2021 NISSAN MAXIMA engine overheat

ENGINE COOLANT TEMPERATURE
GAUGE
The gauge indicates the engine coolant
temperature. The engine coolant tempera-
ture is within the normal range
O1when
the gauge needle points within the zone
shown in the illustration.
The engine coolant temperature varies
with the outside air temperature and driv-
ing conditions.
CAUTION
If the gauge indicates coolant tem-
perature near the hot (H) end of the
normal range, reduce vehicle speed to
decrease temperature. If the gauge is
over the normal range, stop the vehicle
as soon as safely possible. If the engine
is overheated, continued operation of
the vehicle may seriously damage the
engine. For additional information, see
“If your vehicle overheats” (P. 6-11) for
immediate action required.
FUEL GAUGE
The gauge indicates the approximatefuel
level in the tank.
The gauge may move slightly during brak-
ing, turning, acceleration, or going up or
down hills.
The gauge needle returns to 0 (Empty) af-
ter the ignition switch is placed in the OFF
position.
The low fuel warning message shows in
the vehicle information display when the
amount of fuel in the tank is getting low.
LIC3538LIC2222
2-6Instruments and controls

3. Adjust the desired amount of air usingthe control knob. The climate-controlled
seat blower remains on low speed for
approximately 60 seconds af ter turning
the switch on or selecting the desired
temperature.
4. When the vehicle's interior is warmed or cooled, or before you leave the vehicle,
be sure to turn the control knob to the
OFF (center) position. The indicator light
OBon the control knob goes off with the
switch in the OFF (center) position.
To check the air filter for the climate-
controlled seat, it is recommended that
you visit a NISSAN dealer.
WARNING
Do not use or allow occupants to use
the climate-controlled seats if you or
the occupants cannot monitor seat
temperatures or have an inability to
feel pain in those body parts in contact
with the seat. Use of the climate-
controlled seats by such people could
result in serious injury.
CAUTION
• The battery could run down if the
climate-controlled seat is operated
while the engine is not running.
• Do not use the climate-controlled
seat for extended periods or when no
one is using the seat.
• Do not put anything on the seat
which insulates heat, such as a blan-
ket, cushion, seat cover, etc. Other-
wise, the seat may become
overheated.
• Do not place anything hard or heavy
on the seat or pierce it with a pin or
similar objects. This may result in
damage to the climate-controlled
seat.
• Any liquid spilled on the seat should
be removed immediately with a dry
cloth.
• The climate-controlled seat has an
air filter. Do not operate the climate-
controlled seat without an air filter.
This may result in damage to the
system.
• When cleaning the seat, never use
gasoline, benzine, thinner, or any
similar materials. •
If any malfunctions are found or the
climate-controlled seat does not op-
erate, turn the switch off and have
the system checked. It is recom-
mended that you visit a NISSAN
dealer for this service.
Instruments and controls2-53

The front seats are warmed by built-in
heaters.
1. Start the engine.
2. Push the LO or HI position of the switch,as desired. The indicator light in the
switch will illuminate.
The heater is controlled by a thermostat,
automatically turning the heater on and
off. The indicator light will remain on as
long as the switch is on.
3. When the seat is warmed or before you leave the vehicle, be sure to turn the
switch off.
WARNING
Do not use or allow occupants to use
the seat heater if you or the occupants
cannot monitor elevated seat tem-
peratures or have an inability to feel
pain in body parts that contact the
seat. Use of the seat heater by such
people could result in serious injury.
CAUTION
• The battery could run down if the
seat heater is operated while the en-
gine is not running.
• Do not use the seat heater for ex-
tended periods or when no one is us-
ing the seat.
•
Do not put anything on the seat which
insulates heat, such as a blanket,
cushion, seat cover, etc. Otherwise, the
seat may become overheated.
• Do not place anything hard or heavy
on the seat or pierce it with a pin or
similar object. This may result in
damage to the heater.
• Any liquid spilled on the heated seat
should be removed immediately with
a dry cloth. •
When cleaning the seat, never use
gasoline, benzine, thinner, or any
similar materials.
• If any malfunctions are found or the
heated seat does not operate, turn
the switch off and have the system
checked. It is recommended that you
visit a NISSAN dealer for this service.
LIC3037
HEATED SEAT SWITCHES (if so
equipped)
2-54Instruments and controls

