2008 NISSAN NOTE parking brake

5Starting and drivingStarting and driving
Running-in schedule ................................................ 5-2
Before starting the engine ........................................ 5-2
Precautions when starting and driving ...................... 5-3
Exhaust gas (Carbon Monoxide) ......................... 5-3
Three-way catalyst (Petrol engine models)................ 5-4
To help prevent damage ..................................... 5-4
Turbocharger system (Diesel engine models) ........... 5-4
Diesel particulate filter (where fitted) ........................ 5-5
Care when driving ................................................... 5-5
Engine cold start period ...................................... 5-5
Loading luggage ................................................. 5-5
Driving on wet roads ........................................... 5-5
Driving under winter conditions ........................... 5-5
Ignition switch.......................................................... 5-6
Manual transmission ........................................... 5-6
Automatic transmission ....................................... 5-6
Steering lock ...................................................... 5-7
Key positions ...................................................... 5-7
NISSAN Anti-Theft System (NATS)..................... 5-7
Ignition knob (where fitted)....................................... 5-7
Manual transmission ........................................... 5-8
Automatic transmission ....................................... 5-8
Steering lock ...................................................... 5-8
Ignition knob position .......................................... 5-8
Emergency key – Intelligent Key dead battery
situation .............................................................. 5-9
NISSAN Anti-Theft System (NATS)..................... 5-9
Starting the engine................................................... 5-10
Driving ..................................................................... 5-11
Driving with manual transmission......................... 5-11Driving with automatic transmission..................... 5-12
Speed limiter ........................................................... 5-15
Speed limiter operations ..................................... 5-16
Cruise control system .............................................. 5-18
Precautions on cruise control system .................. 5-19
Cruise control system operations ........................ 5-19
Ultrasonic Parking Sensor (where fitted) .................. 5-22
Parking .................................................................... 5-22
Trailer towing ........................................................... 5-24
Operating precautions ........................................ 5-24
Tyre pressure ..................................................... 5-25
Safety chains ...................................................... 5-25
Trailer brakes...................................................... 5-25
Trailer detection (where fitted) ............................ 5-25
Installation of coupling device ............................. 5-25
Vehicle security........................................................ 5-26
Power steering system............................................. 5-27
Brake system ........................................................... 5-27
Brake precautions .............................................. 5-27
Anti-lock Braking System (ABS).......................... 5-28
Electronic Stability Programme (ESP) system
(where fitted) ........................................................... 5-29
Electronic Stability Programme (ESP) OFF
switch................................................................. 5-30
Cold weather driving................................................ 5-31
Battery ............................................................... 5-31
Engine coolant .................................................... 5-31
Tyre equipment ................................................... 5-31
Special winter equipment.................................... 5-32
Corrosion protection ........................................... 5-32

•Avoid starting off, accelerating or stopping sud-
denly.
•Avoid sharp turns or lane changes.
•Avoid sudden steering actions.
•Extra distance should be kept from the vehicle in
front.
1.OFF
WARNING
Never remove the key or turn the ignition switch
to the LOCK position while driving. The steering
wheel will lock and could cause the driver to lose
control of the vehicle. This could result in serious
vehicle damage or personal injury.
The switch includes an anti-theft steering lock de-
vice.
There is an “OFF” position between the LOCK and
Acc positions, although it is not shown on the lock
cylinder. When the ignition switch is in the “OFF”
position, the steering wheel is not locked.
MANUAL TRANSMISSION
To lock the steering wheel, turn the ignition switch
to the LOCK position and remove the key from the
ignition switch, then turn the steering clockwise. Tounlock the steering wheel, insert the ignition key and
turn it gently while rotating the steering wheel slightly
right and left.
The ignition key can only be removed when the
switch is in the LOCK position (Normal parking po-
sition) (0).
AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
The ignition lock is designed so that the key cannot
be turned to LOCK and removed until the selector
lever is moved to the P (Park) position.
When removing the key from the LOCK position of
the ignition switch, make sure that the selector lever
is in the P (Park) position.
