2010 EX35 Won't Start!!

[orangie]

Anyone else experiencing problems where your EX35 won't start? I bought mine in December 2009 and it was fine up until a couple of weeks ago

I took it to the dealer and they claimed it was fine, until they went to go get it from service and it wouldn't start for them either. They replaced the battery in the remote, which doesn't make any sense because even if the battery died already, it should work when put in the slot.

Another week or so passed and it won't start again and they seem to have no idea what's wrong.

This is unreal! I want a refund!!!

[txgcoupe]

I don't think putting the remote in the slot would enable the car to start if the battery is dead. It is not a charging slot. Just a place to store it.

Sounds like something is slowly draining the battery.

John

[orangie]

Thanks!

Oh, I should have been more clear. I meant when the battery in the remote is dead (even though its not because if it was it wouldn't be able to open the doors, etc.) that putting it in the slot will start the car.

Service hasn't made any mention of the car battery. It is a two month old car, after all! However, you got me thinking...any chance keeping my ipod plugged into the USB all the time could be contributing to this problem? That shouldn't happen, otherwise what's the point of having a USB if you have to unplug it every time you get out of the car, but this is the first year for the fully integrated USB in the EX so I'm wondering if there's a glitch.

[bjanowsky]

I have not had this issue with my '10 EX. However, I did experience a similar problem years ago with a Cadillac Catera (p.o.s.). Cadillac was sure that there was a "parasitic" drain on the battery, causing the battery to constantly drain. I remember going to the dealership to pick up my car on three separate occassions, after a phone call the the car was fixed, only to get in the car, at the dealership, and the car would not start. Eventually Cadillac replaced almost all electronics in the car in an attempt to find this "parasitic" drain. Because of their inability to fix the car, GM started making my finance payments while they attempted a fix.

The end of this long story is that finally someone with a brain started actually testing the batteries they were putting in the car each time they fixed it. It turned out that an entire batch of batteries they were obtaining were actually bad batteries, which is why they were dieing within a day or two of install.

Moral of Story: Tell Infiniti, before they tear your car apart to find a "parasitic" drain and replace every wire, to make sure they are using good batteries. Sounds simple, but apparently not always.

[ex35zigen]

I have a similar problem but my car is able to go into accessory (electronics)but not start the car. I tried a few times to no avail the cars was not starting, when I did get it to start all the error lights were on VSD, 4WD, etc. So I shut it off to try again, and realized it doesn't have the press brake indicator to turn car on lit up. So I went out arm the car, step back and walk towards the car again, get in and it took awhile for the car to register my key for the press brake indicator to come on for the car. I didn't get a chance to change the remote battery or use my spare, but my conclusion is either remote are draining battery quick or there is a faulty reception for the remote? I hardly drive the car and haven't got a chance to see if I'm having the same problem again.

Sorry for the long post.

Thanks!

Oh, I should have been more clear. I meant when the battery in the remote is dead (even though its not because if it was it wouldn't be able to open the doors, etc.) that putting it in the slot will start the car.

Service hasn't made any mention of the car battery. It is a two month old car, after all! However, you got me thinking...any chance keeping my ipod plugged into the USB all the time could be contributing to this problem? That shouldn't happen, otherwise what's the point of having a USB if you have to unplug it every time you get out of the car, but this is the first year for the fully integrated USB in the EX so I'm wondering if there's a glitch.

[orangie]

The latest update I have from the dealer is that they are going to replace the remote starter switch. I think that's what he called it. Basically, it means the car is not recognizing my keys as being the right key.

Here I thought it would be so cool to have the push button start. Sometimes simple really is better.

They're getting the part in on Monday, so I will report back with the solution. At least I hope I have a solution. The lemon law here in MN only covers cars for 30 days, so I doubt they would take the car back.

ex35zigen: my press brake indicator light was coming on. At least some of the time.

[txgcoupe]

There's a lot more to a "lemon law" than taking it to the dealer once or twice for a warranty issue.

John

[ex35zigen]

After work I just went home to start the car. It doesn't start no matter what I do, new battery, used spare key, it's not the car battery because it doesn't crank at all, just to on position and all the electronics are on. So I think I have a similar problem as you. Crap!!! Car just doesn't crank at all.

[txgcoupe]

Yowza!

Maybe Nissan will start the recalls.

John

[ex35zigen]

Dropped off my car at dealer yesterday. Of course car decided to start but with all the lights lit up, VDC, 4WD, AFS Off, Key, Etc. So left at that for dealer to see. Svc mgr shuts off car turns it on right away, no problems Technician does the same, huh? So svc mgr says to leave car until tues. to do a diagnostic check. Oh well have to wait. I'll keep everyone posted.

[To Infiniti and Beyond]

My 2008 has had starting issues...I began to think it was just me after driving an Xterra for years that had major electrical issues that Nissan couldn't seem to fix and blamed on the remote starter THEY had installed.

At times I will push down on the brake and push the starter button and while the seat etc. will pul into position, the car will not start.

My 2008 was less than a year old when I bought it from the dealer in December - so it has very little mileage and I figured those old electrical issues were now a thing of the past.

