NHTSA Complaint #11399469 — 2010 NISSAN 370Z

THE SRS LIGHT CAME ON ON THE DASH. CAR IS 10 YEARS OLD, BUT ONLY HAS 24073 MILES ON IT. NISSAN DEALER IDENTIFIED ERROR CODE B1018. OCCUPANT SENSOR IN THE FRONT PASSENGER SEAT FAILED. NISSAN QUOTED $4767 TO REPLACE THE PASSENGER SEAT BASE ASSEMBLY. STATED SENSOR WAS INTEGRATED INTO THE SEAT AND COULD NOT BE REPLACED WITHOUT REPLACING THE ENTIRE SEAT CUSHION. IT IS INTERESTING TO NOTE THAT NISSAN HAD A "VOLUNTARY RECALL CAMPAIGN" FOR THE EXACT SAME ISSUE ON THE 2007-2008 NISSAN 350Z. NISSAN TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN 08-095D IS GERMANE. THE PROBLEM IS DESCRIBED AS A FAILED OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM VARISTOR IN THE FRONT PASSENGER SEAT CUSHION. THIS IS A SENSOR THAT LETS THE CAR KNOW WHETHER OR NOT AN AIRBAG SHOULD FIRE, DEPENDING ON WHETHER OR NOT THERE IS A PASSENGER IN THAT SEAT. DID NISSAN EVER CORRECT THIS SAFETY ISSUE? I CONTACTED NISSAN CONSUMER AFFAIRS, (CASE 42872979), BUT THEY WERE NO ASSISTANCE (ONLY STATING THAT THE VEHICLE WAS OUT OF WARRANTY). THIS IS A SAFETY ITEM THAT, IN MY OPINION, NISSAN SHOULD WARRANTY FOR THE LIFE OF THE VEHICLE, OR AT A MINIMUM ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THEY HAVE HAD A PROBLEM WITH THE SAME COMPONENT ON THE PRIOR MODEL (350Z). THE SRS LIGHT COMES ON ON THE DASH, AND BLINKS INTERMITTENTLY. THE PASSENGER AIRBAG LIGHT NEAR THE PASSENGER SEAT STAYS PERMANENTLY LIT. IN VIRGINIA (WHERE I LIVE), YOU CANNOT PASS STATE SAFETY INSPECTION WITH THE BLINKING SRS LIGHT ON YOUR DASHBOARD DISPLAY. HAS TO BE FIXED. I REPAIRED THE ISSUE MYSELF BY ACQUIRING A SECOND HAND (USED) SEAT. HOWEVER, AS I PREVIOUSLY STATED, NISSAN SHOULD PAY FOR THIS PROBLEM THAT THEY PREVIOUSLY ACKNOWLEDGED IN THE TECH SERVICE BULLETIN (FAULTY OCCUPANT SENSOR), BUT APPARENTLY HAVE NOT FIXED.