Rogue maintenance accolades

[tensman]

Just changed my oil in my Rogue and I gotta say, this is the easiest vehicle to change oil I've ever had. Tip of the hat to Nissan engineers for doing it right! Filter is easy access and doesn't spill oil all over the frame and components, drain plug is easy reach without needing to crawl way under the vehicle, fill plug is large and easy to reach and allow a decent size funnel to fit.Well done, Nissan!And, I think the rest of the vehicle is well-engineered, too.

[kerrton]

It's great to hear some positive comments for a change, thanks for sharing that! Too often we focus on the negative and take positive for granted, myself included.

To be fair, others have commented on the ease of changing oil in this vehicle, and it's good to see evidence of high quality and good design.

Maybe you'll inspire some owners to try to tackle this on their own. Me, I like the freebie inspection and consultation that I get with my vehicle each time I take it in for an oil change, and I can't beat the $45 charge, that's still less than most small garages.

[DanTheMan]

You are correct, it is very easy and pretty much mess free! I have a freebie coming up next month, but then I'm back to changing my self.

[blanca]

the dealer told me in order to keep the warranty they have to change the oil and do the maintenance according to the book. they gave me life time warranty on the power train. is this right or can i change the oil myself?

[tensman]

I buy oil ($12) and filter ($3) from Wally World - the time is all of maybe 15 minutes, and that's cause I'm slow. No way would I pay someone to do this - my Harley takes way more time to change oil!

[casperfun]

the dealer told me in order to keep the warranty they have to change the oil and do the maintenance according to the book. they gave me life time warranty on the power train. is this right or can i change the oil myself?

That's total bullcrap. I vaguely know that you need to show your receipts when you changed your oil and filter.

But no matter, they still need to cover your warranty.

I mean, let's say you need a repair under warranty and you had maintenance or what not done at other places. Will they say, SINCE they didn't do your oil change it's no longer under warranty?

I think they treating the customer stupid. Unless stated as a requirement for warranty when it says they MUST do the oil. I think they blowing smoke up your ba-donk-a-donk.

Just my opinion.

[tensman]

Dealer is giving you a line of crap. You can do your own maintenance or have it done elsewhere - just keep good records (and do the work properly). I keep mine on a spreadsheet for all my vehicles. There is a law stating such called the Magnuson-Moss Act of 1975 that states warranties must include any and all specific requirements. Ask your dealer if he ever heard of it and to show where in the warranty booklet that came with your vehicle that you must take it to a Nissan dealer to perform periodic maintenance. It's not there, only that certain maintenance must be performed at specified frequencies, not by whom.Of course, if you (or anyone else) fouls up doing the work (like not properly tightening the drain plug or filter, then it falls out and the motor is ruined), then Nissan would have just cause not to stand by the warranty due to owner negligence. Personally, I trust my work over the help at the dealer.

[kerrton]

It's correct that doing your own maintenance won't void the manufacturer's warranty, but they were probably referring to their own lifetime powertrain warranty that they gave you.

The Nissan Dealer is a seperate company from Nissan Corporate, they have no say in the terms of the manufacturer's warranty. But if they decide to offer their own lifetime powertrain warranty, they can place whatever terms they want on the contract provided they're up front with it. I would recommend reading the terms of the lifetime powertrain warranty to be sure.

Also remember that Nissan Corporate recently extended the CVT transmission warranty to 10 year/100,000 km, but it doesn't cover the whole powertrain, just the CVT.

[philipa_240sx]

Also remember that Nissan Corporate recently extended the CVT transmission warranty to 10 year/100,000 km, but it doesn't cover the whole powertrain, just the CVT.

Correction:

The CVT warranty has been extended to 10 years/120,000mi or 220,000km

[egale]

Just picked up my 2010 on Tuesday. Dealer includes lifetime oil changes. Not that I do it myself anymore but it is nothing I will hopefully ever have to worry about.

