NHTSA Complaint #10938552 — 2009 NISSAN ALTIMA HYBRID

MY DAUGHTER STOPPED AT A LOCAL COFFEE SHOP BEFORE GOING TO WORK ONE MORNING. WHEN SHE RETURNED TO HER 2009 NISSAN ALTIMA HYBRID SHE OPENED THE DOOR REMOTELY WITH THE KEY FOB AND TRIED TO START THE CAR AND THE ENGINE DID NOT RESPOND. THE STEERING COLUMN HAD LOCKED AND A YELLOW KEY LOCK LIGHT HAD COME ON THE DISPLAY. READING THE OWNERS MANUAL, SHE THOUGHT THE PROBLEM MIGHT BE WITH THE KEY FOB BATTERY. LUCKILY, I WAS STILL AT HOME AND WAS ABLE TO BRING A SPARE FOB TO HER. USING THE SPARE,THOUGH,HAD THE SAME RESULT: NO IGNITION. WE CALLED AAA AND HAD THE CAR TOWED TO THE DEALER. THE DEALERSHIP "CONFIRMED, CHECKED AND FOUND THE STEERING LOCK IS FAULTY, REMOVED AND REPLACED. CLEARED ALL CODES AND REPROGRAMMED BOTH KEYS". PARTS REPLACED WERE 1 48700-JF00D LOCK STEERING AND 2 48703-06F0A SCREW-STEERING LOCK, LIGHTENING MY WALLET BY $948.33. THREE DAYS LATER WE WERE ABLE TO PICK UP A DRIVABLE VEHICLE WITH A FUNCTIONING STEERING COLUMN. DURING THE TIME WE WERE WITHOUT THIS CAR WE WERE ABLE TO DO SOME INTERNET RESEARCH ON THIS ISSUE AND FOUND OUT THAT IT IS A KNOWN PROBLEM WITH 2007-2011 ALTIMAS WITH AVERAGE MILEAGE AROUND 80,000, ( THIS ONE HAD 83,909) THAT NISSAN ACKNOWLEDGES DOES EXIST,AND YET THEY WILL NOT ISSUE A RECALL. FROM OUR SEARCHES OF MANY WEB SITES (INCLUDING SAFERCAR.GOV) WE WERE ABLE TO DETERMINE THAT THIS PROBLEM HAS BEEN FREQUENTLY REPORTED, YET STILL THERE HAVE BEEN NO STEPS TAKEN TOWARD RECTIFYING THE PROBLEM. AS AN ALTIMA OWNER I AM LEFT WONDERING WHAT NEEDS TO HAPPEN IN ORDER FOR NISSAN TO FINALLY ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THIS IS A LEGITIMATE SAFETY ISSUE THAT COULD HAPPEN AT ANY TIME AND ANY PLACE.