For discussion, defered maintenance, shotgun replacements, needless repairs

[Victor]

Some posters seem intent on imposing their standards on everyone else, so heres a thread for discussion.1. If it ain't broke don't fix it. Old saying that is really true. I read post after post where someone had a working car, tried to improve it, and ended up with more problems than they started.2. Replace working good part with new one just to be on the safe side. Truth is a known working used part is statistically more reliable than a brand new part. Reason is something called infant mortality, most failure occur when a part is first turned on or within a few weeks, or when the part is very old, the in between time is the sweet spot where you have the most reliability. Thats why hi-rel Mil-spec parts have to be burned in for many hours or days.3. If one part is bad, replace them all. Guess it couldn't hurt other than the infant mortality factor, but what a waste of money. For instance replacing all the shocks if one is bad. Infiniti itself has guidelines for replacing shocks under warranty. Under no circumstances will they replace all of them if just one is bad. Also they have guidelines of how much fluid has to have leaked out, for what period of time, before they will replace it. Of course if the car is out of warranty they will probably tell you to replace them all. On one thread I read someone recommending replacing all the coil-packs just because one was suspected to be bad..4. Using synthetic oil and then changing it at the same interval you would have done it at using regular oil, seems a waste of money to me.5. There are many reasons for buying a used car, but I suspect in many cases its because either one can't afford a new car, or even if they could one doesn't want to spend the money. In the case of Infinitis, I suspect the person figured here's a chance to drive a luxury car for the price of a mass market car, mainly because Infinitis depreciate so fast, especially now with the gas crisis. In these cases many people would be happy just to spend the minimum to keep the car running satisfactorily and safely, and don't want to spend the money to fix every little problem, especially if it doesn't keep the car from getting from point A to point B. Why attack this person because they don't want to or can't afford to maintain the car up to your standards.

[maxnix]

Some posters seem intent on imposing their standards on everyone else, so heres a thread for discussion.

If it ain't broke don't fix it. Old saying that is really true.

Standards are a personal choice. Most here are interested in learning about what works and what doesn't. The concept of preventative maintenance is either understood or ignored by most owners.

Replacing wear items like fuids, filters, hoses, gaskets, belts, spark pugs, rotors, caliper piston seals, bushings, injectors, etc. will result in not being stranded or worse, involved in a fatal accident due to a system failure.

If, for instance a shock absorber is leaking, it has failed and is not acting like any of the other non-leaking ones. Of course, they well could be worn out! Same with a leaking bushing.

One can choose to drive a beater that is on the verge of catastrophic failure. Others prefer to have a reliable and well performing car that is as close to OEM new as possible. Personally, driving a crippled Q45 is not my choice when a restored one is so good and so inexpensive.

Like Harry Callahan said, "Do you feel lucky, punk?"

I prefer Darrel Royal, "Fortune favors the prepared."

[elwesso]

Some posters seem intent on imposing their standards on everyone else, so heres a thread for discussion.

1. If it ain't broke don't fix it. Old saying that is really true. I read post after post where someone had a working car, tried to improve it, and ended up with more problems than they started.

2. Replace working good part with new one just to be on the safe side. Truth is a known working used part is statistically more reliable than a brand new part. Reason is something called infant mortality, most failure occur when a part is first turned on or within a few weeks, or when the part is very old, the in between time is the sweet spot where you have the most reliability. Thats why hi-rel Mil-spec parts have to be burned in for many hours or days.

3. If one part is bad, replace them all. Guess it couldn't hurt other than the infant mortality factor, but what a waste of money. For instance replacing all the shocks if one is bad. Infiniti itself has guidelines for replacing shocks under warranty. Under no circumstances will they replace all of them if just one is bad. Also they have guidelines of how much fluid has to have leaked out, for what period of time, before they will replace it. Of course if the car is out of warranty they will probably tell you to replace them all. On one thread I read someone recommending replacing all the coil-packs just because one was suspected to be bad..

4. Using synthetic oil and then changing it at the same interval you would have done it at using regular oil, seems a waste of money to me.

5. There are many reasons for buying a used car, but I suspect in many cases its because either one can't afford a new car, or even if they could one doesn't want to spend the money. In the case of Infinitis, I suspect the person figured here's a chance to drive a luxury car for the price of a mass market car, mainly because Infinitis depreciate so fast, especially now with the gas crisis. In these cases many people would be happy just to spend the minimum to keep the car running satisfactorily and safely, and don't want to spend the money to fix every little problem, especially if it doesn't keep the car from getting from point A to point B. Why attack this person because they don't want to or can't afford to maintain the car up to your standards.

I agree with Brian... onward..

1. Isnt it better to be more alert of whats going on to replace parts before they fail? MANY popular failure items on Q45s, if left unattended until it renders the car inoperable or extremely annoying will hurt other parts eventually requiring you to replace more parts.. Example: You can know your fuel pump is going bad by the buzzing and replace it for $250, or wait till the car wont run anymore and replace the fuel pump for $250 AND the controller for even more money.

2. Agreed for the most part other than wear items. Things like MAFs, ECUs and stuff like that are pretty safe. Fuel pumps, any suspension part with a non-replaceable bushing, and so on, is not a good idea... Q45s are well built cars so used parts make it easier to own them.

3. Your example of shock absorbers is about the worst example you could think of. Having 3 worn shocks and 1 good one is not the way to make the car anywhere near reasonably well. I could understand, MAYBE, replacing both rear ones or both front ones if the other pair had been replaced recently.. Your argument of the warranty claim almost proves my point. When the cars are under factory powertrain warranty, they are less than 4 years old, and we all know that within that time frame the shocks still have good life. If within a year or 2 1 happens to randomly go bad, I wouldnt necessarily feel bad about replacing just 1 but I'd probably still replace the pair because I CARE about how my car handles..

4. Its not the fact that you change it at regular intervals. As we all know its not the degradation of the oil that causes the wear, its the buildup of particles that the filter cant catch.. I dont use synthetic in my Q anymore because I dont really think any benefits are had compared to using conventional and changing every 3-4 months. I wont let oil stay in there longer for 4 months, so why use synthetic? (BTW thats not a rhetorical question, if someone has a response, do tell!)

5. Maybe because we want people to share the same passion that we do? We arent forcing anyone to do anything, simply offering suggestions. IF they get all bent out of shape because someone on the other side of the interweb is telling them to replace their fuel pump before it kills the controller, thats their own fault. No one is required to listen to anything here.. I will admit, sometimes people can be a bit harsh..

Long and short of things are, the car is NOT a $5,000 car. Its a $50,000 car, regardless of what you paid for it. It needs to be maintained like such; the car doesnt care that you picked her up for 10% of what she cost brand new.

[Jesda]

Know your budget, and take into consideration whether you will be keeping he car a year or two or driving it until the doors fall off.

A lot of people on this forum are long-term bonafide Q45 enthusiasts who will probably never drive anything else, because this -is- their vehicle of choice above many newer cars within their budget. Proper maintenance keeps the car on the road longer, for less money. Again, if you're not keeping it that long, don't sweat it.

In addition, many maintenance concerns are a matter of safety.

So, think about whats important to you and spend accordingly. At some point, it makes more sense to get a less finicky car like a Maxima, especially if the Q is just being used as basic transportation, and especially if its your only car.

Have fun. If the reward of driving a high-end luxury/performance sedan doesn't outweigh the time and money you put in, its not worth it.