Needed to venture out after Jonas, started my car and moved it a couple of inches. Then shut it off to get things from the house, returned to start the car (push to start)-- nothing no start, no dashboard lights. Only thing turned on was my anti-theft light and the lock portion on the push to start button.

I changed the key battery just in case, lights turn on and the all the buttons work with the key (panic, lock, unlock and trunk). What is a person to do... call AAA because it must be a dead battery.

WRONG... My battery is fine. The guy said it must be an electrical issued with Nissan and the push to start button. He even restarted my battery to see if that would work... It did not.

So from my reading, this is a common problem with Nissan 2009 models, which can cost over 800 dollars...

sounds like a manufacturer defect that occurs after the warranty often. :(

I've been dealing with nothing but issue with my car every sense I got it. Now I can't even start my car due to an steering wheel locked malfunction. I've been doing some research and it seems I'm not the only one with this issue. From what I'm reading the fix not including tow will run me around $1000 . I'm sorry but I can't just pull that out of my ass. Personally I think that Nissan should be responsible for this problem giving the fact that it's not just me that's having this issue. Also I just found out that on a warm day if i drive over 2 and a half hr . The car has a over heating problem with the transmission. Supposedly the designers/manufacturers of this car didn't think it was necessary to install a cooling system for the transmission knowing that it is a CVT drive . What kind of moron would design something this way....oh yeah it's a Nissan.

My wife was getting off work. It was approximately 18 degrees with a wind chill factor of 5-10 degrees. She used the autostart to warm up the vehicle before leaving work. When she got into the vehicle, placed it into gear, it died. The Key Light came on, and the security light started blinking. The push button start would not start the engine. So, she called me. I'm disabled, but I thought, maybe it's just the battery. So, I drove 35 miles to find out that it was an electrical problem in the vehicle. The vehicle would start with the autostart, but the radio lights would go out. Then, when placed into drive, the vehicle would die again. With no options left, I had to call a tow truck, which cost me $150 to bring it home. This now leaves us with one vehicle (mine), which she has to take to work. We live in a rural area, far away from any Nissan dealer. I have a friend who is a retired Nissan mechanic. He said that this was a very common problem, and that Nissan would probably do anything they could to avoid paying for any repairs or towing. Hopefully, my insurance will reimburse me for the towing, but they won't pay for having it towed to the nearest dealership, which is approximately 65 miles away from here. The bad thing is, we love the car. Until now, it's been one of the best we've ever owned.

I spoke with the Nissan Consumer Affairs already about this problem but the answer I got did not make sense to me. I bought my car two years ago and have been so happy with my vehicle. Never had a problem until this month when my steering lock froze up. Ironically enough my boyfriend came to help (because I was stranded at work at night time). My display was showing that my key fob battery was low so my boyfriend brought me a new battery. I replaced the battery and it was still showing that the battery was low. That is when he said, "Oh I know exactly what this is. It is your steering wheel lock. This happened in my 370Z and it was recalled." So I was thinking well I guess if it was recalled then maybe I won't have a huge repair bill. I called a tow truck and towed my car to Nissan. The associate that checked me in was WELL AWARE right away of the problem and proceeded to tell me that MANY people have had this problem. He also laughed and said one guy had to wait a month to get his car because when they were first recalled it was out of stock for a while. Research online also supports that so many owners have had the exact same problem and want to kick Nissan in the ball sack. This is probably why Nissan did a recall on the part for "unlimited miles" but only a certain period of time, which I was conveniently out of the range. I ended up paying the $1059.96 repair bill because well, I kinda need my car. I thought for sure that this issue would be taken care of by Customer Affairs but I was just reassured that I was just unlucky because I was out of the warranty time frame. I don't understand why I did not receive a letter reporting this recall so I could have taken the car in and got it fixed BEFORE it stopped working and was out of warranty. That is was a moral company would do, considering that Nissan has identified this as a problem in multiple Nissan models from years 2009-2012 not just including my boyfriend's 370Z and my Nissan Altima Coupe. I am just really surprised at the way Nissan is handling this issue. I reported with the BBB. Nissan needs to give me and any other Nissan owner that spent THEIR hard earned money on this manufacturing defect a reimbursement. Otherwise I will never be a Nissan customer again, not that it really matters to such a big company but enough people upset about the problem will be a problem for them. I hope Nissan pulls through in the end but I am not keeping my finger's crossed.

