NHTSA Complaint #10172366 — 2006 NISSAN SENTRA

MY SON PURCHASED A 2006 NISSAN SENTRA ON 10/13/06. THE CAR ONLY HAD 20 MILES ON IT. IT RAN GOOD FOR A WEEK THEN HE STARTED HAVING PROBLEMS WITH IT NOT STARTING. HE HAD TO GET IT JUMPED OFF. THAT WAS FRIDAY 10/20/06; HE DIDN'T HAVE ANY PROBLEMS ON SAT. SUNDAY WAS A DIFFERENT STORY, HE AND HIS FIANCE HAD A GET IT JUMPED OFF THREE TIMES. WHEN YOU WOULD STOP AT STOP SIGN OR LIGHT IT WOULD BARELY TAKE OFF. SHE WENT BY THE DEALERSHIP TO HAVE THEM LOOK AT IT.THEY TOLD HER IT WAS PROBABLY THE BATTERY TO BRING IT BACK ON MONDAY 10/23/06; SHE SAID IT WOULD HAVE TO BE BETWEEN HIS TWO JOBS. HE WOULD COME BY AROUND 4:15 PM, THEY SAID THAT WAS FINE. HE TOOK THE CAR BACK TO THE DEALERSHIP ON TUES. 10/24/06, THEY RAN A COMPUTER SCAN ON THE CAR AND SAID IT WAS FINE THAT NO CODES SHOWED UP. HE TOLD THEM THAT SOMETHING WAS WRONG WITH THE CAR AND THAT HE WANTED TO GET WHATEVER IS WRONG FIXED. THEY TOLD HIM TO BRING IT AND LEAVE IT, HE EXPLAINED TO THEM THAT HE COULDN'T LEAVE THE CAR DUE TO THE FACT HE WORKS FROM 7AM-4PM AND 4:30PM-11PM. HE ASKED ABOUT GETTING A RENTAL OR A LOANER, THEY SAID HE COULDN'T GET ONE BECAUSE HIS AGE AND BECAUSE NO CODES HAD SHOWED UP. HE WENT TO PICK UP HIS FIANCE, WHILE THEY WERE IN THE CAR WAITING FOR HER THEY STARTED TO SMELL SOMETHING BURNING AND THEN THEY SAW SMOKE. THEY GOT OUT AND OPENED THE HOOD, THE ALTERNATOR WIRES WERE ON FIRE. HE PUT IT OUT. THE DEALERSHIP THE NEXT MORNING PICKED IT UP AFTER I WENT THERE TO TELL THEM ABOUT IT. I HAD ALREADY REPORTED THIS TO NISSAN MOTOR NORTH AMERICA. WE WERE TOLD THAT WHEN THE CAR WAS SEND BACK FOR THE RECALL ON THE MOTOR THAT THEY FORGOT TO TIGHTEN THE NUT UP ON THE ALTERNATOR AND THAT WAS WHAT STARTED THE FIRE WAS AN ARC. THEY ASSIGNED IT TO A CONSUMER AFFAIRS PERSON. WE HAD TO TAKE IT BECAUSE HE HAD NO OTHER WAY TO WORK. WE DIDN'T LOOK AT IT UNTIL LATER THAT NIGHT IT WAS FOUND THAT ALL THE DEALERSHIP HAD DONE WAS TAPED ALL THE NAKED WIRES THAT HAD MELTED, AND LEFT THE SINGED ONES ON THERE. T *NM