Nissan North America is recalling more than 800,000 SUVs for a key-fob defect that could cause the vehicles to shut off mid-drive: The affected SUVs are equipped with a jackknife-style key (pictured here).
According to the recall, the jackknife key might not hold the key blade in the extended “open” position. With use, the internal pivot of the jackknife key may weaken, and the key fob could unlock and rotate downwards. If the car is driven with the key in the collapsed position, a simple contact with the key fob by the driver (or even the weight of heavy enough keychains) could be enough to turn the vehicle off while driving.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, these are the vehicles affected by the recall:
2017 - 2022 Nissan Rogue Sport
2014 - 2020 Nissan Rogue
Nissan Rogue Sport and Rogue vehicles manufactured after those years are unaffected because the Intelligent Key (i-key) was adopted into production, and the jackknife style key was no longer manufactured. The agency says there are no official reports of crashes or injuries related to the recall at this time, according to Jalopnik.
What should you do if you have a recalled vehicle?
There is no remedy for the recall at the moment from Nissan. People affected by the recall will be notified by Nissan this month, with instructions urging drivers to avoid attaching accessories to the key fob and to use the key in the non-folding position until they find a permanent solution. Once parts are available to fix the issue, dealers will insert a spacer into the key slot of the customer’s key fob that will prevent the key from collapsing, according to the recall.
If you have questions about the recall, you can contact Nissan North America, Inc. at 800-647-7261. The manufacturer recall number is R22c5.