Went out to my car one day, and it would not start. I was very confused, because I hadn't had any issues with the vehicle. Thought it may have been the battery, but then I noticed the key anti-left lock light blink on then off very quickly. Looked up the light in the manual, and it indicates a problem with the steering lock. This happened in the evening, so there wasn't much I could do until the next day.

Did some Google searches on the issue, and saw so many many many complaints about this happening to others. AND how expensive the fix was. Then I ran across the Nissan USA's 6 year extended warranty, and started to feel a little better. Called them first thing the next morning and, lo and behold, I MISSED THE EXTENDED WARRANTY BY TWO MONTHS! ... I should have known because many of the complaints have been the same... Just missing the deadline by a month or two. Something doesn't sound right here...

I voiced my concern about this, and they said that they'd escalate my claim to see if it would be covered because I just missed the extension date. After reading the complaints here, I am very doubtful they are going to cover this $1000+ expense for something they admittedly said should not be happening when they extended coverage to fix this issue.

Like many others have asked WHY ISN'T THERE A RECALL?

HOW IS IT FAIR THAT THE COMPLAINTS OF THOSE THAT HAD THIS HAPPEN YEARS PRIOR WERE ADDRESSED & FIXED FREE OF CHARGE, BUT OTHERS THAT THE ISSUE HAPPENED TO LATER ARE IGNORED?

I really hope that more people sign up and post their experiences here. I'm thinking about starting a website and another petition because this is just insane. When I do, I'll post the links here.

On Saturday, January 16 2016 I went grocery shopping. I came out and my car (2009 Altima with electronic ignition) would not start. At first I thought it was just my key battery so I put it in the key slot but still no success. I realized I had my spare key and stepped on the brake and tried to use it, but ignition light showed locked and the key icon was lit up. I called Firestone and they told me it sounded like a Nissan issue.

I then called Thomas Nissan and spoke to one of their technicians who told me that it sounded like a steering lock issue. I had the car towed to Thomas Nissan and had to wait until Monday for them to call me back. When they did, they told me it was indeed my steering wheel lock and it would cost $987 to fix it. I am unemployed and could not afford this so I went onto the internet and found that there was an extended warranty put on this specific part. When I called Nissan consumer affairs, I was told that my warranty ran out on Aug 15, 2015. I was amazed because I never got a call nor did I receive an extended warranty notice. They did escalate it to Nissan Regional Consumers but I would have to wait until Tuesday to get a response. I thought for sure they would at the very least help me with this cost, but when they called on Tuesday, they said there was nothing they could do.

I inquired why I did not get a call or a written notice. I mean when my records show an oil change due or a wheel alignment, I get a recorded message, why in the world would they not leave a message about an issue that they were well aware of and could be very serious if I had children or an elderly person in my car.

Being unemployed, I, of course, could not afford to get my car repaired, so I have to either borrow a car or interrupt someones day to take me back and forth. There are many, many, many complaints on this issue and I do not know how Nissan can get away with not recalling this issue. I have also attached two You Tube links regarding a repair, but I do not believe this is something you should do on your own.

What a scam!! Nissan is trying to be the next GM and see how much they can get away with before it hits the public because of a serious issue.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qIT_Yl6BFuA or https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yy077eLJfXk

My 2009 Nissan Altima has a known defect with the Electronic Steering Column Lock. Nissan extended a warranty on the known defective part from 36 months/36,000 miles to 72 months/unlimited miles. As luck would have it my Electronic Steering Column Lock failed shortly after the expiration date of the recall on a Sunday leaving my wife and child stranded (Jan 17th was one of the coldest days of the year -15 degrees). I picked up my wife and child. I had my car towed to Wayzata Nissan. On Monday morning at 7AM I called and spoke with Steve Tursso the Service Manager. Steve said they would diagnose the problem and get back to me. Bob Doherty the Service Adviser called me, told me it was indeed an ESCL failure. He quoted me a price of $950 for the repair. I explained the warranty had been expired a short time and that I was a loyal customer. He stated there was nothing he could do and that I should call 1-800-Nissan. 1-800-Nissan took down my info and explained they’d have a Rep call me within 24 hours.

25 hours later Quinn with Nissan called and told me that I wasn’t eligible for any type of “Out of Warranty relief”. Nissan and Quinn consider car purchasing history and service history with the dealership among other things and my relationship with Nissan and Wayzata Nissan didn’t quality me for assistance. (In my life I’ve owned 5 Nissans, I don’t use the dealer for service as they are approximately 50 miles round trip from my home).

