general problems of the 2009 Nissan Altima - part 1

The contact owns a 2009 Nissan Altima. While attempting to start the vehicle, the steering wheel was locked, preventing the remote start feature from functioning as designed. The vehicle was towed to the residence and was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 145,000.

After the steering lock anti theft activated, steering lock escl module does not allow to turn on the ignition even keys are inserted.

The contact owns a 2009 Nissan Altima. The contact stated while attempting to start the vehicle using the key fob, the vehicle failed to start. The contact depressed the brake pedal and ignition button, and the vehicle failed to start. The contact was unable to depress the brake pedal to start the vehicle. The contact had the vehicle towed to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the steering lock mechanism needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 80,000.

The component that failed was the steering lock control, and yes it's available upon request with a tow. I was stranded with no way of getting home. Problem has been confirmed by dealer. The vehicle has been inspected by the manufacturer. No there was no symptoms prior to the failure. 06.

Parked car at a coffee shop, turned off engine, exited and locked doors. Upon coming back to vehicle, the vehicle would not start. We tried jumping the vehicle battery, that did not work. We tried replacing the battery in the key fobs, that did not work. We inserted the fob into the a lot near the steering column and that did not work. We had the car towed to an auto repair shop who stated the key fobs needed to be reprogrammed, but they didn’t have the equipment to do so. We called a locksmith the reprogram the fobs, but the locksmith was not able to do so. He said the vehicle returned 6 bcm codes. He was able to remove all but 2 and recommended I take care to Nissan. Had car towed to Nissan and they stated the steering column module lock needed to be replaced (quoted $1425 + tax). I mentioned the service campaign from 2017, but I was told my car’s VIN was not eligible for the campaign and repair would be my responsibility. Why is a known issue not being covered by Nissan??.

There's an obvious issue with the steering lock system in 2009 Altimas that Nissan fails to address with a recall. They opened an extended warranty period that ended in 2020 apparently, with no notification from the manufacturer or dealership that this was happening. Also, I have been seeing complaints from owners who did get the steering lock box replaced at that time and are again having an issue where they are not able to use their cars for the very same issue. This needs an immediate recall as this shows negligence on the part of the manufacturer as well as the dealerships to notify owners. An owner should not be liable for costs to fix such issues that are the responsibility of a manufacturer. This is also a safety issue as the car is not reliable and puts the lives of drivers at risk while they can be found stranded in unforeseen and dangerous situations.

The contact owns a 2009 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to start. Additionally, the steering wheel was locked. A message to wiggle the steering wheel while depressing the push to start button was displayed. The contact stated that she followed the instructions however, the failure persisted. An unknown dealer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The contact related the failure to Nissan TSB number: ntb17-018. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

Car was working perfectly. Drove to school, nothing acting weird. Went to leave school and would not start. This is a push start ignition and it is stuck on lock with the key lights on. One orange/yellow stays on for a while and the other is the red flashing light. This is a steering lock module defect. I have read where this is a reocurring problem and Nissan has still not performed a recall and this obviously should have been done years ago. Now I am going to be out over $500 for a piece that Nissan should cover. This is unacceptable.

Steering column locks, causing key fob to not be recognized. Hence, car will not start. This s/b recalled for a fix.

My daughter drove the car to a gas station, pumped gas, came back out and the car wouldnt start. She was left stranded by a car that had to be towed. Had she been out of town without resources nearby she would have been in a very difficult situation. The engine randomly fails to start using push-button no manual workaround, leaving drivers stranded failure to jumpstart using cables or a jump box and new battery the new replacement part wiped out the memory of the body control system causing more costs. $1200 - just to make the car start.

The steering column lock actuator went out & left me stranded at night away from my home. I got in the car & it wouldn't start.

The vehicle was working just fine when I went to the grocery store and came out. I unlocked the car using the key fob, sat inside and the car stopped detected my key. The steering was locked, I tried to place it near the start push button, tried putting it in the slot but nothing happened. And I tried unlock button couple of times on the key fob and the mirrors went down. And there was no way to pull them up and I was stranded in the parking lot for no reason. I got it towed to the dealership and they told me steering lock module went bad which is a common issue in 2009 Nissan Altima. Its a safety issue as I can get stranded anywhere anytime! and they are fixing it for 1300$ bucks! please recall all 2009 Nissan Altima and change this part in them!.

