NHTSA Complaint #10136002 — 2002 NISSAN SENTRA

I HIT A CURB AND MY WHEEL BROKE OFF LEAVING JUST THE CENTER BOLTED TO THE CAR. THE TIRE WAS NOT DAMAGED. AT THAT POINT THE VEHICLE WAS PRETTY MUCH UNCONTROLLABLE AND THE TIRE AND REMAINDER OF THE WHEEL CONTINUED INTO TRAFFIC. THE TIRE SHOP INDICATED THEY HAD NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE THIS. THE CAR APPEARS TO HAVE SUSTAINED ONLY POSSIBLY SOME ALIGNMENT ISSUES. THIS AND THE LACK OF DAMAGE TO THE TIRE SEEMS TO INDICATE THAT THE IMPACT WAS NOT THAT SEVERE, YET THERE WAS THE COMPLETE FAILURE OF THE WHEEL. I HAVE A PHOTO OF THE NOW TWO PIECES OF THE WHEEL. THE CAR IS NOT JUST AN SER MODEL SENTRA BUT A SER SPEC V WHICH INCLUDES 17" WHEELS INSTEAD OF THE 16S ON THE SER. I HAVE NOT SUBMITTED ANYTHING TO NISSAN AS I PREVIOUSLY HAD NOTIFIED THEM OF SOME FREQUENTLY-WARPING BRAKE ROTORS AND THEY DISCOUNTED MY CLAIMS INDICATING I WAS DRIVING TO AGGRESSIVELY. HOWEVER, THE BRAKE SYSTEM WAS MODIFIED IN SUBSEQUENT MODELS SINCE THE 2002 INTRODUCTION OF MY CAR. *JB