NHTSA Complaint #10837486 — 2010 NISSAN XTERRA

MY ECU ON MY NISSAN XTERRA WAS SUPPOSEDLY SHORTED DUE TO A LOOSE OR DAMAGED CABLE. WITH MY INITIAL INSPECTION OF THE VEHICLE, THE CABLE WAS NOT LOOSE, YET I STILL HAD PROBLEMS. THE ISSUE HAPPENED WHEN I HAD PARKED MY VEHICLE TO RUN AN ERRAND. WHEN I RETURNED, I STARTED UP MY VEHICLE AND ATTEMPTED TO DRIVE. THERE WAS NO POWER AND THE ENGINE WOULD NOT ACCELERATE OVER 5 MPH. NOT WANTING THE VEHICLE TO BREAKDOWN ON A BUSY ROAD, I BACKED UP AND PARKED THE VEHICLE. I ATTEMPTED TO RESTART THE VEHICLE, BUT THIS TIME THE STARTER WOULD CRANK, BUT WOULD NOT TURN OVER. AFTER ATTEMPTING TO START IT A FEW TIMES, I DISCONNECTED THE BATTERIES AND RECONNECTED THE BATTERIES. STILL, THE VEHICLE WOULD CRANK AND NOT TURN OVER. I CALLED A TOW TRUCK, AND THEY BROUGHT THE VEHICLE TO FIRESTONE. FIRESTONE TOLD ME THAT THE BATTERY CABLES HAD SHORTED AND DESTROYED TEH ECU/ECM. I WAS QUOTED 1500 FOR A PIECE OF EQUIPMENT THAT SHOULD LAST THE LIFE OF THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE IS ONLY 5 YEARS OLD. THIS SOUNDED LIKE A VERY INTENSIVE PROCESS, SO I HAD THE VEHICLE TOWED TO NISSAN. AGAIN, THEY SAID IT WAS THE ECU/ECM. NISSAN TOLD ME THAT THE CABLES, THE BATTERY AND THE ECU NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. NISSAN HAS HAD PAST ISSUES WITH 2010 VEHICLES SHORTING OUT AND DESTROYING THE ECU'S. I BELIEVE THAT IT IS NISSAN'S FAULTY ELECTRICAL SYSTEMS OR POORLY CONSTRUCTED ECU'S THAT IS CAUSING THE DAMAGE. FOR SUCH AN EXPENSIVE PIECE OF EQUIPMENT TO BE RENDERED USELESS BY HAVING AN IMPORPER BATTERY CONNECTION SEEMS PROBLEMATIC AND POTENTIALLY UNSAFE. IT IS PROBLEMATIC, DUE TO TEH HISTORY OF NISSAN'S CABLES BECOMING CORRODED DUE TO THEIR BATTERY POSITION. LIKEWISE, THERE HAVE BEEN MANY CONSUMER COMPLAINTS THAT THE BATTERY TERMINALS ARE POORLY MADE, RESULTING IN VEHICLE FAILURE. THIS CAN BE DANGEROUS, FOR IF THE BATTERY TERMINALS FAIL, IT CAN CAUSE THE VEHICLE TO STOP FUNCTIONING, EVEN WHEN IT HAS BEEN STARTED.