Hello everyone. I would like to share with you the way Nissan/Infiniti
and Bose/Clarion is 'handling' this problem by not addressing the
numerous consumer concerns.

After the following email was sent to the contacts listed on the Nissan
News website and Nissan USA's website, I was contacted within 4 hours
by (name omitted) an Executive Specialist from Nissan North America,
(address omitted. He/She is handling my file now. I also sent this
information to (website of lawyers that investigate fraud omitted).

Dear Nissan and Clarion representatives:

Over two years ago, I purchased a 2001 QX4. The QX4 was a great choice
for us. We have enjoyed the features and have always enjoyed the Nissan
trucks and cars we have owned over the years. The QX4 has only one flaw
that we have found, and dealerships and consumer affairs do not
acknowledge this problem. The problem is acknowledge quite freely among
owners that post to online forums and has been named the "dreaded ERR2
problem."

At the time of purchase, the factory installed Bose 6 disc changer made
by Clarion did not work. Each time the CD player was turned on an ERR2
was displayed on the screen. I spoke to the local dealer, and found out
that repair would cost over $500. At that time, I found a factory
authorized shop Sound Repair that was able to repair the CD player for
$350. After the repair, the CD changer worked for approximately 8
months then the problem returned. Unfortunately, the disc changer was
not returned for repair immediately because the repair warranty had
expired.

The Bose/Clarion 6 disc changer has since been sent (July 24, 2006) to
Sewell Infiniti for factory repair. (Name omitted) has been very
helpful in keeping me informed of the actions of Clarion. I have
recently contacted Infiniti Consumer Affairs regarding the problems
with the factory CD changer. (Name omitted) has opened file number
XXXXXXX in my behalf. (Name omitted) and (Name omitted) both have
reported to me that a "Module A" is the problem when "Module B" is
usually what is needed for the repair. I do not understand why a
Technical Service Bulletin or Factory Recall has not been issued when I
am told from reliable sources, at dealerships and Consumer Affairs,
that parts are "usually" need for repair. "Usually" indicates to me
that this incident is not the first. If the disc player was engineered
and built properly by the OEM (Clarion), the unit would not need the
"usual" repair. Any "usual" repairs should be handled in a Technical
Service Bulletin or a Factory Recall if safety is a factor.

I would appreciate you taking a detailed look into this problem, as the
solution may be the deciding factor on whether I, as a consumer, take
further action, and whether an Infiniti/Nissan will be in our garage in
the future. Please take this seriously, as I am looking forward to your
reply.

Below are a few hyperlinks to forums of other consumers with the same
problem with their 2001 Bose/Clarion CD changers:

(9 hyperlinks omitted)

More correspondence from Nissan/Infiniti follows regarding the ERR2
problem:

(Name omitted),

After your call yesterday, I took a few minutes to search through my
emails and read through my notes of the correspondence from contacts
regarding the repair of my Clarion/Bose 6-disc player. I hope the
following information is helpful the investigation:

The attached emails from (Name omitted) at Infiniti-Parts (Sewell
Infiniti) state the my 6-disc player is waiting on a Module A. (Name
omitted) stated on the on a phone conversation that he/she is in
contact with Clarion each day regarding repairs. Please contact (Name
and phone number omitted), and he/she will give you his/her contact at
Clarion he/she is in contact with each day. A few days after speaking
to (Name omitted) with Infiniti Consumer Affairs on the phone regarding
the quality issue of the 6-disc player and slow repair, (Name omitted)
called back to state my 6-disc changer is waiting on a Module A.
Neither (names omitted) stated this part is on back-order or even
acknowledged any quality issue with the Clarion 6-disc player. Both
(names omitted) did not sound confident that the module A is still
being produced.

As I have stated before in the previous email, this is the second time
the Clarion 6-disc changer has been sent in for repair. The ERR2
problem that I am experiencing along with numerous other consumers
should be addressed as a quality issue with Clarion. The Quality
Control department of Nissan needs to know about the other numerous
cases of 2001 Clarion/Bose 6-disc players.

Another letter sent:

When a consumer buys a product, they expect the product to work and any
engineering defects to be corrected by a recall and corrected for free.
Clarion seems to continue to produce a lower than standard refurbished
6-disc player for the Nissan/Infiniti Bose audio systems, and other
consumers have just had the 6-disc changer repaired numerous times
before going to an aftermarket unit. The jobs this problem has created
are jobs that should be eliminated. If an aftermarket stereo system
experienced these problems, no consumer would buy their product again.
Apparently, Nissan/Infiniti is not concerned about this issue;
otherwise, a TSB and recall would have been issue a couple of years ago
when the first problems started occurring.

After I bought the service manual for the Clarion unit, I found the
problem is caused by plastic gears that continue to break. The plastic
will get brittle over time and break or strip out. Knowing this,
Clarion continues to use plastic the gears that are known to break
during normal usage; this is poor engineering on Clarion's part. If the
gears were made of something stronger such as Teflon®, the gears would
no longer break or strip out.

I am very disappointed that no one at Nissan/Infiniti or Clarion has
admitted to this problem. The problem mentioned here can be found in
most all of the Clarion 6-disc changers installed in Nissan/Infiniti
vehicles. A small group across the U.S. is now spreading the word not
to buy Nissan/Infiniti products because of this single problem. The
dissatisfied group is only going to get larger as the number of people
find out how Nissan/Infiniti and Clarion are denying this problem.

More info:

Since, this problem is not being taken very seriously; I have now moved
to the next step and filed a claim with the Better Business Bureau.
With only a small amount of investigation the BBB should find a good
solution to the problem. I suggest everyone viewing this post that has
the same problem to file a claim with the BBB, email the Nissan
representatives (information can be found doing a internet search). You
can also file a complaint on the NHTSA website.

Update:

Since I have not had an expedient reply from Nissan regarding my case
of the Bose Clarion 6-disc changer, I decided to call the Executive
Specialist I have been working with for this case. I called early on
Thursday Oct 12 and left a message. I received a returned call on
Friday Oct 13. The Executive Specialist told me that the board was
reviewing the case and should have an answer by Friday Oct 20.

I am really looking forward to a resolution to this problem so
Nissan/Infiniti can redeem their name. If a correct resolution is not
found, Nissan/Infiniti will continue to allow vendors to get away with
using parts that are not engineered to high quality standards.

Everyone out there that has experienced this problem should check out
the NHTSA website and file a complaint:
http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/problems/complain/
Your local state Attorney General's office can also help you with
filing a claim against the CD player.

Sounds like you put in a lot of time and effort. I had the same
problem about a year after I bought my 2002 pathfinder, had several
units replaced at the dealer under warranty. During that time, I
spoke to the Clarion service manager who was very courteous, but
really couldn't do anything to help. He wanted to trace the
replacement unit and see how it did after repair, but it worked fine
in the summer and poorly in the winter so that never really was
followed through.
I gave up on playing CDs, now I just plug in the tape that is hooked
up to my MP3 player.
And I don't buy anything anymore that has Bose and Clarion name
brands.

Good Luck

On 17 Oct 2006 08:39:44 -0700, nospam4cj (AT) cox (DOT) net wrote:



Ignore the fake address.
reply to rlewando_at_yahoo_dot_com

I called the executive specialist today (Oct.24) that has been working
on my case regarding the Bose Clarion Err2 Err3 problem. I was
expecting a call or an email on Oct.20; however, no such luck. I was
told that Nissan does have a finding and information to send to me;
however, I did not get any details on the phone. I will post the
findings and information here to allow everyone to generate their own
opinion on how Nissan handles this problem.