RayFan

I know this has been discussed here many times but, I was wondering..... I had to have both my tilt/telescoping motors replaced back in 2013. Does anyone know if, when replacing these motors, it would include the steering wheel lock too? I have an 09 SV, and haven't had the lock issue yet, and was wondering if I should still just remove the fuse for this, or if I may have gotten a new lock motor with either the tilt or telescoping motor replacement.

ThinBlue82

iTrader: (1)

Just pull the fuse. It would be silly not to.

Tbone3944

Was the steering wheel lock issue also for the 2010 SV? I should probably know this...any idea how to fix or is pulling the fuse your best option? Thanks.

Daaavid

The steering wheel lock fuse was not installed on Nissan vehicles starting 2012. If you have a 2009-2011 Maxima, turn the vehicle on and pull the fuse out from the engine bay. Restart the car and ensure that everything is working.

Tbone3944

I have done research on the problem, but I'm sorry I don't understand the pulling of the fuse. If I pull the fuse will that prohibit the "steering wheel lock" issue from ever happening? How do I know which fuse it is? Thank you.

Daaavid

It is a ticking time bomb. Once the steering lock has failed and initiated, it would seem like your vehicle and/or key have a dead battery. The car will not start. Save yourself the hassle and money (the unit is ~$700-900) to replace and will eventually fail again. If your vehicle is ever stranded, you will have to remove the cover under the steering wheel and bash on the physical steering lock unit and it will unlock. Considering the age and year of your vehicle, it is out of warranty and that will be coming out of your pocket. This issue was also prevalent on the Nissan 370Z, Altima, Maxima and GTRs.


The steering wheel lock is the 10A fuse labeled as "STEERING LOCK" in your engine bay fuse box.

Tbone3944

Well... this explains why I was stranded at my buddies bachelor party last august. I didn't even have this car 3 months and this happened. I thought the battery in the Fob had died and I had to have the car towed. Nothing has happened since, the car has been great!
So, if I pull this fuse that you are talking about it prohibits the steering wheel from being locked? It won't mess the car up any other way by pulling it will it?

Daaavid

Nothing will be harmed. A lot of members on this forum and the neighboring 370Z forums have posted with no ill effects. You'll notice a delay of a second after pushing the start button then the car will start up, but that beats being stranded. Members on the 7GM Facebook group recommend the same with no ill effects.

Turn the car on (engine running), then pull out the fuse. Here are some photos of the fuse you want to pull out. There is a fuse puller in the interior fuse box, but a pair of plyers will yank that sucker out just fine. Afterwards, restart the car. Notice the empty fuse slot where the STEERING LOCK fuse used to live

Tbone3944

Sent you a PM.

Tbone3944

Well, it looks like either the mechanic pulled my fuse last August when I took it in, or else it was done when I bought the car and I really did have a dead FOB battery.

Tbone3944

Either way it should be "good to go" right?

ThinBlue82

iTrader: (1)

Yeah, must dealerships will pull the fuse to avoid the problem in the future. You're all set!

What.the.filter

Need some insight. I own a 09 maxima and just heard of this problem. Almost 52k miles on it, haven't ran into the problem it self but decided to pull the fuse anyways. Not sure if it worked or not but AFTER pulling the fuse. The steering lock still locks the wheel and makes the winding noise. But unlocks the wheel after turning on the car.

Richard66

Get a voltage reading on the empty fuse slot. Maybe the air conditioner and the steering lock were flipped flopped during the build. Highly unlikely I would think but not impossible.

What.the.filter

Does the engine itself need to be on then pull fuse? Or just ACC/ON mode then pull fuse? Also if the locking mech is not operating, the steering wheel should move freely even after the car is off right? Because my steering wheel still locks but unlocks after engine is on

Richard66

Either on or running will work, then pull the fuse. You want to unlock the lock prior to pulling the fuse and the only way to do that is with the car on or running. If your lock still locks up after you shut off you engine and the fuse is pulled then the steering wheel lock is still getting power from somewhere.

Kim Danny Diaz

What does the sterrwheel lock fuse or just the lock do?? I'm having issues with my sterring was told its the co tell arm, NOW im hearing this.....PLS HELP ME!!!!

Richard66

The steering wheel lock is an antitheft item. When it is engaged the car will not start. It disengages when the car reads the key fob and then the car can be started. Early models 09-11 had problems where they wouldn't disengage so the fuse to this thing was pulled by many. Nissan finally issued a recall for replacement to a different type. The steering wheel lock has nothing to do with steering except it locks up the steering wheel when the engine was turned off.

BronxSleeperMax187

I have a 09 with the preferred driver package and heated steering wheel, started car removed the fuse and still the wheel moves up and locks with no steering lock fuse in there when I shut it off....I made sure it was the right one yes. Really wanted to avoid the dealer and do this myself.....any ideas lol ?

Richard66

The steering wheel is still supposed to move up when the engine is turned off, the fuse you pulled has nothing to do with that. You should be able to ever so slightly move the steering wheel left and right, because the power steering is not on. If the steering wheel lock was still working the wheel will be solidly locked when the car if off.
If you never had the recall done you should schedule it. Recall #PC516.

BronxSleeperMax187

Thanks for the response. I pulled the fuse to be safe with the car running and everything works the same as before, didn't notice any differences. When the wheel went up after shutting the car off it felt the same like when the fuse was in there.....not sure if it worked, it moves slightly but hardly at all. Might need to call and see if they have the part in stock at the local dealer for the recall but don't want to be without the car.....also saw this online https://www.autopartscheaper.com/pro...g-lock-oem-new....... for those that its too late and don't wanna spend $$$ on tow truck or whatever.

Richard66

My question I will have to ask the dealership is if this replacement part is not a steering wheel lock just what is it's function?

BronxSleeperMax187

It gives the signal that its unlocked even though it doesn't lock or unlock at all.....I guess that's why it has an electrical plug to it for that reason.

mahanddeem

Bumping just to say thank you guys for the advice and pics. I removed the fuse today and no more ugly spining noise when turning engine on. Plus the preventive side of oneday it may die on me somewhere!
Cheers guys!

Costee

Has anyone had occasion to reprogramme their keys with the steering lock fuse off? Since the steering lock is an integral part of the key registration process, I'm suspecting it might not be possible to programme additional keys with the steering lock disabled/bypassed by removing the fuse. The new replacement part is to bypass the steering lock and probably to allow key registration also.

Samuelphillis

Read quite a lot about the steering wheel lock issues, and thought that this was my problem. The car won’t start when I get in. I push the brake and start button and hear absolutely no noise. No turnover, no clicks, nothing.

at first I thought it was the steering lock, however it appears the previous owner has already removed the fuse for the steering lock. I also tried the other solution of banging on the lock itself under the dash - this didn’t work. Maybe I’m not hitting it hard enough but I went at it for a while before quitting. Additionally, all the other electronics in the car work. The radio, seats, lights etc etc are all on, and I am able to put the car into ACC mode and ON, but the engine won’t start. Everything I saw about the steering lock all led bad to the push to start light saying LOCK, which mine does not. Lastly, the steering wheel isn’t locked. I can move it left and right quite far. It’s not easy (cars off) but it’s definitely not locked.

In a real bind right now, car is stranded and I need it for work this week. Any one out there had similar problems or know of a solution? Could this be the starter itself rather that’s the steering lock or do I need to fix the steering lock?

Richard66

Have you tried jump starting the car? If you can move the steering wheel and the steering lock fuse is pulled then this is not your issue.