Dead battery locks me out of Altima!

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I left my locked 2008 Altima 2.4SL in the driveway when I went on vacation last week. When I returned today, the Fob would not unlock the doors or the trunk, so I tried my wife's Fob and it also didn't work. I therefore assumed I must have left something on when I left and the car battery is totally dead, so I removed the steel key from the Fob to open the driver's door. The key turns easily in both directions, but the door will not open. Same thing for my wife's key - apparently the key has some electronic element and it not totally mechanical. So I am completely locked out of the car. Since I can't get in, I can't release the hood to charge the battery! Catch 22!!!

I can't believe Nissan could be so stupid to never anticipate a battery may drain on a locked car. What am I missing here? How can I get into my car??

Tom NJ
 
Hmmm, sounds weird...did someone damage the mechanical lock cylinders by turning them with a screw driver?

Does the trunk have a keyed cylinder with a seat back pass through? Try that.
 
Wow. I thought one lock was mechanical for this very reason.

I guess that's why it's smart to add a battery charger lead to every car...
 
This is the very reason the drivers door on a bimmer has a mechanical lock. My sister had the same issue on her 330i, I told her to turn the key harder, which she did, and the door unlocked. She was then able to open the hood and put a charger on it (battery is in the trunk but the charge posts are under the hood).
 
my versa has the one key hole in the drivers side which works like it should. I'm going to do some research
smile.gif
 
Feel bad for you Tom... I replaced my car battery with a new Duralast Gold battery before it had died on me. My old Interstate battery had a lot of run time on it.

I agree it's a poor design flaw here.

Ohh and I found another horrible motor oil for sale at a local convenience store. It's called xxx 5w30 made in Chicago. It's total GARBAGE. $3.99 a quart to boot. I'm back by there Monday to let them fools know what's on their shelf.
 
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Usually, the positive lead from the battery goes directly to the starter motor.

Jack the vehicle up and crawl under it and attach the positive wire for jumpstarting it to the positive connection on the starter motor. Be very careful not to touch that jumper to any ground such as the metal housing of the starter motor.

Then attach the negative wire for jumpstarting it to the frame of the vehicle and jumper it to a remote start pack or a good battery.

Be sure no one is under the vehicle with the bad battery when you attach the jump pack or good battery, because there is a very small but real chance that the bad battery will explode and scatter acid everywhere when the jump pack or good battery is attached.
 
I did some looking and it seems a few vehicles have this problem. Some chryslers do the same. You might have luck with a coat hanger or similar object and manually pop the latch.
 
Originally Posted By: Tom NJ
I left my locked 2008 Altima 2.4SL in the driveway when I went on vacation last week. When I returned today, the Fob would not unlock the doors or the trunk, so I tried my wife's Fob and it also didn't work. I therefore assumed I must have left something on when I left and the car battery is totally dead, so I removed the steel key from the Fob to open the driver's door. The key turns easily in both directions, but the door will not open. Same thing for my wife's key - apparently the key has some electronic element and it not totally mechanical. So I am completely locked out of the car. Since I can't get in, I can't release the hood to charge the battery! Catch 22!!!

I can't believe Nissan could be so stupid to never anticipate a battery may drain on a locked car. What am I missing here? How can I get into my car??

Tom NJ


Man, that suck's Tom.

My 2012 Nissan Frontier has a driver's side keyhole and is not connected to any identifier electronic code. I proved this when I had the battery out for replacement.
 
Use more force while turning. It doesn't make sense for there to be any electronic interlock for a mechanical cylinder designed for use during power loss (vehicle or fob)
 
Let us know what you end up doing to resolve it. I imagine there's some way to get under the car and hook up a charger or jump box to the battery if you lift it???
 
Originally Posted By: JimPghPA
Usually, the positive lead from the battery goes directly to the starter motor.

Jack the vehicle up and crawl under it and attach the positive wire for jumpstarting it to the positive connection on the starter motor. Be very careful not to touch that jumper to any ground such as the metal housing of the starter motor.

Then attach the negative wire for jumpstarting it to the frame of the vehicle and jumper it to a remote start pack or a good battery.

Be sure no one is under the vehicle with the bad battery when you attach the jump pack or good battery, because there is a very small but real chance that the bad battery will explode and scatter acid everywhere when the jump pack or good battery is attached.


Brilliant! The alternator post is also a contender. If things get really dodgy for access you could wrap a hemostat handle in duct tape and grip remotely. (Leave one little corner untaped for the charger clip.)
 
Wow that sucks. Here I was thinking the one keyhole on the drivers side door had a purpose.
 
Wow, what a cluster flock. As noted, one would think the steel key would/should work for this issue.

No help to you, but after my experience with 03 Nissan 2.5L Altima precat Fail, can't say I'm surprised.

Let us know what you figure out.
 
Sounds like a mechanical issue to me.

The key is there for being able to get in, pop the hood and jump the battery.
 
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