Reducing maintenance costs - avoid gouging

My Nissan Leaf Forum

Help Support My Nissan Leaf Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
paulcone said:
jkline said:
I would put the Leaf on ramps

Not to change the topic too much, but is this even possible on the rear end? I tried to do that to put a hitch on and all I ended up with was a small dent in the bumper, because the car wouldn't clear the ramps. Maybe I used the wrong ones?

You may have to find a small rise in a street or parking lot, and use that for extra clearance.
 
paulcone said:
jkline said:
I would put the Leaf on ramps

Not to change the topic too much, but is this even possible on the rear end? I tried to do that to put a hitch on and all I ended up with was a small dent in the bumper, because the car wouldn't clear the ramps. Maybe I used the wrong ones?
Yup, you need the right ramps. I can get my MINI Cooper on ramps and it is much lower ground clearance. I have low clearance ramps.
 
I got ripped off by the dealer at first, also. I will never go to a Nissan dealer again. They told me that I needed to have the coolant flushed after 3 years when the manual says 15 years. If you suspect that they are ripping you off, you are right.

The air filter is an $8 part (search Amazon for B0041TRSHY). There are instructions online (and a thread on here) to show you how to do it.

Like others have said, go to an independent mechanic to do a brake flush for half the price whenever you feel you need one.
 
ytrottier said:
$90.38 Cabin air filter replacement
Not essential, but I like clean air. I could have cut this charge in half by buying an after-market filter and installing it myself.
A good aftermarket cabin filter with activated charcoal is less than $30 USD. You way overpaid for this. It takes 5 minutes to pop the filter out and replace it.

The brake fluid, even at DOT 3, doesn't need to be changed more than every 3 years/45k miles...and even that is probably overkill.
 
gncndad said:
Re: Brake fluid: IMHO, as soon as the brake fluid has color, there's already corrosion, which is what is causing the change in color. At that point, it's too late.
The fluid changes color because it absorbs moisture from the air. It's not immediately going to cause corrosion...but if you want to pay that much to change the fluid every year, enjoy.
 
I am afraid the only real work they did was "$31.50 Reset tire pressure monitor system", but you could have done it yourself with LeafSpy. Sorry, if I make you feel bad, but this is the reality. BTW, and brake fluid service will be reduced to topping off brake cylinder or if you lucky they would evacuate master cylinder and refill it with fresh fluid and that is it, nobody would flush your brakes even if you ask and pay for it, you can see confession of the mechanic on youtube. I can only confirm it with my own experience with reputable Honda dealer, who charged $170 and all they did - over filled master cylinder with fluid. At least, they refunded money when confronted. Good news, Leaf hardly needs any maintenance, perhaps tire rotation is the only thing to worry about. Cabin air filter is about $25, it is a bit convoluted procedure, but no way it is worse of over $60 in labor.
 
ytrottier said:
The 2016 Leaf owner's guide does say to replace the brake fluid every 24,000 km or 12 months, even as part of the standard schedule, not for severe use.

I suppose that since the bumper-to-bumper warranty is only 3 years, by delaying the brake fluid replacement, you might be waiving the warranty on the brake system.

For my 2017, the service schedule says that at 12 months, you only need to change the cabin filter (and rotate tires, and inspect several things). The 18-month interval includes replacing the key-fob battery; the 24-month interval specifies "Replace brake fluid." So, unless the dealer is going to deny a warranty repair due to an old cabin filter or key-fob battery (!?), it sounds like the only possible impact to warranty is from lack of a brake fluid change (and even then, it's only a 12-month window until the brake warranty is up).

https://owners.nissanusa.com/content/techpub/ManualsAndGuides/LEAF/2017/2017-LEAF-service-maintenance-guide.pdf
 
Back
Top