I found the defective part on FactoryNissanParts.net for $447.58. (Part #487009N00B) Steve Tursso indicated the part cost him $700 and that the item mentioned above is a “grey part” meaning it’s manufactured by someone other than Nissan (Huh… the website doesn’t mention this). Steve said if I chose to buy this part on my own he would install it but not warranty it.

Conclusion… Tow cost $200 + Repair $800 = Out of pocket expense $1000

Not to mention being without a car from Sunday to Wednesday is severely inconvenient.

If you drive a 2008 – 2010 Nissan I’d carry a survival kit in your car. You’ll most likely get stranded. Don’t count on Nissan or Wayzata Nissan to help you out.

1/17/2016 was the coldest day of the year here in NE Kansas (low of 2F high of 13F). I had driven the car more than a hundred miles the day before and it was working fine. On the day in question, I hopped in the car in the morning and drove to the end of the driveway to get the paper, no problems. Came back up and parked it outside. Went out to my car several hours later, push the start button and it won't start.

Starter won't click. Engine won't turn over. Theft Deterrent System indicator light is flashing. I had no idea there was a Theft Deterrent System. All the lights and things work fine, battery is only a year old. I pull another car around and jump mine. No luck. Tried both FOBs, they work from a distance still and when I put them in the FOB slot it doesn't make a difference.

Looked around online and its clear that it is the same problem everyone else is having with the steering lock. My car is no longer under warranty and I'm still paying it off. I'm hoping that the issue is related to the cold and when it warms up the car will work again because I'm not going to drop another $1000 on this car. I've already gone through one recall with it.

Update from Jan 20, 2016: I took the car to my trusted mechanic and he confirmed it was the problem with the steering lock controller unit and that he couldn't fix it. So I took it to the dealership and they told me the part's warranty expired in Nov 2014 and that it would cost between $950 and $1050 to fix the problem on an otherwise perfectly functioning car. I am really mad.

Car started fine when I went to work that morning, then wouldn't start at all when I tried leaving for lunch. Got the "key" error. Borrowed a co-workers car to have the battery in the fob replaced. Still wouldn't start and wouldn't jump start either. Another co-worker (who's a car guy) mentioned it's probably the steering lock control. After researching more online, I noticed that several other people had this same issue and that Nissan knew about the problem, but instead of recalling the part, extended the warranty by a year. After calling the Nissan Consumer Affairs number, I found out that extension expired last March. Gee thanks, Nissan for looking out for your consumers. This is the first Nissan I've owned and it will definitely be my last. My apologies to Honda for leaving you.

Drove to fast food restaurant parking lot and turn off car. Immediately, I saw steering lock failure light on dashboard. Tried starting car and would not start. It was a such a rainy day in Atlanta. I used all tips given to me get it started to no avail. Finally got the towed to dealership after 4.5 hours. Called the morning to know the cost of repairs..... wow 950.00 to straighten this.

More reading online revealed that Nissan had extended warranty on this till March 2015, and I had no knowledge of it. At least we should have been alerted about it. This is very sad, to say the least!

Is there anyway Nissan can give at least some discount repairing this?

Left church to start my car. Absolutely nothing!! After a $100 tow job to a local garage, they found dead battery. THEN had to be towed to another garage to replace electronic control lock system. That alone, will be $1200. Searching online, I find Nissan has had many complaints like this; in fact a temporary recall was issued, and extended until 2013, but I NEVER received a recall notice. Nissan should be responsible for this repair bill, and to alerting customers of these vehicles. I bought my Altima from a Nissan dealer, so they had records of my purchase

Update from Mar 20, 2017: go to www.NissanAssist.com, and download form to submit for reimbursement

This happens to be a common issue with Nissan Altimas and Maximas between 2009 and 2011. The part and replacement will cost between $700 and $1000, even though it is said to be a $50 part.

Basically what happens is that the wheel lock fails to disengage when the driver re-enters the car. This prevents the ignition from starting and keeps the car dormant. You can still open and close the doors, turn on the lights, set off the alarm, but the button will not turn on the dash lights or allow the ignition to start.

here are others samples of my same issue:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EOBjROEfnPA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qIT_Yl6BFuA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zywVhHJWXgo