2010 370z Steering Wheel LOCKED!!

happyz

Hey guys,

BACKGROUND:
I have a 2010 370z (been about 7 years with her), so recently the ESCL locked up. I found volunteer campaigns about the issue for my car year, and decided to call the dealership about it to see if they'd hopefully replace the part. They said I don't fall under the campaign because of some BS reasons lol and would cost me about $1000 to replace Then I called Nissan USA to see if they would help, they said that the part was replaced in 2011-2012 by a previous owner (used car). Told em that they obviously didn't do a good job, and should replace it . They said no they won't because my car has too much mileage and the part was replaced.

PROBLEM:

I really need some help right now. So this morning, the car would not start even after clanking the steering lock with my tow hook lol, I checked the forum and used a pin to put in the steering lock wire, and got it to turn on. Then I removed the steering lock fuse on ACC mode after seeing it in the forums, put everything back together. But my car is still not sensing my key (key sign shows), and the car still does NOT start. (Also, I noticed two beeping noises made every minute near the frontend). I have no clue what to do at this point, any help will be appreciated. Thank you

SouthArk370Z

Did you verify that the steering wheel would turn?

If the locking pin did not retract far enough to actuate some switches, removing the fuse won't do any good. The steering wheel unlocking doesn't mean that everything is OK with the ESCL - the locking pin has to retract fully before it hits the switches - but it's an indication that it's trying and you have a slim chance of eventually getting the pin into the proper position. IIRC, the pin-to-wire trick tells the computer that the switches are in the proper position.

First thing I'd do is check the fob battery. Personally, the batteries aren't that expensive, so I'd change it "just because."

The Owner's Manual should tell you what the beeps mean. If you didn't get a hard copy with your Z, you can download a PDF from Nissan's web site.

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happyz

Thanks for reply so I realized the steering wheel was not turning on ACC, and I have removed the fuse already. I really have no idea about the issue, do you have any suggestion on what I should try to do next?

JARblue

Some more research? If you're pulling the fuse with the car off, you clearly have not read much on the matter. That's the one thing that you can be sure won't work.

Your best bet is to put the fuse back in, beat on the underside of the steering column where the lock is with a rubber mallet or something similar, and then while beating on it, push the start button repeatedly. If you have any luck at all, you can get the car into ACC and then you can remove the fuse.

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SouthArk370Z

See the link in my sig. I haven't updated it in several years but not much has changed except that you can now get a "dummy" ESCL for a lot less than a working one.

__________________
Steering Lock Links - Search The370Z Bookmarklet - FSM @ NICOclub
Mankind has progressed past the need for war but we haven't evolved that far. - NachoMahma

happyz

That's what I did originally. The beating of the underside of the steering column was not working so I used the pin trick to get the car ON and put it into ACC and then removed the fuse, but had no success with doing that.

happyz

Awesome thanks appreciate the help!

JARblue

My apologies. I misread your OP.

You got the car ON, removed the fuse while the car is on and that didn't work? Because it should have. Don't put the fuse back in if you haven't already.

Did you try inserting the keyfob in the fobgina on the left side of the steering column? Might be something else like a battery

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happyz

Yea I did all that while in ACC, and then after tried to start the car but didn't work. I had to use pin to the pink wire trick to have start back up for me, so I could put it back in the garage. Now it's just stuck in lock mode w/ no fuse.

Do you think maybe I should put the fuse back in, and try to do attempt it again?

I had changed my key fob battery and inserted into the fobgina as well lol but no success

SouthArk370Z

This has already been discussed extensively on this site. Yes, there's a lot to sift through. The link in my sig has some of the more helpful posts highlighted.

Or search for it. If this site's search function is not finding what you need, go to just about any web search engine (Google, DDG, Bing, etc) and add "site:the370z.com" to your search string. Eg, "ESCL site:the370z.com".

__________________
Steering Lock Links - Search The370Z Bookmarklet - FSM @ NICOclub
Mankind has progressed past the need for war but we haven't evolved that far. - NachoMahma

happyz

Update: I got it to work after fiddling with it a couple more times. Thanks alot guys! Appreciate the help, and saving me a 1000 bucks lol

bcfromfl

Fiddling with what...the pin? Something still needs to be replaced, no? Some sort of diagnosis would be helpful.

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JARblue

Absolutely you will need to put the fuse back in to try it again.

Great news! I assume you were able to put the fuse back in, do the pin trick to get the car on and then pull the fuse successfully?

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happyz

Yes, problem was like southark370z said, the pin was not retracting all the way to actually unlock the steering lock while it was on. But once I heard it unlock, it was a success!

happyz

Yes the pin, and this is an ongoing problem for the older z's from the forums I read. This is just an easy fix, so z owners don't have to pay a grand to replace the steering lock.