Hey All!

Holidays are always a great time for the usually trusty steed to be acting up!

So my wife's car wouldn't start the other evening requiring a AAA call to tow it. I got there earlier and tried to move the shifter into neutral, etc and go the same results- car would go to ACC and everything works but car would not start. No clicking from starter but a mild hum for a second after pressing the ignition button at ACC. Tow truck driver tried the same thing and nothing. He got everything ready to get the car on the flatbed and went back to get the mileage and WHOM, car starts right up. I just replaced the battery about two weeks ago because the starter seemed like it was not getting enough juice on startup, btw...

From what I can tell it's exhibiting symtoms of a steering wheel lock malfunction..? It seems pretty common on the Nissans and has been mentioned on the Infinitis.

For the Nissan it seems as though a simple fuse pull works once the car gets started but the Infiniti doesn't seem to follow suit? I pulled off the batter compartment plastic and looked at all the fuseboxes but nothing seems to correlate to the other posts and youtube videos out there.

Does anyone have any expereince/advice on where to take it from here?

THANK YOU!!

Where do you live? Cold climate? I just maintained my battery because in the summer its fine, but once it's gets to the 20's and 30's in NY, it starts to struggle (750 CCA so not a small battery). It would even cause my alarm to randomly go off due to the weakening in cold weather.

It is possible you got a bad battery...what is the manufacture date of the one you got? Usually when you hear a hum its the battery. Do the interior lights flicker when you try to crank the car? Is your battery an AGM or a fluid type battery? If so...make sure the fluid is to the right level (distilled water). Mine wasn't, hence my issues. Since topping up, my battery is fine.

If you suspect that the steering lock ia acting up, then the only fix is replacement. Maybe another possibilty is the intelligent key unit (which also controls the steering lock). It would be nice to run a scan with a capable tool.

Thanks for the replies!

I have had this happen twice now. Both times after about an hour passes, the car has started right up. It seems as though this happens when there is a lot of parking, shut down and starting around town. With big gaps in between trips it doesn't appear to happen...from what I can see so far anyways..

I'm in SoCal so I don't think the weather plays a factor, although it has been comparatively cold and wet the last few weeks... The battery was a little over 3 years old which, if memory serves me correctly, is the magic age for the thing to go on this car. The new battery is an AGM type.

I think after going back and rereading the applicable posts, I am going to check the battery compartment to make sure the drain is not clogged and everything is dry.

My tendency to lean towards the steering lock failing is that the steering column gears/motor for the telescoping portion stopped working (well actually works but clicks and pops like gears are broken/stripped) a couple years back... I was thinking about getting a used column off ebay and replacing the whole thing.

If I did that, from what I see I would need to have the steering unit reprogrammed to work with the existing electronics? Is the dealer the only option on that?

As far as a scan tool, is there a reasonable option out there or am I looking at either spending $500 for the tool or taking it to someone?

THANKS AGAIN!

cnick760 wrote: ↑

Thu Dec 19, 2019 10:40 am

My tendency to lean towards the steering lock failing is that the steering column gears/motor for the telescoping portion stopped working (well actually works but clicks and pops like gears are broken/stripped) a couple years back... I was thinking about getting a used column off ebay and replacing the whole thing.

If I did that, from what I see I would need to have the steering unit reprogrammed to work with the existing electronics? Is the dealer the only option on that?

As far as a scan tool, is there a reasonable option out there or am I looking at either spending $500 for the tool or taking it to someone?

Any good locksmith would programme the steering lock unit to the car.
As for the scan tool, you'd find this a most invaluable investment:
https://www.auteltech.com/mk2/3218
http://www.autelsale.com/wholesale/aute ... hwQAvD_BwE

Thanks for the info on the scan tool!

Watching all the youtube videos on this thing I wonder how I got by without it!!

Nice. Keep us posted.

Will do Costee!

Quick update, it happened again last night before I had a chance to look at anything. A couple things to note:

1. The steering was not locked when I went to try to start the car. I moved the wheel and then it did indeed lock up but when I went to start it again, the lock released and the car would not start with the same results as before.

2. I went to the trunk to get something out of it and low and behold, the trunk release button would not work.

I went back to try and start the car and after a few random cycles of locking/unlocking doors, banking the steering column underneath it finally started.

So that had me thinking that after all of this it may be a weak battery in the key fob?! I replaced it last night so will once again keep you posted!

I doubt the battery in the fob has little to play here. I thought a weak fob battery is usually indicated in the cluster. Maybe you could ignore the remote functions for the moment and try starting the car with the fob inserted directly into the key slot. Also trying checking the status of the security indicator light when you experience a failed start.

Well...it's not the key FOB!

I finally got the whole experience this afternoon...

So here are a couple of screenshots as #1 when I unlocked the door and got in the car #2 putting my foot on the brake and pressing the start button and #3 the dash light after I did that and the car wouldn't start. After about 3-4 seconds, the dash lights went back to the pic in #2.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/rXb7tpbaiN86CBHK7

I am not sure if the lights indicate that it's not recognizing that the brake pedal is down?

You omitted the blinking red security light. At your #2 was the light blinking, off, or on steady? It seems it's your I-K unit that's acting up. Ever experienced water seeping into the car before? The car needs to be scanned before throwing parts at it.

1. Do you have a spare key fob, and if so, have you tried to use it in place of this current one?
2. Do you carry any other key fobs or transmitter devices on you/in close proximity to the M45 key fob? (The car refusing to respond is a symptom of this)
3. Do you use the rubber button on the door handles (prox switch) to lock the vehicle or do you use the buttons on the key fob?

If you can verify that info, that could lead us in one direction or another.

1. Do you have a spare key fob, and if so, have you tried to use it in place of this current one?
The is only one key FOB for the car. Other one disappeared a couple years back
2. Do you carry any other key fobs or transmitter devices on you/in close proximity to the M45 key fob? (The car refusing to respond is a symptom of this)
No other key fobs, parking passes, etc..
3. Do you use the rubber button on the door handles (prox switch) to lock the vehicle or do you use the buttons on the key fob?
It's a mix of key fob, door button


All that being said it was indeed the starter! After my wife left it after it wouldn't start, we both went down and as I listened to it struggling to crank up I could tell it was the starter. Luckily I was a able to get it to the shop and get it replaced. Now it sounds like normal when it cranks up.

This leads me to another issue I had been having with a p0430 code every couple of weeks... I had been theorizing that the coil packs were going out because it wasn't firing up immediately when it was cranking and injecting too much fuel at startup.

Now my theory is that because the starter was weak the extra cranking from the starter, without the engine starting, was pumping too much fuel without ignition at startup causing the code? I will keep an eye on this

Thanks everyone for the input!