2008 NISSAN ALTIMA HYBRID Owners Manual

POWER METER
The power meter indicates the total amount of
power in the hybrid system.
For additional information, see “Meters and
gauges” in the “Instruments and controls” section
of this manual.
HIGH VOLTAGE BATTERY STATUS
METER
The gauge indicates the amount of power in the
high voltage battery.
For additional information, see “Meters and
gauges” in the “Instruments and controls” section
of this manual.
ENERGY FLOW (equipped with
navigation)
When you use this system, make sure the Hybrid
System is in the ready mode.If you use the system with the Hybrid Sys-
tem off (ignition ACC) for a long time, it will
use up all the 12–volt battery power, and
the engine will not start.
Energy flow for various operating modes can be
displayed on the navigation system monitor. The
screen must be set to the Energy Flow mode or
the Energy / Fuel History mode.
To access the Energy Flow screen, you must
agree to the start-up screen. For additional infor-
mation, see “Setting up the start-up screen” in
the “Monitor, climate, audio, phone and voice
recognition systems” section of this manual.
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Press the INFO button on the control panel, then
touch the “Energy Flow” key on the screen.This is an example of the Energy Flow display.
The Energy Flow display varies, depending on
the condition of the vehicle. The graphic does not
reflect the actual motion of the vehicle.
The Energy Flow will display:
cWhen the vehicle is powered only by the
traction motor.
cWhen the vehicle is powered by both the
traction motor and the gasoline engine.
cWhen the vehicle is powered only by the
gasoline engine.
cWhen the vehicle is regenerating and charg-
ing the high voltage battery.cWhen there is no energy flow in the vehicle.
ENERGY / FUEL HISTORY (equipped
with navigation)
The Energy / Fuel History screen appears in the
display with the navigation system when the
screen is in the Energy / Fuel History mode.
To access the Energy / Fuel History screen, you
must agree to the start-up screen. For additional
information, see “Setting up the start-up screen”
in the “Monitor, climate, audio, phone and voice
recognition systems” section of this manual.
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Press the INFO button on the control panel, and
then touch the “Energy / Fuel History” key on the
screen.The Energy / Fuel History can be displayed on the
navigation system monitor. The screen must be
set to the Energy Flow mode or the Energy / Fuel
History mode. This displays the vehicle’s average
fuel consumption and regenerative electric
power at 5 minute intervals.
The displayed values on the screen indicate gen-
eral driving conditions. Accuracy varies with driv-
ing habits and road conditions.1. Regenerated energy in the past 30 minutes:
The regenerated energy in the past 30 min-
utes is indicated with symbols. One symbol
indicates 50 watt hours. The energy of 50
watt hours illuminates a 50 watt bulb for an
hour.
2. Fuel consumption in the past 30 minutes:
Fuel consumption in the past 30 minutes is
displayed.
3. Current fuel consumption (Latest column):
The current fuel consumption is calculated
and displayed based on distance and fuel
consumption.
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Push the ignition switch to the ON position. De-
press the brake pedal and push the ignition
switch when the transmission is in the P (Park)
position to start the Hybrid System.
The READY light illuminates indicating that the
vehicle is ready to be driven. If the ambient tem-
perature is low, the READY may flash and may
take time until the READY light stays on. For
details, see “Starting the Hybrid System” in the
“Starting and driving” section of this manual.
As long as the READY light remains on you can
drive your vehicle using the traction motor even
though the gasoline engine may not be running.Drive your vehicle with smooth accelera-
tion and deceleration.
cWhile driving, energy is recovered through
the regenerative brake as the vehicle decel-
erates. However, for most efficient use, do
not accelerate or decelerate your vehicle
more than necessary.
cAvoid abrupt acceleration and deceleration.
cThe power of the high voltage battery can be
checked on the high voltage battery status
meter. See “High voltage battery status
meter” in this section for details. Gradual or
non-abrupt acceleration and deceleration
will make more effective use of the traction
motor without having to use gasoline engine
power.
cWhen parking, be sure to place the selector
lever in the P (Park) position. While driving,
place the selector lever in the D (Drive)
position.
cThe Hybrid System recharges the high volt-
age battery as necessary. However, the Hy-
brid System can not charge the high voltage
battery when the transmission is in the N
(Neutral) position even if the engine is run-
ning.cIf the high voltage battery becomes dis-
charged, the engine will run for a longer
period of time. Do not keep the transmission
in the N (Neutral) position with the system in
the ready mode.
NOTE:
The gasoline engine starts and stops auto-
matically. It may stop during low load driv-
ing, deceleration or when the vehicle is
stopped.
As long as the READY light remains on, you
can drive your vehicle using the traction
motor even with the gasoline engine
stopped.
