If you have any doubts, pass then. It's not like this is a rare car that is hard to find. Sure 6-spds are a little rarer, but they turn up.

Perhaps it would be in your better interest to look for a 6MT that has more warranty left, or has oil change service history or something you feel more comfortable with.

 

Yep. I mentioned this in passing to my father today and he was very confused as to how this could happen. I'll have to see what service history is available.

 

Hooray, the Infiniti dealer pulled service records:

3870: oil + filter change
7301: oil + filter change, tire rotation, 7500 mile service
11060: oil + filter change, wiper blades, cabin air filter
13986: tire rotation, 15,000 mile service, oil + filter change, air filter
16405: winter tires installed, oil + filter change
20296: wiper blades, oil + filter change, winter tires removed, mutli-point inspection
24640: oil + filter change, cabin air filter, fuel injection cleaning, wiper blades
28306: tire rotation, oil + filter change, air filter

There's a gap between the 28306 mile mark and the current 37000 miles. The car was sold or traded at about 31000, then there's no info available. Someone racked up about 6000 miles in 6 months, then it ended up at the current dealership. It's been there since early May.

There was never any complaint of oil consumption or anything. Does this look fairly safe?

 

Ask the dealer their opinion. Will they cover the OC if it appears? There's a 9K mile difference between oil changes. Talk to them in person and write down everything they say, in front of them. Get their name. Get something in writing if you can.

BTW, they're not the enemy. Nissan is the problem. Dealers will always take the work, but they need to cover themselves because Nissan can refuse to reimburse them if Nissan thinks the car wasn't maintained. Usually for something like OC, the regional rep will review the case. You might even want to contact him/her and explain the situation. You're getting ready to throw down a big chunk of money. It's worth calling around and making a case to CYA.

 

Hmm. May as well call back the dealer and ask. We've bought two cars from this Infiniti dealer and had 3 Infinitis serviced there regularly over the last decade.

And it's very possible the motor burns no oil, of course. What was the approximate problem rate on those motors?

 

Infiniti of Lisle said that as long as you've shown oil changes it's not a big deal. They just have that line in there to prevent someone from walking in at 25k on the original oil and expecting a new longblock.