2004 Nissan Titan

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2004 NISSAN TITAN. THE CONTACT HEARD A NOISE COMING FROM THE REAR OF THE VEHICLE. HE NOTICED THAT THE SEAMS NEAR THE ROTORS AND THE PLATES WERE LEAKING GEAR OIL, WHICH CAUSED HIM TO CONSTANTLY ADD A QUART OF GEAR OIL EACH TIME THE FAILURE OCCURRED. AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC ALSO DIAGNOSED THAT THE REAR DIFFERENTIAL PLATES AND SEALS NEEDED TO BE REPLACED DUE TO PREMATURE DETERIORATION AND AN INTERNAL FRACTURING. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURES. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 110,000.

EMERGENCY BRAKE AND REAR BRAKES GOT COVERED IN GEAR OIL BECAUSE THE REAR DIFFERENTIAL SEAL LEAKING. IT STARTED SPEWING ALL OVER THE PLACE AND WHEN I TRIED TO COME TO A STOP IT TOOK WAY LONGER THAN NORMAL FORCING ME TO SWERVE TO MISS A PEDESTRIAN AND HITTING THE CURB AND A BUSH. THIS SHOULD BE A SAFETY RECALL BECAUSE THE DIFFERENTIAL LEAKING ON THE BRAKES IS DEFINITELY A SAFETY CONCERN.

I WAS ON MY WAY HOME FROM WORK WHEN MY LOW FUEL INDICATOR LIGHT CAME ON; MY GAUGE SHOWED APPROXIMATELY 1/8 REMAINING. THIS WAS NORMAL, AND THE POINT WHERE THE LOW FUEL LIGHT NORMALLY TURNED ON. THE NEXT MORNING, ON MY WAY TO WORK, THE LIGHT TURNED OFF AND THE NEEDLE SHOWED JUST OVER 1/8 TANK. THIS WAS ALSO NORMAL FOR THE LIGHT TO SWITCH ON AND OFF AS THE LEVEL TEETERED AROUND THE SWITCH POINT. A FEW MILES INTO MY TRIP, THE NEEDLE JUMPED TO AROUND 1/4 TANK, WHICH WAS NOT NECESSARILY NORMAL, BUT I HAD NO REASON TO QUESTION THE LEVEL BASED ON THE PREVIOUS ACCURACY OF MY GAUGE. HALFWAY TO WORK I LOST POWER, AND HAD TO PULL OVER ON A BUSY HIGHWAY. MY TRUCK WOULD NOT START, ALTHOUGH IT STILL SHOWED 1/4 TANK REMAINING. I DID AN INTERNET SEARCH ON MY PHONE FOR /2004 TITAN FUEL GAUGE PROBLEM/ AND IMMEDIATELY GOT RASHES OF HITS FOR DESCRIPTIONS EXACTLY LIKE MINE WHERE THEIR TITANS SHOWED 1/4 TANK REMAINING, BUT RAN OUT OF FUEL. AFTER WALKING A 4 MILE ROUND-TRIP TO THE NEAREST GAS STATION AND BACK, I PUT GAS IN THE TANK, AND DROVE TO WORK. AFTER A QUICK INTERNET SEARCH I FOUND A RECALL NHTSA# 10V074000 FOR 2005-2009 TITANS (MINE IS A 2004) AND NISSAN SERVICE BULLETIN EL08-013A FOR 2004-2009 TITANS. I WAS TOLD BY THE DEALERSHIP AND NISSAN AMERICA THAT MY VEHICLE IS NOT INCLUDED IN THE RECALL, AND WILL NOT BE COVERED. I AM FINE WITH A FUEL SENSOR FAILING AFTER 186,000 MILES AND NOT BEING COVERED, BUT NOT IF IDENTICAL VEHICLES (2005-2009) WITH IDENTICAL HARDWARE ARE BEING RECALLED AND RECOGNIZED AS HAVING SAFETY ISSUES. THE INTERNET IS FULL OF PEOPLE COMPLAINING ABOUT THIS ISSUE ON THEIR 2004 TITANS, AND THEY NEED TO BE INCLUDED IN THE RECALL.

THE ABS LIGHT, VDC LIGHT, SLIP LIGHT AND BRAKE LIGHT ILLUMINATED AND THE BRAKE PEDAL WENT TO THE FLOOR ACCOMPANIED BY ABS ACTUATOR SOUNDS. THE BRAKING EFFORT DID NOT SLOW THE VEHICLE EFFECTIVELY. RECYCLING THE IGNITION SWITCH RETURNED THE BRAKES TO A SATISFACTORY CONDITION. AFTER MY WIFE DROVE THE VEHICLE HOME, I SCANNED THE ABS FOR FAULT CODES: C1179. I AM AN ASE CERTIFIED MASTER AUTOMOBILE TECHNICIAN WITH 28 YEARS OF EXPERIENCE. THIS DEVICE MEASURES THE TRAVEL OF THE BRAKE BOOSTER AND IS A NECESSARY COMPONENT OF A VEHICLE WITH STABILITY CONTROL (NISSAN CALLS IT VEHICLE DYNAMIC CONTROL [VDC]). THIS VEHICLE HAS DONE THIS 4 TIMES IN THE TEN YEARS THAT I'VE OWNED IT. THE FREQUENCY OF FAILURE IS VERY RANDOM, DUPLICATION OF THE FAULT IS EXTREMELY DIFFICULT AND IT OCCURS WITHOUT ANY WARNING AT ALL.

