# Oh Crap, my bonnets just exploded......



## Paul_G (Apr 4, 2008)

There I was driving down the high street at approx 15 mph, then bang!
At first I thought that something had flew off of the van in front of me and landed on my car, then I notice that my "pedestrian safety device thing" had gone off. Stopped immediately and got out of the car to check if I had hit anything and nothing. No marks on the paintwork, just a load of squashed bugs. Perhaps a rather large bumblebee was enough to trigger it! 

Just hope that Nissan doesn't get funny about this one and decline a warranty claim....

Anyone know how much this costs to fix now? ( I know it used to something ridiculous like 11k, but I though Nissan had reduced their prices).

How long will it take Nissan to get the parts I wonder...


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## Crispy Rice (Apr 28, 2009)

Noone other than a HPC can really tell you, but it will be alot and it will take a long time as you have prob already worked out.

I wouldn't worry about a warrenty claim, there will be data about any collision or lack there off so it shouldn't be a problem.


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## David.Yu (Jun 28, 2001)

This is getting silly.

First to come out with a cheap and simple mod to disable it for track use gets my money. :runaway:

I can't quite bring myself to permanently disable a device that might save someone else's life, but I certainly don't need to worry about it going off after a minor cone collision. Or even absolutely nothing at all as in this case!


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## tomgtr (May 24, 2008)

At least I hope that after all these "incidents" Nissan has decided to keep a few on stock in each country!!!

I really hope Nissan will sort it out very prompt for you!


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## WingedBeast1968 (Sep 18, 2009)

I smacked a pigeon (really really smacked it), with the cars face, and nothing happened. No damage. No pedestrian launcher activation. Just a mushroom cloud of feathers, and a completely extinct pigeon.

What region is your car built for? How old is it?


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## Paul_G (Apr 4, 2008)

WingedBeast1968 said:


> I smacked a pigeon (really really smacked it), with the cars face, and nothing happened. No damage. No pedestrian launcher activation. Just a mushroom cloud of feathers, and a completely extinct pigeon.
> 
> What region is your car built for? How old is it?


UK Car, just under 1 year old.


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## Rich-GT (Apr 2, 2008)

David.Yu said:


> This is getting silly.
> 
> First to come out with a cheap and simple mod to disable it for track use gets my money. :runaway:


Posted this a couple of months ago, have been disconnecting mine on track ever since.

http://www.gtr.co.uk/forum/134041-sportsdriver-day-plastic-cone-gtr-expensive-combination-2.html#post1267518


Rich


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## Wheels (Aug 15, 2009)

i smacked a fox with my GTR mths ago..(fixed by m/hursts now) and it never set the bonnet thing off...took the bumper. splitter intercoolers and rad and aircon rad out so must have been a biggish hit.


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## charles charlie (May 3, 2008)

Yep, I had an unfortunate meeting with a seagull eating a discarded packet of chips (he'd eaten the fish first I guess)....

Apart from potato and seagull gubbins all over my bumper, no exploding bonnet.


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## Paul_G (Apr 4, 2008)

charles charlie said:


> Yep, I had an unfortunate meeting with a seagull eating a discarded packet of chips (he'd eaten the fish first I guess)....
> 
> Apart from potato and seagull gubbins all over my bumper, no exploding bonnet.


What sort of speed were you going?


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## Rich-GT (Apr 2, 2008)

I suspect that the system requires a particular speed range and shock type in order to trigger. Unfortunatly cones on a handling course or tow bars on stationary cars meet the criteria, to trigger with no impact must however just be a fault?


Rich


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## charles charlie (May 3, 2008)

Paul_G said:


> What sort of speed were you going?


30-40 ish I think.

Possibly slower as I braked hard when I realised the seagull was more interested in his chips than imminent death....


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## Paul_G (Apr 4, 2008)

Update from Marshalls in Cambridge:

They called concierge to arrange pickup and for me to have a courtesy car. They did tell me that they have seen this once before in Dec when snow fell off a lorry onto someone's bonnet. The guy is still waiting for the parts....

The dealer is advised not to let the car go without the system being active, so I will have to sign some kind of disclaimer to get my car back. Not sure where I stand legally with this if I actually hit somone.

Any idea what loan car I can expect?

Will add another update when the Concierge calls.


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## imattersuk (Nov 28, 2008)

A poxy golf diesel normally from Marshalls.

I also heard Wayne has left Marshalls so I hope they have a new GTR technician.

Try and insist on Manchetts for the concierge, they picked mine up for Marshalls when it was serviced, the guy was top notch.

Good luck hope it get's sorted


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## Elliott_GTR (Dec 13, 2009)

imattersuk said:


> A poxy golf diesel normally from Marshalls./QUOTE]
> 
> You'll be lucky...


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## TAZZMAXX (Mar 9, 2010)

Just a thought, but when these cars come out of warranty and are sold on, are the new owners going to put up with this? I don't think so. It's either going to put a lot of people off buying them or the people that do buy them will disconnect this wonderful safety feature. In the meantime, you could perhaps live with it if the car was only away for a week but to have waited since December NFW! I still think they're a great car and a few people have been unlucky but I don't know if I could be persuaded to trade up to the next generation.


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## andrew186 (May 3, 2010)

someone should really disable this stupid system, has anyone got some sort of hack/trick to get it disabled yet?


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## imattersuk (Nov 28, 2008)

6 months off the road would never happen for me, they would have a summons and the particulars of claim would simply state "NOT FIT FOR PURPOSE" you know like being able to drive the friggin thing after all that's what a car is for !


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## Arcam (Jun 30, 2009)

andrew186 said:


> someone should really disable this stupid system, has anyone got some sort of hack/trick to get it disabled yet?


In post #7 of this thread Rich-GT did exactly that, but to save you looking here is the url to the article he wrote:

http://www.gtr.co.uk/forum/134041-s...-gtr-expensive-combination-2.html#post1267518


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## Paul_G (Apr 4, 2008)

I think the other guy had his bonnet put back and drove his car after signing a disclaimer, so the car isn't off the road as such, but I'm not sure where we stand legally with this.

Update: Car has been picked up. Open trailer. The guy had problems getting it onto the trailer as the car is so low. He had to use wood planks under the wheels to lift the front up.
I also noticed that there are two symetrical dents in the bonnet caused by the impact system going off, so looks like a new bonnet needed, although no doubt they will try and pop the dents back out....

Marshalls had no hire cars left, but RAC are going to drop one off. I can have it for three days and then Marshalls have to agree to either extend it or give me one of theirs.


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## imattersuk (Nov 28, 2008)

Insist on their 370z demo


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## Steve (Sep 21, 2001)

Think you can disable it ? BUT not recomended


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## David.Yu (Jun 28, 2001)

Rich-GT said:


> Posted this a couple of months ago, have been disconnecting mine on track ever since.
> 
> http://www.gtr.co.uk/forum/134041-sportsdriver-day-plastic-cone-gtr-expensive-combination-2.html#post1267518
> 
> ...


So you decided to take the chance that the system could activate when you reconnect the plug if you'd hit something earlier?

Pretty unlikely scenario, granted!

By resetting the ECU, I take it you mean reinstalling the map you were using?
Sucks if you don't have a Cobb...


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## Rich-GT (Apr 2, 2008)

Yes I decided that disconnecting when on track was the best option, have done it 6 times now. If I hit somthing I will then make the decision on reconnecting.

My gut feeling is that these sensors will be some sort of solid state G sensor /accelerometer and unless damaged will just signal the shock and then return to a normal signal, so reconnection will be fine. 

To reset does not involve changing the map, you can check codes / reset even without the AP being installed. Everyone should have an AP anyway...:chuckle:


Rich


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## andrew186 (May 3, 2010)

Arcam said:


> In post #7 of this thread Rich-GT did exactly that, but to save you looking here is the url to the article he wrote:
> 
> http://www.gtr.co.uk/forum/134041-s...-gtr-expensive-combination-2.html#post1267518


thanks for that, completely overlooked the post..

someone in that thread mentioned sticking in a blown fuse? anyone can confirm that there is a fuse for the bonnet self destruct system?


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## _shaun_ (Jan 16, 2007)

I remember them telling me about the car that was in their work shop (that the snow fell on) in March this year when I picked my car up.

Not sure about what car you would get mate, but when I asked about servicing and what car I would get they said a Nissan Note or Micra. Went to Bromley and got a 370Z with less 2k on the clock and the service with perfect!

They said in the event that the concierge has to give a replacement car it will be something really nice like a diesel Golf......and the sales guy was very impressed with that!


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## Arcam (Jun 30, 2009)

Rich-GT said:


> Yes I decided that disconnecting when on track was the best option, have done it 6 times now. If I hit somthing I will then make the decision on reconnecting.
> 
> My gut feeling is that these sensors will be some sort of solid state G sensor /accelerometer and unless damaged will just signal the shock and then return to a normal signal, so reconnection will be fine.
> 
> ...


Rich, when you do the disconnect before a track event do you disconnect the battery first or just pull the sensor plug? And once the warning lamp shows have you tried a reset then to see if it puts it out until you re-connect?


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## David.Yu (Jun 28, 2001)

Rich-GT said:


> Yes I decided that disconnecting when on track was the best option, have done it 6 times now. If I hit somthing I will then make the decision on reconnecting.
> 
> My gut feeling is that these sensors will be some sort of solid state G sensor /accelerometer and unless damaged will just signal the shock and then return to a normal signal, so reconnection will be fine.
> 
> ...