My vehicle suddenly failed to start due to a defective escl, which locked the steering column. The vehicle needed to be towed to a Nissan dealership to replace the part at a cost of $1500. Defective escls are a known issue and a service campaign was implemented by Nissan to replace these defective parts in 2009-2010 Altimas and maximas. Unfortunately, the campaign expired in 2020 and Nissan refuses to fix this part after the expiration. I never received notification of this issue despite purchasing and owning the vehicle throughout the entire 2017-2020 campaign. Despite Nissan referring to this as a non-safety issue because the part is not known to fail during operation of the vehicle, this problem can cause operators to be suddenly stranded with no option of immediate repair. I believe the Nissan campaign to replace these defective parts should be reopened with no expiration, as there are hundreds of thousands of vehicles impacted.

The vehicle steering got locked and would not want to start again, this could of happen anywhere and spend more money to tow and also a risk being in the freeway. This should be a recall due to a lot of complaints, or a free repair due to being very expensive, almost 200 for a safety issue. There is a TSB ntb10-053 ,.

The contact owns a 2009 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that while his son was attempting to start the vehicle, the vehicle failed to start. The contact mentioned that the vehicle failed to start and was given a jump start by another vehicle. The contact stated that the steering column box needed to be tapped in order for the vehicle to operate. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer. The vehicle was not repaired, and the failure recurred. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the vehicle was not included in technical service bulletin: 10119195. The approximate failure mileage was 80,000.

My vehicle is inoperable due to electronic steering column box. This locking mechanism is not engaging and has caused the vehicle to stop operation. I have been told this system is an anti theft device. It stopped working all of the sudden and I had to have the vehicle towed home thankfully I did not get into an an accident due to this mechanical failure.

2009 Nissan Altima it's relating to the steering assembly lock that was defective. I have this vehicle and  this issue came up in 2013 and it was fixed.   I had this issue come up again in late 2021 and I need to fix it again out of pocket.   I read in your article that in 2017  Nissan issued a fix to this.   I paid about $600 in 2013 and now they're quoting $1800 plus tax. Would I still be eligible to have this covered by Nissan as it's a known recurring problem? thanks,  paresh.

Steering column is locked not allowing the car to turn on.

Drove car to to store came back 20 minutes later car would not start. Red key appear on dash - had to have car towed. Informed steering wheel lockout. Nissian award of problem, but never issue recall. Base on my research found out they did a voluntary bring in your car to fix problem, but no recall. Who is going to know they have a problem until it happens< the bring in your cechile program ended may 2020 during the pandemic. Now it's going to cost $1300 to repair, not counting money spent for tow and car rental. I have bought 3 nissian never will I buy another one.

Key warning light on dash which indicates steering lock module malfunction.

Went to work with no issues. Got off and went to grocery store and when I came out to leave, car would not start. The key indicator and steering lock indicator on indicating a malfunction. Car would not start for no reason. After a day I had to have the car towed to my house at my expense. It is terrible to have so many people have the same issue and being stranded by this malfunction, which is extremely unsafe. Terrible to see how Nissan will not fix this obvious error on their part to protect their customers safety. Now I am being told that the recall to fix this wasnover may of 2020 and it is going to cost over a thousand dollars. I was never notified of a recall and this fox should be honored but it is not. Terribly disappointed. Nissan, get your act together!!!!.

Steering lock mechanism malfunction leaving me stranded due to the car not starting. Intelligence key lock displaying indicating the issue being a malfunction. I was left stranded over 40 miles away from home. I’m stranded on an island and haven’t had any insurance rep look at it. Vehicle is being towed over 40 miles to a Nissan dealership. There was no warning. I went to work that day without any issues and when I was ready to leave the car would not start and the key light was on. I had to spend money on a rental car to get home. This is extremely unsafe to know this can happen due to a part Nissan is very aware of.

I got in my car I drove up to the auto parts store which I took my neighbor to turn my car off went in came back out and the steering wheel was locked and would not unlock at which time I had it towed back to the house which cost me $125 and 3 hours. Come to find out the part is on recall that calls the car to do this and the manufacturer refuses to honor it saying I have to pay to replace it.

Went to start my car the other day and it failed to start with a little key icon on the dashboard and my push to start button reading lock. I assumed that the battery was dead because it was about -20 degrees fahrenheit at the time, however when I went to jump it it still wouldn't even attempt to turn over when I pressed the start button. This appears to be a common issue with my make and model of car, however the manufacturer has issued a recall on only select cars for the make model and year despite it being widespread across the that line of vehicle for that year. While I was fortunate to be home when this happened, being stranded somewhere in this cold of weather without the ability to start your car could be very dangerous.

My Nissan Altima 2009 doesn't start at all and the symptoms clearly shows that is the issue with escl that Nissan Altima has acknowleged, however the service campaign to replace it was for a limited time period and I was not informed about it. Today I was stranded as the car was just not starting. This is really frustrating. Could you please look into this.

