2012 NISSAN ALTIMA ignition

The battery saver feature will be cancelled if any
of the following occur:● any door is opened.
● shift selector is moved out of the P (Park) .
● ignition switch changes position.
ON (Normal operating position):
This position turns on the ignition system and
electrical accessories.

1. Apply the parking brake.
2.Continuously Variable Transmission
(CVT) model:
Move the shift selector to P (Park) or N
(Neutral) . P (Park) is recommended.
The starter is designed not to operate if
the shift selector is in any of the driving
positions.
Manual transmission (M/T) model:
Move the shift selector to N (Neutral) . De-
press the clutch pedal to the floor.
The starter is designed not to operate
unless the clutch pedal is fully de-
pressed.
3. Push the ignition switch to the ON position. Depress the brake pedal and the clutch
pedal (if so equipped) and push the ignition
switch to start the engine.
To start the engine immediately, push and
release the ignition switch while depressing
the brake pedal with the ignition switch in
any position. ●
If the engine is very hard to start in ex-
tremely cold weather or when restarting,
depress the accelerator pedal a little (ap-
proximately 1/3 to the floor) and while
holding, crank the engine. Release the
accelerator pedal when the engine starts.
● If the engine is very hard to start because
it is flooded, depress the accelerator
pedal all the way to the floor and hold it.
Push the ignition switch to the ON posi-
tion to start cranking the engine. After 5 or
6 seconds, stop cranking by pushing the
ignition switch to LOCK. After cranking
the engine, release the accelerator pedal.
Crank the engine with your foot off the
accelerator pedal by depressing the
brake pedal and pushing the push-button
ignition switch to start the engine. If the
engine starts, but fails to run, repeat the
above procedure.

●Ds (Drive Sport) mode - Move the shift se-
lector over from D (Drive) to the left into the
manual shift gate. The position indicator in
the meter shows a “Ds”. In Ds (Drive Sport)
mode, transmission operation changes to
Sporty” driving shift operation, creating a
more aggressive acceleration feeling than
the D (Drive) mode and a gear change sen-
sation when the driver accelerates quickly.
When the driver selects M (Manual) mode
ratio with shift selector during Ds (Drive
Sport) mode operation, the driver must move
the shift selector from Ds mode to D mode
and back again to re-select Ds (Drive Sport)
mode.
● To cancel the Ds mode, return the shift se-
lector to the D (Drive) position. The trans-
mission returns to the automatic drive mode.
The CVT can operate in a manual drive mode: ● M (Manual) mode - With the shift selector in
the manual shift gate Ds (Drive Sport) mode,
M (Manual) mode can be selected by mov-
ing the shift selector up (+) or down (–) . In M
mode, the transmission will produce notice-
able upshifts and downshifts. The position
indicator in the meter shows a “M”.
Follow these procedures for maximum vehicle
performance and driving enjoyment. NOTE:
Engine power may be automatically re-
duced to protect the CVT if the engine
speed increases quickly when driving on
slippery roads or while being tested on
some dynamometers.
Starting the vehicle
1. After starting the engine, fully depress the
foot brake pedal before moving the shift
selector out of the P (Park) position.
2. Keep the foot brake pedal depressed and move the shift selector into a driving gear.
3. Release the foot brake, then gradually start the vehicle in motion.
4. Stop the vehicle completely before shifting the shift selector to the P (Park) position.
The CVT is designed so the foot brake
pedal MUST be depressed before shifting
from P (Park) to any drive position while
the ignition switch is in the ON position.
The shift selector cannot be moved out of P
(Park) and into any of the other gear posi-
tions if the ignition switch is pushed to the
LOCK position. To move the shift selector:

●In the manual shift mode, the transmis-
sion may shift up automatically to a
higher range than selected if the en-
gine speed is too high. When the ve-
hicle speed decreases, the transmis-
sion automatically shifts down and
shifts to 1st gear before the vehicle
comes to a stop.
● CVT operation is limited to automatic drive
mode when CVT fluid temperature is ex-
tremely low even if manual shift mode is
selected. This is not a malfunction. When
CVT fluid warms up, manual mode can be
selected.
● When the CVT fluid temperature is high, the
shift range may upshift in lower rpm than
usual. This is not a malfunction.
Shift lock release
If the battery charge is low or discharged, the
shift selector may not be moved from the P (Park)
position even with the brake pedal depressed
and the shift selector button pushed.
It will be necessary to jump start or have your
battery charged, see “Jump starting” in the “In
case of emergency” section. Contact your
NISSAN dealer or a professional towing service.
To move the shift selector, complete the following
procedure:
1. Push the ignition switch to the LOCK posi- tion. 2. Apply the parking brake.
3. Using a protective cloth on the tip ofa3mm
screwdriver, remove the shift lock release
cover.
● If available, a plastic trim tool can also be
used.
4. Insert the small screwdriver in the shift lock release slot and push down.
5. Move the shift selector to the N (Neutral) position while holding down the shift lock
release.
If the shift selector cannot be moved out of P
(Park) , have a NISSAN dealer check the trans-
mission as soon as possible.

