Takata Airbag Inflator recall woes

[mcarman430]

I have finally cooled down enough to tell my Takata airbag inflator recall replacement story without profanity. It was on my wife's M35X (2007). The only dealership near us is in Nashville (Infiniti of Coolsprings) and we were going to be in the area for something else so we made an appointment. A couple hours after dropping it off, they called and said it was ready. We were happy to have it done because Tennessee can definitely be a humid area in the summer and the recall said in humid areas the inflator could fail and become a projectile harming or killing the passenger. As we drove away we decided to stop for lunch and started noticing things didn't look right with the dashboard. There were chunks missing around the vents and center speaker, the defrost vents were not flush with the dash, there was a scrape on the navigation console revealing gray plastic underneath, the shifter lock button was missing, and that was just what we could see on the surface. We immediately took it back to the dealership and complained and they acted offended that we would question their work. They did finally agree to order a new dash since Infiniti would pay for it. After getting it home, I called Inifiniti USA and opened a case with them. I did not get any better service from them than I did from the dealership. Since I bought the car used, they wanted a copy of my registration to prove I owned it. They asked if the dealership had taken pictures of the dash before they worked on it. Apparently, that is their "out" for poor work if it was cracked or damaged before you dropped it off. When I opened the passenger door to get the registration out, I noticed the threshold had been pulled loose during the "repair" and had not been put back under the dash and the door had been slammed on it making a white crease in the black plastic. They would say "we will contact the dealer and get back with you" and nothing ever happened. I kept calling and getting different people who said "the person working your case is not available right now but we will have her call you", and again nothing. When I finally got the text that the dash was in, I went and told the manager what had happened and he said all the right things. "This isn't representative of our typical work quality". "I will find out who the tech was that did this". "We will make it right and your wife will be proud of her car again". I asked that no paint be used to cover it up since the car didn't have any paint on it when I brought it to them. When I got the car back, it had a new dash in it but the navigation console had been spray painted and so had the threshold. The defrost vents still don't fit right and the car has much more road noise inside than it used to or compared to my M35 Sport which is a louder car to begin with. I suspect they threw away any sound dampening material that was behind the dash. I texted the service consultant and told him I was bringing the car back to have the work done as promised. His response was that they don't make those parts anymore and that was the only way to fix it. I told him it isn't fixed and paint eventually comes off not to mention I can't clean the dash anymore since I don't know what might take the paint off. The threshold has started to bend back up so you can tell it was damaged. Infiniti of Coolsprings is the only dealership in middle Tennessee so I have nowhere to get any future work done. I may end up having to sell the car because my wife is pissed off all the time, and I can't get the airbag "fixed" on my other one because I don't trust them anymore. Infiniti is the worst brand I have ever dealt with and that is saying something. This is the last one I will ever own. I hope no one else has an experience as bad as mine.

[Larz]

The Takata recall has resulted in nightmares for owners all over. Very few have been pleased with the repairs made. The fortunate part of your repair was that Infiniti actually paid for a replacement dash (which is a rare occurrence) - yet and still, the dealer managed to ruin that blessing. My "free" recall cost me over $2,000 because I had to buy my new dash. My existing dash had begun to show deterioration and Infniti would not replace it.
Part of the trouble is that even a dash made of the finest materials is no longer pliable or sturdy after so many years and our dashes, while not made of cheap plastics, are certainly not fine material to begin with. Therein lies the challenge. How do you safely and gently remove a brittle dash without destroying it. I reckon some service techs really make a valiant effort, taking time to slowly work the dash parts loose, treating it like the brittle, cheaply made crap that it is. Others just yank and force parts together to get to the next car in the service bay. If you read my latest update on the Takata recall, you already know that since Takata went bankrupt, dealers will have to absorb the cost and labor for these repairs. I submit that since the costs are now laid at the foot of the dealer, we will see that some dealers will still treat our cars with utmost care, while others will simply allow techs to slap things together to reduce their costs.
I have some sympathy for Infiniti and other car makers. They are also victims in this cluster-fork and cannot afford to bear the costs of every dash that requires replacement due to a dangerous situation caused by Takata --- who lied about quality and performance and produced forged documentation for nealy 10 years to all the car makers who purchased their air bags. Every model from every brand where removal of the entire dash is required for this recall will end with poor results and angry car owners. Cars that require only a simple glove box removal, etc to get to the air bag will see less problems.
I know this will not make you feel any better, but I must tell you this: That new airbag in your dash contains the same defective propellant that breaks down over the years and turns them into a pipe bomb in your dash. The only difference is that the propellant now contains a drying agent which "should" delay the breakdown, but it does NOT remove the danger. It will still break down into a pipe bomb, just more slowly over more years. Technical reviews by engineers have already proven that to be the case, yet nobody is talking about that except the engineers.
Refusing to buy another Infiniti is understandable, but makes nearly no difference as many other car makers are using these same crap air bags and short of buying a Jag, Bentley, or Rolls, you are still likely to end up with Takata bags. I DO, however agree that your local dealer is crap and a disgrace to Inifniti dealers everywhere.

[EdBwoy]

Man, I am so livid! I took a few hours to cool off when I first read this around lunch time, yet I find my blood boiling as I type my reply.

I really don't understand; if the place hasn't done any recalls yet to gain experience (unlikely, if it's the only Infiniti dealership around), then why don't they read the flippin FSM? Heck I removed a dash for zero Dollars, in my garage and didn't put any extra cracks. I don't know why they still keep prying the dash around the vents.

If it's any consolation for the future, I have seen some posts saying that you can/ could ask the dealership to order a new dash for you. And someone also mentioned a new dash is supposed to come with the recall.
I haven't seen any written notice on that positive spin, but it seems some dealership service centers are better than others when it comes to leaving customers happy.

[EdBwoy]

Oh, also... what parts did they damage around the door? What color is your interior? I might have some plastic bits and pieces to help alleviate the pain.

[Sstupid]

I’ve decided not to get my airbag replaced. My dash is in really bad shape already so I don’t want to know how bad it would look after the recall work. There’s never anyone in my passenger seat anyway.

[Larz]

Its not just the person in the passenger seat. A few of the deaths were drivers, and not just Infiniti owners. The shrapnel caused by the exploding air bag goes everywhere in the car. I still recommend getting it done, then find a dash-mat or cover-king dash cover to hide the damaged dash. You can also place just enough weight on the passenger seat to inactivate the dash airbag. I used a milk crate with a few books in it and fastened the seat belt through it to hold it in place. That caused the 'passenger air bag off' lamp to illuminate (in the dome area).

[Sstupid]

Oh that sucks! I️ wonder why we don’t have the option to turn it off.