Ok so I lost another wheel cap today. I've now lost 5 of them. Granted I think it's the car wash that is doing it. I've gone to a car wash three times, one of them is a handwash place and the other is a touchless. None the less I have replaced 2 caps and now have 3 missing and I only have 5000 miles on my car. Thus, for every 1000 miles I drive I have to spend $30-40 to replace a cap. The dealer insists someone is stealing them, but I know that's not the case. I park in a garage, I replaced one the day i went to the car wash and then it broke off. The plastic tabs are cleanly breaking off.

I called my dealer again and they said there's nothing they can really do. I called Infiniti customer affairs and this b!tch told me that the dealer is the only person who can help me. They're finger pointing to each other.

Anyways, I love the car, and I am going to put aftermarket wheels on soon, but driving my car around without center caps looks pretty cheap. My car is a 2004 loaded 6mt sedan, it's sticker was near $35k. I bought it with my hard earned money and I'm only 22 years old, it's my nicest possession at this point. I haven't had financial support from my parents since I was 19, and it's almost embarrassing to drive such a nice car around with such visual flaws. The rear wheel hubs are so ugly.

Anyways, there are people having this problem, but I can't imagine it's anywhere near as often as mine. I'm fairly certain it's car wash related, as I've lost two caps each time shortly after a car wash. The pressure really isn't that high, and there is one wheel that has never had one fall off. That wheelcap seems to be on there REAL tight. I want somebody at my dealer or at Infiniti Corporate to at least give my story time of day. Calling Infiniti Consumer Affairs was frustrating. The lady was basically telling me I'm the first person in the world who has this problem; TOTAL BS. I mentioned this site and she said it's probably people making it up. I told her thanks and hung up because her and her voice were so annoying.

Anyways, time to step up my game. I've owned 5 nissan products, have loved them all, I've influenced so many people to buy their products, and I'm already out of pocket near $100 to replace these center caps so far.

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks - PS sorry for the rant

04 6MT Sedan - Z Tube, K&N Drop-In, 04 Z Suspension

 

PS - None of my previous cars have had center cap issues at the same two car washes. I've owned Racing Harts, SSR's, Mille's, and all sort of Nissan and Lexus stock wheels. Most of them appear to have inferior center caps and I've never once lost them.

The car wash I usually go to (when I do'nt have the time to wash it myself) is a super nice hand wash where they use the best chemicals and best towels. I live in a nice area of Austin and mainly see Corvettes, BMW's, Benz's, and Porsche 911's in there. It costs more money but it's really designed for people who care about their cars. Their high pressure sprayer isn't even that high pressure.

I know people here will tell me to stop going to the car wash, but I own a black car, travel a lot for work, and sometimes don't have the time to spend 2 hours washing my car. When I don't, it's worth my $20 to get it professionally washed. No where in the manual does it say conventional car washes are bad for the wheel caps.

04 6MT Sedan - Z Tube, K&N Drop-In, 04 Z Suspension

 

Next time you install the cap, smear some clear silicone sealant on them. That will lock them tight. Knock on wood, I have not lost a cap on my car in 15K or driving

Jim
'03.5 Sedan
Brilliant Silver/Graphite
6MT/ Premium package
Sport tuned suspension
Nismo Body Kit
Navigation and Satellite Radio
Z-Tube/JDM battery cover

 

Funny part is that I have 15k of miles, and I also use the touchfree washes alot and the hand wash places. I have never experienced my caps coming off yet!

Brian, I think you need to chill. You once told me that you actually liked the look without the cap kinda. Now your saying you hate it and think its cheap. Make up your mind. LOL. It's not the cars fault, its not Nissans/Infinitis since its not happening to everyone. Only a handful of people. It has got something to do with the person and how they take care of the car in some way or another. HAS TO BE.

2004 Infiniti G35S, 6MT, Premium, Sport, DP
Mods: JDM Clears, 20% tint, Z-tube, Stilen CAI
Track: 14.32 at 98.79 mph 2.2032 60ft
Dyno 07-07-04 - 234.2 hp & 233.8 tq
http://www.g35world.com

 

I've lost 4 in about 22K miles of driving over the last year and a half. Only one of the four was truly missing from the car before I noticed it. The other 3 were all found to be dangling while washing the car either by hand or in a do-it-yourself spray booth. (I never go thru automatic washes!)

When I call the dealer parts department for replacements they always seem to need to know he VIN number of my car. (Mine is a 2003.5) I always assumed it was because there may be color variations across different build dates. Maybe the reason that this issue is not cronic across all sport sedan wheel owners is because there was some sort of design change in the production runs????

Also, would anyone know if some appropriate 3rd party cap would work on these wheels and not look cheesy???

 

Not sure whats causing that, I pre-ordered mine few months before the 6MT was avaiable, so I got one of the first production runs. I have yet to have a cap come off. Maybe its your driving style, do you punch it around corners to get your back end to swing out? maybe the tension of that is causing the cap to flex or something... not sure... Your best fix is aftermarket rims

2003.5 G35 Sedan White/6MT - 2004 350z Roadster Black/6MT

 

Like I said, I have one wheel where that cap is on real solid. I cannot even forcefully remove it while the wheel is on the car. The other three go in and out easy.

I don't mind the look of the front wheels missing the cap, although I still prefer having the cap there. However, the rear hubs show through and are rusty; it looks real bad.

I think there's a tolerance issue with the wheels, like my center hole on 3 of my 4 wheels is probably a millimeter wider in diameter then it should be.

Either way I'm not going to be buying anymore of these. If I have to buy them then at this rate my car payment has just gone up $80 a month.

04 6MT Sedan - Z Tube, K&N Drop-In, 04 Z Suspension

 

EPOXY