I've had an a$$ full of the automatic window roll down feature
 

It's been raing for a few hours here in LA. I need to go somewhere so when I walk up to the car both windows are completely rolled down. It's been pouring and now I have a completely soaked interior. I towled out as much water as I could for now (in the dark). There were puddles behind and underneath both seats.

My keys weren't even in my pant pockets, so I'm not sure how the windows rolled down. I'm not sure what could have pressed the button on the FOB. It's been raining of and on all day, so I didn't leave them unrolled earlier in the day either.

This happened once before when I was out of town, but luckily my girlfriend spotted it just before it began raining about 3 months ago. Is there some sort of "it's gonna rain so let me roll the windows down automatically to piss you off feature" I don't know about?

I have two questions...

1) can this feature be disabled on the FOB?

2) is my interior pretty much ruined? other than sopping up as much water as I can how do I dry up the foamy door panels? Will the water damage any of the other materials used in the interior (i.e. leather seats and suede/fabric inlays)?

Sorry to hear that! I don't think theres a disable programming to the fob to disable this feature, if you can, use a blow dryer to dry it out .. may take some time though good luck :tiphat:

Aww man..... That sucks. I don't have any ideas regarding what might be causing your issue but I have dealt with water issues before. Dry the best you can, maybe a wet vac if you can get ur hands on one. The worst thing you can do is let water sit in there and get mildewy. The smell is unmistakable and you'll never get rid of it. I know it will be a pain but if you can get the carpet up and actually get a towel to the metal you'll be better off, you never actually know where that water will settle under the carpet. I think your faux suede should be alright and cows get rained on all the time so your leather should be alright also. Think your seats might actually be in better shape than had you had the cloth interior as drying the padding in the seat could be a serious issue.

Good luck, and definitely figure out a way to blame the girlfriend, it'll make you feel better.

I think, though not sure, that someone posted about looking to defeat the window option and there was no way. Not sure if someone has figured it out, though.

Get a dehumidifier ASAP.

Put it on the passengers seat, close the windows.

Dump out the water every hour or two. This WILL save your interior. My mom left the sunroof open all day once and it completely soaked the interior of her SUV. Couldn't even tell after the dehumidifier was done.

My friend tried to get through a submerged road thinking it wasn't that deep. It was deep enough to kill his motor and flood his interior. The dehumidifier saved the interior even days after this happened.

I wouldn't use a blow dryer. You're not going to get deep enough with that and you will end up with mildew smells.

A lot of people don't know about these, but they're staples in humid climates. Might be a little more difficult to track one down in LA but it will be worth it.

great idea! reped you for the help :tup:

u tried just pulling the fuse for the windows? that's if you don't mind inoperable windows.
what about a toggle switch inline with the power line for the window module? flip it off when u're not in the car and flip it on when u want the windows to work.

I think the only way you can prevent this is to pull the key from the fob and carry the key only. The down side is you lose all the remote features.

i actually had this happen to me the other day...just mine was in my garage...i came out to and both windows were completely rolled down...really didnt know i could roll them all the way down with fob. Only thought partially...sux bout the interior though, would look into the dehumidifier idea for sure, sounds good. GL :tup:

lol.

The automatic window roll down feature is one of the worst ideas ever. How did this not get scrapped in the design process. Not only could your interior be ruined from rain when the windows are rolled down accidently but it's also an open invitation for someone to walk by your car and steal whatever the hell they want when you think your stuff is secure.

Audi implemented the feature using the key only...probably to keep this from ever being an issue. The FOB button must be getting stuck in the depressed position as you walk away from the car.

If you can replicate the issue in a way that demonstrates the car does it with no input from the FOB, take this to the dealer and make them replace your interior and window control unit.

The water will puddle on the floor behind the seats. Get your hands on a carpet cleaner that has a strong suction to pull as much moisture as possible from the carpet and other areas. Then do the dehumidifier followed by windows down out in the sun. Towels and a blow dryer aren't going to get the job done.
Let us know if you find a prevention method.

Gote one for out basement right out here at the Lowe's store. They are very effective.

Perhaps you can rent one of those carpet cleaners from Ralph's. Just don't use the cleaner. This happened to me once as well in a different car. Took out all the seats. Sucked up all the water then left the windows open and let the car sit out in the sun for a while. Should be about the same as getting your home's carpet cleaned. It will be a little damp after sucking up all the water. Not sure if it's supposed to rain today though. Looks like it out of my window though. On the bright side you will have a really clean carpet. Let us know how you proceed.

wouldnt installing an alarm/starter like compustar or viper allow you to not need the OEM fob and avoid the window opening issue since youd be usinga third party remote?

i can sense a recall coming for nissan on this issue, or we should setup a class action suit

this happened to my altima coupe like a year ago. it was during a rain/sleet storm. this worked for me:
put your car in a garage (if its cold or rainy out, otherwise outside works.) open the windows and the doors and the trunk... and take out all the mats. Use a wet/dry vac to dry up all the wet spots that you have the patience for. once its not SOAKING. put a fan on the floor in front of each seat and one in the trunk on oscilate. fill a couple of socks with baking soda and put them under the seats and around the car. should take about a day or two to dry but you shouldn't have any smell issues.

