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Did you decide to change the oil at 1300 miles based on your experience or some other guidelines? I was planning to have my first oil change done at 3000 or 3750 miles.
Black 05 SE.
I think the manual states that the mirrors operate the way you described. That is how ours works as well.
The mirrors...working exactly as designed. Only the one 'selected' tilts down. :shades:
I made a bit of a mess the first time. It was windy here in FL and the newspaper was blowing all around (did this in the drive). Some oil missed the pan and got all over the drive.
Other than that, the change took about 15 minutes. Real easy.
One thing I DO hate on this vehicle. The engine oil dipstick. It is impossible to read...at least mine is. I must have checked the oil 15 times and still not sure if the level is correct. I did put 4 1/4 quarts in. I could be slightly over but not enough to hurt anything. I know I am not under filled. I have changed oil myself on all of my vehicles over the years. Never, ever had so much trouble reading a dipstick :mad:
My experince is that this solves the problem. I usually make my checks in the morning when the engine has all night to cool.
Or I could be wrong.
1) I have never heard of a positive consumer outcome to BBB. better to get a lawyer who works for you. Check your local laws. You can find a lawyer who only gets paid (by the manufacturer) if you win.
2) When we went through it things like rattles are considered an annoyance, not a safety issue. Your only recourse is if the Manufacturer refuses to repair, then it is a violation of Magnuson (sp?) which covers Warranties and adherence to such.
My garage space doesn't allow me and my wife to park both vehicles at the same time so my van is parked outside on the driveway which is moderately sloped.
Measuring oil level is going to be a hassle for me.
This is traditional advice but is not recommended by most manufacturers.
I've had oil analysis done on our Ford van (159K miles) and Subaru (157K) and there is no evidence of the additive package being exhausted, excess contaminents building up, or significant viscosity changes after over 7,000 miles with regular oil.
We're using Mobil One with a Purolator Pure One filter as they were out of Mobil One filters the day we came in. We will change oil and filter every 7,500 miles per the manufacturer's recommendation.
But this time I think I’ll change earlier.
The manufacturer’s recommended schedule is not always the ideal. This schedule is influenced not only by the engineers, but by the marking/sales division.
What immediately comes to mind is the Toyota sludge problem and the VW 1.8T problem. Where after the fact they state that you must use the lower mileage change interval or use synthetic.
I’ve talked to my brother who is an engineer and he tells me that synthetic is not necessary for ordinary autos; that most “regular” oils contain synthetic properties and additives and the majority of synthetic oils are just a waste of money. There were only a few exceptions of “real” synthetics and they were much more costly; don’t remember which ones. He tells me that unless you have a turbo or the engine is designed to run “really” hot that you won’t gain any benefits from the synthetic it was technical and I just “uh huh”’d along with the conversation.
I don’t run high rpm’s in my van (usually) and don’t tow, but I do live where it’s hot and usually dusty so I’ll probably use a shorter interval (so I can get a new clean filter on there) with an oil that has a higher viscosity rating (range).
But I guess if it’s working for you no point messing with success.
I am thinking of getting a dash kit but I would like to see what it would look like first.
This is what I am talking about when I say dashkit:
http://www.wooddashexperts.com/customer/product.php?productid=35337&cat=777&page=1
What he says is true. There was a lawsuit concerning the definition of "Synthetic" oils. As I recall it was brought by Mobil against Castrol, who was marketing a "Synthetic Blend." As a result, the term Synthetic is nearly meaningless.
The SAE service standards have continued to improve, and there are very few cars on the market that require synthetic. As someone said, "Using synthetic simply creates very high quality waste oil." But I'll have to wait another 90,000 miles or so before we have any data supporting this, or not. The 05 Quest and a 05 Accord V6 are the first vehicles we've purchased that will use synthetic exclusively.
The break in oil/factory fill has a lot of contaminates in it from the inital engine break-in. Do an oil test on it and you will find much higher amounts of Alum, etc..... That's why it's best to get it out shortly after 1000 miles.
I fully agree that good dino oil will last 7500...but not all of them. Dino oils do not give some of the other benes of synthetic and that's why I used Mobil 1.
Does anyone who is currently driving a Quest have a complaint about the instrument panel? Does it's placement bother you when driving? This is the only reason I would decide not to buy one. I will want the redesigned panel when it comes out, it just looks wrong to me the way it is. Maybe leasing one until the redesign comes out and then buying is the way to go for me, I don't know, anyone have a comment?
We use a Quest as a company car, and I also use it sometimes with my family. We have an 05 with 8,500 miles on it.
Four different people drive it regularly. On average they report getting used to the center dash pod, "In about five minutes."
It depends upon your attitude towards change, and towards technology. Some people are late technology adopters, hate change, and won't even set foot in a Quest. They were unlikely to buy one, anyway. Others like it. Others are indifferent, but like the clean look in front of the driver. New Mini owners don't spend a lot of time carping about their central dash pods.
Friday I spent the day traveling with a wealthy entreprenuer that was about to buy a 50,000 Land Rover to replace their Chevy Tahoe as a family hauler. He was really impressed with the design of the vehicle, and especially the performance. When we accelerated up an uphill highway ramp and it pushed him back in his seat (I was showing off) he said, "Wow!"
