CarComplaints.com Notes: You don't want to get 2009 and 2010 Altima owners started about their cars. That is, unless, you know how to start their cars.
These vehicles can suddenly become impossible to start thanks to a faulty electronic steering column lock (ESCL). Nissan dealers will gladly replace it, but that will run you $1000.
More info & videos about the Nissan ESCL defect are available over at NissanProblems.com.
It's one of the many reasons this car was named CarTalk's Turd of the Week and given our Beware of this Clunker badge. Two dubious honors.
8.6
pretty bad
Typical Repair Cost:
$960
Average Mileage:
90,350 miles
Total Complaints:
467 complaints
Most Common Solutions:
replace steering wheel lock (171 reports)
not sure (109 reports)
replace steering lock controller unit (99 reports)
ESCL Service Campaign - Nissan is conducting a voluntary service campaign on specific MY2009-10 Nissan Altima, Altima Coupe, Altima Hybrid, and Maxima vehicles to replace the existing Electronic Steering Column Lock (ESCL) with an Electronic Steering Column Box (ESCB).
I got stuck with the car when the engine couldn't start because of this Steering Lock Failure. The car is just 38400 miles and the part failed! It was due to a manufacturing irregularity problem, which should be recalled.
Now because it is just several months out of warranty, I have to pay $1200 to fix it ! Plus the tow! And the pain to get stranded at freezing cold weather!
2009 Nissan Altima just decided to flash the key light on Saturday and stopped working on Sunday. Never had a problem with the ignition or key before this time. Car would not start, steering wheel was locked in position tightly. Entered the manual key into the ignition to put in Nuetral and the lights and radio started to work. This should have been a recall since my car is 5 years old with only 55k miles on it and has never really been driven but to work and back. Nissan stated that there was a way to fix this if it was within the warranty which is a bunch of B.S...due to it happening right after my warranty expired!! The only thing to do by your customers is to be fair due to you knowing about this problem and not having a full recall on this item. I wonder what else don't we know about our Nissan's!!! Seriously in debate of buying another Nissan EVER!
Went out to shovel snow. I moved the car out of the parking spot, shoveled and moved it back in. Shut the car off, went inside car was fine. Came back out 2 hours later to go to work, car would not start. Lights work, door locks work, alarm works, interior lights work but the thing refused to start. Called out of work. I waited for my husband to get home and he tried to jump the car.. It still wouldn't start..(We thought maybe the battery was a little drained due to the cold) We came in the house and searched for a solution on the internet and found a unbelievable number of people who own the same vehicle with the same problem!!!
Why weren't we ever notified by Nissan that there were problems with this car? Now what the am I going to do? I am still paying the car off.. MY last payment is Sept 2015..Now I have to call Nissan have it towed and hope they will cover the cost. I baby this car but I guess that wasn't enough! What other hidden problems are there? Going to sell it and have piece of mind knowing this car won't just die on me somewhere where I can't get help!
Steering lock failure-seems to be a major issue with this model and year. Called the dealer about the extended warranty which expired 2 months ago. Estimated cost 800 dollars not including tow.
Update from Mar 12, 2015: UPDATE: After speaking with a couple of dealers, who said this is a chronic issue with Nissan. I decided to call Nissan Consumer Affairs and filed a claim. The regional representative called back who denied my claim; said it was out of warranty and there is absolutely nothing that Nissan would do to resolve the issue. I picked up my car at the dealer on 03/12/15 at a cost of $1049.00. The dealer advised that I call back Nissan Consumer Affairs and complain, as the dealer had 5 cars come in for that same problem in the 4 day period that my car was there. I spoke with the representative, who wanted to know specifically who at the dealer referred me back to them. I refused to give him that information. After a long call with that representative, who still did not budge on their previous decision, I finally was able to get him to leave a message for his supervisor who should call me back in the next 48 hours. They seemed to not care that my experience with them will most likely make myself, my family, my friends and my co-workers never buy another Nissan product again. The funny thing about the whole situation was the consumer affairs operator said, "Thanks for being the best part about Nissan." Definitely the truth, cause the best part of Nissan sure isn't their product or the way they treat their consumers.
