Original Car Audio (oemcaraudio) Sold Defective Product and Refused Refund Burnsville Minnesota

My original factory NAV Unit in my 2014 Nissan Altima failed/went dark with no power in October, 2016. Dealer verified that factory radio had internal issues and needed to be replaced. At this point car was out of warranty.

On October 20^th, 2016 Purchased exact model/part number factory OEM Nissan Altima NAV/GPS/Radio on ebay item number 121992034407 from Original Car Audio (oemcaraudio on ebay) advertised as new with a 6 month warranty for $586.37 shipped.

I received the unit about a week later. After installing the unit I observed that the backup camera was not working as well as the “camera” button on the front of the unit that is supposed to display an option to turn on/off the camera gridlines did nothing when pressed. When the car was placed into reverse the unit never attempted to change or display the backup camera or even a black screen. All other functions of the unit worked just fine.

I contacted the seller Original Car Audio immediately to report the problem. After some discussion about checking wiring they requested it be sent back for diagnosis. I sent back the unit within a few days at my expense of about $35.00 and waited for a response. The representative (Jon) from Original Car Audio looked at the unit and said they “bench tested” it and did not find any issues. He recommended that I check the camera control module (ITS) and replace the backup camera because he thought those items might have been damaged when the factory unit failed. On November 18, 2016 they then charged me $33.00 to return it back to me.

I received the unit back in about a week. After re-installing the unit the backup camera and “camera” button on the front of the unit still did not work. Same exact symptoms and originally purchased.

I again contacted Original Car Audio and was told there was nothing wrong with the unit and it that it was a brand new unit.

At the recommendation of the Original Car Audio representative I purchased a new backup camera on November 18, 2016 for $33.45. After receiving and swapping the backup camera there was no change in the problems with the NAV unit.

I then proceeded to check and trace the wiring between the unit and backup camera for issues. No issues with the wiring were found as expected. I also researched the camera control module (ITS) as recommended by Original Car Audio. According to all of my research my car does not have this module since it does not have any of the features that require it. No lane departure or other driving aids.

At this point I was out of options as Original Car Audio assured me they “bench tested” the unit and found no issues.

After doing much research and searching I sourced another replacement exact model/part number NAV/GPS/Radio unit and purchased it at my cost.

I received the replacement unit on February 21, 2017 and swapped the Original Car Audio unit with it. The replacement unit works perfectly including the backup camera and “camera” button on the front of the unit proving that the unit I purchased from Original Car Audio was defective from the original purchase and it cost me hundreds of dollars to figure that out.

I contacted Original Car Audio on the evening of February 21, 2017 and spoke to Jon. Jon remembered everything about the issues. I communicated all of the steps, time, energy, and money I spent troubleshooting this unit I purchased from them.

At that point on February 21, 2017 I requested a full refund of the defective unit including the cost of shipping back and forth for them to troubleshoot the unit and send it back defective again. Total cost of the original purchase was $550 and it cost me approximately $70 in shipping it both ways for their “bench testing”. I have no need for a replacement unit since I had to purchase another unit to determine if the Original Car Audio unit was truly the issue.

Jon spoke to the owner/manager of Original Car Audio and Jon said they refuse to refund the cost of the unit I purchased from them and also refused any shipping costs because it has been several months since the original purchase however it took this long to determine that the unit was truly faulty at my time and expense! I asked Jon to have the owner/manager call me to discuss this but did not receive a return call.

As of February 27, 2017 I have not been contacted by Original Car Audio. They sold me a defective GPS/NAV unit that I returned immediately after determining there was an issue. They said they tested it and returned it in the same condition. It did not work in my vehicle and I spend may hours of my time, research, energy, and hundreds of dollars to prove that the unit was defective. They have refused to allow me to return the defective unit for a refund of the original purchase price and shipping costs. They drug me along long enough to said there is nothing they can do since the time has passed for an ebay or CC claim even though it was purchased with a 6 month “warranty”. I was told “warranty” only covers repairs. I don’t need a repaired unit as I was forced to purchase a replacement already and the shipping costs are about $35 each way.