Hi Everyone:
Please provide some insight on what is going on with my car here.
I purchased a 2001 Infiniti i30 on 05/03/13 from a private party at 178,000 miles. The owner said that it was in excellent condition with no problems. The owner even 'kindly' offered to take it to be smogged at the Smog station that he goes to since he has a 'friend' there and offered to pay half for that.
When I looked at the Smog Test papers later on, it showed that it first failed the Smog Test because it failed the 'System Malfunction Light' part. The owner said that it was because the car was hardly driven so he had to drive the car for a few more days and it passed the Smog Test the second time 2 days later.
We hardly drive this car since my husband only uses it to drive to the bus stop and back home (less than 2 miles per round trip). When we finally decided to take it for a longer drive (after around 100 miles), the car started to show problems of overheating. The temperature gauge would rise up very quickly, almost reaching the top but we immediately stopped the car when it stopped rising to protect the engine.
We took it to an Infiniti Dealership Service Department 2 weeks ago and they did the Diagnostic Test. They said that we need to replace the thermostat, replace the radiator, do a coolant flush, and change the engine oil & filter. We paid just over a $1000 to replace the thermostat, replace the radiator and change the engine oil & filter.
When we finally got a chance to drive it for around 50 miles, the 'Service Engine Light' went on. The coolant level was also very low.
We took it back to the Infiniti Service Department and the service consultant said that the low coolant level could be due to air coming in when they replaced the radiator, so they just topped it off.
He also just said that they switched off the 'Service Engine Light' and we're 'Good' to go. Only after I voiced my discontent that switching the Service Engine Light off is not going to resolve the problem if there IS a problem did he tell me that the diagnostic testing showed a 'Bank 2' Code. We also bought a CarMD from Pepboys and it showed a P0430 Code.
The service consultant said that if the Service Engine Light comes back on again, then we need to replace the Catalytic Converter and the Oxygen Sensors, which will come up to just over $1600 (we are in California).
After driving the car for 150 miles, the Service Engine Light came back on.
My question is, could the car mechanic have tripped something, or left a loose wire (or anything else?) because this problem occured right after they replaced our radiator, replaced our thermostat, and changed our engine oil & filter?
I've read that the P0430 code could be due to dirty components (e.g. radiator silicone sealant going into the catalytic converter) and not necessarily always due to a mechanical failure so want to try using Cataclean to see if that would resolve the problem.
However, I am very dissatisfied with the way a Dealership Service Department would deal with this matter .... just pay another $1600 ... who knows what will break next after that?
Please advise on the possible causes of the Service Engine Light coming on after replacing the radiator, replacing the thermostat, and changing the engine oil & filter.
Thank you!
Please provide some insight on what is going on with my car here.
I purchased a 2001 Infiniti i30 on 05/03/13 from a private party at 178,000 miles. The owner said that it was in excellent condition with no problems. The owner even 'kindly' offered to take it to be smogged at the Smog station that he goes to since he has a 'friend' there and offered to pay half for that.
When I looked at the Smog Test papers later on, it showed that it first failed the Smog Test because it failed the 'System Malfunction Light' part. The owner said that it was because the car was hardly driven so he had to drive the car for a few more days and it passed the Smog Test the second time 2 days later.
We hardly drive this car since my husband only uses it to drive to the bus stop and back home (less than 2 miles per round trip). When we finally decided to take it for a longer drive (after around 100 miles), the car started to show problems of overheating. The temperature gauge would rise up very quickly, almost reaching the top but we immediately stopped the car when it stopped rising to protect the engine.
We took it to an Infiniti Dealership Service Department 2 weeks ago and they did the Diagnostic Test. They said that we need to replace the thermostat, replace the radiator, do a coolant flush, and change the engine oil & filter. We paid just over a $1000 to replace the thermostat, replace the radiator and change the engine oil & filter.
When we finally got a chance to drive it for around 50 miles, the 'Service Engine Light' went on. The coolant level was also very low.
We took it back to the Infiniti Service Department and the service consultant said that the low coolant level could be due to air coming in when they replaced the radiator, so they just topped it off.
He also just said that they switched off the 'Service Engine Light' and we're 'Good' to go. Only after I voiced my discontent that switching the Service Engine Light off is not going to resolve the problem if there IS a problem did he tell me that the diagnostic testing showed a 'Bank 2' Code. We also bought a CarMD from Pepboys and it showed a P0430 Code.
The service consultant said that if the Service Engine Light comes back on again, then we need to replace the Catalytic Converter and the Oxygen Sensors, which will come up to just over $1600 (we are in California).
After driving the car for 150 miles, the Service Engine Light came back on.
My question is, could the car mechanic have tripped something, or left a loose wire (or anything else?) because this problem occured right after they replaced our radiator, replaced our thermostat, and changed our engine oil & filter?
I've read that the P0430 code could be due to dirty components (e.g. radiator silicone sealant going into the catalytic converter) and not necessarily always due to a mechanical failure so want to try using Cataclean to see if that would resolve the problem.
However, I am very dissatisfied with the way a Dealership Service Department would deal with this matter .... just pay another $1600 ... who knows what will break next after that?
Please advise on the possible causes of the Service Engine Light coming on after replacing the radiator, replacing the thermostat, and changing the engine oil & filter.
Thank you!
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