I asked their pricing, etc and they all had the same quote - about 1800 in labor and 700 in parts.
11 hours to get it done - crazy - because it’s part of the manifold and not easily removable. The OEM parts that will pass state regulations are hard to find I guess - there are plenty of parts but not compliant with colorado emissions laws.
I asked if the cats being bad meant something else was wrong - they all said not necesarily - they said maybe if you were hearing backfires or smelling thing. But that these just go bad more often than not and I would probably be okay once they are repaired.
They are not helping at all . There is no way to even guess how much will need to be spent on this thing . Let them fix everything and then decide if you want to buy it at that price .
I definitely don’t want to buy a car for $10K – if I did I would be buying a different car.
If they fix it they will sell for full price to someone else - we can not afford it once that is done.
We have $6500 to spend and really only $4500 right now and $2500 next spring (which they said we could do because we are friends and co-workers)
And you don’t know our situation at all - these are our good friends - we have family dinners weekly, I have worked for their family (husband and wife team) for 25 years, when covid shut down the business and everyone got laid off they took out a line of credit to pay our mortgage and keep our family a float - they do care a lot - I am like their second son - and want what is best.
We can buy it or not - they don’t care.
They make more money if we don’t buy it!
They are trying to help us because we are broke, trying to survive on one income for a two income family, and need a vehicle. They happen to have one that needs some repairs and said we can have it dirt cheap if we pay for repairs - they are trying to help. They had no idea what the repairs would be until yesterday.
If you then decide against purchasing the vehicle, how would that affect your relationship? Just something to think about.
As far as your trailer, have you enquired about leaving it at the campsite for the season? My parents did that, seasonal rate worked out to about what they were paying for weekend rate. They could go up Friday night, return Sunday night. No hassle of towing the trailer, no extra gas expense.
We do not have any money for monthly payments.
We are barely getting by since my wife had to leave her job to become a stay at home mom – so now we barely pay the bills each month - no money for a car payment too. We had to cut out TV, one of our cell phones, and internet to make ends meet.
We have $4500 right now.
We can save another $2500 by next spring we hope.
There is a lot of good advice to not buy or sell things like cars and houses to friends and family. It’s truly unknown how much it will cost to permanently fix whatever is wrong and dealing with more and more over the years has a very high likelihood of ruining your friendship.
It sounds like you’ve had some life circumstance changes and maybe what needs to change first is the percieved need to tow stuff every weekend, not the vehicle you have now.
You are getting some decent advice in here about a vehicle we cannot see, an inspection done by a shop we have never done business with, about purchasing a car from people we do not know. And the advice here is all impartial.
having said that, @thcguy12, you seem to be getting a bit defensive about this advice. no one here is trying to upset you, just offering up opinions based on experience and the knowledge the the members here have.
Ultimately, this is you and your wife’s decision. not ours. It’s not our money, not our vehicle, nor is it our relationship with your friends.
Infinity is considered a luxury line. Normal repairs won’t be as cheap. It’s an upscale Nissan, a brand not known for extreme reliability- although I have zero input about the reliability of this specific vehicle.
You have a LONG list of repairs that you know need to be done. Have you considered a second pre-purchase inspection? As much as it sounds like you will need and rely on this vehicle with limited repair funds, I would recommend it.
(FYI: there are no codes that say "Replace catalytic convertor. only that show the readings of the sensors around it. as has been said- something made both convertors fail. Was it age? Or was in an internal engine problem that hasn’t been diagnosed yet? I’d want a better idea that the engine is ok before buying.)
What will happen if you can’t come up with the $2500 next spring? Will it ruin a friendship? Cost you a job? make you have to return this car? There are a lot of things to think about here.
You have a lot personally invested here, other than just transportation.
your title asked if it is worth in. In my opinion, no. it is not.
CATALYTIC CONVERTER - R&R
AWD Exhaust Manifold,Both
Includes: Recover, Evacuate and Recharge Air Conditioning System.
9.1 hours…
Just an FYI… It only pays 9.1 hours… It sounds like you are taking your Mid size SUV to an RV place to work on it??? I would take it to an exhaust shop as they are better at those rusty bolts that tend to break and the price might be lower, RV shops are more specialty vehicle shops which normally come at a higher price… But I am just guessing at your situation… At least give a few Exhaust shops a call to get there price on the Cats… Just a thought…
Sounds like they are charging you for doing one side at a time, yes it is a little easier doing both at the same time versus doing one side at a time…
No they do not. If they took really good care of their cars, the A/C would work, the cats would be replaced (and what caused them to go bad in the first place diagnosed and repaired, the brakes would be replaced, and the windshield wouldn’t have cracks in it. If I had to guess, they tried to trade it in on the new car the dealer didn’t want it and/or offered them a lowball offer so outrageous that they decided they would rather let it rot than trade it in.
My advice would be to take your $4500 now and find a good used Suburban or Expedition with 4x4.
As was said by someone else, the Infinity will be a bit more to repair if things pop up later. The Suburban/Expedition are dime-a-dozen SUVs and parts will be cheap and just about any shop will be able to get those parts and work on the vehicle should you be away from your normal mechanic if/when something goes wrong.
I’d be most concerned about the cat issue. Can live w/o AC if necessary, and the other stuff seems minor. But the cats? … hmmm … the thing I worry about is why the cats failed in the first place? There may be some internal engine problem that is affecting the air/fuel ratio or is allowing engine oil (or worse) into the exhaust stream and into the cats. The risk is you replace the cats, and whatever engine problem remains ruins them again, and quickly.
The best advice here when considering a used car, get a pre-purchase inspection done by your own trusted mechanic.
If you absolutely require A/C, that repair could prove quite costly, many thousands of $$$, so don’t discount that cost.
I’m not a mechanic like many of the people here who seem to be giving very good advice about the car.
I do know something about relationships and am glad you have such a wonderful relationship with your boss and his family. I would hate to see that ruined by unexpected, expensive and time-consuming repairs to this older vehicle. I try not to do financial transactions with family and friends because of the potential heartaches in the future.