For transparency: I did buy my Sentra used from a used dealership. I bought it with 87,000 miles on it, and it is now at 102,000.
Google CVT transmission issues. There's nothing to hide. It is a major manufacturing issue that had to go to court and there was a class action lawsuit.
My transmission started acting up at 102,000 miles. I took it to a garage and my engine light helped them confirm that it is the CVT transmission acting up. I attempted to call Nissan to see if there was a possibility they would fix it for me since the genesis of this issue came from a manufacturing error that went to court. I got escalated a couple of times and spoke with an executive, whatever that means. They gave me a hard no, and their reasoning was essentially because my car was over the 84,000 mile warranty they set for these cars. I was told by multiple representatives that the settlement set the warranty mileage limit at 84,000. Dig deeper, Nissan didn't have to assume culpability. Dig even deeper, none of these executives could explain to me why that arbitrary line was set at 84,000 miles for an issue they created when they manufactured the car. I tried to get a human on the phone to listen to my case and hopefully be willing to make an exception to get their issue fixed on my car, but they continued with the hard no, citing the 84,000 cutoff. I also attempted to ask why I'm being punished because my particular vehicle (with the CVT class action lawsuit issue) happened to make it past 84,000 miles? They kept reverting back to "the decision...". I wonder if they knew many of these cars WOULD make it past $84,000, so they were banking on that knowing they wouldn't have to repair them. Maybe? It's very plausible.
To sum it all up, Nissan is a bad company. Not only are they a bad company, just google their prior CEO Carlos Ghosn. He's a bad person, and it seems that bad behavior creates incentive structures that result in a bad company. I understand Nissan is on all of the college football commercials, attempting to rebrand and make more reliable cars, but please understand that the risk with buying a Nissan is extremely high. We can't predict the future, nor can we change the past. Just know that Nissan currently has legal lines in place to not look out for their customers, which is why their management is going to be a revolving door for years to come. I guarantee it. To bring this full circle, they are refusing to fix a major issue on my car, that they created, but are taking the stance that they are free of responsibility because they were able to draw an arbitrary line in the sand through the courts. Don't buy Nissan, and warn your friends. I'll concede that there is responsibility on my part for buying a Nissan at a used car dealership. I get it. I'm also not saying there isn't some responsibility on the used car dealer's end as well, trust me I've brought this to his attention. I think he's going to do me right and let me swap out a car on his lot for free, because he feels bad. He's going to take my car for parts so it isn't a total loss on his end. It's crazy how the used car dealer and myself are the only ones taking any responsibility here, not the billion dollar company who created the issue. So instead of a pissing contest of responsibility, why not make it right? You went to court over the issue, so I don't feel like I'm being unfair. It's not like I'm asking for new tires for free after going off-roading in the Rocky Mountains.
It's crazy how a small business owner is willing to make a human decision with an IQ above 70. At minimum, he showed an act of good faith. That's why he's been selling used cars for over 40years successfully, because he treats people the way he would want to be treated. It's crazy how a corporation worth billions can't green light a fix for $3500 that is their fault.... but I guess that goes back to the toxic incentive structures I was referring to earlier. If your culture is evil from the top down, it metastasizes to those actually interacting with customers and hurts customers. It doesn't matter if Nissan created the known issue. It doesn't matter if Nissan had to go to court over said issue. They were able to draw a legal line in the sand to protect themselves from us every day folks.
Hopefully no parent out there is taking the Nissan approach and teaches their kids that they can do whatever they want and treat people however they want, then if they just get past a certain age, it won't come back to haunt them anymore. Nissan is a damn shame. Be aware. Do your research, extensively. Apparently there was an entire documentary on this prior CEO that I missed. I will never buy a Nissan again, and I urge you to not take the risk. Cars are already the most expensive depreciating asset you'll ever own, so don't go with a company that has zero latitude when it comes to their customers. Don't go with Nissan, despite the attempts at rebranding. You can't afford that chance. read more