Well, after diagnosing a dead battery in my Max, I replaced it with a new one from Pep Boys. But it would seem I've tripped the anti-theft mechanism in the car.

Upon reattaching battery cables, 4-way/Hazard lights come on (but do not flash), and cabin lights come on. Putting the key in and turning to ACC does nothing; trying to start the car produces two seperate 'clicks' from within the cabin fuse box (it seems), and the following dash lights become illuminated: Overdrive, ABS, Oil, Battery, Seatbelt, and Check Engine (and 4-way/hazard remain in non-flashing ON position).

1. How do I reset the factory alarm? (Lord, I hope I don't have to get towed to my dealer).

2. If these aren't symptoms of the alarm being tripped, can anyone suggest which fuses I've killed in replacing my battery?

Thanks!
Neil

neilah@onebox.com

 

tell you the truth i always take my battery out and never experiance this but if things are blown the easy way to figure out what fuse is blown is getting a fuse tester from pep boys or autozone it has a light on it to tell you that the fuse is all good (batt must be on to use this ) but sometimes there are some fuses that dont have power on to them when car is not started so what u do is just take it out and see if it's blown thru the clear part of the fuse ........ KEEP IN MIND that there is OTHER FUSES UNDER THE HOOD take a look at those alright dog hope this helps you take care

 

Did you try to lock and unlock the doors with the remote? If it's the alarm system thats keeping it immobilized, perhaps that will reset it.





Does sound like something else is wrong though...

 

While the battery is attached, try pulling out the fuse for the alarm in the engine bay and re-insert it. Hopefully, it'll reset the alarm.

 

I ran down to PepBoys and bought the fuse tester.

All the fuses (mini-blade type) in the engine compartment (next to the battery) and in the dash all tested okay.

Tonight, I will try to pull te alarm fuse out and see if that resets the alarm circuit, but I'm now worried that the starter -- or something else -- may have gone wrong.

Any thoughts?

Thanks! You guys are great!
Neil

 

Which order did you connect the battery cables? You should connect positive, then negative. Perhaps the reverse order will trip the antitheft system. I have installed and removed my battery on multiple occasions, and have had no problems. Good luck.

 

Okay, I admit I'm a bad D-I-Y mechanic.

I reversed the polarity of the battery contacts. Arrg. Stupid.

So far, it looks like I've only blown the main bus fuse (140V?), which will get replaced after I swing by the parts store.

I pray the ECU and other bits in the car still work. At least it starts and drives now.

Anyone know what other damage I should be checking for?

Arrrg.

--Neil

 

Just change that fuse and drive if you notice anything differnt then ask us... i didnt understand why u didnt tell us that u reverse the terminals we would not think of you any differnt just think that you should be more careful .... we are here to support not to tell you that you did a stupid thing i'm sure your telling yourself that ... heheh but again we are not here to judge.. so take care brother

 

Thanks -- I appreciate the support. PepBoys doesn't normally carry 140A main bus fuses, just 80 - 130, so I'll be sticking in a 120 or 130A fuse until I can get the actual 140A from my local Nissan dealer.

Thanks again for everyone's help!

--Neil

 

the same thing happened to me (installed the battery with the polarity switched)! the next day i was able to drive the car with out problem. i noticed i had blown the the 140A fuse in the fusible links box near the battery. no other fuses were blown. however, the day after that the car would not start! i got a new battery and the 140A fuse (the A is for amps) from the nissan dealer. the 140A fuse was around $14. it was kinda tricky to remove the fuse. it's held by two screws so don't try to yank it out when you replace it.

i suspect that my battery died on me because driving on the blown fuse might have caused my car to run on battery power instead of the alternator. either that on the 140A fuse may have been on the same circuit that charges the battery while the car is operating..this is only speculation though.

car is running ok now.