The front suspension has caused my tyrode to come off cause the bracket that is on the strut bar that the stabalizer bolts onto has broke off from where its attached to. I can not keep the front right wheel tight it has came off with me driving down a city street which was seagoviille rd. In seagobille TX. All problems front suspension.

Will not start steering wheel lock defective left me stranded.

A faulty steering lock on the Altima prevented me from starting my car. I was stranded in a remote area for 7. 5 hours at near freezing weather.

My husband and I purchased this as a used car. We have had the car for a few weeks with it working just fine up until last Thursday when my husband was on his way to work and stopped for gas. He turned the car off and when he went to turn it back on, the car would not budge. We tried to jump it and got nothing. We replaced the battery and got nothing. Looked on youtube to see what else it could be. Came across a video talking about the steering lock on 2009 Nissans are notorious for going out and preventing the car from starting. He tried to fix it and check the fuses under the steering and got it to start. We were so happy and thought it was just a fluke until he tried driving it somewhere else. He left the house, started just fine and went to his destination. Once he was done and tried to leave. There it was again. Car did not start. The steering was locked. Stuck. Turns out there was a recall that ended in may of 2020 of this exact issue. I call Nissan corporate office to see what I can do to get them to replace it since it is a safety issue and a manufactured issue and they were trying to tell me that the recall has expired and the issues that I'm reading a lot of people still having with this is no longer valid. And we will have to pay out of pocket. This is not right. Being that's it's not our issue. I can understand if it was something we caused but we didn�t, the previous owner never received notice of the recall. And now we have it and it falls on us because Nissan decides to expire a known recall that is still happening. This is such a safety concern. We have children and like to go on road trips. What if we get stranded with our children in the middle of no where, no food no drinks no nothing and something bad happened because Nissan refused to fix an issue that was their fault. Let me tell you. Huge law suit. I will not stop until someone gets this issues resolved.

Out of nowhere a key light turned on the dashboard. Took it to the mechanic & was told it was probably the remote. Reprogrammed the remote & changed batteries but the light is still on. I've noticed the steering wheel no longer locks. They told me it'll cost to get it repaired. The car runs perfectly fine the only issue is that the light is on and the steering wheel doesn't lock. I was told if I don't get it fixed it can turn into a bigger problem. However, I've been seeing a lot of owners are having the same issue. The problem was not cause by me nor my driving. The part is faulty and should be recalled. Again. Since the recall for the steering wheel expired in may.

Some times dont start the key sibol appesrs Altima 2009 coupe I lived in purto rico.

I was returning home from going out with friends and I got in my car to leave which I drove to my friends house a few hours before returning. She lives in an apartment complex so I was parked in the parking lot. I tried to start my car and it wouldn't start. There was a light on the dashboard that said key(it's yellow) . I could barely press down on the brake and I wasn't able to move the steering wheel. I called my friend who has the exact same make , model and year Nissan as me and he said he had the exact same issue with his car a few months ago. Thank god I wasn't at an unknown place or I would have been trapped. I had to call a tow truck to get home. I wanted to report this because I'm not the only one this has happened to.

While in motion and making a left turn onto an intersection my steering wheel was making it more difficult to continue turning left and then it locked. Was going to hit a concrete barrier between road and sidewalk where pedestrians walk, had to hit the brakes to prevent a crash. After a couple of seconds the car iluminated all the lights in the dash and told me the car was off. I was able to turn on the car, the steering wheel unlocked and was able to go in reverse a bit to complete my left turn. Had a similar scenario many years ago when first purchasing the car, when accelerating in the highway nd driving straight the steering wheel locked and the car stopped accelerating because the gas pedal locked, couldnt turn tge steeribg wheel at all. Felt as if the car turned itself of even though car electronics were on such as the radio. Seconds later the lights iluminated in the dash and was able to turn on the car and steeribg wheel unlocked. Brought my car to the dealer but they could not find any issues, so they decided to restart the computer and did not have the problem again until last Thursday where it turned off on me while turning. Exrremely dangerous and car is unsafe to drive.

Intermittently the vehicle will not start. Based on replacing the brake switch, key fob, and battery the most common complaint falls with the escl failing to engage and report it's status. Since this is a push button start and there is no manual backup, it is impossible to get the vehicle to start without this properly reporting. Currently, I don't know whether or not my car will start on any given day and I have had to leave it in parking lots and get rides when it fails to start in the past.

The car was parked in the streets and wouldn't start. I tried jump starting, changing the keys battery, didn't work. Had to tow it to my mechanic the next day and he figured out was this steering lock part, and told me it is a recurring problem with Altima 2009. I searched if there was a recall and found out that although it has hundreds, maybe thousands of complaints, no recall was made for this issue.