Where do I start? Go inside grocery store on this cold February day, come out, get inside, start my car, or so I thought. It's call key fob whack ass key fob. No car start, let's try this again, push the brake, push the start button, still nothing, WTF!
I started looking up the information for my year make model of my car, OMG, I'm not alone with this. Nissan has lost their damn mind, this problem has happen too many same problems, so I'm really mad ass hell. NOT to mention I'm alone, I'm f*cking stranded and Nissan knows about this issue and still No recall! Really! But you'd rather your customer pay $1000 plus towing cost.
I'm not done, I will take it all the way, I promise I will...
I left the house to go grocery shopping and when I came out my Nissan would not start. We tried to jump it and nothing. The lights worked, the key unlocked/locked door but the car would not start. I had it towed to the nearest mechanic shop and they said it was a Electronic steering lock assembly failure, which seems to happen often with 2009-2010 Nissan's.
I am towing my car yet again to the dealership it came from. The dealership stated that there was a 7 year warranty, unlimited miles, we shall see if this is true. Every complaint I have been reading seems as though the consumer paid. I am paying almost $200 just to have it towed again! I hope that Nissan will cover this issue since my car has not even reached 50,000 miles yet and this should have not happened. I will post an update once I hear from Nissan.
Update from Feb 24, 2015: Update: My vehicle was fixed by Nissan at no charge due to the warranty. I am grateful for that, however, they should issue a recall, since this can happen at any time. I was stuck in below temperatures and also had to pay $200.00 in towing costs. Nissan could have prevented this if they would just issues a recall!!
IT IS FREE TO HAVE THE STEERING COLUMN LOCK UNIT REPLACED. IT IS WARRANTED FOR THE LIFE OF THE CAR*
So I went to leave work one day and my car would not start!!!!!!!!!! Red little car (security) light blinking, yellow key light blinking, would not even go into aux mode so I could roll my window up. Luck for me my friend owns a towing company and came and got me and the car and brought us home. I found this website and tried the quick fix of banging like hell on the steering column lock unit and it worked, for a couple of days. I also saw, from this site that the part was $800, which I don’t have!. So I waited to call the dealership and then had no choice when the quick fix would not work anymore.
After speaking with someone at Kingston Nissan Kingston NY I was told that THIS PART IS WARRANTED FOR THE LIFE OF THE CAR. I was pissed that they would not just make it a recall as it being warranted does not help you when your stranded somewhere. BUT MY FRIEND BROUGHT MY CAR TO THE DEALERSHIP AND THEY REPLACED THE PART AT NO COST TO ME AND THEY EVEN PAID MY TOW BILL. The car was only at the dealership for a couple of hours. Again this was great, but if I had gotten stranded somewhere with all 3 of my kids in the car I WOULD HAVE BEEN A LOT MORE PISSED. THIS SHOULD BE A RECALL.
It is very disappointing when Nissan ia very aware that there is an issue with the 2009 Nissan Alitma regarding the "Steering Lock" and a RECALL should have been called on this defective steering lock part. I have read the different blogs reporting this issue and still Nissan has not/ will not take action. I was taught by my parents that integrity speaks about the character that resides in you. I think Nissan needs a dose of character and integrity!
I am constantly having problems with my 2009 Nissan Altima not starting and seems to work fine when I get it jump started, even on the warmest days. I have had my battery checked and it is perfectly fine. Also have several problems when my remote will not work to unlock or lock my car doors, thank god there is a key to get into the car, but some days that does not seem to matter because when the remote works then the car will not start and vice versa.
I cannot believe with all the complaints out there about the same problem there is not a recall of some sort on this car. Very disgusted with Nissan after owning it for the last 5 years. Not sure if I will ever purchase another Nissan.
