This is by no means a comprehensive test, but unscrew your engine oil cap and shine a bright flashlight in there.

See if you can spot any sludge.

I'd write to the infiniti HO if they dont cover you for everything. 63K is nothing especially with regular synthetic oil changes

 

go with Better business bureau that gets their panties in a bunch too.

 

extended warranty?

 

Yes it is the Infiniti Elite Extended warranty. Good ideas above!

 

Sludge? I have never heard of sludge buildup in these motors. I have also never heard of asking for cash up front for diagnostics under a warranty covered issue, especially since there are service records for what they are questioning.

Call Infiniti customer service and give them a piece of your mind. While you are at it, remind them that you are already paying for the Elite Extended Warranty and for their dealership to ask for you to pay for anything prior to diagnosing the problem is ridiculous!

 

+1 precisely.

 

Good luck, mine was burning 1qt every 700 miles. I Got a new longblock put in under warranty. Search the Oil Consumption TSB thread.

 

Standard procedure to make sure they get a deposit in the event your engine damage was caused by you. For them to tear down the engine is a lot of work so they need to make sure they are not left holding the bill in the unlikely event that this was your fault.

 

If he paid for the extended warranty though, it seems like BS for them to do that. I've never had to pay for any sort of diags while under warranty. And up front? I've never paid for service up front. Shoot, I had my TPMS sensors moved from my old wheels to the new yesterday and I didn't pay till it was done.

I took my G in when there was a very audible rattle in the dash, and I was under warranty at the time. They had it for close to 2 days while they investigated and remedied the issue. I had a loaner, no questions asked, and it was never even implied that I would ever have to pay anything out of pocket. A rattle in the dash could have just as easily been due to some kid dropping something in one of the air vents (ie my fault, like the sludge theory).

But sludge? At only 63k???? And "holding the bill"?? They'd be holding his car. So it's not like he wouldn't have reason to pay it if for some odd reason it did end up being owner fault.

 

Seems kind of silly to make him pay up front since they have the car and don't have to return it until he pays his bill, if he ends up with one. I'd call Infiniti and raise hell.

 

I'm sure they aren't asking for him to pony up the dough literally, they just want him to sign a repair order stating that he agrees to pay the amount in the event that the damage isn't covered under warranty. If a dealer isn't doing that then they are doing the customer a favor that will eventually bite them in the ***.

 

I spoke with them yesterday and they are doing the teardown for $200 and this will only be billed to me if it was deemed my fault. They also said there was only 1 qt left (and I just filled it a few weeks before!), metal shavings in the pan, but no sign of sludge in the pan. The $200 (previously $459) is to dismantle the topend and see if there is sludge. Will let you know what happens.