So what does resetting involve then?


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## Arcam (Jun 30, 2009)

David.Yu said:


> So what does resetting involve then?


Hi David, just plug in your Cobb unit and select to read error codes and then perform a re-set as per the menu option, simple as that


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## Rich-GT (Apr 2, 2008)

Arcam said:


> Rich, when you do the disconnect before a track event do you disconnect the battery first or just pull the sensor plug? And once the warning lamp shows have you tried a reset then to see if it puts it out until you re-connect?


I just disconnect, with the ignition off. If you do a reset with the plug out, the light comes on again next time you start the car.

There is no actual error code shown, but reset on the Cobb as you desribe puts the light out.

A couple of things I would add for anyone else trying this.

1) You only need to remove the LHS first 4 poppers and then lift up the end of the trim to access.

2) The plug socket assembly is held to the car in a keyway, standing at the front of the car you slide the assembly sideways to the left, then makes pulling the plugs apart easier.

3) Pulling the plug & socket apart is quite tricky. There is a catch on one part that needs to be pushed down, best with a screwdriver. If pushed down correctly the plug / socket will then come apart easily. Do NOT be tempted to pull on the wires.


Rich


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## Arcam (Jun 30, 2009)

Rich-GT said:


> Yes I decided that disconnecting when on track was the best option, have done it 6 times now. If I hit somthing I will then make the decision on reconnecting.


Rick, I was just thinking about this, I know you are off the track for a while with the wheel bearing issue (sorry to hear).

If you ever did tw*t anything while the launch sensors were disconnected and were pondering about re-connecting them I wonder if just opening the bonnet would be enough to clear the launch jacks or alternatively just unbolt them as there is not much work to do for that before re-connection.

That way at lest you would be able to close your bonnet and drive home  Some kind of dummy shunt with an LED might be cool if the pin outs could be IDed, that why if the system wanted to fire them you would get a lit LED and have saved the launch jacks too.

I wonder how hard it is to get hold of one of those sensor termination plugs/sockets, if the resistance is known a bridge/resister could be easily be put in place to keep the warning lamp off.


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## charles charlie (May 3, 2008)

Ed, I've looked into this but I cannot get any schematics for this system. This doesnt appear to be fitted to usdm models as far as I can tell, and all my docs are related to us models.

My initial thoughts are that the sensors are of a G-shock type. Their position excludes a contact type sensor.

We also (sort of) know from the first thread posted about the bonnet issue that replacement of the bonnet firers and ecu were necessary, but no mention of the sensors needing replacing.

My hope therefore is that the sensors are not perishable after an "event."

If that is the case, it should be possible to unplug them, have an incident, then plug them back in without the bonnet going apeshit.

Unfortunately there are only 2 ways of finding this out, and both involve a frontal collision.

Me thinks it'll be a while until we know for sure!


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## Rich-GT (Apr 2, 2008)

Agreed with all of the above. My plan as follows.

Disconnect when on track, reconnect after the event.

If I hit something in a way that I think may have triggered the sensors, reconnect and start the car with the bonnet up.

If it blows then I will do away with the system completely, however without the expense or inconvenience of blown hinges.

Will also have the benefit of knowing what happens. :chuckle:


Like CC I think the sensors will be a solid state G-Sensor / accelerometer, unlike some other systems that use a deformable light tube and beam. So do not expect it to blow even after the correct tap on the bumper.


Rich


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## Arcam (Jun 30, 2009)

CC & Rich,

Agreed with all comments


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## Paul_G (Apr 4, 2008)

Well, the car has been at Marshals now for two weeks and the update is:
erm nothing..... Still waiting for a field engineer apparently. Left calls with the dealer and Nissan customer services. Dealer has called me back and they cannot get a response from customer services. I managed to get thru and leave a message, but no reply.

I am usually pretty tolerant, but now I'm getting really pi$$ed off. Anyone know what my next point of escalation is?


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## sumo69 (Mar 31, 2008)

Letter from you to the DP of your HPC threatening legal action if not dealt with by a certain timescale.

I would CC to MD of Nissan UK at his home address - you can get this for a £1 from Companies House.

I feel for you - crap service to say the least.

D


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## EvolutionVI (Sep 6, 2005)

Paul_G said:


> Well, the car has been at Marshals now for two weeks and the update is:
> erm nothing..... Still waiting for a field engineer apparently. Left calls with the dealer and Nissan customer services. Dealer has called me back and they cannot get a response from customer services. I managed to get thru and leave a message, but no reply.
> 
> I am usually pretty tolerant, but now I'm getting really pi$$ed off. Anyone know what my next point of escalation is?



TBH,i don´t think i expected anything less from Nissan:sadwavey:


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## andrew186 (May 3, 2010)

Rich-GT said:


> Agreed with all of the above. My plan as follows.
> 
> Disconnect when on track, reconnect after the event.
> 
> ...


Rich is it just the case of unplugging the connectors to the sensors? 

Any tools involved/ anything to look out for etc?


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## Arcam (Jun 30, 2009)

andrew186 said:


> Rich is it just the case of unplugging the connectors to the sensors?
> 
> Any tools involved/ anything to look out for etc?


Just un-plug the three way connector under the front slam panel once you have popped the clips, make sure the ign is off when you do it. You will need a Cobb AP (or similar) tool to re-set the warring lamp after re-connection.


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## Paul_G (Apr 4, 2008)

Arcam said:


> Just un-plug the three way connector under the front slam panel once you have popped the clips, make sure the ign is off when you do it. You will need a Cobb AP (or similar) tool to re-set the warring lamp after re-connection.


Is there any way just to disconnect the ECU?


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## EvolutionVI (Sep 6, 2005)

Paul_G said:


> Is there any way just to disconnect the ECU?


When there is a ecu for it,there is a plug on the ecu....


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## Paul_G (Apr 4, 2008)

EvolutionVI said:


> When there is a ecu for it,there is a plug on the ecu....


Exactly, then no chance of any registering of an "incident".


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## EvolutionVI (Sep 6, 2005)

Paul_G said:


> Exactly, then no chance of any registering of an "incident".


It can´t register the incident when it has no plug in it...yes.:thumbsup:

I will pull mine out complete,with the actuators and all that stuff,im really not interested in seeing this system in action...


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## Paul_G (Apr 4, 2008)

Latest update is that Nissan UK are still waiting for Japan to either approve or decline a warranty claim. How they can even justify a warranty refusal I don't know..... Hopefully will get a decision today.


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## imattersuk (Nov 28, 2008)

Paul_G said:


> Latest update is that Nissan UK are still waiting for Japan to either approve or decline a warranty claim. How they can even justify a warranty refusal I don't know..... Hopefully will get a decision today.


Call your household insurance company if you have legal cover and get some advice Paul, won't cost you a penny, be prepared.


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## obzi (Feb 19, 2008)

If an insurance company or Nissan are unwilling to cover this event then I wonder they would feel if you permanently disabled it?
Are they going to reduced insurance premiums if it's completely removed?
It shouldn't go in their favour both ways. (but probably will)

The worry would be how it would look in court if you killed someone who could possibly have survived if the device not been disabled.

This whole system seems to be a can of worms, with more and more cars being launched with something similar I see a lot of interesting court battles ahead.


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## Paul_G (Apr 4, 2008)

I am a Which? subscriber, so I think I have access to their legal team if needed. I don't particularly want it to go thru my insurance as this ultimately pushes my and others premiums up as I hear rumours that it's going to cost *10k* to fix. Also what do I tell them? I haven't reported an accident as I haven't had one! Do I make it up?
The real point is though the system appears flawed. I was travelling at low speed in a 30mph area and found no evidence of me hitting anything or anything hitting me. I certainly didn't have the equivalent of 80Kg of human being slamming into my bonnet! Others have hit cones or small animals and even then it seems random if the system goes off or not. Looks like this is one bit of technology on the car the Nissan have not got right


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## kismetcapitan (Nov 25, 2005)

if I owned an R35, I'd disable this idiot system straight away, and remove these exploding piston things if possible. if one were to argue that I'm putting pedestrians at risk, well, am I not doing the same thing with my highly lowered R32? Or how about anyone driving a Lotus Elise?? I have comprehensive insurance; if I put someone in the hospital by my fault, they would be taken care of with unlimited liability. That's how I feel responsible as a driver. This idiot system puzzles and frustrates me, just reading about it. In terms of how expensive it is, how much weight and complexity it adds to the car, and ultimately the pointlessness of the system, the engineering behind it, and most pointedly, the lack of readily available replacement parts!!


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## tokyogtr (Feb 14, 2008)

well, i just had to chime in. just over a month ago an old guy ran out in front of me as i was turning a corner, bam! i was only doing about 20kph. the bonnet save his life. the bang was very loud, so loud in fact that someone in my office heard it. anyway, the guy ended up with a broken leg but he was lucky. if the bonnet hadn't gone off he'd have broken ribs or worse too. the car had to have a new windscreen, fixed bump in bonnet and new explosive devices fitted. took just under 3 weeks. Yen1.5m... all on insurance.


