RADIATOR REPLACEMENT

[Larz]

I am nearly at 100,000 miles! That went fast, but multiple trips to the north (NY x 2, Ct, Va, Md x 3, Pa x 2, and W.Va x 3 will do that).
Just had my third repair since the purchase of my 2009 M35. This time, the radiator was leaking along the top edge. The previous two repairs were oxygen sensors.

Radiator: $1,028.30
Labor: 253.09
Coolant: 42.98
__________________________
Total Cost $1324.97

Previous two repairs: Oxygen sensors at approx $300 ea + labor at $200 each = $1,000 (if memory serves)

My cost for all 3 of these repairs: $150 at the dealer / $0 at CarMax (would never let them near my car)

Considering the $2,500 cost of the MaxCare warranty, I have come close to gaining my money back and still have 3 years / 26,000 miles left on warranty.

It's amazing to me that you can drive a car for 100,000 miles and have just 3 repairs. Try doing that in a BMW or Mercedes!

[AZhitman]

Outstanding!

I had an aftermarket warranty (to 100k miles) on my 95 Q and it paid for itself TWICE over.

[Ilya]

I too had an Elite Warranty on both my 07 M and 11 M that paid for itself and then some. When I purchase my wife the FX/QX70 she wants in a year or so we'll be getting the Elite warranty again. My current 11 M is at 105kmi and doing just fine .

[Larz]

Today's cars are higher tech and more computerized so the added expense of an extended warranty is completely justified. Even is you can avoid the dealer and do the work yourself, you will still spend high prices for parts, etc. Most places will allow you to add the cost of the warranty to the loan which makes it even easier to afford. It is a gamble, but I reckon the odds are in our favor more than ever these days.

[LIBRILZ]

1K for a radiator?! I just looked on RockAuto and they have them for 95 bucks

[Larz]

LOL. I reckon you can find them cheaper anywhere as a cheaply made substitute. You get what you pay for. I agree that $1,000 is VERY expensive, but that's what dealers charge for OEM quality.

[airmanhoward]

Yea i Paid just under $100 for my radiator.

[bicsintegra]

400 dollars from sewell infiniti for mine and I have a 2006 M, 1k sounds crazy. but if it is under warranty go with it.

[Larz]

I agree. $1,000 is crazy for a radiator. But this next bit is even more crazy. When I picked up the car, I commented how this was a very high price for a straight forward repair. Geoffrey showed me the bit of the repair order that was modified by the warranty payment. The warranty paid only $735 for the radiator and allowed $185 for labor and $30 for coolant costs. That's $375 LESS than I would be charged if not under warranty! Now I ask you, if Infiniti gladly accepted $735 for the same part they would charge me $1,000 for ..... I now know two things:
The radiator probably only costs about $500 to the dealer
The dealer has an embarrassingly high mark up margin <35%>

[SGiese]

Looks like I need to put a radiator on the maintenance list, My M35 is nearing the 90K mark as well as my G37. In the past I've had a 98 I30, 2-I35 and they all had this issue some where between 125k and 170k. Really hoped Infiniti had figured that problem out.

[LIBRILZ]

well for what it's worth I had an 2001 I30 with 203K, and never had the radiator replaced, guess it's just luck of the draw

[Larz]

I agree LIBRILZ. I reckon it also depends on the weather fluctuation, type of driving, etc. I'm at the bottom of Florida so it's over 80 degrees all year. I damaged the front end last year by driving into the bumper of a huge toyota SUV. The insurance replaced the grille, bumper, headlamp, and the radiator support, but there was no sign of a leak at that time. Perhaps my radiator took a hit that didn't develop into a leak until many miles later.

[2.7t]

Today's cars are higher tech and more computerized so the added expense of an extended warranty is completely justified. Even is you can avoid the dealer and do the work yourself, you will still spend high prices for parts, etc. Most places will allow you to add the cost of the warranty to the loan which makes it even easier to afford. It is a gamble, but I reckon the odds are in our favor more than ever these days.

What wheels are in your sig?

[gavnator]

On Infiniti cars the Elite Warranty is the only way to go.

[MechanicMods]

The one time I took my M to get the radiator flushed it blew out in the middle of the road while I was driving home (how nice). so I Drove it back to the shop to find out that the radiator was leaking before, but someone did a quick patch work and added water in the system and I didn't know about that until I got it flushed that day. So I got it filled once again and drove home real fast so it doesn't overheat and leave me stranded. Once I got home I called NAPA for a price on a new radiator it was around $200, ended up buying it that same night, even started stripping the car the same night. The coolant I used cost around $40 plus a kit to burp the system thats like another $20. It took me a few hours the next day to complete but it got done and the car runs better and cooler but I have to get it flushed again to get more crap out of the system. This happened early December and its running perfectly fine to this day, the brand I bought is Denso. Overall the job is fairly simple and costed me $260 or a little more with tax and all that doesn't include the money spent getting the first flush done tho.

[Larz]

Today's cars are higher tech and more computerized so the added expense of an extended warranty is completely justified. Even is you can avoid the dealer and do the work yourself, you will still spend high prices for parts, etc. Most places will allow you to add the cost of the warranty to the loan which makes it even easier to afford. It is a gamble, but I reckon the odds are in our favor more than ever these days.

What wheels are in your sig?

Sorry, I just now read the replies to my post.
The wheels are Infiniti chrome 19in wheels from a new Q50. Some peeps take delivery of their new car and head straight to a wheel shop to change them out. Then the wheel shop gives the owner a trade value for the stock wheels and sets them out for sale. That's how I got them.
19X9 I belive.