There are at least two massive vehicle recalls from this month that should be of interest to vehicle owners in San Antonio and throughout Texas. Between the two, close to 5 million vehicles are affected.
Nissan Recalls 1.2 million-plus Vehicles This Week
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Nissan North America has issued a massive voluntary recall of more than 1.2 million vehicles under the Nissan and Infiniti brands due to a critical safety issue in which the backup camera may fail to display an image while the vehicle is placed in Reverse. The lack of a backup camera display image can significantly increase the risk of a crash.
Nissan is estimating that every one of the vehicles being recalled have this problem. The recall covers a total of 1,228,830 vehicles across two brand lineups and more than two dozen models.
The impetus for the recall started in December 2018, when the federal Office of Vehicle Safety Compliance notified Nissan about a failure of the rear camera system during their lab test of a 2019 Nissan Altima.
The vehicles involved in this recall include the following:
- 2018-2019 Nissan Altima
- 2018-2019 Nissan Frontier
- 2019 Nissan GT-R
- 2018-2019 Nissan Kicks
- 2018-2019 Nissan Leaf
- 2018-2019 Nissan Maxima
- 2018-2019 Nissan Murano
- 2018-2019 Nissan NV, NV200, and NV200 Taxi
- 2018-2019 Nissan Pathfinder
- 2018-2019 Nissan Rogue
- 2018-2019 Nissan Rogue Sport
- 2018-2019 Nissan Sentra
- 2018-2019 Nissan Titan
- 2018-2019 Nissan Versa
- 2018-2019 Nissan Note
- 2018-2019 Infiniti Q50
- 2018-2019 Infiniti Q60
- 2019 Infiniti Q70 & Q70L
- 2018-2019 Infiniti QX30
- 2019 Infiniti QX50
- 2019 Infiniti QX60
- 2018-2019 Infiniti QX80
The problem with the rear camera failure is critical. It seems the backup camera settings can be adjusted so that the rearview image is no longer visible. The problem is, the system will keep that setting and fail to display any image the next time the vehicle is placed in Reverse. Although Nissan officials say this type of occurrence would be extremely rare and would usually be considered a mistake made by the driver, they also point out that the possibility of such a thing, according to Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 111, “Rear Visibility.”
As may seem obvious when you look at the number of vehicles recalled, Nissan points out that this recall is not limited to the United States. The recall also affects vehicles in Canada, South Korea, and Israel, as well. As a fix for the problem, Infiniti and Nissan dealers will update the software for the backup camera settings free of charge to owners. The company expects to notify Altima and Rogue owners of the fix during the week of Oct. 21, 2019, while owners of all other Nissan and Infiniti vehicles will be notified the week of Nov. 4, 2019
If they want more information, vehicle owners can call Infiniti customer service at 800-662-6200 or Nissan customer service at 800-867-7669.
Earlier This Month, GM Recalled More Than 3.4 Million Vehicles
This is the second massive vehicle recall ordered this month alone. Earlier this month, General Motors recalled more than 3.4 million trucks and SUVs due to an issue with the vacuum brake assist pump used by these vehicles because the pump output can drop quickly, resulting in a loss of braking ability.
The list of vehicles that were part of that GM recall include:
- Cadillac Escalades from model years 2016-2017;
- Chevrolet Silverados from model years 2015-2017;
- Chevrolet Suburbans from model years 2015 2018;
- GMC Sierras from model years 2014-2018;
- GMC Yukon vehicles from model years 2015- 2018;
- Chevrolet Tahoe vehicles with model years ranging from 2015 to 2018.
Owners of any of the above vehicles can take them to their local GM dealership to have them repaired, free of charge. GM mechanics will update the vehicle’s Electronic Brake Control Module with a new calibration, which means the vehicle will use hydraulic brake boost assist whenever vacuum assist is depleted.