In need of Nikon parts

[Martin Brazil]

Good afternoon everyone. My Nikon D40X has been in the repair shop for over 2 months now and they are no nearer to fixing it than they were when they first got it. They tell me that they can't get the part for it so I thought I would try to track it down myself as this is getting ridiculous.
So here is my question, does anyone know of a place I can buy Nikon parts online ? I have hunted about and can't find anything but maybe I am looking in the wrong places.
The actual part I have been told that I need is the main circuit board.
Any help would be greatly appreciated as I'm getting desperate now.

[another view]

Is this a warranty repair? You might try calling Nikon (I'd imagine there's an office in your country) and explain the situation to them.

Otherwise, the only suggestion I have is to buy another D40X. Sell one of them when the repair comes back (and you've tested it, of course). This probably sounds like a crazy idea, but check the price of used D40X's and you might not be out much money. Probably less than if you even could find that part - and maybe you can find a used D40X so you'd hardly be out anything.

[Martin Brazil]

Thanks for the reply Another View.
It is not a warranty repair for two reasons,
1) it broke 20 days after the one year warranty
2) I bought it in the US and Nikon do not give any warranty in other countries.

There is an authorised dealer in Sao Paulo (400km away) but they were no use at all and I even found a web forum dedicated to how terrible their service is.
I have been trying to find a contact e-mail for Nikon support but checking their web site it just refers me back to the dealer in Sao Paulo and has no way of getting in touch with the head office, or any other office for that matter, directly.
I have been looking at the D300 as a replacement but I am so disgusted with Nikon that I am considering selling my lenses and going over to Canon. Would they be any better I am wondering !!

[another view]

20 days... That stinks! If you bought it in the US as an official US product (not gray market), then you may still want to contact Nikon US and explain the situation. Here's their contact number but I'm not sure about using the toll free numbers out of the US. The parts department has a regular line (area code 310) so that might be one to try.

Not that they're too likely to repair it for free since it is past the warranty period (although stranger things have happened, or so I've read) but at least you have a case to plead - bought in US as a US market item (correct?), just outside warranty period, can't even get parts if you want to pay for it to be done... Maybe the US repair facilities will be more help in this respect.

Another option is Authorized Photo Service near Chicago. A friend has been a pro for years, and tells me they used to be a Nikon-owned facility until 15-20 years ago. When Nikon closed it, the people who worked there bought it and started their own company doing the same thing. I have a flash that did a faceplant into some rocks last fall and keep meaning to send it to them (thanks for the reminder). He says they're good, but I haven't used them myself (yet).

[Martin Brazil]

Thanks again AV. I'll try and get hold of Nikon US but I was really looking for an e-mail address as I find e-mails are a bit more official than telephone calls and have a higher chance of something happening. Also its damn expensive phoning the US from Brazil.
Thanks for your replies though.

[freygr]

Just go to link: http://nikonusa.com/Service-And-Supp...nd-Repair.page

and there is a mail link to directly send email, plus all the contact information.

[Martin Brazil]

GRF, thanks very much for the link, that helps a lot.

I just dashed off the following e-mail to Service and Support at Nikon and I'll post up their response when it comes, as maybe it will help someone else.

Dear sir, I bought my Nikon D40X DSLR along with a 70-300mm vr lens in January 2008 while on holiday in New York. I must say that for the first year I was absolutely delighted with my choice. Unfortunately, at exactly 1 year and 20 days from date of purchase the camera stopped working with the mirror permanently open. I live in Brazil and contacted the Brazilian authorized repair center in Sao Paulo 'Tanaka' who told me a) 20 days were the same as 20 years and that it was out of warranty. and b) because I had bought the camera in the USA I had never had any warranty in Brazil as Nikon only cover their cameras in the country of origin. This surprised me and you can probably imagine how disappointed I was. Due to the fact that Tanaka are extremely expensive, were completely unhelpful with me and have an internet forum dedicated to how terrible their service is, I decided to put my camera in for repair at a non-authorized repair center recommended by a friend who is a professional. This place called me and told me that the 'main circuit board' had blown and had taken the 'flash circuit' with it so both boards would need to be replaced. The price of repair would be at least half the price of a new camera body, possibly more, but in spite of this I decided to go ahead with the repair. I have been waiting 9 weeks now and we do not seem to be any nearer getting the camera back. The repair center seems to be unable to get the parts needed.
I must say that I am extremely disappointed with the quality of the camera and also the level of assistance I have received so far from your company. I see that the D40X has been replaced, strangely after not much more than a year, by the D60 so I feel that I was used as a beta tester for this new model.
I have had my eye on a D700 and the full frame lenses to match for some time but I am now very wary of spending, what is for me, a large sum of money on another new model that could end up being a beta test for something else and may last me only a year.
This leads me to my questions;
1) If I was a US customer would I have received the same response re. the warranty being out by 20 days ?
2) Is it common for the new Nikon products to last just slightly longer then their warranty period ?
3) Is it possible for me to buy the parts I need direct from you, or any other source in the US, and have them sent to Brazil ?
4) Can you give me any reason to continue to use Nikon products and not change over to Canon before I make a large investment ?