WARNING
Do not use or allow occupants to use
the seat heater if you or the occupants
cannot monitor elevated seat tem-
peratures or have an inability to feel
pain in body parts that contact the
seat. Use of the seat heater by such
people could result in serious injury.
CAUTION
• The battery could run down if the
seat heater is operated while the en-
gine is not running.
• Do not use the seat heater for ex-
tended periods or when no one is us-
ing the seat.
• Do not put anything on the seat
which insulates heat, such as a blan-
ket, cushion, seat cover, etc. Other-
wise, the seat may become
overheated.
• Do not place anything hard or heavy
on the seat or pierce it with a pin or
similar object. This may result in
damage to the heater.
• Any liquid spilled on the heated seat
should be removed immediately with
a dry cloth.
• When cleaning the seat, never use
gasoline, benzine, thinner, or any
similar materials.
• If any malfunctions are found or the
heated seat does not operate, turn
the switch off and have the system
checked. It is recommended you visit
a NISSAN dealer for this service. The rear seats are warmed by built-in heat-
ers. The switches are located on the rear of
the front center console and can be oper-
ated independently of each other.
1. Start the engine.
2. Push the LO or HI position of the switch,
as desired. The indicator light in the
switch will illuminate.
The heater is controlled by a thermostat,
automatically turning the heater on and
off. The indicator light will remain on as
long as the switch is on.
3. When the seat is warmed or before you leave the vehicle, be sure to turn the
switch off.
LIC3037
HEATED REAR SEAT SWITCHES (if so
equipped)
Instruments and controls2-55

•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.
CAUTION
• Do not use leaded gasoline. Deposits
from leaded gasoline will seriously
reduce the three-way catalyst's abil-
ity to help reduce exhaust pollutants.
• Keep your engine tuned up. Malfunc-
tions in the ignition, fuel injection, or
electrical systems can cause overrich
fuel flow into the three-way catalyst,
causing it to overheat. Do not keep
driving if the engine misfires, or if no-
ticeable loss of performance or other
unusual operating conditions are de-
tected. Have the vehicle inspected
promptly. It is recommended that
you visit a NISSAN dealer for this
service.
• Avoid driving with an extremely low
fuel level. Running out of fuel could
cause the engine to misfire, damag-
ing the three-way catalyst.
• Do not race the engine while warm-
ing it up. •
Do not push or tow your vehicle to
start the engine.
TIRE PRESSURE MONITORING
SYSTEM (TPMS)
Each tire, including the spare (if provided),
should be checked monthly when cold and
inflated to the inflation pressure recom-
mended by the vehicle manufacturer on
the vehicle placard or tire inflation pressure
label. (If your vehicle has tires of a different
size than the size indicated on the vehicle
placard or tire inflation pressure label, you
should determine the proper tire inflation
pressure for those tires.)
As an added safety feature, your vehicle
has been equipped with a Tire Pressure
Monitoring System (TPMS) that illuminates
a low tire pressure telltale when one or
more of your tires is significantly under-
inflated. Accordingly, when the low tire
pressure telltale illuminates, you should
stop and check your tires as soon as pos-
sible, and inflate them to the proper pres-
sure. Driving on a significantly under-
inflated tire causes the tire to overheat and
can lead to tire failure. Under-inflation also
reduces fuel efficiency and tire tread life,
and may affect the vehicle’s handling and
stopping ability. Please note that the TPMS is not a substi-
tute for proper tire maintenance, and it is
the driver’s responsibility to maintain cor-
rect tire pressure, even if under-inflation
has not reached the level to trigger illumi-
nation of the TPMS low tire pressure telltale.
Your vehicle has also been equipped with a
TPMS malfunction indicator to indicate
when the system is not operating properly.
The TPMS malfunction indicator is com-
bined with the low tire pressure telltale.
When the system detects a malfunction,
the telltale will flash for approximately one
minute and then remain continuously illu-
minated. This sequence will continue upon
subsequent vehicle start-ups as long as
the malfunction exists. When the malfunc-
tion indicator is illuminated, the system
may not be able to detect or signal low tire
pressure as intended. TPMS malfunctions
may occur for a variety of reasons, includ-
ing the installation of replacement or alter-
nate tires or wheels on the vehicle that
prevent the TPMS from functioning prop-
erly. Always check the TPMS malfunction
telltale af ter replacing one or more tires or
wheels on your vehicle to ensure that the
replacement or alternate tires and wheels
allow the TPMS to continue to function
properly.
Starting and driving5-5