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## Paul_G (Apr 4, 2008)

tokyogtr said:


> well, i just had to chime in. just over a month ago an old guy ran out in front of me as i was turning a corner, bam! i was only doing about 20kph. the bonnet save his life. the bang was very loud, so loud in fact that someone in my office heard it. anyway, the guy ended up with a broken leg but he was lucky. if the bonnet hadn't gone off he'd have broken ribs or worse too. the car had to have a new windscreen, fixed bump in bonnet and new explosive devices fitted. took just under 3 weeks. Yen1.5m... all on insurance.


At least yours worked as intended and glad the old guy is OK! Still 11k though  And yes it sure is loud! Lucky he didn't die of a heart attack


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## imattersuk (Nov 28, 2008)

kismetcapitan said:


> if I owned an R35, I'd disable this idiot system straight away, and remove these exploding piston things if possible. if one were to argue that I'm putting pedestrians at risk, well, am I not doing the same thing with my highly lowered R32? Or how about anyone driving a Lotus Elise?? I have comprehensive insurance; if I put someone in the hospital by my fault, they would be taken care of with unlimited liability. That's how I feel responsible as a driver. This idiot system puzzles and frustrates me, just reading about it. In terms of how expensive it is, how much weight and complexity it adds to the car, and ultimately the pointlessness of the system, the engineering behind it, and most pointedly, the lack of readily available replacement parts!!


Not quite true, if you've modified the vehicle without informing the insurance company then they could void your policy and wouldn't pay out.


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## kismetcapitan (Nov 25, 2005)

imattersuk said:


> Not quite true, if you've modified the vehicle without informing the insurance company then they could void your policy and wouldn't pay out.


guess it depends on the country. I'm finding that Korean insurance isn't too picky, as I'm going through the repair process with my car. My car is modified far beyond street legal in every possible way, but no one, including the police (who once pulled me over and spent quite some time looking at my engine - in admiration!), seems to be able to feel bothered to do anything about it. About all I've gotten was a cop yelling at me about my open-pipe exhaust...in exactly the same way your mom would yell at you to clean up your room.

All things considered, South Korea is probably one of the most tuned-car friendly countries on the planet.


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## CasperBxl (May 17, 2010)

... and as your car has been granted an import license (probably because these systems are fitted), it could and probably will make your car illegal to drive. (as it is no longer conform to the import and car authenticity regulations)

Let alone that it is there to save lives or a least minimize injury.

It is a great pain though hat the system is so expensive. That price has me worried a bit as well. I live in Brussels and traffic here can be a pain. I had 4 people driving in my Jag before, so expect this to happen to the GTR as well. Unfortunately, it seems unavoidable (the XKR had 190.000Km under its belt, so one bang every 50K :bawling: )


Hope the insurance or Nissan (i think it should be) will replace it without cost.
(does the blackbox not record what append at the time of impact, if there is one?? It sure records the re-flashes, temps and other stuff)


All Success to you!!


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## kismetcapitan (Nov 25, 2005)

well, if the parts cost under a grand, instead of $15,000USD, and could be easily sourced, that's a different story. It's just simply so expensive for the system, it makes me wonder who it's for - the pedestrian, or Nissan's wallet?


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## Paul_G (Apr 4, 2008)

*The Verdict*

Well I finally got a reply from Nissan:

_As we discussed, it is the opinion of Nissan Motor (GB) Ltd that, in this instance, the operation of the bonnet raising pedestrian safety system was in line with expectation. In view of this we will be unable to offer to cover the costs of repair work necessary in this situation.

As requested, I have included with this email a copy of the photograph on which our Technical Team have based their opinion. It shows the central support strut, which runs from the lower to upper bumper. The bottom half of the strut has deviated from the vertical and we feel that this is evidence of an impact on the bottom of the vehicle; this is borne out by damage which is visible on other areas of the vehicle’s underside.

The result of this impact was that energy travelled to the bumper support where the sensors for the bonnet-raising pedestrian-safety system are housed. This, in turn, has activated the system causing the bonnet to pop-up. 

I have included, for your convenience, two photographs with this email. The first (DSC00053) shows the damaged support strut, while the second (DSC00057) shows damage to another section of the vehicle’s underside. _

The problem with this is that the splitter damage was done months ago and I have a repair quote for this from a local body shop. At the time of the incident the road was flat with no appreciable bumps.

I will take this up with Nissan Monday.

Thoughts?


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## imattersuk (Nov 28, 2008)

First thought is arrange for an independent assessor to inspect the vehicle and submit your quote and the assessors report to your solicitor asap, when a legal letter arrives on the desk they may change their attitude.


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## charles charlie (May 3, 2008)

I suppose there are 3 ways to play this..

1. Sod the safety system, just get the bonnet back working properly, minus this daft system. There is no liability on your behalf (IMHO) as the system isnt law, and is only a future requirement for cars to have them at sale, not to be roadworthy.

2. Get a second opinion from a safety/auto expert as to whether the deviation of the central strut is responsible for setting the system off. I'd also question whether the system has an inherent design fault if it can go off when a pedestrian isnt involved.

3. Get shirty with Nissan and explain that you will go public with this "ticking time bomb" for GTR owners and that you will not stop until Nissan's name has been dragged thru the mire.


All options are valid, it just depends upon your own feelings.

Whichever you choose, good luck buddy, I feel for you.


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## axolotl (May 29, 2008)

Their wording is interesting. 
They haven't actually strictly speaking denied liability, they just say that in their 'opinion' what happened was 'in line with expectation' and that they are 'unable to offer' to pay for it. 
Reading between the lines I suspect they know that if you push them they will have to pay up but corporate 'no fault' policy policy precludes them from just 'offering' straight away. Statistically probably many people just give up at this stage so the beancounters win by initially trying to fob people off.


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## tokyogtr (Feb 14, 2008)

Without looking at the photos, I would imagine Nissan Japan has told Nissan UK that the previous damage to the front of the car, namely whatever caused the splitter damage, probably also broke the sensor for the front impact system. I'm just guessing but as you didn't get that damage fixed at your HPC they're saying tough. Any chance we can see the photo of the bent strut they're talking about? that's the bit that indicates impact.


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## sumo69 (Mar 31, 2008)

I assume you are a reasonable honest person of good community standing, as was the (cough, cough) the solicitor/accountant friend you had in the car at the time.

Thus your sworn statements should ensure Nissan are over a barrel.

Good luck - this "attitude" sucks!

D


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## EvolutionVI (Sep 6, 2005)

Take them in front of the Court

They have no clue what they are talking about,they lie whenever they say something and even if the bonnet had exploded because of the bent splittersupport (which is absolutly impossible fmpov) then this is a construction/design problem from Nissan.....as when you run over something,there is no need to raise the bonnet...

They need to learn that we customers are not idiots that believe all we got told, next time they tell you your had the wrong gas in the gastank, or maybe you farted into the seat at the time of the accident and this made think it needs to bonnet explode....:chairshot:chairshot:chairshot

@ Nissan: This is another sad story about your customer service...im sure this has cost you roughly 1-2 GTR sales.....and yes....i hope people start to realise how bad your service is...the car is great...when it works....sadly it doesn´t work as it should most of the time uke:


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## GTRSTAR (Nov 26, 2009)

Paul_G said:


> Well I finally got a reply from Nissan:
> 
> _As we discussed, it is the opinion of Nissan Motor (GB) Ltd that, in this instance, the operation of the bonnet raising pedestrian safety system was in line with expectation. In view of this we will be unable to offer to cover the costs of repair work necessary in this situation.
> 
> ...


So let me get this right, nissan are saying there is evidence of damage to the car which could have caused the bonnet to pop, youre saying you did have a minor accident, how can this be nissans fault? this is an insurance claim as either way the bonnet seems to have popped due to accidental damage.


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## Paul_G (Apr 4, 2008)

GTRSTAR said:


> So let me get this right, nissan are saying there is evidence of damage to the car which could have caused the bonnet to pop, youre saying you did have a minor accident, how can this be nissans fault? this is an insurance claim as either way the bonnet seems to have popped due to accidental damage.


The "accident" occured several months ago when I caught a curb on the left hand corner of my splitter at about 5mph coming out of a petrol station. Something that at least 50% of owners are going to do at some point. I did point this out on my last service and got told it would cost about 2k to fix and not to worry about it as it wasn't visible. 

Should something this minor put the system in such a fragile state that it could go off at any time and cause thousands of pounds worth of damage?


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## EvolutionVI (Sep 6, 2005)

Paul_G said:


> Should something this minor put the system in such a fragile state that it could go off at any time and cause thousands of pounds worth of damage?


No.....it should not and for sure its not allowed to be that fragile...explode months later out of nothing 

Take them to court:thumbsup:


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## GTRSTAR (Nov 26, 2009)

Paul_G said:


> The "accident" occured several months ago when I caught a curb on the left hand corner of my splitter at about 5mph coming out of a petrol station. Something that at least 50% of owners are going to do at some point. I did point this out on my last service and got told it would cost about 2k to fix and not to worry about it as it wasn't visible.
> 
> Should something this minor put the system in such a fragile state that it could go off at any time and cause thousands of pounds worth of damage?