The selector lever can only be moved from the P
(Park) position when the ignition switch is in the ON
position and the footbrake pedal is depressed.
To remove the key from the ignition switch:
1. Move the selector lever into the P (Park) posi-
tion.
2. Turn the key to the LOCK position.
3. Remove the key from the ignition switch.
If the key is removed from the ignition switch, the
selector lever cannot be moved from the P (Park)
position.
When the key cannot be turned toward the LOCK
position, proceed as follows to remove the key:
1. Move the selector lever into the P (Park) posi-
tion.NSD238Z
IGNITION SWITCH
5-6Starting and driving

CAUTION
•Make sure you carry the Intelligent Key with
you when operating the vehicle.
•Never leave the Intelligent Key inside the ve-
hicle when you leave the vehicle.
•If the Intelligent Key is too far away from the
driver, the vehicle may not start.
MANUAL TRANSMISSION
The ignition lock is designed so that the knob can
ONLY be turned to the LOCK position when the
PUSH release button has first been depressed.
NOTE
•The ignition knob warning light () blinks
and the buzzer sounds twice when the igni-
tion knob is turned to the “OFF” position. De-
press the PUSH release button
j2 , then turn
the ignition knob to the LOCK position. See
“Warning/indicator lights and audible
reminders” in the “2. Instruments and
controls” section for further details regarding
the functionality of the ignition knob warning
light.
•When the emergency key is being used, the
PUSH release buttonj2 must be depressed
in order to turn the ignition knob to the LOCK
position although the ignition knob warning
light (
) will not blink and the buzzer will not
sound.
AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
The ignition knob is designed so that it cannot be
turned to the LOCK position until the selector lever
is moved to the P (Park) position. The selector lever
can only be moved from the P (Park) position when
the ignition knob is in the ON position and the
footbrake pedal is depressed.
NOTE
The ignition knob warning light (
) blinks and a
buzzer sounds twice when the ignition knob is
turned to the “OFF” position. Make sure that the
selector lever is in the P (Park) position, then turn
the ignition knob to the LOCK position. See
“Warning/indicator lights and audible reminders”
in the “2. Instruments and controls” section for
further details regarding the functionality of the
ignition knob warning light.
STEERING LOCK
To lock the steering wheel
In the LOCK position, turn the steering wheel 1/6 of
a turn from the straight up position.
To unlock the steering wheel
Depress the brake pedal, push the ignition knob and
turn it towards the Acc position while gently rotating
the steering wheel right or left.
IGNITION KNOB POSITION
LOCK (Normal parking position) (0)
The steering lock can be only be locked from this
position.
“OFF” (1)
The engine can be turned off without locking the
steering wheel.
Acc (Accessories) (2)
This position activates electrical accessories, such
as the radio, when the engine is not running.
ON (Normal operating position) (3)
This position turns on the ignition system and the
electrical accessories.
START (4)
The engine starter activates and the engine will start.
As soon as the engine has started, release the knob
immediately. It will return to the ON position.
5-8Starting and driving

Due to the higher idle speeds when the en-
gine is cold, extra caution must be taken when
shifting the selector lever into the driving po-
sition immediately after starting the engine.
•PARKING THE VEHICLE
Depress the footbrake pedal and, once the
vehicle stops, move the selector lever into the
P (Park) position, pull the handbrake lever and
release the footbrake pedal.
Starting the vehicle
1. After starting the engine, fully depress the foot-
brake pedal before shifting the selector lever from
P (Park) to R (Reverse), D (Drive), 2 (Second
gear) or 1 (Low gear).
2. Keep the footbrake pedal depressed and push
the selector lever button to shift into a driving
gear.
3. Release the handbrake and footbrake, then
gradually start the vehicle in motion by pressing
the accelerator pedal.
The automatic transmission is designed so that the
footbrake pedalMUSTbe depressed before shifting
from P (Park) to any drive position while the ignition
switch is ON.A.RHD models
B.LHD models
To move the selector lever:
mPush the button while depressing the
brake pedal.
mPush the button to shift.
mShift without depressing the brake
pedal.