If you have to do this overnight, put it in a garage (obviously for security reasons) but it will certainly dry even in a garage.

You still need the fob to start the car.

This happened to me a couple of times. Luckily it was in the garage. I don't know about the coupe, but the roadster windows roll down a little bit when you open the door and then roll back up after it is closed. Sometimes the car gets confused and rolls down the windows all the way. I used the reset window procedure described in the Owner's manual and haven't had a problem since.

Why not just put a staple or something behind the button on the remote to jam it. For my room mates g37 we got this thick leather case for the remote that forces you to use the tips of your fingers to press the butuons. Or you can just start wearing pants with bigger pockets.

or get one of those remote cases

For people that do not like the feature, it's a good idea but if you're accidentally hitting the button on the remote by either holding in your hand and grabbing things from the car to carry in you might be pressing it with out knowing or while inside the house they are not out of the way, and may also accidentally be pressed by something being placed on the fob not knowing the button was pressed, I always hang up my keys on a wall key holder, and have never had an issue with the windows opening accidentally. It's very sad to hear it's happened to some.

I think you need them to be operable for the auto indexing feature.

Great idea... good enough to get you a rep point!

sorry to hear about what happened.

i have a rather extreme solution for the problem. i don't drive the 370z on days when the weather forecast says it would rain.

He wasn't driving it, for what it's worth.

unfortunately, my strategy doesn't work for those who park their cars outdoor.

:iagree:

Instead of trying to fix the car, you're probably better of trying to alter the remote.
Either by adding something that makes it harder to press the buttons by accident.

Something like this: Nissan Intelligent Key Cover (nssnf44)
http://www.thejacketstore.com/catalog/nissanf44.jpg

Or go one step further and mod the remote with an additional switch, to turn it off

If you put the window lock on would this do anything? Haven't had time to check.

It didn't work on older Nissan's, so it probably won't work now either.

I tried it no luck...

After it happened to me I took the fob apart to see if I could disable the unlock button as I never use the fob buttons. Unfortunately the way the fob is constructed an easily reversible modification wasn't possible. The only solution I could see was to cut one of the circuit traces to the button.

Easier would be to put a small switch on the side or back that disconnects the battery.
Call it a lock feature...

This issue is not normal either the button got hit and held by accident or there is some other device using the same signal, and is causing this issue, rare but not impossible. I Presume the dealer can change the transmitter to another signal to see if it corrects the issue. just my 2 cents

That would be harder actually, but would work if you kept the switch small.

Take the battery out and use the key and fobgina.

good tip!

As you said, it wasn't easy to find in LA, but I did manage to track down a dehumidifer at Fry's Electronics. For those of you not on the west coast just imagine a Sears, Radio Shack and Best Buy had a three way, and Fry's was their bastard love child.

It cost me $200, but the sales guy just recommended I use it and bring it back for a refund. I found cheaper alternatives on the internet, but my windows are already heavily condensing moisture on the inside, so I wanted to get on it right away. I may or may not take his advice regarding returning the unit. It depends on if I can find another use for it.

I'll let you know how it works. I also plan on bringing this problem up with the dealer when I take it in for an oil change.

OP I'm very sorry to hear this. It's a feature that's we rarely use but I don't think there's a way to bypass it. BUT there are some key fob protector available that may help you reduce the chances of pressing the button. How about something like this?

http://www.the370z.com/members/arcti...cs-key-fob.jpg

http://www.the370z.com/members/arcti...cs-key-fob.jpg

http://www.the370z.com/members/arcti...cs-key-fob.jpg

http://www.the370z.com/members/arcti...3132009098.jpg

http://www.the370z.com/members/arcti...3132009100.jpg

Picture album: Nissan 370Z Forum - arcticreaver's Album: Nissan Z FOB Protector (straight from Japan) . Full credit for the pictures goes to arcticreaver.

This fob is availble from our vendor 370Ztune, 370zsource, Z1 motorsports etc. Please send them a pm and they will work out a good price for you. It's on my list of accessories ;).

They aren't fast working. I think I overstated dumping the water our every hour-two. It could very well take a little while to get all of it out, but I have seen them work magic many times.

Just be patient with it and please report back!