Hi. I'm in need of some serious help as I am in a bind in terms of my financial situation,

I looked through this website and found a few things regarding the steering lock failure and my car not being able to start. I need to confirm my options and see if anyone had to go through the same process and if the dealer gave me a fair price...

Two days ago, after going to the post office, my 09 g37 coupe wouldn't start. The keys would unlock/lock the car, but the car wouldn't start. I had it towed to the nearest Infiniti dealer. The next day, they told me my steering lock mechanism failed and would cost me $1,800 to repair. Around $450 for the labor, and the rest would be the parts (steering lock mechanism set + a screw). They also told me they would do the repairs if I can get the mechanism myself possibly saving me money if I can source the parts from somewhere else, saving me money.

Now I read that if I can get the car started again with a hammer hitting the mechanism, and if I manage to put the car into ACC mode, I can either cut a brown wire in the harness of the steering wheel mechanism, or buy a module that would bypass the steering lock mechanism all together so I can forget about this problem. Would this work? The 10th post from this thread by "Str8 Jacket" confirms he cut the wire to his 2010 g37 while on ACC mode and fixed the problem. https://www.myg37.com/forums/tsb-tec...lock-escl.html

Now that my car is at the dealer, should I get the car towed to a mechanic who is able to do the above to make my car's steering mechanism to unlock by tapping on the mechanism and cutting the wire or using this harness here: Steering Lock Harness - Car Kit Company

or... get it repaired and pay nearly two thousand dollars. Is anyone able to help me with the pricing on the steering lock mechanism which the dealer wants me to pay about $1,350 for the part and $450 for the labor, or if I should have the mechanism disabled.

I live in the So. Cal area and if anyone knows a mechanic who can do the job of bypassing the module or getting the module replaced and working for a lower price... I'm very distraught and need help... Any guidance would be greatly appreciated. Thank you so much in advance.

 

$1,800 seems a bit steep, try getting a quote from a Nissan dealership. I've previously read about people who DIY'd the solution by bypassing the locking mechanism, but can't find the thread.

Here's the thread on the TSB if that helps at all.

 

Yeah, I linked that one from my post. The user "str8 jacket" confirmed he did it but I'm not sure which wire to have a mechanic cut. He said he referred to this thread here: Steering Lock: cut one wire. /switch optional - Nissan 370Z Forum

Also if this 370z steering wheel bypass harness is compatible with my 09 G37... Steering Lock Harness - Car Kit Company

I've read other people paid around 1200-1300 for this job, not 1800. How can I negotiate for a better price? Also, I would much rather go through the bypass process if that is viable for me...

 

A common failure

Steering Locks and Engine Won't Start

On the wife's previous 09 Altima the dealer covered the repair under the extended warranty

Good luck

Telcoman

 

Really sorry to hear about the unfortunate turn of events 09G3781. I've read about the issue before and have always been weary about a possible failure on my own vehicle. If you ever figure out which wire to cut on the G and/or if the steering lock works on the G please report back as I would be interested in picking one up as well.


Good luck!

 

The wire is brown, but you don't need to cut anything...

If you take out the fuse box by the battery, you can pull out the 10A fuse corresponding to the diagram on the outside of the box where it tells you which one is for the steering lock. It goes 10A 10A 15A 15A. You pull the top out of that group of 4 fuses in the lower left area of the box.

So if you can get the car into ACC mode, pop off the 5-6 tabs that hold the plastic pieces around the battery, the rubber trim along the cowl piece (at least half of it), then the half of the cowl piece.

 

What will change once the fuse is pulled? I'm assuming the steering wheel will still turn even with the car off?

 

Yes. Since the lock is disengaged when the fuse is pulled, it simply never reengages. It is disabled and the steering wheel can turn.

 

So that fuse is strictly for the steering lock right? It won't affect anything else in the vehicle? If so, I'm going to do this when I get a chance as a preventative measurement.


Thanks for all your help cruzmisl!!

 

Another question: do you need to do this while the car is on or off? I'm guessing on, since the lock would be disengaged...

 

We can wait for someone who's done it before to confirm but I believe the car needs to be in ON mode, but not started. Or was it ACC...hmm...

 

I'll test this when I get back to my car this weekend if no one else has.

 

Hit it once to put it in ACC mode. You don't need to have it fully on, just in ACC mode to disengage the lock.

A ton of people on the370z have done this and have noticed no consequences for doing so. Also, the wiring diagrams make it look like this is all the fuse controls.

 

This is the fuse box you are talking about right? I'm confused as to how you can pull out the box to open the fuse box to pull the fuse without removing the battery. I removed all the trim pieces just a minute ago but could not pull out the fuse box enough to be able to open it without removing the battery (it only came up a couple inches). But if I removed the battery, how would I put the car in ACC mode prior to removing the fuse?

NOTE: I was unable to pull the fuse box out enough to see the "steering lock" label. I'm assuming it's further down...

Kris, if you can take pictures and/or do a write-up/DIY on what you did it would be greatly appreciated!! I'm sure it will help a lot of members here.

 

A full DIY is totes unnecessary. Look at this 370z video and it is exactly the same deal.


The wire harness below the fuse box is stiff and bent in a way that makes it difficult to pull up initially. Taking the battery out does make it easier to pull the box out, so you could do this and then put the battery in and hooked up to get the car in acc mode. The box comes out quite a bit.

The box goes back in easier so you won't need to pull the battery to get it back in place after you pull the fuse. Just make sure you have the fuse box closed and sealed correctly as water gets around this area.