prevent one drive wheel from slipping by
transferring power to a non-slipping drive
wheel. The
indicator light flashes if
this occurs. All other VDC functions are off
and the
indicator light will not flash.
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 fea-
ture that tests the system each time you
start the engine and move the vehicle for-
ward 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 indica-
tion of a malfunction.
WARNING
∙ The VDC system is designed to help the driver maintain stability but does
not prevent accidents due to abrupt
steering operation at high speeds or
by careless or dangerous driving
techniques. Reduce vehicle speed and
be especially careful when driving and
cornering on slippery surfaces and al-
ways drive carefully. ∙ Do not modif y the vehicle’s suspen-
sion. If suspension parts such as
shock absorbers, struts, springs, sta-
bilizer bars, bushings and wheels are
not NISSAN recommended for your
vehicle or are extremely deteriorated,
the VDC system may not operate
properly. This could adversely affect
vehicle handling performance, and
the
indicator light may flash or
the
indicator light may
illuminate.
∙ If brake related parts such as brake pads, rotors and calipers are not
NISSAN recommended or are ex-
tremely deteriorated, the VDC system
may not operate properly and both
the
and theindicator
lights may illuminate.
∙ If engine control related parts are not NISSAN recommended or are ex-
tremely deteriorated, both the
andindicator lights may
illuminate. ∙ When driving on extremely inclined
surfaces such as higher banked cor-
ners, the VDC system may not operate
properly and the
indicator light
may flash or the
indicator light
may illuminate. Do not drive on these
types of roads.
∙ When driving on an unstable surface such as a turntable, ferry, elevator or
ramp, the
indicator light may
flash or the
indicator light may
illuminate. This is not a malfunction.
Restart the engine af ter driving onto
a stable surface.
∙ If wheels or tires other than the NISSAN recommended ones are used,
the VDC system may not operate
properly and the
indicator light
may flash or the
indicator light
may illuminate.
∙ The VDC system is not a substitute for winter tires or tire chains on a snow
covered road.
5-34Starting and driving
BRAKE FORCE DISTRIBUTION
During braking while driving through turns,
the system optimizes the distribution of
force to each of the four wheels depending
on the radius of the turn.
WARNING
∙ The VDC system is designed to helpthe driver maintain stability but does
not prevent accidents due to abrupt
steering operation at high speeds or
by careless or dangerous driving
techniques. Reduce vehicle speed and
be especially careful when driving and
cornering on slippery surfaces and al-
ways drive carefully.
∙ Do not modif y the vehicle’s suspen- sion. If suspension parts such as
shock absorbers, struts, springs, sta-
bilizer bars, bushings and wheels are
not NISSAN recommended for your
vehicle or are extremely deteriorated,
the VDC system may not operate
properly. This could adversely affect
vehicle handling performance, and
the
indicator light may flash or
the
indicator light may
illuminate. ∙ If brake related parts such as brake
pads, rotors and calipers are not
NISSAN recommended or are ex-
tremely deteriorated, the VDC system
may not operate properly and both
the
andindicator lights
may illuminate.
∙ If engine control related parts are not NISSAN recommended or are ex-
tremely deteriorated, both the
and theindicator lights may
illuminate.
∙ When driving on extremely inclined surfaces such as higher banked cor-
ners, the VDC system may not operate
properly and the
indicator light
may flash or the
indicator light
may illuminate. Do not drive on these
types of roads.
∙ When driving on an unstable surface such as a turntable, ferry, elevator or
ramp, the
indicator light may
flash or the
indicator light may
illuminate. This is not a malfunction.
Restart the engine af ter driving onto
a stable surface. ∙ If wheels or tires other than the
NISSAN recommended ones are used,
the VDC system may not operate
properly and the
indicator light
may flash or the
indicator light
may illuminate.
∙ The VDC system is not a substitute for winter tires or tire chains on a snow
covered road.
Starting and driving5-35
DRIVING ON SNOW OR ICE
WARNING
∙ Wet ice (32°F, 0°C and freezing rain),very cold snow or ice can be slick and
very hard to drive on. The vehicle will
have much less traction or “grip” un-
der these conditions. Try to avoid driv-
ing on wet ice until the road is salted
or sanded.
∙ Whatever the condition, drive with caution. Accelerate and slow down
with care. If accelerating or down-
shif ting too fast, the drive wheels will
lose even more traction.
∙ Allow more stopping distance under these conditions. Braking should be
started sooner than on dry pavement.
∙ Allow greater following distances on slippery roads.
∙ Watch for slippery spots (glare ice). These may appear on an otherwise
clear road in shaded areas. If a patch
of ice is seen ahead, brake before
reaching it. Try not to brake while on
the ice, and avoid any sudden steering
maneuvers. ∙ Do not use the cruise control (if so
equipped) on slippery roads.
∙ Snow can trap dangerous exhaust gases under your vehicle. Keep snow
clear of the exhaust pipe and from
around your vehicle.
ENGINE BLOCK HEATER (if so
equipped)
Engine block heaters are used to assist
with cold temperature starting.