•HEADED UPHILL WITH CURBOB:
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
OC:
Turn the wheels toward the side of the
road so the vehicle will move away
from the center of the road if it moves.
4. Place the ignition switch in the LOCK position.
WARNING
• If the engine is not running or is
turned off while driving, the power
assist for the steering will not work.
Steering will be harder to operate.
• When the power steering warning
light illuminates with the engine run-
ning, there will be no power assist for
the steering. You will still have control
of the vehicle but the steering will be
harder to operate. Have the power
steering system checked. It is recom-
mended that you visit a NISSAN
dealer for this service.
The power steering system is designed to
provide power assist while driving to oper-
ate the steering wheel with light force.
When the steering wheel is operated re-
peatedly or continuously while parking or
driving at a very low speed, the power as-
sist for the steering wheel will be reduced.
This is to prevent overheating of the power
steering system and protect it from getting
damaged. While the power assist is re-
duced, steering wheel operation will be-
come heavy. If the steering wheel opera-
tion is still performed, the power steering
may stop and the power steering warning
light will illuminate. In a safe location, stop the engine and push the ignition switch to
the OFF position. The temperature of the
power steering system will go down af ter a
period of time and the power assist level
will return to normal af ter starting the en-
gine. The power steering warning light will
go off. Avoid repeating such steering wheel
operations that could cause the power
steering system to overheat.
You may hear a noise from the front of the
vehicle when the steering wheel is oper-
ated. This is a normal operational noise
and is not a malfunction.
If the power steering warning light illumi-
nates while the engine is running, it may
indicate the power steering system is not
functioning properly and may need servic-
ing. Have the power steering system
checked. It is recommended that you visit a
NISSAN dealer for this service.
When the power steering warning light illu-
minates with the engine running, there will
be no power assist for the steering but you
will still have control of the vehicle. At this
time, greater steering effort is required to
operate the steering wheel, especially in
sharp turns and at low speeds.
POWER STEERING
5-112Starting and driving

6 In case of emergency
Hazard warning flasher switch..................6-2
Emergency engine shut off ......................6-2
Flat tire ..........................................6-3
Tire Pressure Monitoring System
(TPMS) .......................................6-3
Changing a flat tire ...........................6-4
Jump starting ...................................6-9 Push starting
.................................... 6-11
If your vehicle overheats .........................6-11
Towing your vehicle ............................ 6-12
Towing recommended by NISSAN ...........6-12
Vehicle recovery (freeing a stuck
vehicle) ...................................... 6-13

CAUTION
• Continuously Variable Transmission
(CVT) models cannot be push-
started or tow-started. Attempting
to do so may cause transmission
damage.
• Do not push start this vehicle. The
three-way catalyst may be
damaged. If your vehicle is overheating (indicated by
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 ve-
hicle overheats. Doing so could cause
engine 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
coming out.
1. Move the vehicle safely off the road, ap- ply the parking brake and move the shif t
lever to P (Park).
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 maximum
hot and fan control to high speed. 3. Get out of the vehicle. Look and listen for
steam or coolant escaping from the ra-
diator 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 radia-
tor should not leak water. If coolant is
leaking, the water pump belt is missing
or loose, or the cooling fan does not run,
stop the engine.
WARNING
Be careful not to allow your hands, hair,
jewelry or clothing to come into con-
tact with, or get caught in, engine belts
or the engine cooling fan. The engine
cooling fan can start at any time.
PUSH STARTING IF YOUR VEHICLE OVERHEATS
In case of emergency6-11