No, on the face of it, however, thats a subjective opinion, 'professionally' nissan should have identified the problem, ethically if it was not visible they did the right thing, morally perhaps they should do somthing about it but legally they dont have to which leaves you with your insurance company, whether they are liable or not depends on your policy, unless it says somthing like 'damage or faults caused at a later date and as a result of the original accident are not covered' you should have grounds for a legitimate claim, even so, you could claim that the incident that caused the pop up was an accident in itself albeit a very, very minor one.

If my car were off the road for an extended period of time I wouldnt be to happy about it so I genuinely simpathise with your predicament. I hope they sort it out one way or another so that you can get back to driving it.


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## Rich-GT (Apr 2, 2008)

This just gets worse and worse...

So a knock to the spoiler, which as you say most of us have done, and then some time later a bonnet event with no knock is not a warranty item...




charles charlie said:


> I suppose there are 3 ways to play this..
> 
> 1. Sod the safety system, just get the bonnet back working properly, minus this daft system. There is no liability on your behalf (IMHO) as the system isnt law, and is only a future requirement for cars to have them at sale, not to be roadworthy.


If what CC is saying here is correct, then mine stays disconnected. Is there anyway of confirming the legality / liability?


Rich


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## Paul_G (Apr 4, 2008)

Rich-GT said:


> This just gets worse and worse...
> 
> So a knock to the spoiler, which as you say most of us have done, and then some time later a bonnet event with no knock is not a warranty item...
> 
> ...


Rich,
I have spoken to Nissan and they are having another look at the situation. I will not post details at the moment for reasons that will become clear later. With regards to legality, Nissan have indictaed that it is legal to drive withoutit, but would not purposly disconnect the system. They also said that in the event of a passenger hitting the bonnet, the persons insurers\legal representative may have a very dim view of anyone deactivating the system. I.e they could make a claim against you if they found out.


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## EvolutionVI (Sep 6, 2005)

Paul_G said:


> Rich,
> I have spoken to Nissan and they are having another look at the situation. I will not post details at the moment for reasons that will become clear later. With regards to legality, Nissan have indictaed that it is legal to drive withoutit, but would not purposly disconnect the system. They also said that in the event of a passenger hitting the bonnet, the persons insurers\legal representative may have a very dim view of anyone deactivating the system. I.e they could make a claim against you if they found out.


Good to hear they look again after it in the end....

All the best for you:thumbsup:


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## Paul_G (Apr 4, 2008)

EvolutionVI said:


> Good to hear they look again after it in the end....
> 
> All the best for you:thumbsup:


Well, lets see what happens. If necessary I may have a witness who will be able to state that I didn't hit the splitter at the time the system went off. There was a shop fitter in the high street that was standing outside at the time. I even spoke to him. The shop is still being refurbished, so I'm sure I can track him down. At the time you don't think it will turn into this....


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## sumo69 (Mar 31, 2008)

Paul_G said:


> Well, lets see what happens. If necessary I may have a witness who will be able to state that I didn't hit the splitter at the time the system went off. There was a shop fitter in the high street that was standing outside at the time. I even spoke to him. The shop is still being refurbished, so I'm sure I can track him down. At the time you don't think it will turn into this....


Are you sure it wan't a solicitor/accountant or doctor? :thumbsup:

D


----------



## Paul_G (Apr 4, 2008)

Paul_G said:


> Rich,
> I have spoken to Nissan and they are having another look at the situation. I will not post details at the moment for reasons that will become clear later. With regards to legality, Nissan have indictaed that it is legal to drive withoutit, but would not purposly disconnect the system. They also said that in the event of a passenger hitting the bonnet, the persons insurers\legal representative may have a very dim view of anyone deactivating the system. I.e they could make a claim against you if they found out.


Nissan have now come back to me and refused my claim again. The only option that they offered is to send the control unit to Japan at my expense and will re-imburse me if found to be faulty. To say i'm disgusted is an understatement. 

The quote for repairs so far including VAT is £5775, but they have left off the splitter (believe it or not!) and the bonnet that has two symetrical dents in it caused by the force of the system activation, so I estimate £8500 ish.

Thank you Nissan..


----------



## EvolutionVI (Sep 6, 2005)

Paul_G said:


> Nissan have now come back to me and refused my claim again. The only option that they offered is to send the control unit to Japan at my expense and will re-imburse me if found to be faulty. To say i'm disgusted is an understatement.
> 
> The quote for repairs so far including VAT is £5775, but they have left off the splitter (believe it or not!) and the bonnet that has two symetrical dents in it caused by the force of the system activation, so I estimate £8500 ish.
> 
> Thank you Nissan..


Nissans Customerservice :sadwavey:

You should get this one from your customers:


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## David.Yu (Jun 28, 2001)

Paul_G said:


> Nissan have now come back to me and refused my claim again. The only option that they offered is to send the control unit to Japan at my expense and will re-imburse me if found to be faulty. To say i'm disgusted is an understatement.
> 
> The quote for repairs so far including VAT is £5775, but they have left off the splitter (believe it or not!) and the bonnet that has two symetrical dents in it caused by the force of the system activation, so I estimate £8500 ish.
> 
> Thank you Nissan..


I think this is simply despicable behaviour from Nissan.

Time to get a decent lawyer on the case methinks...


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## sumo69 (Mar 31, 2008)

...and perhaps some coverage in a well known motor mag or 2??

What is the cut-off date for articles in the next issue of EVO?

D


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## waltong (Apr 11, 2008)

sumo69 said:


> ...and perhaps some coverage in a well known motor mag or 2??
> 
> What is the cut-off date for articles in the next issue of EVO?
> 
> D


Only picked up the tail of this but Evo wont get involved. There are claims similar to this going on with every manufacturer all the time. I'm NOT suggesting it is anything other than a valid claim...but it is only one side of the situation and the motor industry feed the car magazines! 
Not read the entire thread but I'm sure the car had been on a scheduled service between the splitter damage and the bonnet pop. If any damage had been caused that could have affected the bonnet pop at a later stage, then surely your HPC should have informed you? 

Failing that, if it's an £8K repair....why the f*ck are we still in this madness parts situation? For a few hundred quid I'd get an independent motor engineers report done. A Nissan GB mechanic is hardly going to be your best mate at this time. If the engineer supplies a favourable report and case then take them to court. I had a similar issue with 4 Audi shocks that failed 3 weeks after my 3 year warranty expired......having been inspected a month prior to my warranty expiring and getting a clean bill of health! 

B**tards! 

I'm considering deactivating mine. It's all a total nonsense. I don't see Ford changing the nose of a transit van to help a pedestrian!


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## GTRSTAR (Nov 26, 2009)

Paul_G said:


> Well I finally got a reply from Nissan:
> 
> _As we discussed, it is the opinion of Nissan Motor (GB) Ltd that, in this instance, the operation of the bonnet raising pedestrian safety system was in line with expectation. In view of this we will be unable to offer to cover the costs of repair work necessary in this situation.
> 
> ...


Did I miss somthing or does it not say that there is evidence of damage that could have resulted in the system going off? the fact that it didnt go off immediately is somewhat irrelevant, it apears that you caused damage to the system in a previous accident, then it didnt take much to trigger the bonnet, I cant see how you can blame nissan for this? its a safety measure meant to save lives, the fact that it costs 10 grand to fix is also inconsequential, this was caused by an accident and should be covered by your insurance company.

Again I sympathise with you, have you taken this up with your insurance company?


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## Robbie J (Jan 8, 2005)

no wonder our insurance is going up


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## Paul_G (Apr 4, 2008)

GTRSTAR said:


> Did I miss somthing or does it not say that there is evidence of damage that could have resulted in the system going off? the fact that it didnt go off immediately is somewhat irrelevant, it apears that you caused damage to the system in a previous accident, then it didnt take much to trigger the bonnet, I cant see how you can blame nissan for this? its a safety measure meant to save lives, the fact that it costs 10 grand to fix is also inconsequential, this was caused by an accident and should be covered by your insurance company.
> 
> Again I sympathise with you, have you taken this up with your insurance company?


Yes the quote will be submitted to my insurers tomorrow. Nissan are obviously right. My knock to the splitter caused the system to go off. Foolish of me to think otherwise. Must watch those kerbs in the future.:nervous:


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## LiamGTR (Nov 26, 2006)

GTRSTAR said:


> the fact that it costs 10 grand to fix is also inconsequential, this was caused by an accident and should be covered by your insurance company.


It kind of is important when something on your car worth £10k goes bang for a little scuff on a bit of the car it's not directly connected to...

If it's made for protecting people or not...it cost £10k! More fool them for walking out infront of a GTR :chairshot Flame me all you like, t'is only the internet :chuckle:


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## GTRSTAR (Nov 26, 2009)

lol mate, the system is to prevent the bonnet chopping the occupants heads off in a front end collision  not so the pedestrian has a nice comfy bonnet to land on.. have you seen the cost of a lobotomy lately? :runaway:


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## Elliott_GTR (Dec 13, 2009)

So... where are these sensors?

Just a little worried now considering my front splitter and offside corner were lightly damaged while in for the optimisation... all sorted out by the HPC, but I know they didn't look at the sensors for the 'safety' system.

What happens if it goes off in 6 months?!


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## waltong (Apr 11, 2008)

GTRSTAR said:


> lol mate, the system is to prevent the bonnet chopping the occupants heads off in a front end collision  not so the pedestrian has a nice comfy bonnet to land on.. have you seen the cost of a lobotomy lately? :runaway:


The 997 doesn't have them. Does that mean Porsche drivers are allowed to chop off the heads off pedestrians?


