Phew! Just finished reading through the Titan comments. Fortunately my experience with my 2004 Armada is less painful and I have nothing but good things to say about the dealership response to what problems I have had.
The list...
1. Pulled to the right. Initial check by the dealer showed a 12psi difference between the right front and left front tires. Still pulled to the right. Dealer put it on the rack, realigned, rebalanced the tires - all is well. And did I mention that this truck drives great!
2. Passenger seat creaked like you read about! Wow! Drove us temporarily insane while we awaited a backordered seatback hinge. Dealer installed the part and the seat not only is quiet, but it actually is more comfortable. Psychological - maybe - but it is a better ride than before.
3. No floor mats. Is it just me, or should you expect floor mats (rubber or carpet) in a $40k truck?
4. The overhead console squeak and rattle. This continues. Right above the second row seat (where the stereo/climate controls hang), Nissan engineers decided the console only requires clips vice bolts/screws. The result is a lot of irritating noise when the air temp is below 55 degrees (yes - we've been watching). Three times into the dealer with only temporary relief. I wrote Nissan corp - recv'd a nice phone call and an assurance that if I take it back to the dealer it will be fixed. If not, call them and it will be.
5. Gas mileage. I'm seeing 14-16mpg vice 15-19. But what do you expect with 5000lbs of vehicle, 300hp and 385lb-ft of torque. I did the math and the family trek fm Seattle to southern california will cost me an extra $100 over taking the station wagon.
Like I said, the truck is great. And the dealership has been very responsive and professional.
Anyone else out there with similar or not so similar experiences?
3. No floor mats. Is it just me, or should you expect floor mats (rubber or carpet) in a $40k truck?
Personally, I expect floor mats in anything I would buy new. It doesn't cost the manufacturer more than $10-12 to put a set of floormats in each vehicle (less I'm sure for the thin rubber mats). They'll be happy to sell them to you (via the little check box under the Options section) for $60, though. I agree -- especially for 40 large, you should expect a little something.
I just got one 1 week ago. So far it is a great car. I do have the light rattle in the overhead console. Let me know if they fix yours and what they final do to stop this. Since you have already started the issue with your dealer you are a few steps ahead of me and I can then tell my dealer what actually works from your experience. These forums are great for this. Saves a lot of time when dealing with the service dept.
I do have the light rattle in the overhead console. Let me know if they fix yours and what they final do to stop this. Since you have already started the issue with your dealer you are a few steps ahead of me and I can then tell my dealer what actually works from your experience.
Just dropped the Armada off at the dealership tonight. I'll let you know over the next few days what was done and if it fixes the problem.
I partially dropped the console on mine after the second visit - just for a look see. My layman's take on the product is that the design is just wrong. There are bolts all the way forward and all the way aft, but only clips in the middle. And the middle has the heaviest load from the controls, etc.
Picked the truck up from Performance Nissan. The service shop there is really top notch.
For the overhead console, they packed it full of sound insulation material. The thought process is this. First, there's only so much you can do to tighten up a clip. Second, the added material will put some tension on the clips to try and keep it taut. Third, the extra material should help deaden the noise.
They also took a look at two other problems. The front rotors were slightly warped. The truck has 10k on it and this was a bit of a surprise to me. I'll have to keep a close eye on their wear and tear this summer.
Also, the seat back on the passenger front seat was loose. Fixed no problem.
Tomorrow morning will be the true test of the overhead console - when the plastic is cold and the squeaks and rattles have been the worst.
I just took in my Armada offroad to Superior Nissan to get the front driver window fixed as it kept coming out of the track, parts on the way. They are going to fix the seat hinge even though I did not complain about it. With 9000 miles there is some warping of the rotors but we were going to replace them anyway and cryo treat them. Everybody liked our dual exhaust at the dealership and I think at least 5 people drove it to check out a rattle in the dash. They never did find the rattle.
Other than the few things mentioned no problems at all, I have been impressed with the Armada and Nissan so much that I just traded in my other truck for a 350Z roadster, I was going to get a Titan but bought a vintage Jeep pickup instead to handle our "truck needs". The roadster handles the speed needs. Just about anyway.
Great news on the rattle. Let us know if it is a long-term fix. As for the brake rotor. I have had this problem on a number of high performance cars I've owned. The factory rarely uses a torque wrench on the lugs. With wheel sizes getting larger and the use of alloy not steel it is critical to have all the lugs at the same torque spec or you will warp the rotor. Very common problem now a days but the dealers are not quite up to speed on this one. I had our Armada checked before we left the dealer and they were all over the place as far as torque.
Thanks for the heads up on the torquing the wheels. I'll check them this weekend.
The rattle seems to be gone at least for the day. The wife took the kids to school this morning and beat the truck over every bump she could find. No noise. Two quick anecdotes to let you know how bad the rattle was...
- My four year old remarked on the way home from school - "Dad! The rattles gone!"
- My wife drove my '65 Mustang from Ohio to NH. Somewhere along the way the driver's side exhaust manifold worked itself loose. She never complained about the noise. This overhead console problem, in contrast, drove her up the wall.
I took my Titan LE in this week with my first warranty complaint: the passenger seat squeak. They ordered a new seat cushion, not the hinge, even though I told them the seat back squeaks when you wiggle it. When I questioned their diagnosis, I was told that it's all connected, and if the new cushion doesn't fix it, they'll keep working on it. My reaction: Yeah, but meanwhile I can't use my Titan while it's in the shop!
These forums are great for this. Saves a lot of time when dealing with the service dept.
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