Shifting
Push the button to shift into P (Park), R (Reverse) or
from 2 (Second gear) to 1 (Low gear). All other
positions can be selected without pushing the but-
ton.
P (Park):
Use this position when the vehicle is parked or when
starting the engine. Always make sure that the ve-
hicle is completely stopped before moving the se-
lector lever into the P (Park) position. For maximumsafety, the footbrake pedal must be depressed be-
fore moving the selector lever into the P (Park) posi-
tion. Use this position together with the handbrake.
When parking on a hill, first depress the footbrake
pedal, apply the handbrake and then shift into the P
(Park) position.
R (Reverse):
CAUTION
Shift into this position only after the vehicle has
completely stopped.
Use this position to reverse the vehicle.
N (Neutral):
Neither forward nor reverse gear is engaged. The
engine can be started in this position. You may shift
to N and restart a stalled engine while driving the
vehicle.
D (Drive):
Use this position for all normal forward driving.
2 (Second gear):
Use this position for driving uphill or engine braking
on downhill grades.
1 (Low gear):
Use this position when driving slowly on steep hills,
slow driving through deep snow, sand or mud, or
for maximum engine braking on steep downhill
grades.
NSD308Z
Starting and driving5-13

•Push the cruise control main “ON/OFF” switchj5 . The cruise control symbolj7 , the CRUISE
indicatorj6 , the SET indicatorj8 , and the set
speed valuej9 will turn off in the combination
meter display.
•Push the speed limiter main “ON/OFF” switchj5 . The cruise control system information in the
combination meter will be replaced with the
speed limiter information. For details see “Speed
limiter” earlier in this section.
•When the vehicle is stopped and the ignition is
turned to the off position.
Turning off the cruise control system will erase
the cruise control system memory.Ultrasonic sensors
jA , fitted in the vehicle’s rear
bumper, measure the distance between the vehicle
and an obstacle when reversing. When reverse gear
is engaged a beeping sound is heard. The frequency
of the beeps will increase the closer the vehicle
comes to an obstacle until, the sound becomes a
constant beep when, the vehicle is approximately
35 cm (14 in) from the obstacle.
NOTE
•This system is intended as an aid to reversing,
to be used in conjunction with your rear view
mirror.
•Make sure that the ultrasonic sensors are not
obscured (by dirt, mud, snow, etc.).
WARNING
•Do not park the vehicle over flammable mate-
rials, such as dry grass, waste paper, or rags.
They may ignite and cause a fire.
•Safe parking procedures require that:
– The handbrake is applied.
– The gear lever is placed in an appropriate
gear for manual transmission models.
– The selector lever is placed in the P (Park)
position for automatic transmission mod-
els.
Failure to follow the above recommenda-
tions could cause the vehicle to move un-
expectedly or roll away and result in an
accident.
•Never leave the engine running while the ve-
hicle is unattended.
•Do not leave children or adults who would
normally require the support of others alone
in your vehicle. Pets should also not be left
alone either. On hot, sunny days, tempera-
tures in a closed vehicle could quickly be-
come high enough to cause severe or possi-
bly fatal injuries to people or animals.
•Manual transmission models:
Depress the clutch pedal and place the gear
lever in the R (Reverse) position. When parking
on an uphill gradient, place the gear lever in the
1st (Low gear) position.
NSD358
ULTRASONIC PARKING SENSOR
(where fitted)PARKING
5-22Starting and driving

•Turn the ignition switch to the LOCK position
and remove the key/Intelligent Key (where fit-
ted).Your new vehicle was designed to be used primarily
to carry passengers and luggage.
Remember that towing a trailer will place additional
loads on your vehicle’s engine, drive-train, steering,
braking and other systems. Towing a trailer will also
exaggerate other conditions, such as sway caused
by crosswinds, rough road surfaces or passing
trucks. Driving style and speed must be adjusted
according to the circumstances. Before towing a
trailer, see a NISSAN dealer or qualified workshop
for an explanation of towing equipment and its
proper use.