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## EvolutionVI (Sep 6, 2005)

GTRSTAR said:


> Did I miss somthing or does it not say that there is evidence of damage that could have resulted in the system going off? the fact that it didnt go off immediately is somewhat irrelevant, it apears that you caused damage to the system in a previous accident, then it didnt take much to trigger the bonnet, I cant see how you can blame nissan for this? its a safety measure meant to save lives, the fact that it costs 10 grand to fix is also inconsequential, this was caused by an accident and should be covered by your insurance company.
> 
> Again I sympathise with you, have you taken this up with your insurance company?


That comment is just totally stupid.....if the system is developed correctly,it will not go of month later...if it is developed wrong,with the sensors in the wrong place or just because you hit the floor slightly with the bottom of your bumper while parking your car in the local carpark,then this system is not fit for purpose....:nervous:

I bet i run over a pedestrian and the bonnet stays closed....i hit a cone while doing a drivertraining and it will pop up.....this system isnt how a system like this should be.

Just think of your airbags going of month ago on a german autobahn at 250km/h + just because your wife parked the GTR 5 days ago with some slight contact to the wall,a few scratches on the bumper but the airbag opens.....this will not happen,as the airbagsystem is 100% secure.....just think of your hood opening at 250km/h+ while the system isn´t working 100% secure....

This system is not working how it should....factuke:


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## Paul_G (Apr 4, 2008)

GTRSTAR said:


> lol mate, the system is to prevent the bonnet chopping the occupants heads off in a front end collision  not so the pedestrian has a nice comfy bonnet to land on.. have you seen the cost of a lobotomy lately? :runaway:


Actually the system is designed to do just that. I.e. ensure that the pedestian has a nice comfy bonnet to land on. As far as I am aware the GTR's engine block is quite near the bonnet itself. The raising of the bonnet upon impact increases that gap to provide a cusion to the hard engine block. This is to comply with future european legislation, so I doubt it is illegal to deactivate it currently. (Don't take my word for it though I am not a lawyer!).


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## charles charlie (May 3, 2008)

Paul_G said:


> Actually the system is designed to do just that. I.e. ensure that the pedestian has a nice comfy bonnet to land on. As far as I am aware the GTR's engine block is quite near the bonnet itself. The raising of the bonnet upon impact increases that gap to provide a cusion to the hard engine block. This is to comply with future european legislation, so I doubt it is illegal to deactivate it currently. (Don't take my word for it though I am not a lawyer!).


This was my point in an earlier post..

1. It isnt a current legal requirement.

2. When it becomes a requirement, it is only applied to the manufacturer at te point of sale.

Similar example is emissions. Our GTR has secondary cats to pass future emission standards, yet removing them does not cause the car to fail an MOT.

The legal issue will be how the CPS would look upon a wilful deactivation of a safety system should you have a pedestrian collision.

But then that of course would depend upon them knowing a system existed and that it had been deactivated and them not only proving any death/injury would have been prevented if it had been working, but also them finding which offence to prosecute under.

Lots of ifs and buts here, but the idea that this silly system will have a major affect on a 30-40 mph pedestrian impact outside of the controlled conditions of MIRA/NCAP's (or similar) laboratory is somewhat debatable.


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## LiamGTR (Nov 26, 2006)

Why does the GTR have many things that are only required in the future, on future cars?


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## EvolutionVI (Sep 6, 2005)

In EU its requiered by law to have the secondary cats....pulling them out is illegal....i don´t care about it


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## LiamGTR (Nov 26, 2006)

Ahh, well that's the cat, so then again why does the GTR have this pop up bonnet system that clearly costs a bomb and they haven't fully developed yet...and it's not even a requirement? Seems like a waste of time and money?


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## imattersuk (Nov 28, 2008)

There's no NCAP testing on a GTR so I don't see how a benchmark can be used by the authorities.


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## Wildrover (Dec 16, 2008)

I'm finding this Forum so depressing - every time you come here - someone is attempting to critisce Nissan and these are owners as well as wannabees.

This is issue is surely an insurance claim if the item has fired irrespective when it happened and not a warranty problem. Normally, most repairs on cars of this nature do take time as not all components are stocked. Happens on cars they make millions of and not just 100's.

Evolution VI in every post he makes talks of inadequate development by Nissan. Please stop posting or sell your inadequate car - I'm personally fed up of reading the same BS.


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## imattersuk (Nov 28, 2008)

Wildrover said:


> Evolution VI in every post he makes talks of inadequate development by Nissan. Please stop posting or sell your inadequate car - I'm personally fed up of reading the same BS.


Totally agree, turning into a personal crusade now against Nissan. I too wish he'd just sod off.

The car has so many positives, I always research very thoroughly before parting with my cash and I can tell you reading the Aston Martin and Porsche forums makes the GTR look like a very attractive proposition. If I thought I was going to get better reliability and build quality I would have spent the extra and gone that route.

Whichever way you look at it no car is without niggles, just look at Toyota recently, doesn't make them bad cars !


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## EvolutionVI (Sep 6, 2005)

Wildrover said:


> Evolution VI in every post he makes talks of inadequate development by Nissan. Please stop posting or sell your inadequate car - I'm personally fed up of reading the same BS.


The good thing on a public forum is,i can write my experience about the GTR....its maybe the best Sportscar in the moment,but it has problems....this isn´t that bad at all,every car has problems....

Nissan does not handle the problems....thats what im talking about...not about how bad the GTR is,its about Nissans simply not existing customerservice....the customer gets blamed and charged $$$ for Nissans bad development....uke:


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## David.Yu (Jun 28, 2001)

You guys who are complaining about Alex's complaining seem to be forgetting that it was mainly down to his obstinate stance that Nissan Europe recalled 400 LHD GT-Rs and changed their engines free of charge!

He's not some ignorant whinger, he's a dedicated GT-R enthusiast who has spent more time and money using his GT-R properly than almost anyone else on this forum. His participation should be actively encouraged and listened to, not disparaged!

As he said, his complaints are not, in the main, about the GT-R's (very real) shortcomings, but more about how Nissan has often dealt with them.

Personally I find this bonnet issue reprehensible. As Alex says, it is clearly not set up right if it can go off months after an incident that shouldn't have triggered it in the first place!
And if it does get triggered, I cannot imagine why it has to be so stupidly expensive to reset.


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## ANDY400R (Mar 28, 2008)

David.Yu said:


> You guys who are complaining about Alex's complaining seem to be forgetting that it was mainly down to his obstinate stance that Nissan Europe recalled 400 LHD GT-Rs and changed their engines free of charge!
> 
> He's not some ignorant whinger, he's a dedicated GT-R enthusiast who has spent more time and money using his GT-R properly than almost anyone else on this forum. His participation should be actively encouraged and listened to, not disparaged!


+1
Totally agree


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## Paul_G (Apr 4, 2008)

Guys,
The 6 month delay on activation is a bit of a red herring, but I can't go into details at the moment. In my view what is questionable is:

> The sensitivity of the system
> Cost of repair (Why does the control unit need replacing and ALL THREE sensors)
> Probable delay in getting parts. (Lets see how long it takes Nissan to source these)
> Nissan's customer service.

I will give a summary of my view when this is all done and dusted.

With regards to Nissan installing the system, well I don't think they should be criticised for doing so. See below an extract from an article posted on the web and also Tokyogtr's earlier post.

_Eighty percent of serious pedestrian injuries caused by automobile collisions are head injuries. Of these head injuries, almost all are caused by the pedestrian’s initial impact with the hood of the car. The concept of the pop-up hood is to create a buffer space between the hood and the engine, thereby decreasing the impact of the most drastic, and most common, cause of pedestrian injury and death. The British Medical Journal found that a 10cm gap greatly decelerates the pedestrian – and predicts that when combined with other safety measures and restrictions, this could help to decrease the fatality rate by 20%._


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## speedyK (Mar 4, 2009)

David.Yu said:


> You guys who are complaining about Alex's complaining seem to be forgetting that it was mainly down to his obstinate stance that Nissan Europe recalled 400 LHD GT-Rs and changed their engines free of charge!
> 
> He's not some ignorant whinger, he's a dedicated GT-R enthusiast who has spent more time and money using his GT-R properly than almost anyone else on this forum. His participation should be actively encouraged and listened to, not disparaged!
> 
> As he said, his complaints are not, in the main, about the GT-R's (very real) shortcomings, but more about how Nissan has often dealt with them.


^^^ What he said :thumbsup:

As someone with their eyes fully open and head not buried in the sand, I follow the german GT-R forum too and can assure you that EvolutionVI is not some troll. He knows what he's talking about.


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## speedyK (Mar 4, 2009)

Paul_G said:


> The concept of the pop-up hood is to create a buffer space between the hood and the engine


So maybe the 911's engine isn't in the "wrong" place after all!


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## Robbie J (Jan 8, 2005)

so how do you disable it?


the 350z I still drive does not have it and the engine is close to the bonnet


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## EvolutionVI (Sep 6, 2005)

Robbie J said:


> so how do you disable it?
> 
> 
> the 350z I still drive does not have it and the engine is close to the bonnet


Old car,different rules.



