FGY33 Shift Lock Control Malfunctioning Again!!!

[tfvesquire]

I don't know WTF is up with my car in the last month. I have had to repair a sh*t load of little annoying things and today the shift lock control is making me want to drive this car into a tree. I posted this problem about a year ago and even when I first picked up the car 2 years ago this coming January. For some unknown reason, every time I press the brake with the car in gear, the damn shift control switch activates and thinks the car is being shifted from Park to another gear. As a result, I get this constant clicking from the shift control module under the dash (which I replaced in 1/09) and a click from the shift control switch in the shifter assembly. One click here and there I could live with, but my clicking sounds like a machine gun: click, click-click, click. It has gotten to be more often to the point that this morning, it would not stop. I broke down and took it to the dealer to have one of their $125 electric diagnostic specials to hopefully tell me what is going on. Unfortunately, the dealer I took it to did not know WTF to check and instead gave me a list of things they would recommend replacing, including the entire shifter assembly at the tune of $700 and the shift control module I already replaced. So here I am with a car that I can't stand to drive and no one seems to know how to fix it. I contacted another Infiniti dealer about 20 miles away and they can do the correct diagnostic as referenced in the FSM, but the earliest they can get me in is in 2 wks because of the holidays.

Once again, I am begging the fellow members to help me figure out WTF is malfunctioning on my car. To date, I replaced the entire shifter assembly from a parts car with less miles than mine, I replaced the brake switch, I replaced the shift control module, I traced the wiring harness to check for shorts/loose ground. There are no relays to my knowledge that would be going bad. The only thing I can think to do besides waiting for the correct dealer diagnostic to happen is to replace the shift control solenoid again since a few techs thought it could have gone bad (only $40.00) or replacing the shifter assembly with another parts car I found online for $70.00, or, buying a complete steering column to replace the key cylinder and related shift control switches as shown in the FSM at a tune of $100, but then I won't have matching lock cylinders. ARGH!!!! . I am literally ready to scream. They tried to charge me the $125 for the "diagnosis" that they didn't even do and I about jumped down the service manager's throat right there in the showroom. I cannot imagine I am the only person to have experienced this and I also cannot believe Infiniti has made such a POS shifter assembly that I would have to replace my entire shifter assembly. One tech told me there is a tension spring inside the shifter that can get loose and will allow the shifter to move out of place just enough that the shift lock switch can't tell it's not in park. Huh?

Am I to believe, the 98 Q45 is so far advanced that it a simple movement in the shifter handle can tell throw some sort of error code and malfunction a shift lock release?? Ridiculous. I just want my beautiful car to function properly. Is that too much to ask for?? I am just frustrated with this issue that has haunted me since I purchased the car. It went away and I thought I had solved it, but now it's like a bad relative who just won't leave. Anyone know if I should start looking for another TCM? Is this part somehow related to my problem? I friggin HATE electrical sh*t.

Ted

[tfvesquire]

Okay, I've had a chance to calm down from my caffeine induced rage from all the coffee I drank at the dealership. I did some closer investigation using the FSM and some online google searches and decided to scrap the things I tried and start over. I assume the parts I replaced are still working properly (shift control module, brake switch and shifter assembly) so that leaves the ignition lock cylinder assembly. I disconnected the battery and pulled the lower cover in the dash to access the wiring and started unplugging things and cleaning them with contact cleaner before plugged them back in. Nothing looked out of the ordinary and no exposed wiring from rubbing or other damage. Checked the wiring harnesses when the tilt wheel was extended and contracted to each stop position.

Then, I decided to reclean the lock cylinder again using PB Blaster instead of the mineral oil I just tried yesterday morning before I took it to the dealer. I read that even though the car can be started with the key, many times, trash gets inside the cylinder from normal use and can jamb up the internal guts, which in turn control some of the ignition sensors/switches. I didn't go so far as to remove the entire ignition lock cylinder assembly, but I thoroughly soaked the inside of the cylinder and used the key to work the solution into the tumblers and hopefully unfree whatever might be getting stuck in position. I hope that I don't end up needing a new ignition lock cylinder because I don't want to spend the money for that and the price for new keys to be reprogrammed and the fact that I would end up with a different key for the ignition and doors/trunk/glovebox. I drove the car this morning and it did give a click here and there so I will give it another flushing out and maybe I will have gotten lucky on this repair. Don't want to try compressed air for fear of lodging whatever might be inside there causing the shorting out to happen again. Is there a way the dealer can test the ignition cylinder assembly or should I remove it, clean everything out and reassemble before trying the other dealer?