BTW - My MGB has had major electrical (it's British!) issues. New batteries were dead overnight, not holding charges, and car would die while parked at Home Depot! I insisted my mechanic look for a passive drain somewhere - so he rewired horn, lights etc etc. Finally his assistant figured out where the drain was by accident (the battery connection!) Been great ever since.

Am interested to see what others have to say about their starting issues.

[orangie]

Just wanted to update you on the latest with my EX. I got a call from service saying they replaced the part. Something to do with the PCM controller.

As I mentioned last week, they still think the problem was the car was not recognizing my keys as being the right keys. This is consistent with the code they found when they hooked it up to the computer.

The first two times the car was in, there was no code generated. So I guess this is a good thing?

I will keep you posted on how the car performs over the next couple of weeks. I remain dubious about their explanation for one key reason: if the car didn't recognize the keys as belonging to the car, why did I never have trouble unlocking the doors?

[orangie]

Here's the latest! It was actually the BCM (body control module) that they thought was the problem. Picked the car up yesterday and the service mgr told me they were "pretty sure" it was the BCM, but if not it was the ECM (engine control module).

That "pretty sure" felt like an omen and lo and behold, my car wouldn't start this afternoon! I kept at it and finally it started. I drove it straight to the dealership, where it sits again tonight.

[Seineseeker]

Just reassure yourself Orangie that your tale of woe will eventually provide help to anyone else who suffers the same problem!

Hopefully they will fix it soon, at what point can you use lemon law to ask for a replacement car!?

[orangie]

Hi - Just wanted to give everyone an update of what I *hope* is the final solution to my EX not starting.

After replacing BCM and ECM, car would still not start. They finally discovered corrosion on the wiring harness connectors. I guess the 2010 connectors do not have covers on them. When service ordered replacements, they had covers and that's basically how they discovered what they believe was the problem. Two wiring harnesses were replaced.

I've had the car back for just under a week with no problems. My assumption is this will happen to someone else, as it sounds endemic to the wiring harnesses on the 2010s.

Have the service department contact Infiniti right away rather than messing around aimlessly on their own!

[lowbeez]

Great to hear your car is finally acting normal.....can you be a little more specific about which wiring harnesses are suspected to have caused the issue.....part number would be nice....so if anyone of us encounter the same problem, we can just tell the dealer to replace these parts....thanks..

.

[jjd]

We have a2010 EX35 which we bought new in February 2010.

Last week it let us down for the first time. It wouldn't start!!

We scoured the manual looking for something WE were doing wrong. Weverified several times over our starting procedure. There was no indication of low battery level in the key fob. The key unlocked the door normally.

With the in the key in the key port, foot on break The START button advances to the ACC position, but it doesn't crank. The car started normally later in the day! This happened 4 times within a week.

Local dealer replaced the key fob battery and said that the car won't start if the key fob battery is dead - even if the fob is in the key port! I am dubious. I have yet to discover exactly what technology the fob is using, but I'm guessing it's RFID. RFID circuits require no power. they can extract a tiny amount of power from a small internal antenna by induction. This power is enough to extract the digital data stream.

Infiniti, can you enlighten us? What is the technology? Will the car start without a key fob battery?

Of course, the car started fine 15x when we brought it to the dealer. We will have it towed straight to the dealer next occurrence.

[orangie]

Sounds exactly like my problem. Have them check the wiring harnesses. Most likely some are corroded due to no covers on connectors on 2010. When they order replacements, they'll come with covers.

My EX has been perfect since wiring harnesses were replaced (after weeks of them trying to figure out what to do). Good luck.

[jjd]

Orangie,

Thank you for your reply.

There's a zillion wires in this thing. Do you have any specific part numbers for wire harness or covers that your dealer changed?

[RedwinGV]

Do

Sounds exactly like my problem. Have them check the wiring harnesses. Most likely some are corroded due to no covers on connectors on 2010. When they order replacements, they'll come with covers.

My EX has been perfect since wiring harnesses were replaced (after weeks of them trying to figure out what to do). Good luck.

So, do you know which harness? I wonder if this will be an issue for all '10s. You mention cover- what cover and how would that stop corrosion. I'm not doubting your fix at all. I just want to understand so if the happens to me, I can mention it off the bat. Of course mine is just now being built.

[txgcoupe]

Our key fobs conform to FCC Part 15 Security/Remote Control Transmitter operating in the 315.0 MHz range.FCC Rule Parts 15.231

Manufactured in Germany by Continental Automotive GmbH.

Generally this type of transmitter will always be on at very, very lower power.

John

[jamesstock]

Hi Orangie,

Could you kindly show us what wiring harness the dealer replaced? Maybe it's written on the service receipt / log and possibly a part # also. I like to pin point what harness the dealer replaced that came w/ no 'cover'. Thx

[orangie]

Here's the info from the service receipt:

Water intrusion issue at connectors F1 and E3. Found water at harnesses connector S. Disconnected harnesses and found corrosion inside. One pin rusted off from E3 into F1. Contacted techline with findings was advised to replace both EGI and Engine Room harnesses. Removed and replaced both harnesses. New EGI harness came with protective boot that has been deleted for 2010 and caused issue.

