Car: 1993 Nissan 240SXs, (Coupe and Convertible) 1994 Infiniti Q45
Location: Atlanta

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What is crazy is that my 2014 Leaf makes that noise too. It does kinda sound like a grinding noise. I would check that oil every week for several weeks to make sure you are not consuming any or get any idea how much you need to add every week.

Qship-Dom
Posts: 14
Joined: Mon Dec 29, 2014 12:00 pm
Car: 2003 Q45 Base

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Yeah, I talked to the service guy he said they would have to keep it overnight to reproduce the sound. It may be the abs my last car made a noise like that too but it sounds more like metal grinding

gemman69
Posts: 28
Joined: Mon Oct 03, 2011 12:21 pm
Car: 02 Q45 & 05 Xterra SE

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I bought my '02 with 92xxx miles, and am now at 173xxx miles in 39 months. What did I spend? Purchase $6300 from a college kid in dire straights, $500 paint touch up & pin stripe repair (not required at all) --> $6800 effective purchase price
AND required things
starter $400,
inner tie rod ends & 5 year alignment $583,
$175 ballast retrofit,
left tie rod end $200,
LF control arm & water pump $865,
serpentine belt & trans flush-fill & both outer tie rods $558 Nissan dealer,
tune up w/ new spark plugs +++ $611 at 3rd party shop,
$100 for used ABS speed sensor (didn't work),
$200 for code reads 2 different times.
$589 rear wheel bearing + misc
this totals $4281 over 80,000 miles and 39 months

but not including standard items like
tires new Michelin Primacy MXV4's $1175 (lasted 80,000mi),. Even at 3/32's tread little to no hydroplaning. Excellent. Need new ones now. Going for the same or the
oil 16 changes and consumed oil between changes at $40 each = $640
brake pad & rotors I had front rotors turned successfully, and rears needed replaced. Even with oil & brakes which I do myself. $300
subtotal for wear items $2115

I'm at less than $6396 in total maintenance which is $0.08/mile driven less fuel. Add in purchase price and you are at $0.159/mile. A good value.

The ballasts for headlights can be retrofitted with some skill. I bought the aftermarket ballasts and attached them to the original mounting point, but I had to bore a hole in the new ballast housing. The housing was hose clamped and siliconed to the headlight assembly. A full day of work. Came away from that for less than $150. Has worked great for 2-1/2+ years. No more flickers.

I burn about a quart per 700-1000. in warm weather (30F and above) I use Rotella T 15W40 and it cuts oil consumption considerably. Oil viscosity in my view does not affect mileage as much as variable gas quality. If the gas has 10% methanol you'll get worse mileage. My best mileage ever was when my wife drove 100% highway and we got over 22mpg. I also add Lucas Oil fuel additive religiously, and find it aids mileage about 1-1.5mpg. It makes it worthwhile if you buy the gallon size and refill a quart container every time you leave on a long trip.

I haven't done the cassette tape ipod conversion but need to. My daughter thought the cassette player was a jukebox and inserted a quarter that I can't easily remove. I get random noise at times, but if I smack the drivers side of the console which holds the cassette player it goes back to normal.

Enjoy the car.

Dachristianman
Posts: 64
Joined: Thu Apr 12, 2007 12:43 pm
Car: 2002 Q-45
Contact:

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"My daughter thought it was a jukebox and inserted a quarter..." Now that's funny.

Looks like you have kept meticulous records, although it appears some of your maintenance was a little on the high side. What did you get for a tune-up besides plugs? The plugs are expensive ($60-$80), but it's not that tough of a job. $400 seems cheap for the starter....good on ya for finding someone to do it for that. I've not heard of the ballast retrofit, but if I start having issues with mine, I may ask a few more questions. Also, that real wheel bearing seems a bit high as well, but that's just because I'm comparing it with a front wheel bearing which is really a piece of cake.

Thanks for keeping such good records and sharing them with us.

Tom

Qship-Dom
Posts: 14
Joined: Mon Dec 29, 2014 12:00 pm
Car: 2003 Q45 Base

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Thanks for the list of service man, that's way better record keeping than I've ever done! The quarter thing cracked me up! I have a question about the dimming mirrors. I believe they are all supposed to dim equally correct? If one of the mirrors dimming electronics is faulty will that mirror looks slightly blueish all the time? I'm trying to make a list of things I want the dealer to check out. So far it's the grinding noise as previously mentioned, the rattle coming from the rear passenger side, and the mirror. Also, when braking from 60 mph there is a bit of lag (I don't know how else to describe). Not shaking or grinding but when I depress the pedal I feel it brake then brake less, brake then brake less it's worse when coming to a complete stop. Maybe the rotors need to be turned? The carfax said they were turned last around 16xxx miles. I felt them with a finger and did not notice the "ring" on the outer edge so I'm not sure. Is this model prone to the cracking in the dash or is that the previous Q? I'm paranoid I will hop in one day and it will be cracked... :/
I've been burning CD's and the CD player has trouble even playing brand new ones, maybe a laser cleaner would help with this... Has anyone else had this issue?
Also, I'm thinking of getting 19" wheels for it and I found a guy who has some from a G35 coupe 8.5" rear 8" front would these be a good fit or should I be worried about the weight difference coming from a much smaller car?

*Side note- I've ruled out that the grinding noise is not the ABS because it only makes the noise when shifting from first to second, I have driven in first gear at idle and the noise only comes BEFORE shifting. Sometimes a second before shift, sometimes less depending on speed.
You guys are great on this forum and very helpful even when just browsing through all the older posts. I love this car and intend on keeping it as long as I can!

Thanks again,
Dom

Dachristianman
Posts: 64
Joined: Thu Apr 12, 2007 12:43 pm
Car: 2002 Q-45
Contact:

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Did you figure out the grinding noise? Curious minds would like to know.

Tom

Aquaholic21
Posts: 33
Joined: Mon Apr 07, 2014 1:51 pm
Car: 2002 Q45

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My 02 Q45 has over 150k now, bought at 40k. Infiniti paid for the ballast replacement at over 100k. I've replaced the starter and plugs, that's about it. Small rattle from the sensor at the base of the windshield directly in front of the driver. Michelin AS3 tires are great!

BadQ45t
Posts: 3249
Joined: Fri Jul 26, 2002 7:54 am
Car: 21' Leaf SL Plus (wife's car)
05' X-Terra S 4x4
97' Q45t SOLD! Miss the old girl
84 300ZX (Original Owner)
2016 Mercedes Benz S550e V8 Power and 35 MPG
Location: Half Moon Bay, CA

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Q-Ship, good to have you on board. If you look this is still the best-posted board on NICO but people are dropping like flies. I always liked the F50 and it was bashed a lot by first gen guys, those are few and far between now. Sadly 2nd geners are taking out their cars as they hit 200-300-400k on the Odo's so the real Q people are fewer and fewer. I will bet that you get a lot of use out of this car.

One thing I think you will find that Infiniti service departments with the warranty will do everything they can do make repairs under the warranty. I bought a warranty for my 97' back in 2000 and it was wasted money, there was little on the 97' to go wrong and I had one small warranty repair done. But under the still valid factory warranty I got a new cover for my console (oddly worn out leather and it was loose) and a replacement drivers side leather arm rest (also oddly worn). Do not hesitate to get in there and fix anything and anything while you have it under warranty.

I got warranty revenge with my X-Terra where I paid $1,700 for the warranty and had 6k of work :) done to it.


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