There is a plug direct underneat the top of the front bumper,just need to remove the iirc 7 clips,remove the black plastic and disconnect the plug on the left side. Then the light in the cockpit shines all day long,remove the bulb or let it shine....can be reset when connected again with the AP:thumbsup:


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## Robbie J (Jan 8, 2005)

thanks, thats my point, I'm not going to stop driving 350 because it does not have a ped safety system.....


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## Dr Forinor (Aug 8, 2008)

David.Yu said:


> You guys who are complaining about Alex's complaining seem to be forgetting that it was mainly down to his obstinate stance that Nissan Europe recalled 400 LHD GT-Rs and changed their engines free of charge!
> 
> He's not some ignorant whinger, he's a dedicated GT-R enthusiast who has spent more time and money using his GT-R properly than almost anyone else on this forum. His participation should be actively encouraged and listened to, not disparaged!
> 
> ...


+1 
Fully agreed!!!


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## waltong (Apr 11, 2008)

EvolutionVI said:


> Old car,different rules.
> 
> 
> 
> There is a plug direct underneat the top of the front bumper,just need to remove the iirc 7 clips,remove the black plastic and disconnect the plug on the left side. Then the light in the cockpit shines all day long,remove the bulb or let it shine....can be reset when connected again with the AP:thumbsup:


Not quite. Plenty of new cars being built without this system. The rules don't just apply to Nissan.


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## EvolutionVI (Sep 6, 2005)

waltong said:


> Not quite. Plenty of new cars being built without this system. The rules don't just apply to Nissan.


If a car can be build to pass the pedestrian safety test without help.....its not needed.

As the GTR´s engine is shortly under the bonnet there is not enough room for someone to fall onto it and not hit the hard engine...thats why a GTR needs it to be legal.....a Porsche 911 does not need it.....as the bonnet can dent far in because of no frontengine....


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## sumo69 (Mar 31, 2008)

Does the GTROC have any inclination to take up this issue with Nissan?

Come on Fuggles - this is a real issue requiring a real solution.

D


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## imattersuk (Nov 28, 2008)

If it was a legal requirement in the UK it would have to undergo testing which it has not, end of.


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## andy g (Mar 1, 2005)

David.Yu said:


> You guys who are complaining about Alex's complaining seem to be forgetting that it was mainly down to his obstinate stance that Nissan Europe recalled 400 LHD GT-Rs and changed their engines free of charge!
> 
> *He's not some ignorant whinger, he's a dedicated GT-R enthusiast who has spent more time and money using his GT-R properly than almost anyone else on this forum. His participation should be actively encouraged and listened to, not disparaged!*


David I totally agree with you on this, Alex is not a whinger. The car just has teething problems, which need to be addressed by Nissan and there costumer relation's desk as previously posted. The guys that are complaining about Alex, are really living life through "Rose tinted glasses".
Remeber that you are driving the best value supercars in the world, but that doesnt give Nissan the right to treat you (the customer) like MUGS!!


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## Mark B (Jul 28, 2004)

I think people are forgetting, you simply aren't allowed to say anything negative about the R35 on here


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## EvolutionVI (Sep 6, 2005)

Ever make and every car has problems...but not ever manufacturer lets the customers standing in the pouring rain with their problems....the best car/product doesn´t help if the support is not there. 

When does Nissan understand what their customers want??

For this case with the open bonnet:
Its really sad to see that Nissan does not see any problems on their side with a bonnet that opens/explodes without any collision.... they leave their customer in the pouring rain without a umbrella....even worse,they let him stand there for weeks till the parts show up.....

Is this the VIP service Nissan told us from?? 

Its not right,and all of you guys know about it....i posted a picture month ago from a open bonnet,which was triggered by a plastic cone while doing a drivertraining.....yes,a ****ing plasticcone make the system think you have overrun somebody,no damage to paint,bumper,you could not even see where the bumper was hit...but the system activated:nervous:


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## waltong (Apr 11, 2008)

Paul_G said:


> Guys,
> The 6 month delay on activation is a bit of a red herring, but I can't go into details at the moment. In my view what is questionable is:
> 
> > The sensitivity of the system
> ...


Hi. Hope you're spanking that SUV (or whatever it is)! I would be really interested to understand how Nissan feel they can reject this as a warranty claim, but more worryingly the cost to put it right is beyond a joke. There was another thread on here about 3 months ago where a very minor bump (with a van) set the bonnet system off and a £11K bill resulted. I believe Nissan did reduce some of the part prices blaming some fault on their pricing software!! I'm now hitting road bumps with trepidation! What is the current position and where is our GTROC rep?? It used to be Guy but now he has sold his R35 I'm not sure if we have a voice via the club anymore??


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## moleman (Jun 3, 2002)

waltong said:


> It used to be Guy but now he has sold his R35 I'm not sure if we have a voice via the club anymore??


You volunteering?


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## sumo69 (Mar 31, 2008)

moleman said:


> You volunteering?


Perhaps an official post from the Moderators regarding the status of the r35 rep (or not as the case may be) and asking whether anyone would take on the role would be a good idea.

D


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## moleman (Jun 3, 2002)

It's a GTROC role not a forum one.


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## GTRSTAR (Nov 26, 2009)

Wildrover said:


> Evolution VI in every post he makes talks of inadequate development by Nissan. Please stop posting or sell your inadequate car - I'm personally fed up of reading the same BS.


I agree, Evo VI has tested his car to destruction on a track, what he doesnt realise is that unlike German cars of old, the GTR was not over engineered, so when you tune the ass of it or in this case cause damage to its high tech systems, it highlights areas of the car which are seemingly inadequate, even though if left alone are perfectly capable to do the job in which they were intended.


If they had build the GTR to his exacting German standards, it would weigh two and a half tons and certainly would not have a turbo charger! So Evo VI, all youve really highlighted to me is how perfect the GTR is in the first place. THANK YOU :thumbsup:


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## andy g (Mar 1, 2005)

GTRSTAR said:


> I agree, Evo VI has tested his car to destruction on a track, what he doesnt realise is that unlike German cars of old, the GTR was not over engineered, so when you tune the ass of it or in this case cause damage to its high tech systems, it highlights areas of the car which are seemingly inadequate, even though if left alone are perfectly capable to do the job in which they were intended.
> 
> 
> If they had build the GTR to his exacting German standards, it would weigh two and a half tons and certainly would not have a turbo charger! So Evo VI, all youve really highlighted to me is how perfect the GTR is in the first place. THANK YOU :thumbsup:





Just remind me, this is a thread about the bonnet popping up when you havent hit anything, along with Nissan having rubbish customer relations.


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## GTRSTAR (Nov 26, 2009)

andy g said:


> Just remind me, this is a thread about the bonnet popping up when you havent hit anything, along with Nissan having rubbish customer relations.


lol it was about 8 pages ago, now its about a German Tuner third party TUV testing his car then blaming nissan when it goes wrong :bawling::blahblah:

He may have an ego the size of a Maybach since he successfully caused a recall of 400 EU GTRs, but his expertise is misplaced here, this issue was caused by an accident and should be dealt with by the insurance company not Nissan.


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## waltong (Apr 11, 2008)

moleman said:


> You volunteering?


Has Guy stepped down?? I'm maybe making an assumption. The last conversation I had he was having an evening meal with Nissan GB.............then it all went quiet. I thought it was a hostage situation!


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## EvolutionVI (Sep 6, 2005)

GTRSTAR said:


> lol it was about 8 pages ago, now its about a German Tuner third party TUV testing his car then blaming nissan when it goes wrong :bawling::blahblah:
> 
> He may have an ego the size of a Maybach since he successfully caused a recall of 400 EU GTRs, but his expertise is misplaced here, this issue was caused by an accident and should be dealt with by the insurance company not Nissan.


I haven´t caused a recall....i never said anything like that...i just didn´t believe what Nissan told me.....and tried to find prove for it...which i found.. 

As you don´t seem to know what your talking about,id say,start a thread about your white GTR,dont forget the poll about which of the pictures is the nicest...maybe do a poll for each picture,or even a own thread for each picture with its own poll...makes it easier to decide


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## ChuckUK (Jan 1, 2009)

GTRSTAR said:


> this issue was caused by an accident and should be dealt with by the insurance company not Nissan.


Surely clipping your lower spoiler on a curb at 5mph is not an accident !!


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## AndyE14 (Mar 22, 2010)

I know the OP is based in Germany but if this happened to me, I would be seeking compensation from Nissan for the costs incurred. I would try and break the claim into £5k multiples for completely different purposes (e.g. Explosive Bolt Replacement, Bonnet Replacement, Paint as separate claims), to stay within Small claims court thresholds and thus limit my losses. I would then issue the relevant summonses and send a briefing pack giving the rationale for the claims and copies of the summonses to every major motoring publication and the motoring pages of the major newspapers.

Then I would sit back and wait for a settlement offer which I would anticipate within about a week of any major media interest.

Germany has a similar small claims arrangement, why does the OP not follow this approach. I never argue with a supplier beyond a week, after that it is a summons which I find a brutally effective way of resolving problems such as these.


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## waltong (Apr 11, 2008)

ChuckUK said:


> Surely clipping your lower spoiler on a curb at 5mph is not an accident !!


It is if it results in an £8K bill!! No wonder the Insurance market isn't feeling the love for the R35 anymore! Well done Nissan!