He is not bothered by the central dashpod. In addition to a Mini, they also own a BMW Z8, a hand-crafted roadster that also has a central dash pod. They were going to a dealer this weekend to look at an SE with Leather, sunroofs, and nav.
You can wait for the 2007 but you'll likely lose the $2,000 rebate currently available. A one year lease is not going to make economic sense. If you can't live with the current design, cough up the extra $2-4,000 that a Honda will cost and live with the styling and [apparently] lower gas mileage.
I use a Garmin 2610 portable GPS that has giant digital numbers right in front of you - $800.
I would not lease for one year I would do a two to three year lease and then get the redesigned panel but who knows what the redesign will look like? I may not even like it.
I have no problem with change, we have traded every two years since 1999 and haven't had the same style car twice, I like to mix it up. I am only concerned with how safe it would be to have all the gauges placed out of the line of view especially since I travel to work daily with both of my very young children and are already distracting enough.
I like the body style and interior style of the Quest, it is my first choice in vans right now.
manufactures of car seats and list car seats that best fit each Nissan model.
You can click on the Quest and it will give you a list of booster, rear facing,
and forward facing car seats that best fit the Quest. I purchased my car
seats based on this list. I hope this helps
Having the seat “loose” makes it easier to rearrange their seating to the back row, or to move to another vehicle.
We bought our '04 Quest last summer, and from the very start were disappointed with the cooling of the a/c. Tepid, at best, when outside temps were above 80 degrees. Not what I'd have expected from a new car I'd just spent ~ $25K on. We never experienced the "hot air out the floor vents" problem, just that the air blowing out the vents was not anywhere close to cool enough. We live in Texas, and the summers can be unbearably warm. A/C is not an option for us with small children.
Anyway, we brought the thing back in probably 4 times through the end of the summer and into fall. Each time we were told (courteously!) something different: the system was low on freon but no leaks were detected; the system was cooling to specs but that the cubic feet in the van just took longer to cool off; that everything checked out, but that they'd put dye into the system to see if the thing were leaking; that the new freon didn't cool as well, etc. etc. (sigh) We were growing more frustrated by the day. Oddly enough, I'd also on occasion hear a faint "beep" while driving when the a/c was turned on. There were no associated lights with the sound, nor were the beeps the "normal" louder ones that you hear with the auto doors, etc. It was very soft, and seemed to occur consistently when I accelerated past about 42 mph, and sometimes at speeds into the 60s, but never when the a/c was off. Ordinarily just one beep. Strange, huh? Anyway, soon enough the cooler fall/winter rolled around, and the lack of cooling became less of an issue.
Well, spring/summer comes this year, and we quickly discovered that our nemesis, the faulty a/c, had returned. By this time, I had immediately returned to my previous level of aggravation, and was at my wit's end. I was due for an oil change, etc., so I called 800-nissan1 (or whatever the number is) and quizzed them about the a/c in advance. They were very nice, and advised me to take the van in, and while it was still in the shop, to call them back with the case number they assigned to my complaint. They would then contact some regional supervisor or other such person, who would in turn call the dealership and "consult" with them. Seemed like smoke being blown up my skirt, but I followed their directions anyway. When I brought it in to the dealership's shop, I went a little on the offensive, telling them that I just didn't believe that this level of cooling met ANY person's (quality control's) reasonable definition of functional air conditioning. Circulation was not a problem, I continued, but the temperature of the air coming out of the vents was. I wanted them to know that their opportunities to satisfy THIS customer were quickly running out, and that I had heard all their bunk before and was not buying it. I think I even said something like if this time didn't get it, I was about to start raising hell with Nissan b/c I could get no satisfaction from the dealer.
I'm happy to report that the goofy thing finally is cooling. The invoice said something like a lower ______ was loose (I will try to find the exact wording they used and re-post it later). Don't know why they couldn't fix it before, but my patience finally paid off, and they thankfully got it fixed. Funny thing is, the faint beep also stopped. Could it have been a warning of some sort for a freon leak??? Go figure.
We also experienced the extremely sluggish starts on random occasion--almost like the silly thing was starting off in a higher gear. After you get up to speed, you're fine, but no passing downshift, and no shifting to get up to highway speed. I guess it resets itself after killing and restarting the engine. They could not duplicate the problem, but told me to leave it running and bring it in the next time it happened. Not a far drive if I'm in town, so I plan on doing it.
They also repaired an annoying 3rd seat rattle (didn't know that was the problem until I saw the TSB on it).
Overall, we really love the van, the smooth ride, etc. We just felt like we were getting duck-bitten to death (except for a/c which WAS a major deal) with several little things wrong. If they can work out the kinks for 2005, I would even recommend it.
One more thought. We added an aftermarket DVD player in the ceiling. Worked great except alot of interference when the radio/cd player was on. We hadn't noticed it because the audio is through wireless headphones, and our kiddos hadn't told us (could they have missed it???). Circuit City was going to pull the thing out to send it in for diagnosis. I just happened to be monkeying with the radio one day before we took it in for removal, and I turned off the "rear controls" for the radio. Immediately the interference through the headphones disappeared. We decided to leave the rear control off permanently, and now everyone is happy.
