Took my 2012 Altima to Nissan Dealership for OIL CHANGES. After 45min it was all done and I drove for 120min to home. During the drive on interstate, I knew my car feels very different as far as Engine noise goes. It was very loud as compare to before I took in my car to NISSAN for services this morning.
Regardless I got home, Opened the Hood and Noticed the AIR FILTER Box is wide open and is not latched at all (either one Top or bottom) !!!
The Air Filter was just hanging outside of the Box. This means car was breathing in all the dirty air from Interstate for almost 2 hours.
Second I did noticed splashes of Oil under the hood, over the Engine Cover.
I called the Dealership back and they said don't no worry about anything as the mechanic forgot to latch the air filter box properly.
This car was purchased brand new 2 years ago from Nissan and currently has 18K miles on it in a great shape. So far I have no had any check engine light due to airflow sensor.
My Concern is what kind of damage might have already been caused by the above issue. Since the Manual clearly states that "Driving without an air filter can cause severe engine damage".
Who should I contact to make sure the issue has been recorded at Nissan's for future related problems. What should I be worried about from now on. I have already latched the filter properly.
Two hours is not a long time. The caution is for an extended time and in dusty conditions; not a lot of dust on a highway. Your engine is fine. Good you checked.
Oil splashes could be drops of oil when the funnel was moved after fill; this too is not a concern.
Yes it was shoddy work to not close up the filter box. The dealership should be asked for a couple future free oil changes for the concern they've caused you. If they agree on one then you have something at least. People make mistakes.
After my bad experience with a motorcycle dealership in the past where my brakes failed as I was going 40mph I NEVER trust any stealership to do anything. Most but not all will rip you off, mess up your ride and etc.
That's why I refused the free Oil changes from my dealer. Id prefer to do it myself, do it right and on my time. They only touch my car if it is something under warranty that I can not fix.
I have 13K miles on my Altima. I pulled the air filter this past weekend and it looked new. No bugs, dirt, anything.....Kind of strange...
OP. I had the dealership do an alignment on our 2013 Pathfinder after he called and recommended it during one of our free oil changes. When we got the vehicle sheet back, there was still red marks on the sheet showing the car was still out of algnment. I called the service writer because he was the one that recommended the service, said I had a question about the aligment. He had to look for the info and would give me a call back. I did not say anything about it being wrong...I made sure I said nothing. He calls me back and says, can I bring the car back in, they messed up. They would fix it. They would give me a loaner if I needed it.
We have over 5 Nissan dealerships in a 30 mile radius in Northern VA, I used this mistake to my advantage. I got the alignment refunded. But the service manager didn't want to do anything. I went to the store manager. Said I didn't feel confortable with the service department. I paid for a simple service and they failed to meet the terms of the agreement. The free oil changes were a negotiated part of me buying the car there. I don't feel the department can fulfll that part of the agreement any more. I'm not confident they are even doing the oil changes correctly (yeah, I went there). I might have to take my business elsewhere.
Let's just say, stuff got done and I got my money back. I wasn't rude, but I let them know the paying customer would not be taken advantage of. That could have been my last $120 spent at that dealership and they took advantage of me. And now it took me 2 trips and double the time it dhould have taken to get a simple alignment done. We got calls, free coupons for services too. That stuff doesnn"t cost them much.
I would definitely say something to them about it and get something out of this. Make sure they know they did something wrong and you're not happy with it.