Accelerator downshift
— in D position —
For passing or hill climbing, depress the accel-
erator pedal to the floor. This shifts the transmis-
sion down into a lower gear, depending on the
vehicle speed.
High fluid temperature protection
mode
This transmission has a high fluid temperature
protection mode. If the fluid temperature be-
comes too high (for example, when climbing
steep grades in high temperature with heavy
loads, such as when towing a trailer) , engine
power and, under some conditions, vehicle
speed will be decreased automatically to reduce
the chance of transmission damage. Vehicle
speed can be controlled with the accelerator
pedal, but the engine and vehicle speed may be
limited.
Fail-safe
If the vehicle is driven under extreme con-
ditions, such as excessive wheel spinning
and subsequent hard braking, the fail-safe
system may be activated. The MIL may
come on to indicate the fail-safe mode is
activated, see “Malfunction Indicator Light
(MIL)” in the “Instrument and controls” sec-tion. This will occur even if all electrical
circuits are functioning properly. In this
case, place the ignition switch in the OFF
position and wait for 10 seconds. Then
push the switch back to the ON position.
The vehicle should return to its normal op-
erating condition. If it does not return to its
normal operating condition, have a
NISSAN dealer check the transmission and
repair if necessary.

WARNING
●Do not stop or park the vehicle over
flammable materials such as dry grass,
waste paper or rags. They may ignite
and cause a fire.
● Safe parking procedures require that
both the parking brake be set and the
transmission placed into P (Park) for
CVT models or in an appropriate gear
for manual transmission models. Fail-
ure to do so could cause the vehicle to
move unexpectedly or roll away and re-
sult in an accident. Make sure the shift selector has been pushed as far for-
ward as it can go and cannot be moved
without depressing the foot brake
pedal.
● Never leave the engine running while
the vehicle is unattended.
● Do not leave children unattended inside
the vehicle. They could unknowingly ac-
tivate switches or controls. Unattended
children could become involved in seri-
ous accidents.
1. Firmly apply the parking brake.
2. Manual transmission models: Place the shift selector in the R (Reverse)
position. When parking on an uphill grade,
place the shift selector in 1st gear.
Continuously Variable Transmission
(CVT) models:
Move the shift selector to the P (Park) posi-
tion.
3. To help prevent the vehicle from rolling into traffic when parked on an incline, it is a good
practice to turn the wheels as illustrated.
● HEADED DOWNHILL WITH CURB:
1
Turn the wheels into the curb and move the
vehicle forward until the curb side wheel
gently touches the curb.
● HEADED UPHILL WITH CURB:
2
Turn the wheels away from the curb and
move the vehicle back until the curb side
wheel gently touches the curb.
● HEADED UPHILL OR DOWNHILL, NO
CURB:
3
Turn the wheels toward the side of the road
so the vehicle will move away from the cen-
ter of the road if it moves.
4. Place the ignition switch in the LOCK posi- tion and remove the key.

The VDC system is automatically reset to on
when the ignition switch is placed in the off
position then back to the on position.
The computer has a built in diagnostic feature
that tests the system each time you start the
engine and move the vehicle forward or in reverse
at a slow speed. When the self-test occurs, you
may hear a clunk noise and/or feel a pulsation in
the brake pedal. This is normal and is not an
indication of a malfunction.

To shut off the engine in an emergency situation
while driving perform the following procedure:
– Rapidly push the push-button ignition switch 3consecutive times, or
– Push and hold the push-button ignition switch for more than 2 seconds.TIRE PRESSURE MONITORING
SYSTEM (TPMS)
This vehicle is equipped with the Tire Pressure
Monitoring System (TPMS) . It monitors tire pres-
sure of all tires except the spare. When the low
tire pressure warning light is lit, and the CHECK
TIRE PRESSURE warning appears in the vehicle
information display, one or more of your tires is
significantly under-inflated. If the vehicle is being
driven with low tire pressure, the TPMS will acti-
vate and warn you of it by the low tire pressure
warning light. This system will activate only when
the vehicle is driven at speeds above 16 MPH
(25 km/h) . For more details, refer to
“Warning/indicator lights and audible reminders”
in the “Instruments and controls” section, and
“Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS)” in the
“Starting and driving” section.