I bought my 2008 Nissan Sentra SE-R last August (2008), with only 34 miles on it for approx. $24k. I had not noticed that the A/C blew out the same temperature air that was outside because it was towards the end of the summer, I take mainly short trips so would just roll down the window rather than waiting for the a/c to kick in. This spring, however, I noticed on a 100 mile trip that the a/c was blowing out the same temperature air as was outside, if not even hotter. I called Kelly Nissan of Lynnfield to see what it meant, they said the a/c system probably needed a charge, happens all of the time, covered under warranty. Two days before I was scheduled to bring it in, my car was backed into by another car at my college's parking lot.

When Nissan of Lynnfield looked at the car, they said that the condenser was punctured, maybe from the accident. As it was a very small ding, I had not planned on going through insurance, but being told that this repair would cost $1200 I decided it was worth the deductible. I called Metlife, who upon inspection said that the car which had hit me (hit the top of the bumper and hood, a 3 inch dent where the car's bumper had been) had not hit me where it could damage the condenser (bottom of my car's bumper, left side) and it should be covered by warranty. I was also advised by the appraiser that there was no damage to the bottom of the bumper to indicate that I had hit anything which might damage the condenser, so it should be covered by warranty, and to contact the Nissan Consumer Affairs.

I called Nissan Consumer Affairs, who insisted that insurance should cover it. Metlife insists that Nissan should cover it. I have the car in the shop now to have the dent fixed, as Metlife and Nissan, after 3 months of me calling every 3rd day, told me to get the dent fixed, as when the bumper comes off of the car for the repair, they should be able to get a better view of where the damage is. Currently, after 1.5 weeks of the car in the shop, they have not provided me with any solution and in fact, I was told that the Kelly Nissan of Beverly was the place to get it repaired due to their working relationship with Metlife and knowledge/compliance with Nissan's factory warranties, but when I asked the service people to determine whether it was warranty or insurance, they told me that I am the one who needs to work it out with the companies.

We'll see how this goes, but as I see it, I spent $25k on a new car to avoid spending money on repairs for a few years. Instead I have a car that I still owe $10k on... WITH NO A/C.