NHTSA Complaint #10118323 — 2004 NISSAN QUEST

RE: MY 2004 NISSAN QUEST-HAVE HAD SAME PROBLEM RECUR FOR ALMOST 1 YR & DEALER HAS NOT FIXED IT IN 5 TRIES. ON 7/21/04, BROUGHT MY VAN IN FOR SERVICE 'CAUSE AN ALARM BEEPER WOULD GO OFF RANDOMLY WHEN DRIVING-COMES FROM REAR POWER LIFTGATE. BESIDES THE CONSTANT BEEPING, AT TIMES THE LIFTGATE WILL NOT OPEN, ALSO WHEN OPEN THE LIFTGATE WILL NOT CLOSE USING THE POWER BUTTONS-THEN LIFTGATE NEEDS TO BE SHUT MANUALLY. AT MY 7/21/04 SERVICE APPT, THE DEALER ORDERED A PART THAT WOULD BE INSTALLED LATER TO FIX BEEPING. PICKED THE VAN UP ABOUT 4:30 PM, GOT GROCERIES, PICKED UP DAUGHTER & DROVE HOME. ON THE WAY THE VAN WAS BEEPING ALL THE WAY WHEN SUDDENLY A FLASHING WARNING LIGHT CAME ON THAT SAID "WARNING LIFT GATE OPEN". I PANICKED THINKING MY LIFT GATE WAS ABOUT TO FLY OPEN. I PULLED OVER CONFUSED BECAUSE LIFTGATE WAS NOT OPEN. I PUSHED INTERIOR CONTROL FOR LIFT GATE BUT LIFTGATE DID NOT OPEN. THINKING I WAS TEMP. OK, I SLOWLY DROVE HOME W/ FLASHING WARNING SIGNAL ON WHOLE TIME. WHEN I GOT HOME-TRIED TO OPEN LIFTGATE. IT WOULDN'T BUDGE-NOT W/ POWER CONTROLS INSIDE VAN NOR KEY FOB. IT WOULDN'T OPEN MANUALLY EITHER. AT THAT POINT, I WAS AFRAID TO DRIVE VAN ANY FURTHER. WAS WELL AFTER 5 PM & THE SERVICE DEPT WOULD BE CLOSED BUT I CALLED THEM ANYWAY. I TALKED TO JOHN NELSON, SALES MGR & EXPLAINED WHAT HAPPENED. TOLD HIM I WAS AFRAID TO DRIVE VAN BECAUSE OF WARNING LIGHT BUT CAN'T SEEM TO OPEN/CLOSE DOOR EITHER. HE ASSURED ME THAT VAN HAS "SAFETY MECHANISMS" THAT WOULD PREVENT DOOR FROM FLYING OPEN WHILE DRIVING. I TOLD HIM THAT IT WAS HARD TO BELIEVE VAN WAS SAFE WHEN IT SEEMED WARNING LIGHTS WERE MALFUNCTIONING. SINCE 7/21/04 THE WARNING LIGHT HAS NOT COME ON AGAIN. BUT THE PROBLEM THAT PRECEDED THE WARNING LIGHT-THE CONSTANT BEEPING-STILL HAPPENS ALL THE TIME, BUT ONLY WHEN IT'S WARM. SINCE I LIVE IN WI NOV 04-MAR 05 WAS PROBLEM FREE. DON'T KNOW IF DOOR WILL REALLY FLY OPEN, BUT I KNOW QUEST ALREADY HAD RECALL FOR SIMILAR PROBLEM-SLIDING DOORS NOT LATCHING IN SUB-40 WEATHER. *JB