I discovered I can move the ignition key slightly in and out and side to side, but nothing that I would consider to be excessive. The car does not shut off and there are no dash lights that flicker on when I do this so that's a good sign. But, nevertheless, the lock cylinder might be worn just enough that it is causing my problem. I do know that when I drove to the train this morning, it was at least as cold as yesterday morning when my car acted like it was possessed. I think that when I added the mineral oil in the cylinder, it was either too cold or there was trash that got stuck in there which caused the constant activation of the shift control module and shift lock solenoid, sounding like a machine gun at a stop light. This monring, I only got a quick click sound here and there, but nothing like the "click, clik-click-click" sounds I got yesterday.

I will do some more research on removing and cleaning the lock cylinder and whether I can purchase a new ignition cylinder, key lock switch and/or key lock solenoid and still reuse my existing keys or whether I have to live with different keys for the ignition that functions properly. If anyone knows whether the lock cylinder can be replaced (and at what cost) and rekeyed to allow the use of your old keys, let me know. I will also post what I find out. Keeping my fingers crossed on another couple of cleanings doing the trick and saving me lots of aggravation and $$$.

Take care,

Ted

[tfvesquire]

** Update **

So, recleaned the lock cylinder with PB Blaster (I highly recommend this to all Q owners who are having issues with sitcky keys or even ignition electrical issus) and so far, knock on wood, I haven't had a single reoccurrence of Tuesday's nightmare. All seems to be quiet except for my lifter tick once in awhile during my Auto-Rx cleaning phase (see my other recent post). I hopefully dodged another expense repair bullet and was able to fix a problem that has been a thorn in my side since I bought the car. I will say that in the future, I will be running away from cars that have had a dirty prior owner and not make the mistake of thinking "it's not too bad; I can fix that/clean." I love this car, but I never thought I would have to do so much to get it up to par and not only looking the way it should, but more importantly, running and functioning like it should.

Despite whatever the Carfax or Auto History reports tell you, they will not give you much insight into how well or how poorly the PO treated your used Q. I thought that because I had a lot of maintenance records and that there were no major warnings on those so called car history reports, so I relied on them and assumed certain repair items were done and certain services were actually performed. From my discoveries since the day I purchased this car until now, I have come to the realization that you have to literally throw all thise assumptions out the window and just do everything from scratch as if no service was ever done and assume that the car was previously in an accident even though it doesn't show up in the history. I have spent a lot of time and effort trying to undo the damage the PO allowed to happen to this car. I have been lucky so far that I have not had to expend a huge amount of $$ to get these repairs performed. Just a lot of headaches and frustration along the way. It does amaze me that even though I was willing to pay the dealer whatever they were asking to diagnose my problem, they went the a**hole route of just taking my money and then giving me a list of things they "recommended" replacing. I could have done that by myself and did take the initiative to replace several items before bringing the car to them. I will never, never bring my car or any car to Infiniti of Lisle or recommend anyone to buy a car from them. They are terrible and not worth a consumer's time and $$.

When a mechanical problem arises, it is fairly easy to deal with. Either you fix it right or you put some bandaids on it until you get enough $$ to fix it right or sell it if the cost to repair it exceeds all the other issues related to keeping the car (body work needed, suspension repairs, etc). However, when an electrical problem comes and goes, it is a friggin pain in the butt to diagnose and very frustrating since you hardly ever know when it is going to spring up. I hope I solved this issus and that my post can save some member out there a lot of hair loss and high blood pressure. Thanks to everyone who sent me suggestions and emails. It helped me get through this and continue on.

Still love the Q.

Ted