Hey All-

I just bought a used 2004 coupe with 34,000 miles. It was a one-owner car, but came with no service records. I had local Infiniti dealer run the VIN, and their system showed no maintenance was ever done (at any dealership).

So with no records anywhere, I'm hoping the previous owner at least changed the oil!

Anyway, I have an appointment at a local Nissan dealer to do an oil change. I told the man there about the situation, and he suggested I do the standard 30,000 scheduled maintenance for $500+.

What would you guys do? Should I spend the $500 and be safe, or should I select a few things and just have those done?

Thanks for any opinions. I absolutely LOVE the car, and want to keep her healthy for many years to come.

 

At 30,000 miles I had the oil changed, (normal every 3,000) I had them flush the radiator system, and flush the trans fluid on my Auto. I also had them replace the air filter.

Thats the most they got out of me. I knew my alignment was okay, and I planned on replacing the incabin air filter myself.......no need to pay them something like $100 for that.

 

If the previous owner had the 30k service performed, the engine and in-cabin filter should've been replaced. Simply open the filter box located towards the front right of the engine bay and take a look.

 

Thanks guys.

I think I'll get oil/oil filter changed, and transmission and radiator flushed. I'll look into replacing the air filter and in-cabin air filter myself.

I was a bit disappointed when the dealer said this car has no records of any maintenance. So as far as I can tell, absolutely nothing has ever been done to it. So let's assume it's only ever had oil changed...with 34,000 miles is there anything else I should have checked out?

Thanks again.

 

Check the serpentine belts.

 

Ok, serpentine belts too.

How about the alignment? (It tracks straight as an arrow on the highway, so that should be ok, right?)

 

jsut an FYI,
Infiniti G35 uses timing chain, not timing belt (a.k.a. serpentine belt) and the lifetime of a timing chain is way longer than the life time of your car... so you don't really have to worry about it unless you are plannign to drive it for another 20+ years.. and plus there isn't a way to "check" the timing chain (unless you want to unamount the entire engine)

 

I dont go to my dealer for eveything, so that could be the case. Just have it inspected by a dealer and another shop

 

I believe if you call a dealer and give him the VIN# he can give you the service history if serviced at any Infiniti dealer US wide.

 

Thanks SmartIdiot- I thought that was the case. But what are those belts you can see in the front of the engine? Do they need to be checked?

 

Yeah, that's what I'm hoping. The problem is just that if I ever need any major (engine) warranty service, I could be in trouble because there are no records for any service prior to 34,000 miles. Do you think that would become an issue?

(I'm counting on never needing any major engine service, based on this engine's great record. Just wondering though....)

 

Yes, thats the SERPENTINE BELT, it runs your alternator/power steering ect. He (smartidiot) is confused between a timing chain and timing belt and serp belt.

Just grab the belt with your fingers, twist it a bit and inspect the side and surface facing the pulleys looking for cracks and if its really bad chunks missing. I replace mine when cracks show because you aren't going anywhere far when she snaps.

 

the one that you can see in the front the engine is the drive belt.. it is for other elctronic device in your car (ie: A/C, stereo, etc) and it has nothing to do with your engine (except it's powered by your engine, of course).. and yes drive belt does need to be replaced if it is broken (user manual recommends every 30000 miles but i'd only replace it when it is obviously broken)

with regards to your service record question, dealer cannot reject their warranty simply because there is no service records in their database.

The previous owner may did all the oil change by himself/herself or bring it to a local carshop.

 

Thanks G35Sask- I just checked mine and it seems to be in good shape: very tight and no visible cracks or chunks missing. How long do those tend to last?

 

Being that you have no records in my opinion I would the following and note it does not have to be done by a stealership. I went to Valvoline and changed my oil, flushed and changed my tranny, radiator and rear diff fluid, spark plugs (even though they said it wasn't needed) and airbox filter. Talk about noticed a major difference.