[blanca]

thank you i will read and ask the dealer i don't like to be taken advantage of. they rotate the tires at 6000 miles and 12000 change the filters and check stuff for $200

[darylzero]

I went in to the dealer a couple months ago to get my first oil change and they said for the first on they can offer me a 36 month oil change maintenance deal for $196, which includes tire rotations. I was like sure 12 oil changes for $16.33/each done.I got a call the other day from them saying they have to been trying to reach me and that the charge should of been $300, but they will honor the price they quoted. I was like no sh*t I signed a contact you HAVE to honor that price.

Now before anyone says you should change the oil yourself, I live in the city and that is not convenient for oil changes.

[kerrton]

Way to go, I'm glad to hear someone is having good luck lately!!

And I agree, I don't like changing the oil myself either because it's just simpler to let the garage do it with the proper space, tools and oil recycling plan. I changed the oil in my Rogue one time, and it wasn't difficult at all but when I factor in my time and the hassle of dealing with the used oil, the $45 fee that Nissan charges is well worth it for me.

I completely understand why others like to do it themselves, I'm a wannabe DIY guy in a lot of areas including carpentry and electrical, but when it comes to oil changes I feel I get a lot of value from a Nissan oil change. (an example of somethign that I don't let Nissan do is brake maintenance, I started doing a yearly disassemble and cleaning last year on the advice of Philip and I save close to $150 for about 1.5 hours of my time. When looking at these numbers, it makes a lot of sense to do it myself, in my opinion).

Also, the Nissan tech's always give the Rogue a once-over including the front end, suspension, belts, brakes and tires including remaining depth/thickness measurement, which I know isn't rocket science but these Nissan techs spend every day of their lives looking at these vehicles, so if there's something out of the ordinary, they're going to notice it. Me on the other hand, I don't work on cars for a living so if something is visually not quite right there's a good chance I'll miss it. To me that's well worth the $45 oil change fee.

[RogueGuy45]

That's total bullcrap. I vaguely know that you need to show your receipts when you changed your oil and filter.

But no matter, they still need to cover your warranty.

I mean, let's say you need a repair under warranty and you had maintenance or what not done at other places. Will they say, SINCE they didn't do your oil change it's no longer under warranty?

I think they treating the customer stupid. Unless stated as a requirement for warranty when it says they MUST do the oil. I think they blowing smoke up your ba-donk-a-donk.

Just my opinion.

Haha, good one Casper. I agree and I think all you have to do is document in the service book the date and milage and initial it if you really want to cover yourself. I just gave up changing my own oil but in all the years I was never questioned. I just noted in the book to make sure.

[mx6bfast]

There is a chain here in the Memphis area that has coupons for oil changes and tire rotation for $17/$19 weekday/ends. I used to take our vehicles there and then next door to Firestone for the lifetime alignment service. I asked and the guy at Firestone agreed to accept their coupons. So an oil change, tire rotation, and alignment for <$25, can't beat that!!! Other than the dude with the lifetime oil changes.

Of course my Rogue is at a Nissan dealership getting an oil change since I had a $19.99 coupon.

[tensman]

To each his own on DIY or not on oil changes. To me, there's too much opportunity to screw up by getting a CHEAPO oil change by some guy who was emptying the frier at McDs last week (crossthreading drain plugs or filters, forgetting to put the oil in and start it dry...then discover no oil pressure and then fill it - HEY, I worked at a gas station in the 60s...this crap HAPPENS!! And the owner never knew it). And I don't feel it worth the coin to pay the Nissan Dealer's overhead for such a simple task. I've changed my own oil since the 60s starting with my '57 Ford. As far as finding things, I'll see them before any "tech" since I have a more vested interest, and, with today's vehicles, there's not much to see compared to years ago when we changed points every 10K miles and drum brake shoes every 20K, water pumps every 40-50K, and rebuilt carbs about the same. My '03 Ford King Ranch went 100k miles and never had a hiccup (nor a tire change! Amazing tires - but a load of oil changes).I had an 80 Datsun 210GX that also went to 6 figures, only problem was an EGR valve. We'll see how the Rogue does.