The gasoline engine may not stop auto-
matically in the following conditions:
cDuring gasoline engine warm-up.
cDuring high voltage battery charging.
cDuring high or low high voltage battery
temperature.
STARTING THE HYBRID SYSTEM EFFICIENT USE OF YOUR VEHICLE
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HIGH VOLTAGE COMPONENTS
WARNING
cThe Hybrid System uses high voltage up
to 650 V. The system can be hot while
and after starting. Be careful of both the
high voltage and the high temperature.
Obey the caution labels attached to the
vehicle.
cNever touch, disassemble, remove or
replace the high voltage parts, cables
and their connectors. High voltage
cables are orange. Touching, disassem-
bling, removing or replacing those parts
and cables can cause severe burns or
electric shock that may result in serious
injury or death.
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HYBRID VEHICLE PRECAUTIONS
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1. Air conditioner compressor location
2. Electric power steering location
3. 42V DC/DC converter
4. High voltage battery and 12V DC/DC
converter
5. Service disconnect
6. High voltage harnesses
7. Traction motor location
8. Inverter unit
The Hybrid System uses high voltage up to 650
V. High voltage components are indicated in the
illustration. High voltage cables are orange. The
system can be hot while and after starting. Be
careful of both the high voltage and the high
temperature.
HYBRID VEHICLE
CHARACTERISTICS
WARNING
cPay special attention to pedestrians
when the vehicle is powered only by the
traction motor. Because there is no en-
gine noise, pedestrians may not know
the vehicle is moving or about to move
and step into the direction of vehicle
travel.cWhen you leave your vehicle, be sure to
turn off the Hybrid System.
cBe sure to put the transmission in the P
(Park) position because the vehicle can
move when the READY light is on even
if the engine is stopped. When the
READY light is on, do not leave your
vehicle in a shift position other than the
P (Park) position. The vehicle will creep
and start abruptly if the accelerator
pedal is depressed by mistake. This may
cause serious injury or death.
CAUTION
cIf the vehicle is parked for a long time,
the high voltage battery will discharge
gradually. To keep the high voltage bat-
tery in good condition, drive the vehicle
at least once every several months for
at least 30 minutes or ten miles. If the
high voltage battery becomes fully dis-
charged and the vehicle will not start
even with a jump-start to the 12-volt
system, contact your NISSAN dealer.cAfter the 12-volt battery is discon-
nected, run down, or replaced, the
gasoline engine may not stop even
while the vehicle is powered only by the
traction motor. If this condition contin-
ues for several days, take the vehicle to
your NISSAN dealer.
cDo not load large amounts of water in
open containers (aquariums or buck-
ets) into the vehicle. If the water spills
onto the high voltage battery, it may
cause a short circuit and damage the
battery.
High voltage parts and cables on the hybrid
vehicles emit approximately the same amount of
electromagnetic waves as the conventional
gasoline powered vehicles or home electronic
appliances despite of their electromagnetic
shieldings. Unwanted noise may occur in the
reception of a mobile two-way radio.
Charging the high voltage battery while driving is
important. The vehicle cannot run if the high
voltage battery is discharged. In the N (Neutral)
position, the high voltage battery does not re-
charge. Leaving the transmission in the N (Neu-
tral) position for an extended period of time may
discharge the high voltage battery. The high volt-
age battery recharges when the selector lever is
in any position other than N (Neutral) . Repeated
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acceleration also consumes high voltage battery
power, resulting in poor acceleration. Battery
power can be restored by driving at a constant
speed.
When you put the selector lever in the B (Brake)
position and take your foot off the accelerator
pedal, engine braking will be applied. However,
during high speed driving you may feel that en-
gine braking is less effective than that of an
ordinary vehicle. This is normal.
Because the vehicle is powered by both the
gasoline engine and the traction motor, you may
hear a sound coming from the engine compart-
ment, high voltage battery, transmission or the
regenerative brakes. When the gasoline engine
starts and stops with the Hybrid System on, you
may feel a vibration. When accelerating rapidly,
the engine noise may rise. A noise may also be
heard while braking. These are normal character-
istics of the hybrid vehicle.An air vent is located on the rear parcel shelf
sA
to cool the high voltage battery. If the vent is
covered, the battery will overheat resulting in
reduced output performance of the Hybrid Sys-
tem.
You may hear the noise of the cooling fan from the
air vent.CAUTION
Do not place objects over or into the air
vent. The high voltage battery may over-
heat and be damaged.
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CAUTION
Do not load large amounts of water in
open containers (aquariums or buckets)
into the vehicle. If the water spills onto the
high voltage battery, it may cause a short
circuit and damage the battery.
CAUTION
Do not allow any liquid to get on or in the
air vent. It may cause a short circuit and
damage the high voltage battery.
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