The engine block heater should be used
when the outside temperature is 20°F (-7°C)
or lower.
WARNING
∙ Do not use your engine block heaterwith an ungrounded electrical system
or a 2-pronged adapter. You can be
seriously injured by an electrical
shock if you use an ungrounded
connection.
∙ Disconnect and properly store the en- gine block heater cord before starting
the engine. Damage to the cord could
result in an electrical shock and can
cause serious injury. ∙ Use a heavy-duty 3-wire, 3-pronged
extension cord rated for at least 10 A.
Plug the extension cord into a Ground
Fault Interrupt (GFI) protected,
grounded 110-VAC outlet. Failure to
use the proper extension cord or a
grounded outlet can result in a fire or
electrical shock and cause serious
personal injury.
To use the engine block heater: 1. Turn the engine off.
2. Open the hood and unwrap the engine block heater cord.
3. Plug the engine block heater cord into a grounded 3-wire, 3-pronged exten-
sion cord.
4. Plug the extension cord into a Ground Fault Interrupt (GFI) protected,
grounded 110-volt AC (VAC) outlet.
5. The engine block heater must be plugged in for at least2-4hours, de-
pending on outside temperatures, to
properly warm the engine coolant. Use
an appropriate timer to turn the engine
block heater on.
6. Before starting the engine, unplug and properly store the cord to keep it away
from moving parts.
Starting and driving5-37
TIRE PRESSURE MONITORING
SYSTEM (TPMS) (if so equipped)
This vehicle is equipped with the Tire Pres-
sure Monitoring System (TPMS). It monitors
tire pressure of all tires except the spare.
When the low tire pressure warning light is
lit, and the CHECK TIRE PRES (pressure)
warning message is displayed in the
odometer, one or more of your tires is sig-
nificantly under-inflated. If the vehicle is be-
ing driven with low tire pressure, the TPMS
will activate 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 addi-
tional information, refer to “Warning lights,
indicator lights and audible reminders” in
the “Instruments and controls” section, and
“Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS)” in
the “Starting and driving” section of this
manual.
WARNING
∙ Radio waves could adversely affectelectric medical equipment. Those
who use a pacemaker should contact
the electric medical equipment
manufacturer for the possible influ-
ences before use. ∙ If the low tire pressure warning light
illuminates while driving, avoid sud-
den steering maneuvers or abrupt
braking, reduce vehicle speed, pull off
the road to a safe location and stop
the vehicle as soon as possible. Driv-
ing with under-inflated tires may per-
manently damage the tires and in-
crease the likelihood of tire failure.
Serious vehicle damage could occur
and may lead to an accident and could
result in serious personal injury.
Check the tire pressure for all four
tires. Adjust the tire pressure to the
recommended COLD tire pressure
shown on the Tire and Loading Infor-
mation label to turn the low tire pres-
sure warning light OFF. If you have a
flat tire, replace it with a spare tire as
soon as possible.
∙ When replacing a wheel without TPMS such as the spare tire, TPMS will not
function and the low tire pressure
warning light will flash for approxi-
mately 1 minute. The light will remain
on af ter 1 minute. Have your tires re-
placed and/or TPMS system reset as
soon as possible. It is recommended
that you visit a NISSAN dealer for
these services. ∙ Do not inject any tire liquid or aerosol
tire sealant into the tires, as this may
cause a malfunction of the tire pres-
sure sensors.
∙ Replacing tires with those not origi- nally specified by NISSAN could affect
the proper operation of the TPMS.
CHANGING A FLAT TIRE
If you have a flat tire, follow the instructions
below:
Stopping the vehicle
1. Safely move the vehicle off the road and
away from traffic.
2. Turn on the hazard warning flashers.
3. Park on a level surface and apply the parking brake. Shif t the manual trans-
mission into R (Reverse) or the Continu-
ously Variable Transmission (CVT) into
P (Park).
4. Turn off the engine.
5. Raise the hood to warn other traffic and to signal professional road assis-
tance personnel that you need assis-
tance.
FLAT TIRE
In case of emergency6-3
6. Have all passengers get out of the ve-hicle and stand in a safe place, away
from traffic and clear of the vehicle.
WARNING
∙ Make sure the parking brake is se-curely applied and the manual trans-
mission is shif ted into R (Reverse), or
the Continuously Variable Transmis-
sion (CVT) into P (Park).
∙ Never change tires when the vehicle is on a slope, ice or slippery areas. This is
hazardous.
∙ Never change tires if oncoming traffic is close to your vehicle. Wait for pro-
fessional road assistance.
A. Blocks
B. Flat tire
Blocking wheels
Place suitable blocks at both the front and
back of the wheel diagonally opposite the
flat tire to prevent the vehicle from moving
when it is jacked up.
WARNING
Be sure to block the wheel as the vehicle
may move and result in personal injury.
Getting the spare tire and tools
Open the rear hatch. Remove the Divide-N-
Hide® floor (if so equipped). For additional
information, refer to “Divide-N-Hide® ad-
justable floor” in the “Instruments and con-
trols” section of this manual.
