Went to start vehicle and it did not start. Had to have it towed to dealership for $90. Was told it was not covered under warrenty and my car was out of warranty by 2 months. Advised to call Consumer Affairs. Waited 13 days with repeated phone calls just to be told they will not warranty the repair with no written explanation. Repair cost $757 and is only warranteed for 12,000 miles. Was told repair would take 3 days but they had my car for 21 days because the part was on back order. By the way, my car was also in for 2 recall issues: Head gasket and master brake cylindar. Pretty big issues! I was also told by service manager that if I had all my service done thru them instead of outside source they would have covered the steering lock issue. Sounds a little fishy to me. They need to recall this problem!!! or at least have a manual over ride.

- Canyon Lake, CA, USA

The car would not start with my smart key. I have had the car for three years and there were no mechanical issues with the car. But after turning it off to go inside, I came back out and it would not start. I had the car towed to Nissan dealer and the service tech already new the problem, told me the part was on back order, and that it would take three weeks to fix, on top of the 800+ bill to fix it. This problem is frequent and I feel there should be a recall or at least a reimbursement for service done on the vehicles.

- Spring, TX, USA

The lights, locks, trunk and battery worked fine but the vehicle refused to start. I contacted the dealership and was told the car would have to be towed in to access the problem. Amazingly they called me 10 minutes after it arrived and told me the issue was my steering lock which needed to be replaced and could no longer communicate with the "intelligent key". I was quoted a price of $841 and advised it was on back order and could not give me an estimated time of when it would be replaced. I went by the dealership the next day and was told there were 1500 of the parts I needed on back order. They still couldn't give me an estimated arrival date. Said it could be days, weeks or months. Sounds like a recall to me. I did some research and found that this is a common problem and Nissan needs to replace these parts free of charge. This car had me stranded in cold winter weather and I am just lucky that someone was able to give me a ride home. This car is a 2009 Nissan Altima. If Nissan does not correct the issue I can honestly say I will never buy another one again.

- Ellenwood, GA, USA

Steering lock mechanism $1200 bucks Nissan better do something.

- Garfield, NJ, USA

Car would not start / computer lock / car had to be towed.

- Saddle Brook, NJ, USA

My daughter and 2 year old were trying to get home under an ice storm warning. The push button start did not operate. They were stranded in the cold under a severe weather warning. Nissan says the steering wheel lock controller caused the failure and would not communicate with the intelligent key fob and start button. There is not a method to override the push button with a mechanical key. This is a known problem for the 2009 Altima. My Altima has only 37,500 miles but is past the 3-year warranty period. The repair was $803. The service writer at the dealership stated that he expects a recall in the near future because of the frequency with which they see this faulty module. The part was changed in 2010 but Nissan refuses to replace the bad ones in the 2008-2009 models.

- Roswell, GA, USA

I went to the grocery store and came out and attempted to start my car. The intelligent key warning light came on so the car would not start. It was stuck in the lock position. Sent it to the dealer and $1100. This is ridiculous because this seems to be a common problem so why hasn't it been recalled? I was sitting outside in 13 degree weather with my infant son and they say it's not a safety issue. I was about to trade it in for a newer model but I will never buy a Nissan again.

- Middletown, RI, USA

Steering lock mechanism failed leaving car stranded.

- Loganville, GA, USA

Car wouldn't recognize key in it, but could unlock doors and trunk, and would not start. Car was towed to Nissan and they found the steering lock control module not communicating with ikey reader. Tech installed new ikey reader and cleared theft codes.

- Knoxville, TN, USA

Dropped my son off at school, when I returned to the car, it would not start at all. The car recognized my key was present but push button did nothing. Manually using the key slot would not start the car either. Had to have the car towed and am being told that will cost $800-1100 to fix steering lock and that parts are on back order. Doing an internet search I have found literally hundreds of complaints on the same defect over the past three weeks. This did occur on a very cold day, about 10 degrees at the time.

