Ok, so my gf just bought an '04 G35 (relax, she's got an RX vert too) and it hasn't even had 2 tanks of gas through it when the clutch started to chatter terribly. The clutch was replaced by the dealer when they first got it and apparently they used an ACT HDSS clutch kit w/ flywheel (from Stillen; part #451045), not the infiniti OEM parts. We talked to the service manager and they said they used the "Stillen" parts because those was cheaper. The car has had barely 2000 miles from when the clutch was installed to when she purchased the car and half of that was dealership mileage. The sales manager is telling us that since the car still drives, they don't need to replace the clutch. The car has less than 60K miles on it so it is still under the manufacturer's drivetrain warranty.

So I guess my question is, What can I/she do about this?

She'd either like to get the clutch/flywheel replaced or she'd like to return the car. She's a real estate agent and the car is very distracting to her clients. I've been told that the car can be returned in 30 days if something goes wrong, but I can't find anything online about that. Also, if the clutch is chattering, wouldn't that count as defective and fall under the drivetrain warranty? Plus, wouldn't they have voided the factory warranty by not disclosing that they used a non-OEM part for repairs before she purchased the car?

I'm lost and my head hurts... please help...

 

I would think so, My buddy bought a new scion his tranny had problems clunking into gears and they replaced it for him. I would bring it back either way and tell them your not paying a damn thing for the car unless they fix it.

 

wow thats total BS, "because its cheaper" their full of it. take the papers that you signed with them and tell them again that the car is under warranty and that the clutch/flywheel is defective and that it SHOULD be replaced immediately. if they try to bs you even more with the whole "well the car still runs" ask them if you can settle this is court. a similar thing happened when my dad bought a car for my cousin. everytime you shifted into 5th gear it would grind horribly. during the test drive, we never went fast enough to get into 5th gear in the first place so the car itself felt fine. the car was still under warranty and we brought up the 5th gear grind issue with the dealership. they stated almost exactly what they did to you saying that the car overall was functioning properly, blah blah blah, all that other bs a lot of car dealerships give u when they think they may have to do more than they should. well my dads not a patient person, asked to speak with the floor manager, argued quietly for a little bit, called a lawyer......and they put in a new transmission the following weekend. sometimes, u don't even have to do anything, just threatening to bring in a lawyer or bring an issue to court will have them eat out of your hand. give it a try, just the threat may work. please tell me which infinti dealership u went to because usually infiniti gives pretty good service....good luck!

 

stop being a wussie and tell them ****** sales men to stfu and fix the **** or your boys from rx7club will come bustin their face up at night.

 

there is no 30 days bs i found that out the hard way bought a car from dick hannah and within 40 mins of driving off the lot the check engine light came on and it started running like *** took it back and they told me nothing was wrong with it gave it back and it came back on so i turned right back around told them i want my ******* money back they told me no so i called the district attorneys office and they told me your not protected on used car sales

 

I am guessing that she did not buy the car from an infiniti dealer. The clutch has been replaced using non oem parts, this will probably void the drivetrain warranty, but you could take it to a infiniti dealer and play dumb to find out for sure.
If you really go the lawyer route, it wouldnt take long to pay more for a lawyer than for a clutch. $1K for an infinity clutch by the dealer? $750 up per hour for a lawyer? Your chance for getting the dealer to stand behind this probably depends on how far down the food chain the carlot stands.
good luck. if you take it to the infinity dealer, make sure to let them know she is taking prospective home buyers around in a less than perfect inifinity- they might be more apt to fix it.

 

tell them to fix it and if they dont go to the better business bureau on them

 

and if all else fails stand out front of the sales department with a sign saying you got ripped off the pressure from the sales guys should motivate service dep. that will hurt'em were it counts..

 

Sadly non-oem parts do typically void the warranty, but if the dealer installed it at their discretion then you should have grounds to force them to replace it under warranty.

Question is was it a twin plate? Often twin plate clutches chatter and there's no way to fix it. It's just a common annoyance with some brands that make twin plate clutches. An unavoidable chatter...

 

I posted this in your other thread that got moved:

The clutch disc is probably a bit warped.

My father taught me this trick:

with the car in fifth (sixth if it has it) gear, rev the engine up to about 5K rpm and slowly engage the clutch 2-3 time in a row.

The point is to smoke the **** out of the clutch and heat it up allot.

immediately afterward let the car sit don't touch the clutch pedal for 10 minutes.

After 10 minutes test drive it.

If the clutch is not extremely warn this will usually fix it. This was something he claims they taught him when he went to a Porsche dealer sponsored class to become a Porsche certified mechanic (which he was in the 70s).

The idea is that the heat followed by the clamping pressure of the pressure plate will, bed in the clutch disc to the flywheel and straiten it out at the same time. I have done this with success in the past, on an old mitsu truck which I replaced the clutch in. The brand new clutch chattered from the get go and continued chattering for the first 600-700 miles till I did this.

 

when I had problems with my girls prius like yours I email toyota and that fixed things right up. With any company if you go straight to corporate it will get fixed fast!

 

thats a nice trick.

 

hey any one that has a problem that ever needs a lawyer should check out pre paid legal.com

ya pay a monthly fee and ya got legal help WHENEVER you need it. i watched it work when my friend was about to be arrested for "drunk driving" (he swerved cuz he was opening a snickers) and showed his legal card that requies police to allow a phone call to a lawyer before they can do anything! the lawyer talked to the cop via phone and next thing we knew he was in his car drivin off....it was badass!

 

Just have a lawyer call on your behalf and they will fix it the next day. Ask me how I know...