NHTSA Complaint #10137665 — 2004 NISSAN CREW

I WAS DRIVING MY 2004 NISSAN MURANO AND WAS STOPPED AT A STOP LIGHT WHEN THE CAR JUST STOPPED RUNNING AND WOULD NOT START. THANKFULLY I WAS AT AN INTERSECTION WHERE THERE WAS A GARAGE WITH A TOW TRUCK. I CALLED THE DEALER WHERE I PURCHASED MY CAR AND HE TOLD ME TO GET THE CAR JUMPED AND DRIVE IT TO THE DEALERSHIP. THE TOW TRUCK DRIVER WAS A MECHANIC AND HE TOLD ME IT WAS THE ALTERNATOR. THE DEALER IMPLIED THE MECHANIC DIDN'T KNOW WHAT HE WAS TALKING ABOUT BUT TOLD ME TO HAVE THE CAR TOWED THERE AND THEY WOULD LOOK AT IT ON MONDAY WHEN THERE WAS SOMEONE IN SERVICE. AT THAT TIME HE ASKED ME IF I HAD RECEIVED A LETTER ABOUT A RECALL. I TOLD HIM I HAD NOT. WE TOWED MY CAR TO THE DEALER. I FOUND OUT THIS MORNING IT WAS MY ALTERNATOR. I WENT ON TO THE NISSAN WEB SITE AND FOUND OUT THERE IS IN FACT A RECALL ON MY CAR RELATED TO THE ALTERNATOR WHICH STATED "THE ENGINE WILL GO INTO A FAIL SAFE CONDITION WHICH WILL LIMIT SPEED. VERY SHORTLY AFTER THIS, THE ENGINE WILL STOP RUNNING. THIS COULD RESULT IN A CRASH." I NEVER RECEIVED A LETTER AND HAD NO IDEA THERE WAS A RECALL ON MY VEHICLE. I HAD JUST COME OFF A MAJOR EXPRESSWAY OUTSIDE CHICAGO, NOT 5 MINUTES EARLIER, AND HAD BEEN DRIVING AT HIGH SPEED WITH MY SON IN THE CAR. IMAGINE HOW I FELT IMAGINE WHAT KNOWING NISSAN KNEW ABOUT THIS PROBLEM AND HAD NOT CONTACTED ME. WHAT IF THIS HAD HAPPENED 5 MINUTES EARLIER. MY SON AND I WOULD BE DEAD! I CALLED NISSAN AND ASKED WHY I HADN'T RECEIVED A LETTER AND I WAS TOLD ALL OF THE LETTERS HADN'T GONE OUT YET. I FIND THIS APPALLING. HOW MANY OTHER PEOPLE ARE AT RISK HERE. DOES ANY ONE MONITOR THAT PEOPLE ARE INFORMED OF A RECALL? *NM