My 2003 sedan is just out of warranty and now the dealer wants $2000 for an airbag problem. According to their diagnostic flowcharts, several sensors and the engine computer must be replaced.

Are the airbags covered by any sort of special warranty? I find this totally bogus that four huge components in the safety system fail all at once right after the warranty is up.

The service manager got Infiniti customer service on the phone and they said they won't cover any of it.

Suggestions?

Get a second opinion. You can get an used ECU for under $500. I can't imagine the sensors are bad after only 3 years.

I had a left side air bag module go bad on me.....dealership wanted to charge me $800 to replace it. A forum member alerted me to look into the safety restraining warranty....sure enough..it was covered under a different warranty (longer than the power train warranty). It was a while ago and I don't recall the exact numbers...I think it was like 6 yrs / 70K? I called Infiniti direct and they confirmed that it was covered under a seperate warranty.

How many miles are on your G? You may still be covered.

Only about 45,000. It's not driven much.

(Purchase date was August 2002)


I'm going to look into the safety system warranty, as I seem to remember how most manufacturers offer different warranties on safety systems, emissions systems, and paint.

Thanks for the ideas!

You're covered. The warranty periods are covered in your owners manual or you can give Infiniti a call tomorrow (not your dealership...alot of times they don't know squat..that's just sad)

Let us know how it all works out.

Infiniti Consumer Affairs
P.O. Box 685003
Franklin TN 37068-5003
800.662.6200
8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Eastern / Central Time / Pacific Time
Monday through Friday

Infiniti suggested to ask for dealer good will. That's up to the dealer. I also read the G35 factory service manual it specifically says that the procedure must be followed in order and that after you replace a component you should retest the system each time. Once the trouble codes go away you stop repairing. The dealer tried to screw me by saying that all 4 items had to be replaced. They replaced the diagnostic module and all the error codes disappeared, but they did this at my insistence only. So I am going to have a very interesting "discussion" with the service manager today.

In my mind, the following things are relevant:

A. The car has only 45000 miles
B. I have owned and serviced THREE Infinitis at that dealership
C. I am good personal friends with my salesperson
D. I also own an Acura and would not hesitate to buy another after this incident

Go own those noobs!

I'm going to take the page from the service manual in, read it, and watch the tech squirm.

Or maybe let them know I have friends at the local ABC and CBS affiliates who would love to do a story about businesses defrauding their customers?

Most air bag components are 6 year or 70k miles. After that infiniti does not have to do anything for you. Id just talk to the service manager directly and ask him about the extended warranty on air bag components. Just ask nicely, youd be suprised as to just how far they are willing to go to keep you happy.

I feel you man my car just went out of warrenty about 3weeks ago and no wmy seat is fuking up, my wing is rattling(I tighted the screws but still lose) and there are other things too!

You won't have to throw down the ABC/CBS card. Once you show him it's covered, they will do it very happily. "Oh, I wasnt aware of that"

In my warranty book, (north of the border), it states:

"Air Bags and related electronic control systems are covered for the duration of the Powertrain Warranty".

Assuming that you have similar coverage there, and if you're within that time frame, you have coverage.....if not, you're at their mercy.

I've found that if you're close to the expiration of your warranty, the dealer has some wiggle room for approving such warranty coverage.

If they won't, go somewhere else. They may be more sympathetic.

G/L

C.