PartsHarness assy - engine - 24012 - 1BL5BHarness assy - EGI - 24011 - 1BT0B

"Boot" above is the "cover" to which I referred. It appears to me that the water intrusion/corrosion could happen at any harness of the locations that lack the "protective boot."

Note from my multiple posts above that they had my car in the shop on three separate occasions for multiple days prior to discovering the corrosion.

I hope this helps.

[RedwinGV]

Excellent. Thanks for the info. I wonder how many vehicles see this? And if not all or many, why not?

Here's the info from the service receipt:

Water intrusion issue at connectors F1 and E3. Found water at harnesses connector S. Disconnected harnesses and found corrosion inside. One pin rusted off from E3 into F1. Contacted techline with findings was advised to replace both EGI and Engine Room harnesses. Removed and replaced both harnesses. New EGI harness came with protective boot that has been deleted for 2010 and caused issue.

PartsHarness assy - engine - 24012 - 1BL5BHarness assy - EGI - 24011 - 1BT0B

"Boot" above is the "cover" to which I referred. It appears to me that the water intrusion/corrosion could happen at any harness of the locations that lack the "protective boot."

Note from my multiple posts above that they had my car in the shop on three separate occasions for multiple days prior to discovering the corrosion.

I hope this helps.

[EarringGirl]

Thank you so much for posting this. I'm sorry you had to take the hit for the team, but know that you have probably saved someone a ton of time and aggravation. I printed this out and put it in my glove box. Many, many thanks!

[jjd]

Our key fobs conform to FCC Part 15 Security/Remote Control Transmitter operating in the 315.0 MHz range.FCC Rule Parts 15.231

Manufactured in Germany by Continental Automotive GmbH.

Generally this type of transmitter will always be on at very, very lower power.

John

Thank you John.FCC Rule 15.231(e) authorizes many types of periodic emitters. Typical examples include remote-reading thermometers and other devices. The rules, as defined in 15.35, allow the manufacturer to determine the average power in a 100 millisecond time period. The device further may not transmit for more 3.33% of the time, with a minimum "silent" period of 10 seconds between transmissions.

My main interest in this topic was finding out how the technology works when the battery in the fob is dead. I believe these fobs use one or more types of RFID

If I may quote wakopedia:

Radio-frequency identification (RFID) is the use of an object (typically referred to as an RFID tag) applied to or incorporated into a product, animal, or person for the purpose of identification and tracking using radio waves. Some tags can be read from several meters away and beyond the line of sight of the reader.

Radio-frequency identification comprises interrogators (also known as readers), and tags (also known as labels).

Most RFID tags contain at least two parts. One is an integrated circuit for storing and processing information, modulating and demodulating a radio-frequency (RF) signal, and other specialized functions. The second is an antenna for receiving and transmitting the signal.

There are generally three types of RFID tags: active RFID tags, which contain a battery and can transmit signals autonomously, passive RFID tags, which have no battery and require an external source to provoke signal transmission, and battery assisted passive (BAP) RFID tags, which require an external source to wake up but have significant higher forward link capability providing greater range.

So... is the fob in passive RFID mode when the battery is dead and the fob is in the key port?

[peterwarner]

Mine wont start either, I bought a new 2010 EX35 8 weeks ago and have called a tow truck 4 times so far. It seems that any minor load on the battery while the engine is off drains it. If you leave the lights or radio on for half an hour , dead battery. I even left a cell phone charger plugged into the cig lighter, with no cell phone attached, and 45 minutes later I returned to a dead battery. A boost starts it up. The dealer thinks there may be a parasitic drain, but cannot find it. Could the corroded wiring harness problem cause this? would boosting the battery then restart the motor??
Anyone else having this problem? takes all the joy out of owning an EX35

[ArcticBlue]

Your parasitic drain may well be easily identified by using an ammeter to measure current drain at the battery; then pull one fuse at a time until you discover the culprit. A bit of a bother, but worth the effort if it works

[lisafairfax]

I've had this happen twice on my 2010. After the first time, I brought it to the dealer and the car battery tested fine. About 3 weeks later, it happened again. Battery dead as a doornail. On the second service visit, they finally offered to replace the car battery after I refused to leave the car overnight, drive back to the dealership the next day, blah blah. The other weird thing was the low tire pressure display was on, and all four tires were low, even though I'd been in for service the month prior. I finally asked the service advisor if he was embarrassed this was happening to a new Infiniti with 4,000 miles on it, whether that considered acceptable, and that's when they replaced the battery.

So far so good on the replacement battery.

Unfortunately not all the electronics turn off when you shut down the car, so just be sure the display reads "LOCK" which means everything is off.

[dabbler621]

I see how long it's been since the last entry. I recently had the same problem. The problem you described was eventually made a recall which I had taken care of a month ago. As it turns out the dealership didn't do a good job and the wiring has to be redone. I brought this string with me and it was a great help. This dealer started going through the battery issues and I stopped him and started giving the part numbers... Saved a lot of time and money. Looking forward to peace of mind again. Thank you all!!!!