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## imattersuk (Nov 28, 2008)

AndyE14 said:


> I know the OP is based in Germany but if this happened to me, I would be seeking compensation from Nissan for the costs incurred. I would try and break the claim into £5k multiples for completely different purposes (e.g. Explosive Bolt Replacement, Bonnet Replacement, Paint as separate claims), to stay within Small claims court thresholds and thus limit my losses. I would then issue the relevant summonses and send a briefing pack giving the rationale for the claims and copies of the summonses to every major motoring publication and the motoring pages of the major newspapers.
> 
> Then I would sit back and wait for a settlement offer which I would anticipate within about a week of any major media interest.
> 
> Germany has a similar small claims arrangement, why does the OP not follow this approach. I never argue with a supplier beyond a week, after that it is a summons which I find a brutally effective way of resolving problems such as these.


The OP is in Hertfordshire


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## AndyE14 (Mar 22, 2010)

imattersuk said:


> The OP is in Hertfordshire


Scratch the last paragraph then


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## E5.UNICORN (Jul 17, 2009)

imattersuk said:


> Insist on their 370z demo


I had a golf offered to me but complained heavily and got a £65 budget per day from Nissan UK so got a fully loaded (fully loaded) insignia for a month:thumbsup:


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## Chris956 (Apr 11, 2010)

Any updates on this ????


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## Resonate (Jun 26, 2010)

He sold the twat at a guess lol!


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## Paul_G (Apr 4, 2008)

Chris956 said:


> Any updates on this ????


Latest is that Nissan UK have sent the control unit back to Japan for analysis to see if it's faulty. That was some time ago though and we are now three months on from the incident. (or lack of one!). In the meantime most of the repairs have been done apart from the bonnet rams which took a few weeks to get hold of. The other parts were available within 1-2 weeks.

I have got the car back, and I am now waiting for Nissans reply re the control unit before repairs are completed and we decide who pays. I will say that Marshalls body shop have been pretty good. While the car was there I asked for a small scrape on the wing and wheel to be repaired and the repair was excellent looking as new. Cheaper than I was originally quoted also.

The scrape that I had underneath the splitter is a complete red herring. Nissan informed me that if this was the cause then the unit would fire off immediately which absolutely wasn't the case. They still claim that this was the cause which is outragous in my view. Either the system is faulty or something bounced off the front of the car that was so small that I didn't notice it. Niether of these are acceptable reasons to not honour a warranty claim as I'm sure that the system is not operating as intended. There was no visible damage to the front of the car and as stated earlier, I was driving at low speed (approx 20mph) down a small high street which has a 30mph speed limit with my 4 year old daughter in the car. 

Even without the system active at the moment my natural reaction is to swerve away from any birds that are flying near the car which has got to be dangerous! So much for having a "safety aid"....

I will report back when I get the results back from Nissan!


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## Resonate (Jun 26, 2010)

Fkin nightmare, i feel for you dude. Did they gove you a courtesy car at all or was that out the window when they tried to blame you.

Picking mine up 1st Sept!


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## Paul_G (Apr 4, 2008)

Resonate said:


> Fkin nightmare, i feel for you dude. Did they gove you a courtesy car at all or was that out the window when they tried to blame you.
> 
> Picking mine up 1st Sept!


Had a Qashqai in the end. They tried to give me a Nissan Note, but at 6ft 5" I didn't quite fit....


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## Resonate (Jun 26, 2010)

Thats a fkin piss take man. I would have insisted on 370Z minimum


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## DWC (May 18, 2009)

Paul G

I'm completely with u on this mate. I'm sure as with most of us I have touched the front underneath many a time and I see that there is three front struts which connect the bottom of the bumper to the upper part. I assume these are what are bent on yours, or at least one of them. Well two of mine are bent but my bonnet has not gone off. I'm going to take some pics of the front showing all is fine with the struts bent just incase something happens. It sounds like something is deffo wrong in your case and I think u should really stick out for warranty claim. They can not also say that this could be related to earlier when u did touch the underneath as if it's gonna go off then it should go off when the shock accurs not months later. I would be furious if this happens to mine.

Good luck mate

Dave


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## exigepete (Aug 15, 2010)

Hello all, first post! Im now thinking about buying a GTR so have just joined the forum and been reading up on a few items, think I will disconnect this system if i do get one!


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## Paul_G (Apr 4, 2008)

Paul_G said:


> Latest is that Nissan UK have sent the control unit back to Japan for analysis to see if it's faulty. That was some time ago though and we are now three months on from the incident. (or lack of one!). In the meantime most of the repairs have been done apart from the bonnet rams which took a few weeks to get hold of. The other parts were available within 1-2 weeks.
> 
> I have got the car back, and I am now waiting for Nissans reply re the control unit before repairs are completed and we decide who pays. I will say that Marshalls body shop have been pretty good. While the car was there I asked for a small scrape on the wing and wheel to be repaired and the repair was excellent looking as new. Cheaper than I was originally quoted also.
> 
> ...


Ok, 2 weeks since my last post and I have just found out that I have been lied to. Nissan UK tech tried to read the codes of the unit themselves in conjunction with Japan and had no luck. So now over 3 months later they will send the unit to Japan..


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## Elliott_GTR (Dec 13, 2009)

The ridiculous thing is the depreciation you will have suffered in the meantime, not to mention the bloody car you paid for in the first place!

Crazy!


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## WingedBeast1968 (Sep 18, 2009)

Something definitely wrong with it.
I've turned a pigeon into a mushroom cloud, and mine didn't go off.


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## Chris956 (Apr 11, 2010)

I`ve been told on good authority that it only activates between certain speeds and they are quite low speeds so wiping out some wildlife whilst shooting the lanes probably wont set it off.


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## Kurgan (Jan 13, 2010)

I had this thing in my MY 2007 Jag XKR, hit a rabbit, hard, made a dent on my reg plate which was obviously the hit point.

Bonnet didnt explode. Didnt even remember it could do that when this happened. 

When i got my GTC carbon hood fitted my garage (official Porsche dealer) told me i should keep that system as its most likely pretty safe.
But hitting a plastic cone on track might set it off, said the mechanic.

Not planning to do any silly cone track pansie stunts so i wont mind having it.


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## David.Yu (Jun 28, 2001)

Kurgan said:


> I had this thing in my MY 2007 Jag XKR, hit a rabbit, hard, made a dent on my reg plate which was obviously the hit point.
> 
> Bonnet didnt explode. Didnt even remember it could do that when this happened.
> 
> ...


Ooh, good point about a carbon bonnet.
That would make a false activation even more expensive! :nervous:

And would carbon provide the same "cushion" as the steel bonnet anyway?

It is a tricky issue. Could a GT-R owner get into trouble for disabling a non-mandated feature if the worse case happened and a pedestrian died?

When/if such features become law, I guess so, but what about before then?

I've reconnected mine for normal use but will definitely disconnect it before any track events.


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## Kurgan (Jan 13, 2010)

David, you ask more question than i can answer 

Legistation (and terms of insurance companies differ from country to country) might be little different here in Finland.

However, my final decision to KEEP that system was that it will be checked in annual inspection. For a new car its after 3 years, then when its 5 years old and after that annually. Thats how it goes here anyways. I guess the same in most places.

I dont feel like that i MUST disable that system, more like that i makes things harder if i do.

Come on, lets face it. If these "exploding bonnets" was a big issue, i think we would have known about it. Have we? 
One failure (with recorded hit, remember) SHOULD not be able to make a panic reaction among the rest of us. 

Lets just feel little more confident to our awesome car and the company behind it, yes?


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## R33_GTS-t (Apr 27, 2005)

David.Yu said:


> It is a tricky issue. Could a GT-R owner get into trouble for disabling a non-mandated feature if the worse case happened and a pedestrian died?


Depends on if you hit them deliberately. Whether they were on the pavement or in their house at the time etc.


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## Rich-GT (Apr 2, 2008)

I think for the moment it is a very easy and sensible decision, to disconnect when on track & reconnect when on the road.... 

That's what I have been doing for the last few Months & will continue to do. For a few minutes work why would you run the risk of making what might be a small accident on track cost another several thousand Pounds in repair cost?


Rich


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## waltong (Apr 11, 2008)

David.Yu said:


> Ooh, good point about a carbon bonnet.
> That would make a false activation even more expensive! :nervous:
> 
> And would carbon provide the same "cushion" as the steel bonnet anyway?
> ...


Hi. 

I'm sure the poor chap whose GTR had the failure has his car back minus the offending item. One assumes (if this is indeed the case) that if Nissan are happy to give him the car back minus the pedestrian protection system that there is no legistlation in force to insist upon it. 

I'm still not quite sure how the law works? If I get run over by a transit van nothing on earth is going to flip me up and over the bonnet! Not now or ever!


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## manjit (Dec 17, 2009)

Rich-GT said:


> I think for the moment it is a very easy and sensible decision, to disconnect when on track & reconnect when on the road....
> 
> That's what I have been doing for the last few Months & will continue to do. For a few minutes work why would you run the risk of making what might be a small accident on track cost another several thousand Pounds in repair cost?
> 
> ...


When you reconnect the plugs, does the dash light turn off or stay on?

also do you just leave the plugs hanging loose after disconnecting them ?


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## Rich-GT (Apr 2, 2008)

The dash light stays on. You have to reset with the trusty Cobb AccessPORT. 

