So, after searching this site, I found no answers. The service dept at the dealer is also stumped at how this happened.

Starting about 2 weeks ago my G wouldnt start from time to time. I got a jump and went on my way. I replaced the battery with a new OEM one and it seemed to work fine for about a week. The car again wouldnt start again. I jumped it about 2 more times and went about my business. I called dealer and said that I thought it was an alternator problem, they concured. The next available appt was a week out, so I continued to take my chances and drive it. The G finally woulnt start while being jumped so I had it towed.

Dealer calls me today and says the fusable link on the wiring harness (the positive terminal wire/fuse) melted and may have melted into the wiring harness. If it did melt into the harness they said about $1000 for part (which I found new OEM ones for about $700) but labor would be 10-15 HOURS! So we are talking roughly $3000 for this repair.

Has anyone else had this issue? Is this engine harness really that difficult to change out?

Please let me know your thoughts/advise/experience!

Thank you so much.

 

Now's your chance for a 6 speed swap tbh.

Protip: Don't jump cars made after the 70s more than once.

 

Buy the wiring harness and let a local garage do the swap.

I'm guessing, to do the job right, you have to pull the engine.

 

Figure out exactly what is wrong and only replace what needs to be replaced. If your fusible link / fuse area has been damaged and can not be reused only replace that part. The rest of the harness should be fine.

 

I am a fan of doing things the right way, but is it possible to fix the melted parts only? Just looking at it is the whole thing melted or just a few parts? I don't even know what we are talking about here, but just trying to help out. 3k? That is 25% of what I paid for my car...

 

Well, a wire harness is made of copper wire. Copper wire can be spliced easily and reliably. There is most likely a fairly thick wire leading up to the fusible links. The other end then goes to the battery. You could possibly go to a junk hard and get the positive terminal, fusible link, and 12" of wire for less then $50. You could then pay someone to solder it back on and insulate it for another $50.

Whether or not it's the "right" way it is a $100 repair that if done right will last as long as the car as opposed to a $3,000 repair that will last as long as the car.

 

The dealer thinks it melted into the harness itself. I will know for sure tomorrow. How the hell did it melt in the first place???

 

I also agree with just soldering the melted wires and fixing at the area of the problem. I am sure the dealer wont do that option. If I do have to go that route it would have to be towed. At this point, with 120,000 miles I may just do a trade in. I saw an off lease 2008 g37s coupe loaded for $22,000 and my car is in excellent shape (except for harness) so I should get a decent price for trade in (kbb said about 10-12k). Just dont want another car payment. Thanks for the input.

 

It could have been from cranking the car on a dead battery. The lower the voltage the more current your starter will pull trying to start. In theory, the fuse should blow before it melts, but after 7 years of aging and oxidizing it is possible that a little resistance has built up in the fuses and that will add to the heat.

 

Oh, and you are right, the dealership won't just replace the part needed - they most likely don't have the skill set necessary to actually fix the problem without replacing the entire part!

 

^ 10k-12k for trade in? GLW that... These cars sell for that much

I guess in Missouri it cost more? Any, GL on your search to find a fix.

 

So, apparently there was a surge of power that didn't trip the 100 amp fuse in the fuse relay at the battery and this is what caused the melting. The mechanic at the dealer went above and beyond to fix this. He went after hours (on his own time) and found a 100 amp fuse and wiring and rewired it. The DEALER saved me a ton of money! For this the mechanic recieved a $100 gift certificate to my favorite local italian restaurant (Charlie Gittos on the Hill) in STL. The dealers are not all bad!

 

Happy for you, but still, what exactly did you have to pay? How long ago was this fix? If it was a month ago, has it been working wonderfully for the past month? if it was just now or very recent, please report back later to let me/us know if the problem is truly solved (assuming you didn't actually WATCH them "fix" it).

 

Sorry for the delay, must have missed your post. I now have driven the car an additional 45k miles, no issues. The dealer charged me $600 and had the car back the next day. Again, Bommarito Infiniti is the only dealer to buy my next Infiniti. I have now purchased 3 Infiniti's from them.

 

Delay? LOL! 3.5 years, that's back from the crypt!