NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Recall Query RQ06-001: ENGINE STALL - CRANK POSITION SENSOR
- Closed
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Recall Query RQ06-001 on February 22, 2006 and closed it on July 18, 2006. NHTSA's investigations file lists the 2003 Nissan Altima for it and links recalls 06V-242 and 07V-527 to it.
Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file
Key facts
- NHTSA number
- RQ06-001 (also written RQ06001)
- Investigation type
- Recall Query An investigation into whether an existing recall covers the right vehicles or whether its remedy works, run much like a Preliminary Evaluation.
- Status
- Closed July 18, 2006
- Opened
- Closed
- Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
- Nissan North America, Inc.
- Component
- Engine and Engine Cooling
- Recalls linked by NHTSA
- Vehicles and equipment
- 2003 Nissan Altima
NHTSA's summary
As NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation wrote it for Recall Query RQ06-001.
ON JUNE 28, 2006 NISSAN SUBMITTED TO THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION (NHTSA) A PART 573 REPORT ADVISING THAT CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2003 NISSAN SENTRA AND NISSAN ALTIMA SEDANS EQUIPPED WITH 2.5L ENGINES WOULD BE RECALLED TO REPROGRAM THE ELECTRONIC CONTROL MODULE (ECM). THE RECALL IS IDENTIFIED BY NHTSA RECALL NO. 06V242. THE SUBJECT POPULATIONS OF THE RECALL ARE 14,587 NISSAN SENTRA VEHICLES AND 186,279 NISSAN ALTIMA VEHICLES.NISSAN DETERMINED THAT THE OPERATION OF THE CRANK ANGLE SENSOR IN ALTIMA AND SENTRA SEDANS EQUIPPED WITH A 2.5L ENGINE WAS SIGNIFICANTLY AFFECTED BY TEMPERATURE VARIATIONS DUE TO THE UNIQUE LOCATION OF THE SENSOR. UNDER CERTAIN DRIVING CONDITIONS THE TEMPERATURE VARIATIONS MAY CAUSE A BRIEF INTERRUPTION IN THE SIGNAL OUTPUT FROM THE SENSOR.IF THE INTERRUPTION IS BRIEF ENOUGH, SUCH THAT THE ELECTRONIC CONTROL MODULE (ECM) LOGIC DOES NOT HAVE TIME TO DIAGNOSE THE CONDITION, THE ENGINE MAY STOP RUNNING WHILE THE VEHICLE IS DRIVEN AT A LOW SPEED. AS A REMEDY, NISSAN WILL REPROGRAM THE ECM TO PREVENT THE STALLING INCIDENTS DUE TO SIGNAL INTERRUPTIONS FROM THE CRANK ANGLE SENSOR.ADDITIONALLY, AS PART OF THE RECALL QUERY, NISSAN WAS REQUESTED TO PROVIDE COMPLAINT INFORMATION FOR MY 2004 ALTIMA FOR COMPARATIVE PURPOSES.NISSAN HAS INDICATED TO ODI THAT THE SCOPE OF THE RECALL IS LIMITED TO THE MY 2003 AS COMPARATIVELY, THE MY 2004 COMPLAINT RATE IS SUBSTANTIALLY LOWER. ODI WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR THE COMPLAINT RATE OF THE MY 2004 ALTIMA. ACCORDINGLY THE RECALL QUERY IS CLOSED.
Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation
NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Recall Query RQ06-001. A listed model year means only that an investigation names it; it says nothing about any particular vehicle. Model years with a try.vin recall page link to that page's NHTSA investigations section.
Nissan
Nissan Altima
What an NHTSA investigation is
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) looks into possible safety defects in vehicles and equipment, often after owner complaints. An investigation usually starts as a Preliminary Evaluation, or as a Recall Query when it concerns whether an existing recall covers the right vehicles or fixes the problem, and ODI can upgrade it to a more detailed Engineering Analysis. A Defect Petition asks NHTSA to open an investigation, and Audit and Equipment Queries are administrative investigations into whether companies complied with federal vehicle safety requirements, such as reporting, recall and certification rules.
An open investigation is not a finding that a safety defect exists, and NHTSA can close one without a recall.
To see whether a specific vehicle has an open recall, enter its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Nissan VIN check: decode a VIN to see its year, make and model.
Sources
NHTSA's investigation record for RQ06-001
Investigation details come from NHTSA's investigations file, which try.vin imports once a day. The investigation types are described from the U.S. Department of Transportation Inspector General's May 2023 report on NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation, NHTSA's petition rules (49 CFR Parts 552 and 557) and NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation procedures. How try.vin reads NHTSA investigations.