NISSAN SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF THEM SELVES. THEY HAVE CUSTOMERS RIDING AROUND IN THESE 2009 VEHICLES THAT HAS A PROBABILITY OF SHUTTING DOWN. 3YRS AFTER PURCHASE OF THE VEHICLE OR AFTER 65,000 MILES DUE TO A FAULTY ELECTRICAL STEERING LOCK THAT'S INSTALLED IN THE 2009 MODELS...NISSSAN SHOULD HAVE PLACED A RECALL ON THE PART,,, THE NHTSA HAS THE ISSUE LISTED ON THEIR WEBSITE AS A RECALL ITEM...WHEN I CALLED NISSAN CONSUMER AFFAIRS DEPARTMENT, THEY REFUSES TO MAKE FULL PAYMENT FOR THE REPAIR OF MY VEHICLE. FOR NISSAN TO BE SUCH A LARGE CORPORATION, THEY SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF THEIR NAME FOR NOT TAKING RESPONSIBILITY FOR THIS MANUFACTURING PROBLEM AND PAYING FOR ALL REPAIRS IN FULL...
Like everyone else who has this car, the steering lock control unit locked up and now looking to pay up to $1,000 to fix it. I was told by the dealer to call consumer affairs and file a complaint. 3 days later I get told by Nissan that it is out of warranty and there is nothing they can do. The dealership is working on getting me a discount but it is not looking good. For a part that shouldn't be an issue in the first place and a lot of Nissan clients having the same problem, they were quick to say there is nothing they can do to help. If this doesn't get resolved, there is no way I will ever buy or recommend Nissan to anyone. They have nice vehicles but their loyalty to their clients is not worth much.
Coming home from work, go to the car.... no start. Sounds like it's about to start and then cuts off mid-start. Lights come on, radio comes on, and interior lights fully light up. Steering wheel does NOT lock and the brakes are stiff to press, which is not normal. From what I'm seeing and hearing it's either the break switch or the electric steering control lock. This is the FIRST issue with the car besides the tire pressure sensors(all are taken out now). I'm not sure but it seems that temperature may also be part of the problem. A LOT of the issues I am hearing are during cold weather months. I'm going to try the "solutions" that I saw on the internet and publish the results. I am shocked that this isn't a recall by now with all the problems I am seeing with this issue. Besides this, it has been a wonderful car.
Update from Feb 1, 2015: Oh... went back to the car.... Still was the same issue as before. Stiff break pedal, car sounds like it's beginning to start and then turns off. The power ran down and I needed a jump after a while. Got the car jumped (charged for 20 mins). car finally started...called the dealer and they said it sounded like the Break Sensor and I . could bring it in for a $140 so they could look at it. I started the car a lot of times since then when no problem but I'll be on the look out... One thing I did do was take the battery out of the remote and put it back in.... or maybe completely losing power and needing a jump reset the car computer some how.... But its running fine now...
Update from Mar 27, 2016: Ok... Since then, a year later...... The the car did the exact same thing, about a month later. This time, I replaced the battery. Got a high amp/cranking battery(battery has not been changed since purchasing the car). That seemed to do the trick... The car did not have the problem for at least 8 or 9 months.... But then the cold weather hit again and it started happening again..... But this time, the car would not even begin cranking(a little different than before). I depressed the break to see if the break lights came on.... they did. I turned the steering wheel to see if it locked while in park mode..... it did lock and it unlocked once pressing the start button. I also depressed the break, while the ignition was in on position, to see if the gears would change(the gears will only shift if the break is depressed)..... The gears changed fine. So, to break it down...
1.) The wheel IS locking
2.) The break lights are coming on when pressing the break down
3.) The gears will change while the ignition is in ON position and break pressed down
So, what I began doing was making sure the car was all the way in park and pressing the break down while hitting the ignition button...
It worked... the car started.... But the car kept doing the same thing from time to time, once or twice per week(again, in cold weather. Don't think I've ever had this issue in warm weather.... So, I just kept doing this for about 2 weeks and it "went away". Hasn't come back in about 4 or 4 months since.... even through the snow weather(20+ inches), it still started without a problem.