Lif t the floorboard.
LCE2142LCE2083
6-4In case of emergency
WARNING
Always follow the instructions below.
Failure to do so could result in damage
to the charging system and cause per-
sonal injury.1. If the booster battery is in another ve- hicle, position the 2 vehicles to bring
their batteries near each other.
Do not allow the 2 vehicles to touch.
2. Apply the parking brake. Move the shif t lever to N (Neutral) (manual transmis-
sion) or to P (Park) (Continuously Vari-
able Transmission (CVT)). Switch off all unnecessary electrical systems (lights,
heater, air conditioner, etc.).
3. Connect jumper cables in the se- quence illustrated (
A,B,C,D).
CAUTION
∙ Always connect positive () to posi-tive ( ) and negative () to body
ground (for example, strut mounting
bolt, engine lif t bracket, etc.) — not to
the battery. ∙ Make sure the jumper cables do not
touch moving parts in the engine
compartment and that the cable
clamps do not contact any other
metal.
4. Start the engine of the booster vehicle and let it run for a few minutes.
5. Keep the engine speed of the booster vehicle at about 2,000 rpm, and start
the engine of the vehicle being jump
started.
CAUTION
Do not keep the starter motor engaged
for more than 15 seconds. If the engine
does not start, place the ignition switch
in the OFF position and wait 10 seconds
before trying again, otherwise the
starter could be damaged.
6. Af ter starting the engine, carefully dis- connect the negative cable and then
the positive cable.LCE2223
In case of emergency6-13
CAUTION
∙ Do not push start this vehicle. The3-way catalyst may be damaged.
∙ Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT) and manual transmission mod-
els cannot be push-started or tow-
started. Attempting to do so may
cause transmission damage.
∙ For manual transmission models, never try to start the vehicle by tow-
ing it. When the engine starts, the for-
ward surge could cause the vehicle to
collide with the tow vehicle. If your vehicle is overheating (indicated by a
red high temperature warning lightor
an extremely high temperature gauge
reading) or if you feel a lack of engine
power, detect abnormal noise, etc. take the
following steps.
WARNING
∙ Do not continue to drive if your vehicle overheats. Doing so could cause en-
gine damage or a vehicle fire.
∙ To avoid the danger of being scalded, never remove the radiator cap while
the engine is still hot. When the radia-
tor cap is removed, pressurized hot
water will spurt out, possibly causing
serious injury.
∙ Do not open the hood if steam is com- ing out.
1. Move the vehicle safely off the road, ap- ply the parking brake and move the
shif t lever to N (Neutral) (manual trans-
mission) or to P (Park) (continuously
variable transmission).
Do not stop the engine. 2. Turn off the air conditioner. Open all the
windows, move the heater or air condi-
tioner temperature control to maxi-
mum hot and fan control to high
speed.
3. Get out of the vehicle. Look and listen for steam or coolant escaping from the
radiator before opening the hood. (If
steam or coolant is escaping, turn off
the engine.) Do not open the hood fur-
ther until no steam or coolant can be
seen.
4. Open the engine hood.
WARNING
If steam or water is coming from the
engine, stand clear to prevent getting
burned.
5. Visually check drive belts for damage or looseness. Also check if the cooling
fan is running. The radiator hoses and
radiator should not leak water. If cool-
ant is leaking, the water pump belt is
missing or loose, or the cooling fan
does not run, stop the engine.
PUSH STARTING IF YOUR VEHICLE OVERHEATS
6-14In case of emergency
Two-Wheel Drive models with
manual transmission
NISSAN recommends that towing dollies
be used when towing your vehicle or place
the vehicle on the flatbed truck as illus-
trated.
If you must use a pull behind tow truck put
the manual transmission in N (Neutral).
Your vehicle speed should never exceed
60 mph (97 km/h) when towing your ve-
hicle. Af ter towing 500 miles, start and idle
the engine with the transmission in N (Neu-
tral) for two minutes. Failure to idle the en-gine af ter every 500 miles of towing may
cause damage to the transmission’s inter-
nal parts.
CAUTION
Failure to follow these guidelines can
result in severe transmission damage.
∙ If you have to tow manual transmis-
sion models with the rear wheels on
the ground (if you do not use towing
dollies) or four wheels on the ground:
– Always release the parking brake. – Move the transmission shif t lever
to the N (Neutral) position
– Observe the following restricted towing speeds and distances for
manual transmission models only:
Speed: Below 60 mph (97 km/h)
Distance: Less than 500 miles
(805 km)
When towing long distances or speeds in
excess of 60 mph (97 km/h), remove the
propeller shaf t before towing to prevent
damage to the transmission. For additional
information, it is recommended that you
visit a NISSAN dealer.
VEHICLE RECOVERY (freeing a
stuck vehicle)
WARNING
To avoid vehicle damage, serious per-
sonal injury or death when recovering a
stuck vehicle:
∙ Contact a professional towing service to recover the vehicle if you have any
questions regarding the recovery
procedure.
LCE2357
In case of emergency6-17