Stealership Battery Install Charges

[jbillion]

I didnt mention this in the forum earlier. My battery happened to die yesterday, bad co-incidence since I had the service scheduled for this morning at 6:30am. I asked them what the price would be to get a new battery. I was quoted $260. I asked how much of that was service charge and he siad $140.

I was quite shocked. I told him to just sell me the battery instead and I will install it myself. What a RIP OFF. Would anyone actually pay $140 to have a battery installed? That is outrageous.

[auditech10]

Thats about an hour labor, which is what every dealership I have ever worked at has charged.I know with german cars, there are things you should reset such as faults in control modules, basic settings on windows, time/clock, radio settings sometimes, radio code sometimes, etc. Cheers

[jbillion]

I've had an Audi, Lexus and Accura and always just purchased a battery and installed it myself without any problems. What is so unique about the M that it takes an hour to install a batery? Also, last time I had to disconnect the battery to install the new fog light, there were some things that acted a little funny (i.e. sun roof wouldnt open all the way, windows didnt auto up/down) but they worked themselves out after a couple of days.

Is there any real risk to installing a new battery myself? Can Steve the Tech or q45 tech chime in on this? I don't mind paying the extra money if there is any real value gained from it. What is involved in the battry replacement.

[Sentientbydesign]

Shouldn't be a real issue. I personally like the Duralast Gold Batteries from Autozone. One of the few things that that brand makes well.

I think it was around $70 for my I30. Should be similar for the M.

[auditech10]

No, you can do it yourself just fine. But I was just trying to explain what their reasoning could be. D

[maxnix]

The voluntarily lame will still have to pay shop rates.

This is not news.

[qship96]

Take the money, research and purchase the best aftermarket battery you can afford. You can purchase the highest rated and tested battery for slightly less than $200 with includes a FULL {not prorated} warranty that lasts twice as long as the factory battery.

[nmgoodthing]

I installed my own battery. It took 5 minutes.

Save your money. You don't even need a Nissan battery.

[SteveTheTech]

It's common knowledge that all Nissan/Infiniti batteries are made by Interstate. I personally always use factory or interstate and have had great luck with them.

Nate, seriously the Autozone special, don't mistreat the Infiniti by giving it cheap juice.

Seriously I don't know who makes it but there not that many battery manufacturers out there. Just do some research.

I am not going to bash another dealer. They may perform advanced tests on the new battery and the old one to make sure they are still good.We were just sent this new tester that prints out a very advanced receipt. If you do have it replaced there make sure you get a copy.

(i.e. sun roof wouldnt open all the way, windows didnt auto up/down) but they worked themselves out after a couple of days.

I'm glad to hear that you managed to reset them even if it was accidental. The memory learning in the switches was lost when the circuit was opened. It is a pretty easy reset procedure.

[Sentientbydesign]

Steve,

Here's a little blip from a quick search:

Johnson Controls now supplies original equipment batteries for leading automakers, including DaimlerChrysler, Ford, Honda, Nissan, and Toyota. A stable of leading battery brands, including DieHard, Duralast, Interstate, ProStart, and Everstart, along with others, all bear Johnson Controls signature. Aftermarket service is also important, and customers represented in this segment of the market include AutoZone, Interstate Battery, Sears, Wal-Mart, and Costco.

The Duralast Gold Batteries come with a pretty awesome warranty which includes jump service for a couple of years and a 6 or 7 year warranty on the battery itself.

[SteveTheTech]

And again I get burned by facts. I figured they were all made by the same company. It's just the Autozone stigma with a G is oil and vinegar to me. They do have a decent warranty though.