- Carmel, IN, USA

Amber 'intelligent key' light started appearing on and off. Finally vehicle refused to engage starter and whirring noise indicating steering lock is functional no longer happens. Vehicle needs to be towed and research indicates the problem is common in 2009 Altima and other Nissan vehicles. Repair quotes online appear to be in the $900 range. Nissan needs to accept responsibility for this problem and issue a recall.

- Eagan, MN, USA

The contact owns a 2009 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that the vehicle would not start using the keyless entry. The contact had the vehicle towed to the dealer and was told that the steering lock actuator needed to be replaced. The contact stated the failure was a repeat occurrence. The computer was previously reset to correct the failure. The vehicle was not repaired for the most recent failure. The failure and the current mileages were 86,000.

- Panama City, FL, USA

The contact owns a 2009 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that while parked, the vehicle would not start. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing. The technician advised that the steering lock assembly would have to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 45,400.

- Owings Mill, MD, USA

Drove to lunch in car. Came out 30 minutes later car wouldn't start. Had car towed to repair shop where a faulty steering column lock sensor was diagnosed. Repair cost with tow ~ $850.

- Bridgewater, NJ, USA

I parked my vehicle at my son's school to run in and pick him up from the after school program. Came back out to the car and it would not start. The vehicle steering wheel was locked. I attempted to push the start button and brake and nothing happened. The yellow key light was flashing on and off, lights were on in the car, however there were no lights on the dashboard or no sound was made from the car doors being opened. My mechanic called the dealership to get the part and was informed that it was on back order until January 29th. Repair cost is around $800.

- Windsor Mill, MD, USA

I came office on 18th Jan in my car and when I was heading back it didn't started. I towed my car to Nissan dealer and they said after diagnosis that car's steering lock controller is faulty and is not recognizing the key and need to be replaced: Final charges : $830, well clearly from the posts that its not one time incident and Nissan is aware of that. They should make a recall for this. Its just 3 years old car and I have to pay such a hefty amount when I cared my car like a baby.

- Plano, TX, USA

Trying to start vehicle, yellow key warning light came on and car would not start. This happened without warning and I was stranded at lunch 15 minutes from work with no way to get back. The steering lock unit failed to disengage. This part should be recalled since the same part (I've heard) was recalled on other Nissan models and can leave anyone in a dangerous situation.

- Cincinnati, OH, USA

The intelligent key warning light illuminated as I arrived at my office on the morning of 1/14/13. When I attempted to start the vehicle that afternoon, the push-start ignition remained in the "lock" position and the vehicle would not respond to repeated start attempts. Break lights and headlights continued to function correctly. Called local Nissan dealership and they instructed me to have the vehicle towed. After an hour, the Nissan service advisor contacted me with notice that the steering wheel lock control unit had failed and they estimated the total repair cost to be at $900. The dealership did not have the part in stock, but they were able to locate another dealership who was able to courier it over the following morning. I contacted Nissan North America on 1/23/13 and they refused to offer any compensation relative to the costs associated with this repair. This is a part that should have been recalled at least a year ago based on its apparently rampant history of failure for other Altima owners.

- Houston, TX, USA

Drove car a few minutes down the road, parked and went inside for aprox 15 mins. Came back out and car would not start. No key light was flashing on dash but key fob was in car. Got the spare as well and still would not work. Plugged in fob, disconnected car battery. All would not work. Stuck in the cold with my three year old daughter! had to have car towed to Nissan dealership ($100) and part was steering lock mechanism. Part was on back order! Nissan refuses to recall this! it's ridiculous. They no longer use this part on their cars yet refuse to recall costing us a lot of money! repair bill at Nissan dealership was $753.09 plus $100 tow so $853.09!! I will never buy another Nissan. Luckily dealership was able to get Nissan to cover my rental car since I went a week without a car. Unacceptable.

- Keller, TX, USA

The contact owns a 2009 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that the steering lock actuator failed, preventing the vehicle from being started. The contact had to have the vehicle towed to the dealer and the steering lock actuator was replaced. The failure and the current mileage was 60,000.

- Knoxville, TN, USA