One last thing: the "pod o' control" does take a little getting used to, and the speedometer, etc. also being in the middle is weird at first. One quickly grows accustomed to it, however, so don't let that alone influence your decision.
I'll duplicate this post on the competing thread as well (like you wanted to know that!)
We are sill learning the buttons and levers in this minivan. It will take some time. The kids love the DVD player.
Hope to learn some things with this board.
Head Phones for Quest
First, I wear glasses with clip-on sunglasses that are specifically designed for my frame. I placed them on the steering wheel column momentarily when the clip-on slid and fell through the gap between the column and the dash. Has any one tried to access the area I'm describing?
Second, came back home parked the van in the garage my mind just fixated on how to retrieve the clip-on, and I activated the rear lift door to take library books out. The door hit the bottom of the garage door and now about 2 inch strip of paint peeled off.
Well, not sure what I'm going to do about it at this point, just bummed out. My van is less than two months old
My wife was coming home one day and the kids ran out to see her. They proceeded to climb into the driver’s seat and pushed the driver’s door against the wall wham! Luckily I also placed a long strip of Styrofoam along the wall where the car door would contact it. I also placed a long strip of Styrofoam along the garage entry door to the house, incase the van is parked to close to the entry door and it swings inwards it won’t hit the van.
Too bad the rear lift door couldn’t slide into the roof almost the way your garage door opens in sections might be dumb though.
Maybe I’ll put Styrofoam strips on the inside of my garage door so if the rear lift gate does hit it, it’ll have a chance to reverse without crunching the paint.
I guess we can learn by your mistakes; to much consolation though.
You might try taking apart the steering column cover (it comes apart like a clam shell if it is like my '95 Camry, which it looks very similar to). Loosen the screws with a phillips head (or other appropriate screw driver attachment) from the bottom. The top and bottom come apart and out drops your clip on. Tricky part is fitting the two back together afterward--but it can be done! Clip on might have fallen further down behind the dash cover panel, but it can be fished out from there, either from the top or up from the floor board area.
As for the paint scratch, take heart. My wife has backed into our half-closed garage door and torn the brake light off (got it repaired at the dealership). What she doesn't know, b/c she is too short to see, is that she also scratched paint off the roof around the brake light--I dont' have the heart to tell her. She has also raised the hatch door into the garage door, much like you did, and scratched the back. I told her that I did it so that she wouldn't feel so bad. Life's short. Don't worry about it. The dealer could fix you up with some touch up paint, or spend $200 at your local body shop to have it repainted professionally.
Kind of makes your stomach hurt at first, but after a few weeks you'll get nice and used to it!
Thanks for the advice and kind words.
I did loosen those screws (three of them) from the bottom. But those clam shells are tightly shut. I forced them a while but eventually chickened out fearing I could possibly break something (that would make it three in a day.) Called the dealer service dept, they told me to come in tomorrow morning. I'll try again in the morning but as you said putting them back may be difficult... I just want my :shades: back.
I wouldn't have tried it without Pepperman's advice. So thank you Pepperman!
Man, what a sweet husband you're! I probably would've yelled at my wife The van barely fits in our garage. I fear the same is gonna happen to us sooner or later. Our younger kid, almost 2, loves to poke at the buttons and knobs in the van, I fear she would inevitably find the one for the power hatch and push it. Either that, or our minds drift off and we accidentally mistaken the hatch button for the side door... But for now, we'll enjoy the NEW van :shades: Sorry sopecreek, didn't mean to make you feel bad
Will have Styrofoam surrounding everything
I’ve noticed that my mileage, as displayed by the on board comp, does not even average the city EPA mpg.
For the first tank of gas it seemed fine 17.4, then again a 17.4, then an 18 etc. I expected more, but realized that we have a huge (not so mini) van with a powerful V6 engine.
I noticed that we’re putting on a lot of miles 2100 so far (purchased mothers day) but are not stopping for fuel frequently.
Today I filled up. I noticed the comp reading out 16.9 mpg. I added 16.2 gallons of fuel and according to the trip comp went 415 miles. This is NOT 16.9 mpg but 25.6 mpg; not even close.
The tank is 20 gallons and the fuel indicator showed empty, the trip comp displayed an * for the DTE, so naturally I got to a gas station as soon as I could.
Think I’ll go for an early oil change and get them to check this out.
My tank also reads empty with about 3-4 gallons of gas in it. I too just thought of it as a cushion. Let us know what they say.
I used to do pen and paper with mileage but figured the comp would know exactly how much fuel it used and how far it had driven since fuel injection is pretty precise.
Knowing that the mpg comp is not accurate delegates it to the 60’s Star Trek blinking lights; kinda looks neat the first time but quickly turns out to be a waste of money and space.
tamu2002 – my comp read EXACTLY the same for the first two tanks 17.4 (with resetting). I found this odd but didn’t think much at the time.