I leave the plug & socket dangling, there is only one and it's a very short distance from them to the first cable tie to the chassis, so quite secure.


Rich


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## manjit (Dec 17, 2009)

Rich-GT said:


> The dash light stays on. You have to reset with the trusty Cobb AccessPORT.
> 
> I leave the plug & socket dangling, there is only one and it's a very short distance from them to the first cable tie to the chassis, so quite secure.
> 
> ...


I dont have the COBB so is there another way or does it have to be dome from Nissan ??


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## Rich-GT (Apr 2, 2008)

Only other way is to take it to the Dealer and have them do it with the Consult III.

Just buy an AccessPORT, it's one of those things you will do sooner or later, so you may as well buy one now. 


Rich


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## Godders (Oct 7, 2009)

Does a batery disconnect help with the light or does it stay on until hard reset?


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## Rich-GT (Apr 2, 2008)

I don't know about disconnecting the battery, but I suspect the code is logged and needs to be reset. Just buy an AccesPORT guys....

Rich


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## Jed (Jun 26, 2009)

This sequence will read and clear fault codes on my non-nav. I've reset the tpms using this but haven't tried it on the bumper impact sensors. The timings are quite important, took me a couple of goes to get it in the right mode initially.

In car ECM Diagnostics/ECM Reset procedure: 
1) Sit in the driver's seat. 
2) Turn the ignition ON (Press the start button twice with foot off brake pedal) and wait three seconds. (Do not start the car.) 
3) Fully depress and release the accelerator pedal five times in less than five seconds. 
4) Wait exactly seven seconds. Fully depress the accelerator pedal for ten seconds until the MIL (SES) light flashes. 
5) Release the accelerator pedal and start counting flashes to obtain the four-digit trouble code. 
Long flashes (0.6 seconds) indicate the first digit of the code; count the blinks one through nine and write down the first digit. (Ten blinks indicates a zero.) 
The next three digits follow in turn in the same fashion except with faster blinks (0.3 second) and a 1.0-second pause between digits. 
The ECM code repeats its self until you turn the ignition OFF (press start button again), at which point the ECM resets itself to standard get-in-and-drive-the-car mode. 
You can look up the trouble codes in the ESM/FSM; there's a bunch of them. In the ESM, refer to page EC-639. 
Additionally, if you get four blinks of ten (0000), the ECM is indicating no malfunction.
You can clear the code (and the annoying MIL) by holding down the accelerator pedal for more than 10 seconds while in Diagnostic Test Mode II. When you release the pedal, the ECM erases the trouble code(s).


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## Chris956 (Apr 11, 2010)

Would be good to know if this does the business. Perhaps one of the chaps with an AP can try as they have the means to erase it anyhow.


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## Elliott_GTR (Dec 13, 2009)

Jed said:


> This sequence will read and clear fault codes on my non-nav. I've reset the tpms using this but haven't tried it on the bumper impact sensors. The timings are quite important, took me a couple of goes to get it in the right mode initially.
> 
> In car ECM Diagnostics/ECM Reset procedure:
> 1) Sit in the driver's seat.
> ...



LOL - that reads like an old SNES cheat code!


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## enshiu (Aug 20, 2010)

I just finished removing mine bonnet safety lamp by taping it inside the dashboard at the back of the bonnet lamp with a black tape.

The rest is pulling and removing all the wires including the pop up system.

And nobody here ever asked at MOT if I had this system or not!


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## Arcam (Jun 30, 2009)

enshiu said:


> I just finished removing mine bonnet safety lamp by taping it inside the dashboard at the back of the bonnet lamp with a black tape.
> 
> The rest is pulling and removing all the wires including the pop up system.
> 
> And nobody here ever asked at MOT if I had this system or not!


It is not part of the MOT test, so you will never be asked for it, I think the only issue would be if you had an accident and someone was hurt because the system did not deploy then you may be on a sticky wicket. That's the only reason I did not disable mine full time.


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## enshiu (Aug 20, 2010)

Arcam said:


> It is not part of the MOT test, so you will never be asked for it, I think the only issue would be if you had an accident and someone was hurt because the system did not deploy then you may be on a sticky wicket. That's the only reason I did not disable mine full time.


I only removed/taped the bulb till now. Still intact the bonnet system. Probably unplugging when having a track day.

Btw. do they ask at insurance: Do you have a pedestrian safety system?


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## Stevie76 (Dec 17, 2009)

So being lazy here and trying to save myself tons of reading...can you pull the plug, run the car and then reconnect it once you are ready too clearing the codes with the AP?

Got my CAT day at the end of the month so fancy unplugging it for the day.


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## andrew186 (May 3, 2010)

yeah you can stevie


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## enshiu (Aug 20, 2010)

Stevie76 said:


> So being lazy here and trying to save myself tons of reading...can you pull the plug, run the car and then reconnect it once you are ready too clearing the codes with the AP?
> 
> Got my CAT day at the end of the month so fancy unplugging it for the day.


clear the code with AP no problem at all.

I removed the bulb by taping it and system not removed yet.


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## Arcam (Jun 30, 2009)

enshiu said:


> I only removed/taped the bulb till now. Still intact the bonnet system. Probably unplugging when having a track day.
> 
> Btw. do they ask at insurance: Do you have a pedestrian safety system?


Ah, I see, OK 

No they don't ask that specific question but they do ask if the vehicle has been modified in any way.


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## Paul_G (Apr 4, 2008)

As the OP, I have just realised that I never posted the conclusion to this thread. Anyway, summary is that after many months, Nissan claim that the ECU was sent to Japan for analysis and the system "activated as intended". Assuming this was the case then something small must have hit the "sweet spot" somewhere near one of the sensors. There is no way to hear anything if this happens as the noise is quite loud when the system activates.
Note, apart from the slightly bent metal strip joining the lower to upper bumper there was no visible damage. The activation was NOT caused by a previous scrape to the underside of the splitter as Nissan previously claimed. They mistakingly claimed that the splitter scrape and activation occurred simultaneously which was not the case. 
So what are my conclusions:

> Nissan need to think again about the design of this system as it is obviously too sensitive. (Assuming it did really activate as intended)

> Why do all components need to be replaced? (ECU, sensors etc?)

> The time to deal with the situation was woefull. Resolution took a total of 6 months.. I had the car back with a deactivated system after about 3 weeks, but it was 2 months before all parts were replaced. If you are thinking about legal action, it becomes a lot more difficult if you start repairing the car to get it back on the road, So the longer Nissan take to sort the issue out, the more likely it is that you'll go down the insurance route and not bother.

> Costs or repair do appear to have come down. The original quote was approx 9k. This eventually came down to £5.8k and inclued bonnet and splitter replacement. I'm not sure if this was due to a reduction in parts prices, pressure from the insurance company or both. However Nissan still need to do better to stop people deactivating the system.

> Marshalls handling of the situation was poor and all chasing of Nissan customer services was done by myself.

> Marshalls body shop on ther other hand did a good job, with all repairs returning the car to an as new state. 

So, do I regret buying this car? To an extent, and certainly at the time, yes. This is not the kind of experience that I expected when I purchased Nissans flagship car. However, memories fade and I am enjoying the driving experience once again. I have no doubt though that this type of experience and especially Nissans handling of it has cost sales. And in times of economic hardship and rising prices this is not the smartest way to run a business or treat your customers.....

The good news is that I have not heard of any other incidents like this recently, so perhaps I was just unlucky.


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## OldBob (Oct 18, 2010)

Thx for posting the concluding follow up.


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## Paul_G (Apr 4, 2008)

OldBob said:


> Thx for posting the concluding follow up.


Forgot to add that the claim added £300 to my insurance  as well as the £600 excess paid on the original claim.


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## Zed Ed (Oct 24, 2007)

I had a large chicken on the nose at the weekend, doing 60ish.

Big thump, no damage or exploding ram deployment.

No need to turn-off for trackday IMHO.


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## Arcam (Jun 30, 2009)

Zed Ed said:


> I had a large chicken on the nose at the weekend, doing 60ish.
> 
> Big thump, no damage or exploding ram deployment.
> 
> No need to turn-off for trackday IMHO.


It won't deploy at that speed as I believe it turns off after about 20 to 25MPH, the bonnet is in danger at low speed turns when you thump a cone or similar.


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## enshiu (Aug 20, 2010)

Arcam said:


> It won't deploy at that speed as I believe it turns off after about 20 to 25MPH, the bonnet is in danger at low speed turns when you thump a cone or similar.


I have an import and it says from 20 km/h till 60 km/h.

so from 12.5mph till 37.5 mph. No ECU replacement needed just the bonnet system and reset with consult III or AP.



Arcam said:


> the bonnet is in danger at low speed turns when you thump a cone or similar.


The bonnet is in danger or are the pedestrians in danger?!


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## Arcam (Jun 30, 2009)

enshiu said:


> I have an import and it says from 20 km/h till 60 km/h.
> 
> so from 12.5mph till 37.5 mph. No ECU replacement needed just the bonnet system and reset with consult III or AP.
> 
> ...


Thanks for clearing up the speed deployment  and most defiantly the Bonnet is in danger :runaway:


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## enshiu (Aug 20, 2010)

Haah nice one +1,000,000,000 the bonnet is in danger in real though(repair costs) :runaway::clap:


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