NHTSA Complaint #10249198 — 2001 NISSAN MAXIMA

IN FEB. 2008, MY MAXIMA 2001, WITH 55000 MILES, STALLED OUT AT A STOP LIGHT--IT WOULD START UP AGAIN BUT THEN STALLED OUT WHEN I TRIED TO GO. IT WAS TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP, AND THE IAC VALVE AND THE ECM WERE BOTH REPLACED FOR ABOUT $1700. THEN, ON OCT. 20, 2008, 8 MONTHS LATER WITH THE MILEAGE JUST UNDER 60,000 MILES, THE SAME THING HAPPENED BUT IT WAS PRECEDED BY A SMELL OF BURNING RUBBER. IT WAS TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP AND I WAS TOLD THAT THE ENGINE HARNESS NEEDED TO BE REPLACED ($2000 PARTS AND LABOR) AND THE IAC VALVE AND THE ECM AGAIN NEEDED TO REPLACED (ANOTHER $1700). AT FIRST, THE DEALER SAID THAT THE IAC VALVE AND ECM WERE COVERED UNDER THE NEW PARTS WARRANTY, BUT THEN I WAS TOLD THAT IF IT WAS THE ENGINE HARNESS THAT WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE FAILURE OF THE IAC VALVE AND THE ECM, THEY WERE NOT UNDER WARRANTY AND I'D HAVE TO PAY THE TOTAL BILL OF $3700! I STARTED A CASE FILE WITH NISSAN CONSUMER AFFAIRS AND WAS TOLD BY A REGIONAL SPECIALIST THAT NISSAN COULD DO NOTHING FOR ME SINCE THE PARTS WERE NOT UNDER WARRANTY. FROM THE INTERNET (AND NOT FROM THE DEALERSHIP), I LEARNED THAT THE ECM IS COVERED UNDER THE EPA SPECIFIED MAJOR EMISSION CONTROL COMPONENTS WARRANTY FOR 8 YEARS/80,000 MILES BUT NISSAN HAS DECLINED MY CLAIM, SAYING THAT THE IAC VALVE CAUSED THE FAILURE OF THE ECM THAT FIRST TIME IN FEB. 2008, SO THE ECM IS NOT COVERED BY THAT WARRANTY. THERE IS NO LANGUAGE IN THE EPA WARRANTY THAT STATES THAT AS AN EXCLUSION AND THERE IS NO LANGUAGE IN NISSAN'S OWN NEW PARTS WARRANTY THAT STATES THAT AS AN EXCLUSION (I.E., A NEW PART IS NOT COVERED BY THE WARRANTY IF ITS FAILURE IS CAUSED BY ANOTHER NON-WARRANTED PART). I HAVE READ ONLINE MANY, MANY SIMILAR COMPLAINTS ABOUT THE FAILURE OF THESE PARTS. THIS SEEMS TO BE A VERY DANGEROUS DESIGN DEFECT WITH THE POTENTIAL TO CAUSE SERIOUS HARM. BOTH TIMES I NARROWLY AVOIDED ACCIDENTS. NISSAN HASN'T BEEN WILLING TO HONOR THE WARRANTIES. I HAVE YET TO AUTHORIZE THE REPAIRS AND I AM NOT SURE WHAT TO DO NEXT. *TR