OPERATING PRECAUTIONS
•Avoid towing a trailer during the running-in
schedule.
•Choose proper coupling devices (trailer hitch,
safety chain, roof carrier, etc.) for your vehicle
and trailer. These devices are available from a
NISSAN dealer or qualified workshop where you
can also obtain more detailed information about
trailer towing.
Heavy-duty kits are available at a NISSAN dealer
or qualified workshop.
•It is advisable to contact a NISSAN dealer or
qualified workshop for towing details, before
towing a trailer up steep slopes for long dis-
tances.
•Never allow the total trailer load (trailer weight
plus its cargo weight) to exceed the maximum
set for the coupling device.Contact a NISSAN dealer or qualified workshop
for more information on this matter.
•The trailer must be loaded so that heavy goods
are distributed over the axle and as low in the
trailer as possible. Poor load distribution can se-
riously affect the stability of the trailer and tow
vehicle.
•Do not exceed the maximum permitted vertical
load on the trailer hitch.
•Before driving, make sure that the lighting sys-
tem of the trailer works properly.
•Avoid abrupt starts, accelerations and stops.
•Avoid sharp turns and lane changes.
•Always drive your vehicle at a moderate speed.
•Always block the wheels on both vehicle and
trailer when parking. Apply the handbrake (where
fitted) on the trailer. Parking on a steep slope is
not recommended.
If parking on a steep slope is unavoidable it is
also advisable to put the vehicle into gear, or
select P (Park, AT models), and turn the front
wheels into the kerb (in addition to the other pre-
cautions described). Before parking on a steep
slope consider the incline (the towing weights
quoted are for a 12% slope).
•Follow the trailer manufacturer’s instructions.
TRAILER TOWING
5-24Starting and driving

WARNING
•If the Electrically Power Assisted Steering
warning light (EPAS) illuminates while driv-
ing, the power assist for steering will be dis-
abled. Greater steering efforts are required to
operate the steering wheel, especially in
sharp turns and at low speed. Stop the ve-
hicle as soon as safely possible and contact a
NISSAN dealer or qualified workshop for fur-
ther assistance.
•In certain circumstances, factors external to
the EPAS system may contribute to the illumi-
nation of the warning light. If the warning light
illuminates, stop the vehicle as soon as safely
possible if driving. Turn the ignition switch to
the “OFF” position and wait for approximately
20 seconds, then turn the ignition switch to
the ON position again. If the light remains illu-
minated, we recommend you to contact a
NISSAN dealer or qualified workshop. See
“Warning/indicator lights and audible
reminders” in the “2. Instruments and
controls” section for further details regarding
the EPAS warning light.
The EPAS (Electrically Power Assisted Steering)
system is designed to assist steering.
The steering may appear to feel slightly stiff follow-
ing parking manoeuvres including a great deal of
steering. This is not a malfunction; it is caused by a
control system designed to prevent the motor fromoverheating. No servicing is required. The EPAS
system will return to normal operation the next time
the vehicle is driven.
Similarly, the EPAS system may not provide full as-
sistance during periods of reduced battery voltage
but will recover once normal battery voltage is re-
stored.
If the EPAS warning light comes on while the engine
is running, it may indicate that the EPAS system is
not working properly. As result greater steering ef-
forts are required to steer the steering wheel, espe-
cially in sharp turns and at low speeds. Have the
system checked by a NISSAN dealer or qualified
workshop as soon as possible.
NOTE
Incorrectly inflated tyres can lead to poor steer-
ing ability and make the driver suspect a steering
problem: keep the vehicle’s tyres inflated to the
correct pressure at all times.
CAUTION
Any malfunction or accident that could have dam-
aged the steering components (including actual
or attempted theft damage) should be reported
to a NISSAN dealer or qualified workshop.The brake system has two separate hydraulic cir-
cuits. If one circuit malfunctions, you will still have
braking ability with two wheels.
