Yep. They changed the tail-lights midstream in 2001 as well.

I happen to know the service department manager (Hugh Stevens) at Feldmann Imports fairly well due to a mutual quest to discover the "leaf-spring mount, underbody rust problem of 2000" together. He's a straight shooter and I respect his judgement. He also volunteered to replace my wife's Maxima hood because the paint "looked funny." He's not afraid to challenge Nissan and he's always worked with me on any question I've had.

I called him on this A/C deal, just to get his take and to put a bee in his bonnet to come up with a definative solution. He knew about the "issue" and personally believes its a problem. He agreed to contact his Nissan technical representative who bulldogs these sorts of questions for their dealership. He should call me sometime tomorrow.

I don't know if this will yield any further depth to the well of knowledge we already have, but it couldn't hurt. Besides, I trust the guy.