BRAKE LIGHT CAME ON WHEN BRAKES WERE APPLIED. PEDAL WAS SOFT AND MADE A GRINDING NOISE. BRAKES WORKED BUT NOT VERY WELL. TOOK A VIDEO OF IT WITH MY CELL PHONE. THIS HAS HAPPENED MULTIPLE TIMES. I TOOK IT IN TO THE DEALER SEVERAL YEARS AGO AND THEY RESET SOMETHING. THEY SAID IT MAY OR MAY NOT FIX THE PROBLEM. IT DIDN'T. THEY SAID THE REPAIR WOULD COST $900.00. I THINK IT SHOULD BE FREE. THIS IS A POTENTIAL HAZARD. TURNING TRUCK OFF AND ON FIXES THE PROBLEM BUT NOT PERMANENTLY. *TR

I HAD THE DEALER INSPECT THE VEHICLE. THEY SAID BOTH EXHAUST MANIFOLDS HAD CRACKED. THEY SAID THERE WAS A PREVIOUS NOTICE FROM NISSAN AND THEY SHOULD BE REPLACED. I WAS NOT NOTIFIED AND THE DEALER DID NOT CONTACT ME. NOW THEY SAID TOO MUCH TIME HAD ELAPSED TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THIS FREE REPLACEMENT. THIS IS CLEARLY A DESIGN DEFECT SINCE NISSAN HAD THEM REPLACED ON SOME VEHICLES. THIS IS A SAFETY HAZARD BECAUSE CRACKED MANIFOLDS CAN CAUSE A CARBON MONOXIDE LEAK OR SET A FIRE WHILE DRIVING FAST. THE COST TO REPAIR IS NEAR $1000 FOR THE PARTS PLUS LABOR TO INSTALL. THERE MUST BE OTHER PEOPLE WHO HAD THIS SAFETY PROBLEM SO THE GOVERNMENT SHOULD FORCE NISSAN TO FIX ALL THE VEHICLES. MINE HAS ONLY 86000 EASY MILES ON IT. *TR

I WAS DRIVING DOWN THE HIGHWAY AT NORMAL SPEED AROUND 55-65 IN HOUSTON TEXAS. A CAR PULLED IN FRONT OF ME AND I HAD TO PUT THE BRAKES ON QUICKLY. WHEN I APPLIED THE BRAKES THE PEDAL MUSHED COMPLETELY TO THE FLOOR MAKING A GRINDING NOISE AND THE VEHICLE BARLEY SLOWED DOWN. I MADE MY WAY TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AS THE BRAKES MADE AN LOUD GRINDING NOISE, AND LOST BRAKES COMPLETELY. WHEN I FINALLY STOPPED(WITH OUT GETTING HIT MY CARS) I DEPRESSED THE BRAKE AND THERE WAS NO RESPONSE. I HAD TO TURN THE TRUCK OFF AND AS I SAT THERE I HEARD A NOISE UNDER THE DASH, LIKE SOMETHING RESET ITSELF. I START THE TRUCK UP AND MOVED SLOWLY FORWARD TO SEE IF I HAD BRAKES AND SUDDENLY THEY WERE WORKING AGAIN. THIS TRUCK HAS DONE THIS A MILLION TIMES AND IT IS JUST BY LUCK THAT I HAVE NO BEEN INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT WHEN THE BRAKES GO OUT. THE DEALERSHIP SAYS THERE IS NO RECALL AND NOTHING HE CAN DO WITHOUT A THOUSAND DOLLARS AND THEN HE ISN'T SURE IT WILL FIX THE PROBLEM. I AM STUCK WITH THIS TRUCK AND IT CONTINUES TO LOOSE THE BRAKES. THE PASSENGER AIRBAG LIGHT HAS BEEN ON SINCE 2011. *TR

THE VEHICLE SHOWED 1/4 TANK OF GAS, WAS RUNNING FINE AND SUDDENLY SHUT OFF WHILE A YOUNG GIRL 18 YEARS OLD WAS DRIVING HOME FROM DROPPING OFF SIBLINGS AT SCHOOL. AT 55 MPH THERE WAS NO POWER BRAKES, NO POWER STEERING WHILE DRIVING ON A TWO LANE ROAD HEAVILY TRAVELED BY 80 TON GRAVEL TRUCKS. NISSAN KNOWS THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM AND HAS HAD A NUMBER OF TITANS EXPERIENCE THIS ISSUE CAUSED BY A FAULTY FUEL LEVEL SENSOR. THEY DID A TSB ON ALL BUT 2004S EVEN THOUGH THEY HAVE THE SAME PART. NISSAN REQUIRED ME TO TAKE IT TO A DEALERSHIP FOR NISSAN DIAGNOSTIC ($93) EVEN THOUGH THE DEALERSHIP ALREADY TOLD ME THIS WAS AN ISSUE AND NISSAN WOULD PROBABLY COVER IT. THE NISSAN REGIONAL REP ([XXX]) REIMBURSED THE REPAIR BUT REFUSED THE DIAGNOSTIC FEE SHE REQUIRED ME TO GET. NISSAN DENIES RESPONSIBILITY FOR RECALLING THESE VEHICLES WHICH THEY KNOW CAN JUST SHUT OFF WHILE DRIVING. THIS IS A VERY SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE AND NEEDS TO BE RECALLED IMMEDIATELY!! INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR