2003 NISSAN ALTIMA Owners Manual

cIntermittent (if so equipped) — intermittent
wiper operation.
cLow speed — continuous low speed opera-
tion.
cHigh speed — continuous high speed op-
eration.
cWash — pull the lever toward you to operate
the washer function. Operating the washer
automatically cycles the wipers several
times.
cIntermittent control (if so equipped) — inter-
mittent wiper operation can be adjusted
from 1-19 seconds by turning the time con-
trol knob.
cMist — push the lever up to activate the mist
feature.
WARNING
In freezing temperatures the washer solu-
tion may freeze on the windshield and
obscure your vision which may lead to an
accident. Warm the windshield with the
defroster before you wash the windshield.
CAUTION
cDo not operate the washer continu-
ously for more than 30 seconds.cDo not operate the washer if the reser-
voir tank is empty.
cDo not fill the window washer reservoir
tank with washer fluid concentrates at
full strength. Some methyl alcohol
based washer fluid concentrates may
permanently stain the grille if spilled
while filling the window washer reser-
voir tank.
cPre-mix washer fluid concentrates with
water to the manufacturer’s recom-
mended levels before pouring the fluid
into the window washer reservoir tank.
Do not use the window washer reservoir
tank to mix the washer fluid concen-
trate and water.
To defrost the rear window glass, start the engine
and push the rear window defroster switch on.
The rear window defroster indicator light on the
switch comes on. Push the switch again to turn
the defroster off.
The rear window defroster automatically turns off
after approximately 15 minutes.
Type A
WIC0272
REAR WINDOW DEFROSTER
SWITCH
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CAUTION
When cleaning the inner side of the rear
window, be careful not to scratch or dam-
age the rear window defroster.
NOTE:
The top few rows of wires on the rear win-
dow are not part of the rear window de-
froster system. These wires make up the
antenna for the audio system.
XENON HEADLIGHTS
WARNING
cHIGH VOLTAGE
cWhen xenon headlights are on, they
produce a high voltage. To prevent an
electric shock, never attempt to modify
or disassemble. Always have your xe-
non headlights replaced at a NISSAN
dealer.
cXenon headlights provide considerably
more light than conventional head-
lights. If they are not correctly aimed,
they might temporarily blind an oncom-
ing driver or the driver ahead of you and
cause a serious accident. If headlights
are not aimed correctly, immediately
take your vehicle to a NISSAN dealer
and have the headlights adjusted
correctly.
When the xenon headlight is initially turned on, its
brightness or color varies slightly. However, the
color and brightness will soon stabilize.cThe life of xenon headlights will be
shortened by frequent on-off opera-
tion. It is generally desirable not to turn
off the headlights for short intervals
(for example, when the vehicle stops at
a traffic signal) . Even when the daytime
running lights are active (Canada only) ,
the xenon headlights do not turn on.
This way the life of the xenon head-
lights is not reduced.
cIf the xenon headlight bulb is close to
burning out, the brightness will drasti-
cally decrease, the light will start blink-
ing, or the color of the light will be-
come reddish. If one or more of the
above signs appear, contact a NISSAN
dealer.
Type B
LIC0317
HEADLIGHT AND TURN SIGNAL
SWITCH
2-18Instruments and controls
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HEADLIGHT CONTROL SWITCH
Lighting
s1When turning the switch to theposi-
tion, the front parking, tail, license plate and
instrument panel lights come on.
s2When turning the switch to theposi-
tion, the headlights come on and all the other
lights remain on.
Type A
WIC0312
Type B
WIC0313
Type C
WIC0314
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Autolight system (if so equipped)
The autolight sensors1is located on the instru-
ment panel.
The autolight system allows the headlights to be
set so they turn on and off automatically. The
autolight system can:
cTurn on the headlights automatically when it
is dark.
See your NISSAN dealer to have the
autolight activation sensitivity setting
adjusted.cTurn off the headlights when it is light.
cKeep the headlights on for up to 180 sec-
onds after you turn the key to OFF and all
doors are closed.
The default time delay for autolight
shutoff is 45 seconds. See your
NISSAN dealer to have the time delay
setting adjusted.
If the ignition switch is turned OFF and one of the
doors is opened, the headlights remain ON for 5
minutes.
To set the autolight system:
1. Make sure the headlight switch is in the
AUTO position.
2. Turn the ignition key to ON.
3. The autolight system automatically turns the
headlights on and off.
To turn the autolight system off, turn the switch to
the OFF,
,orposition.Be sure you do not put anything on top of
the autolight sensor located in the top
driver side of the instrument panel. The
autolight sensor controls the autolight; if it
is covered, the autolight sensor reacts as if
it is dark out and the headlights will illumi-
nate. If this occurs while parked with the
engine off and the key in the ON position,
your vehicle’s battery could become dis-
charged.
WIC0274
2-20Instruments and controls
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Headlight beam select
s1To select the high beam function, push the
lever forward. The high beam lights come on
and the
light illuminates.
s2Pull the lever back to select the low beam.
s3Pulling and releasing the lever flashes the
headlight high beams on and off.
Battery saver system
If the ignition switch is turned OFF while the
headlight switch is in theorposi-
tion, the headlights will turn off after 5 minutes.
CAUTION
cBe sure to turn the light switch to the
OFF position when you leave the ve-
hicle for extended periods of time, oth-
erwise the battery will go dead.
cNever leave the light switch on when
the engine is not running for extended
periods of time even if the headlights
turn off automatically.
DAYTIME RUNNING LIGHT SYSTEM
(Canada only)
The headlights automatically illuminate at a re-
duced intensity when the engine is started with
the parking brake released. The daytime running
lights operate with the headlight switch in the
OFF position or in the
position. Turn the
headlight switch to theposition for full
illumination when driving at night.
If the parking brake is applied before the engine is
started, the daytime running lights do not illumi-
nate. The daytime running lights illuminate when
the parking brake is released. The daytime run-
ning lights will remain on until the ignition switch
is turned off.
WARNING
When the daytime running light system is
active, tail lights on your vehicle are not
on. It is necessary at dusk to turn on your
headlights. Failure to do so could cause
an accident injuring yourself and others.
LIC0318
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INSTRUMENT BRIGHTNESS
CONTROL
The instrument cluster illuminates when the igni-
tion switch is in ON position.
The instrument brightness control operates when
the headlight control switch is in the
AUTO,
orposition.
Turn the control to adjust the brightness of instru-
ment panel lights when driving at night.
The instrument brightness control will not adjust
the brightness when the headlights or parking
lights are off.
TURN SIGNAL SWITCH
Turn signal
s1Move the lever up or down to signal the
turning direction. When the turn is com-
pleted, the turn signals cancel automatically.
Lane change signal
s2To signal a lane change, move the lever up or
down to the point where the indicator light
begins to flash, but the lever does not latch.
FOG LIGHT SWITCH (if so equipped)
Normal operation of the fog lights in the
ONposition:
Headlight switch in the AUTO position; day-
time operation
cFog lights, marker and taillights come ON.
cHeadlights do not come ON.
cDash readouts dim unless the dimmer
switch is on full bright.
WIC0273LIC0319WIC0320
2-22Instruments and controls
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cIf the ignition switch is in the OFF position
with the fog lights turned ON, a warning
chime will sound indicating the fog lights
were left ON. The fog lights will be turned
OFF by the Battery Saver function approxi-
mately 5 minutes after the last door is
closed.
cIf the ignition switch is turned to the ON
position after the fog lights were turned OFF
by the Battery Saver function, the fog lights
will immediately come back ON.
Headlight switch in the AUTO position;
nighttime operation
cFog lights, marker and taillights come ON.
cHeadlights come ON.
The lights can be adjusted to turn ON in
brighter or dimmer environments. See
your NISSAN dealer to have the sensi-
tivity setting adjusted.
cDash readouts dim unless the dimmer
switch is on full bright.
cIf the ignition switch is in the OFF position
with the fog lights turned ON, the fog lights
will be turned OFF by the Twilight Sentinel
function approximately 45 seconds after the
last door is closed.The default setting is 45 seconds. See
your NISSAN dealer to have this time
adjusted up to 180 seconds.
cIf any door is opened when the ignition
switch is in the OFF position, the Twilight
Sentinel function operates for approximately
5 minutes. After approximately 5 minutes,
the lights will turn OFF due to the Battery
Saver function.
cIf the ignition switch is turned to the ON
position after the fog lights were turned OFF
by the Twilight Sentinel function, the fog
lights and the headlights will come ON to-
gether when the Auto Light Sensor deter-
mines it is dark enough. The fog lights will
now operate independently of the headlights
only if the headlight switch is turned OFF.
cWhen the high beams are turned ON, the
fog lights will turn OFF. The fog lights will
come back ON when the high beams are
turned OFF.
Headlights turned ON and OFF by the
driver (no AUTO headlight function) ; day or
nighttime operation
cSame operation as “Headlight switch in the
AUTO position; daytime operation” de-
scribed above.Some of the Battery Saver and Twilight
Sentinel functions can be turned ON and
OFF or adjusted. Please see your NISSAN
dealer if you have any questions.
To turn the fog lights OFF, turn the switch to the
OFF position.
The fog lights automatically turn off whenever the
high beam headlight function is selected.
Instruments and controls2-23
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Push the switch on to warn other drivers when
you must stop or park under emergency condi-
tions. All turn signal lights flash.
WARNING
cIf stopping for an emergency, be sure to
move the vehicle well off the road.
cDo not use the hazard warning flashers
while moving on the highway unless
unusual circumstances force you to
drive so slowly that your vehicle might
become a hazard to other traffic.cTurn signals do not work when the haz-
ard warning flasher lights are on.
The flashers will operate with the ignition switch
in any position.
Some state laws may prohibit the use of
the hazard warning flasher switch while
driving.
To sound the horn, push the center pad area of
the steering wheel.
WARNING
Do not disassemble the horn. Doing so
could affect proper operation of the
supplemental front air bag system. Tam-
pering with the supplemental front air bag
system may result in serious personal
injury.
WIC0275WIC0249
HAZARD WARNING FLASHER
SWITCHHORN
2-24Instruments and controls
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