BRAKE PRECAUTIONS
Vacuum assisted brake
The brake booster aids braking by using engine
vacuum. If the engine stops or the drive belt is bro-
ken, you can stop the vehicle by depressing the
brake pedal. However, greater foot pressure on the
brake pedal will be required to stop the vehicle and
the stopping distance will be longer.
Wet brakes
When the vehicle is washed or driven through wa-
ter, the brakes may get wet. As a result, your brak-
ing distance will be longer and the vehicle may pull
to one side during braking.
To dry brakes, drive the vehicle at a safe speed
while lightly pressing the brake pedal to heat up the
brakes. Do this until the brakes return to normal.
Avoid driving the vehicle at high speeds until the
brakes function correctly.
Using the brakes
Avoid resting your foot on the brake pedal while
driving. This will overheat the brakes, wear out the
brake linings and pads faster and reduce fuel
economy performance.
To help reduce brake wear and to prevent the brakes
from overheating, reduce speed and downshift to a
lower gear before going down a slope or long down-
POWER STEERING SYSTEM BRAKE SYSTEM
Starting and driving5-27

Lights*:
Clean the headlights on a regular basis. Make sure
that the headlights, stop lights, tail lights, turn signal
lights, and other lights are all operating properly and
installed securely. Also check headlight aim.
Tyres*:
Check the pressure with a gauge periodically when
at a service station (including the spare) and adjust
to the specified pressure if necessary. Check care-
fully for damage, cuts or excessive wear.
Tyre rotation*:
Tyres should be rotated at least every 10,000 km
(6,000 miles). However, the timing for tyre rotation
may vary according to your driving habits and road
surface conditions.
Wheel alignment and balance:
If the vehicle pull to either side while driving on a
straight and level road, or if you detect uneven or
abnormal tyre wear, there may be a need for wheel
alignment. If the steering wheel or seat vibrates at
normal highway speeds, wheel balancing may be
needed.
Wheel bolts:
When checking the tyres, make sure no wheel bolts
are missing, and check for any loose wheel bolts.
Tighten if necessary.Windscreen:
Clean the windscreen on a regular basis. Check the
windscreen at least every six months for cracks or
other damage. Have a damaged windscreen re-
paired by a qualified repair facility.
Wiper blades*:
Check for cracks or wear if they do not wipe prop-
erly.
Under the bonnet and vehicle
The maintenance items listed here should be
checked periodically, e.g. each time you check the
engine oil or refuel.
Battery*:
Check if the green indicator on the top of the main-
tenance free battery is visible. If it is not visible,
replace the battery as soon as possible.
Vehicles operated in high temperatures or under
severe conditions, check the fluid level frequently.
Brake and clutch fluid level*:
Make sure that the brake and clutch fluid level is
between the MAX and MIN lines on the reservoir.
Engine coolant level*:
Check the coolant level when the engine is cold.
Engine drive belts*:
Make sure that the drive belts are not frayed, worn,
cracked or oily.Engine oil level*:
Check the level after parking the vehicle on a level
surface and turning off the engine.
Fluid leaks:
Check under the vehicle for fuel, oil, water or other
fluid leaks after the vehicle has been parked for a
while. Water dripping from the air conditioner after
use is normal. If you should notice any leaks or if
petrol fumes are evident, check for the cause and
have it corrected immediately.
Window washer fluid*:
Check that there is adequate fluid in the tank.
Inside the vehicle
The maintenance items listed here should be
checked on a regular basis, such as when perform-
ing periodic maintenance, cleaning the vehicle, etc.
Accelerator pedal:
Check the pedal for smooth operation and make
sure that the pedal does not catch or require uneven
effort. Keep the floor mats away from the pedal.
Brake pedal*:
Check the pedal for smooth operation. If the brake
pedal suddenly goes down further than normal, the
pedal feels spongy or the vehicle seems to take
longer to stop, contact a NISSAN dealer or qualified
workshop immediately. Keep the floor mat away
from the pedal.
Maintenance and do-it-yourself8-3