Hello all, I just celebrated 8 years with our 2012 QX56 last month and rolled to 100k miles a few days later, so thought some of you may like to hear a long-term review. We purchased our QX56 4WD in late 2012 with the Theatre Package, 22” Tire and Wheel Package, Rear Bumper Protector, Illuminated Kick Plates, and Cargo Mat, Cargo Net and First Aid Kit Package. With a total sticker of $70,195, I paid $60,500 with plans to keep it for a long time since it was only the second year of this new body style.
Exterior
The Liquid Platinum (silver) is great and has held up beautifully for more than 8 years. I only wash by hand and towel dry, and we are fortunate to keep it garaged. Other than a few rock chips over time, it still looks new and the 22” wheels are still stunning. The wife clipped a deer with the front bumper last summer, so we got a new bumper and grille, which gave us all new bumper paint and no more rock chips. All of the exterior trim, fit and finish has been flawless.
Interior
The graphite leather looks amazing after more than 8 years and has no flaws. The leather continues to wear well, carpet looks like new, but the carpet floor mat on the driver side is just starting to show some wear. We kept a 2004 Honda Odyssey EXL for 9 years before this one, and it wore equally well or better. We try not to be hard on things so they will last, and it is possible, even with kids. With regular vacuuming and an occasional wipe down, it still looks like new inside.
Drivetrain
The 5.6 V8 and 7 speed auto are still a pleasure to drive and it has been consistently 15.7 mpg since new. Many have reported issues but I have no complaints. We allowed them to do the timing chain recall in 2017 and did an airbag recall last year. Regular oil changes have been done by the dealer and there was never a leak or concern. At 84k, the transmission began slipping and acting funny. I had followed the service schedule, which only gives a service interval for CVT, which this is not. Dealers were always inconsistent in what maintenance it really required. Assuming it was a 100k trans fluid life, I had let it go. So to save a trip to Infiniti, I went to a Nissan dealer for a cheaper transmission fluid service. They did a BG transmission fluid change nearly 18k ago, so my biggest advice is to service the transmission sooner than I did. No issue since! At 94k, I had the same Nissan dealer do the diff, transfer case and coolant change.
Forums are full of conversation on the catalytic converters and the codes they throw. I had the same issue and a bottle of CataClean bought me a few miles but at 98k, it was throwing the code for the left side only for the 3rd time. Attempts to clear codes were unsuccessful and I decided to replace. With estimates and options of Infiniti, Nissan or a small muffler shop who would use an aftermarket cat. The Infiniti and muffler shops both wanted to do both sides, saying if one failed, the other one would also. But Nissan suggested doing only the left, which they had done before and never had a customer return for a right side. So that’s what I did and he was cheaper than Infiniti by $700, and he got the OEM part from Infiniti! I was due front and rear brakes at 99k also, so Nissan did the left cat manifold, front and rear brakes, and a brake fluid service for $2790, less than Infiniti wanted to do just the cat. It’s only been about 3k miles since but everything is as it should be.
Spark plugs are recommended at 105k and will be my next maintenance item. I’m on our 3rd set of Bridgestone tires, as they have been very comfortable and wear well. We have never done an alignment and the Q has stayed true despite very narrow and rough roads where we live, so the Nissan Patrol toughness is evident in the suspension. I see no reason why we can’t drive another 4-5 years trouble-free. Trade value is only about $14,000 and a new QX80 is $75-90,000. I like the updates they have made to the QX80, but it is essentially still the same vehicle. Getting our money’s worth on this one!
Exterior
The Liquid Platinum (silver) is great and has held up beautifully for more than 8 years. I only wash by hand and towel dry, and we are fortunate to keep it garaged. Other than a few rock chips over time, it still looks new and the 22” wheels are still stunning. The wife clipped a deer with the front bumper last summer, so we got a new bumper and grille, which gave us all new bumper paint and no more rock chips. All of the exterior trim, fit and finish has been flawless.
Interior
The graphite leather looks amazing after more than 8 years and has no flaws. The leather continues to wear well, carpet looks like new, but the carpet floor mat on the driver side is just starting to show some wear. We kept a 2004 Honda Odyssey EXL for 9 years before this one, and it wore equally well or better. We try not to be hard on things so they will last, and it is possible, even with kids. With regular vacuuming and an occasional wipe down, it still looks like new inside.
Drivetrain
The 5.6 V8 and 7 speed auto are still a pleasure to drive and it has been consistently 15.7 mpg since new. Many have reported issues but I have no complaints. We allowed them to do the timing chain recall in 2017 and did an airbag recall last year. Regular oil changes have been done by the dealer and there was never a leak or concern. At 84k, the transmission began slipping and acting funny. I had followed the service schedule, which only gives a service interval for CVT, which this is not. Dealers were always inconsistent in what maintenance it really required. Assuming it was a 100k trans fluid life, I had let it go. So to save a trip to Infiniti, I went to a Nissan dealer for a cheaper transmission fluid service. They did a BG transmission fluid change nearly 18k ago, so my biggest advice is to service the transmission sooner than I did. No issue since! At 94k, I had the same Nissan dealer do the diff, transfer case and coolant change.
Forums are full of conversation on the catalytic converters and the codes they throw. I had the same issue and a bottle of CataClean bought me a few miles but at 98k, it was throwing the code for the left side only for the 3rd time. Attempts to clear codes were unsuccessful and I decided to replace. With estimates and options of Infiniti, Nissan or a small muffler shop who would use an aftermarket cat. The Infiniti and muffler shops both wanted to do both sides, saying if one failed, the other one would also. But Nissan suggested doing only the left, which they had done before and never had a customer return for a right side. So that’s what I did and he was cheaper than Infiniti by $700, and he got the OEM part from Infiniti! I was due front and rear brakes at 99k also, so Nissan did the left cat manifold, front and rear brakes, and a brake fluid service for $2790, less than Infiniti wanted to do just the cat. It’s only been about 3k miles since but everything is as it should be.
Spark plugs are recommended at 105k and will be my next maintenance item. I’m on our 3rd set of Bridgestone tires, as they have been very comfortable and wear well. We have never done an alignment and the Q has stayed true despite very narrow and rough roads where we live, so the Nissan Patrol toughness is evident in the suspension. I see no reason why we can’t drive another 4-5 years trouble-free. Trade value is only about $14,000 and a new QX80 is $75-90,000. I like the updates they have made to the QX80, but it is essentially still the same vehicle. Getting our money’s worth on this one!