Thank you in advance.

[Martin Brazil]

Received the following reply today.

We would need to evaluate your camera. Our factory service center would take into consideration if a product is shortly out of the warranty period. This would be done for any customer sending a Nikon USA product, purchased from an authorized Nikon USA dealer, with the Nikon USA warranty. Digital cameras do not have an International warranty. If the camera was purchased outside the United States and a copy of the dated sales receipt accompanied camera then our service center would send an estimate for repair. If there was no dated sales receipt showing that the camera was purchased outside the United States then we would return camera unrepaired.

A camera is a very complex electromechanical device, and while malfunctions are relatively rare, we cannot guarantee that a camera will operate indefinitely. However, we can assure you that Nikon makes every effort to manufacture our products to the highest standards of quality so our customers can have a high level of confidence in their Nikon equipment.

Our Parts Department in El Segundo California does not ship outside the United States. They suggested that if you know someone in the United States that can act as your agent, we could ship the parts to them, and they could forward to you in Brazil.

[Martin Brazil]

So if I was in the USA they would take into consideration the fact that it was 20 days out of warranty, not so in Brazil.

Nikon digital cameras do not have an international warranty.

I was not expecting it to operate indefinitely but I would have like it to operate for a bit longer than 1 year.

I think I will try and get the part numbers from the repair shop, have them sent to one of my friends in the US and then have a crack at doing the repair myself as I dont have much to lose at this point.

Not too much incentive to stay with Nikon so far.

[another view]

I'm reading the situation differently -

You bought the camera while you were in the US (NYC) on vacation. Was it a US-model (not gray market) from an authorized dealer?

If that's the case, then it sounds like their stance is "send it to us and we'll consider it as a warranty case". If it wasn't bought from official Nikon USA channels (authorized dealer with USA product) then it's really not one of "their" products. As I understand it, Nikon USA is a division (may not be the correct word or title) of Nikon.

It's not just Nikon and camera manufacturers doing this...

[Martin Brazil]

Thanks for a different perspective AV, maybe I am reading this wrong and maybe they are offering to take a look at the camera there.
I bought the camera from H and R in New York so I presume it is legitimate and I have the USA warranty paperwork and the sales receipt too.
I'm going to call the service center where my camera is and I think I will clarify the situation with Nikon and decide if it is worth sending to the US.
I guess any way I look at it I'm not going to get it back anytime soon.

[another view]

I guess any way I look at it I'm not going to get it back anytime soon.

True, but if it's not working then anything's an improvement in some respects. If you do decide to "throw in the towel", there is a surprising market for DOA cameras on ebay. A year and a half ago, I sold my Fuji S2 that I thouroughly waterlogged for over $100. But you're not at that point...

If you bought it in the USA and it came with USA warranty paperwork then it sure sounds like you have that point covered (how else would a dealer come up with USA equipment?). I'd be cautiously optimistic, but please let us know what happens.

[freygr]

Thanks for a different perspective AV, maybe I am reading this wrong and maybe they are offering to take a look at the camera there.
I bought the camera from H and R in New York so I presume it is legitimate and I have the USA warranty paperwork and the sales receipt too.
I'm going to call the service center where my camera is and I think I will clarify the situation with Nikon and decide if it is worth sending to the US.
I guess any way I look at it I'm not going to get it back anytime soon.

I have had my camera into Nikon USA three times all for the same problem and it was a recall. The service was great and the camera came back completely cleaned and repaired both times it took about two weeks including shipping (transit time both ways).

My feelings is you mail/ship the safest way your camera to your friend in the US with the purchase documentation and have him send it to Nikon USA service. That way they will not have any problems with shipping it to you out of the country. And as you know the safest shipping method to get it back to you, it will not go missing.

[Martin Brazil]

You are absolutely right GRF, I'm on that first thing tomorrow.
I'll update this thread when I get any news.
Thanks again guys

[Martin Brazil]

Well just to tie up this rather boring thread. I phoned the service center where my camera was in Sao Paulo. They gave me the same old tale about waiting for parts so I told them I'd send someone to fetch the camera. When I said this they asked me if I wanted it repaired without the flash. Then they told me that the part they were waiting for was to fix the flash and that they could get the camera working without this. It was a shame they did not make this clear before as I would have gone for that option long ago. Anyway, an hour later they called me back and informed me that they had managed to locate the part and could fix the whole thing so I ended up getting it back totally fixed a week later. Funny how things move faster when you threaten to take away your custom.
At the end of the day I'm happy, the camera seems to be working ok and we have a four day weekend coming up this week so I'm off to the jungle to give it a serious testing.