Nissan Recalls ’02-’04 Xterra, Frontier vehicles to replace steering column shaft

Nissan North America is recalling more than 500,000 Frontier and Xterra vehicles to replace the lower steering column joint and shaft. If the steering column shaft were to break, the driver could lose steering control, posing a crash risk. The automaker received three field reports from Canada and six from Brazil. No accidents or injuries were reported.

The recall affects model year 2002 – 2004 Frontier and Xterra trucks, sold in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina and other Latin American countries. In Canada, about 4,500 Frontier and 9,900 Xterra vehicles are affected.

Nissan says the potentially affected vehicles that were sold in North America were made from July 9, 2001 through January 6, 2005 at its Smyrna, TN plant. Another plant in Curitiba, Brazil manufactured vehicles sold in Central and South America.

Nissan North America, based in Franklin, TN, determined that over a period of time, corrosion could form in the lower steering column joint and limit the joint’s movement, which in turn could put an excessive load on the lower steering column shaft. If the vehicle were to be driven with this condition, the shaft could crack during low speed maneuvers, or even break, in extreme cases.

The shaft in question was supplied to Nissan by Douglas Autotech Corp. of Hopkinsville, KY.

The company first learned of the potential issue in November 2009 when it was informed by Transport Canada regarding a 2002 Frontier. After it began an investigation in December 2009, the company identified two more problematic vehicles between March and June 2010. In July 2010, the company received two broken steering column lower shafts from Brazil.

Nissan has received no incidents of steering column shaft failures due to corrosion in the U.S. and the issue is “extremely unlikely to occur” in the U.S. The automaker believes the problem is “…likely related to some unique environmental conditions not commonly present on U.S. roads combined with higher off pavement usage,” according to the company’s recall filing with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Nissan will contact owners in early December once parts are available. Its dealers will replace the steering column shaft and joint with a newly-designed shaft. Owners may contact Nissan at 1-800-647-7261.

The company also announced a recall for approximately 18,500 Sentra vehicles due to a faulty positive battery cable terminal.

• Tags for this Article: Nissan Frontier, Nissan Frontier recall, Nissan XTerra, Nissan Xterra recall, steering column