Next time you have this issue.... try turning the wheel until it locks, then, if it does lock, just keep pressing the break down(slowly) while pressing he start button. It make take a few times, like 4-8 times but the car should eventually start.. It has been pretty consistent and I haven't taken to the dealer for repairs, and I have been able to get it started every time since getting the new(higher cranking amp) battery.
As with most warranties, Nissan knows of this problem and extended the normal warranty to cover up to 72 months for this problem. My 72 months ran out in Oct. 2014. So the cost is on me to get the faulty part replaced. I understand that it might cost me $700 - $1000. I am like an elephant, don't forget so I probably will not recommend Nissan to anyone nor will I buy another Nissan product. It has to do with the steering wheel lock and or the ignition switch lock. My car will not start. The push button starter is dead. I had to have it towed home until I figure out what to do now. I'm only glad it didn't happen last week while I was over 400 miles from home.
My 2009 Nissan Altima did not start. My car was towed to the Bay Ridge Nissan dealer. I was told that I had a steering column lock problem. They said that I might have a warranty but it was most likely expired. If I was to do other work on the car, they could make a pitch to the manufacturer to cover the steering column lock cost.
To make a long story short, they told me that I had other problems, control arm, wheel alignment and service maintenance and I need to get it fix which total over $900. The warranty to fix the steering column lock would only apply if I was to agree to do this other "needed" work. The Bay Ridge Nissan adviser told me that I would have to pay the full charge of the steering column lock $966.63 if I did not agree to do the other work.
At the time this happened, I did not know that I had an extended warranty. I did not find out until after the car was fixed and a second problem developed. They took full advantage of my situation to sell me services I didn't need. I'm very angry about this. The manufacturer should have informed their customers and I about the extended warranty and dealers should be honoring the extended warranty, not taking advantage of customer's bad situation to make a profit.
I will never buy another Nissan vehicle again. I contacted the Nissan consumer affairs too and they turned a blind eye, saying that they "resolved" the problem. They would not give me a refund and said they spoke to the dealer. This is their idea of "resolved". This is totally not acceptable. No one is taking responsibility for this dishonesty, not the manufacturer, not the dealer, not even the Nissan consumer affairs bureau. They are the worst car company ever with zero accountability for their defects. I hope no one will have to die before they decide to recall this defect. If anyone has initiated a class action lawsuit, please let me know.
Key fob works for trunk, door locks, panic button but car won't even turn on, let alone start. Just have blinking red key security light and the gold key light stays on solid. Had to get a tow to the dealership. My warranty has expired. I have read over a hundred cases of this happening to other people. I'll find out tomorrow what the $$(damage) costs.
Drove vehicle to the store. started to leave and the vehicle would not start. The ignition switch reads Lock and there was a key indicator light on the dash board. The vehicle is a keyless ignition. The key batteries were good. The car battery was good. Had to call a tow truck to tow into the dealership to repair. There should someway to start the vehicle, but isn't. Looked up the cause on the internet and found out that it is possibly the steering wheel lock device may be faulty or bad. There are lots of complaints that I have read, but no recall on the system.
Add my 2009 Nissan to the list! Talked to Nissan consumer affairs and they said warranty expired on 12/19/2014. Figures, this happened on 12/28/2014! When I told them I had just read over 300 cases with steering mechanism problems with the 2009 Nissan, they gave me a case # and said they would refer to regional office but with no guarantees of Nissan fixing the problem. I bought my Nissan for the long haul of dependency but now am very disappointed. At least I was at church when I broke down and was able to get car towed.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
I got stuck with the car when the engine couldn't start because of this Steering Lock Failure. The car is just 38400 miles and the part failed! It was due to a manufacturing irregularity problem, which should be recalled.
Now because it is just several months out of warranty, I have to pay $1200 to fix it ! Plus the tow! And the pain to get stranded at freezing cold weather!
- Suhui L., Latham, NY, US