Hello Forum Members,

I am the owner of a 2008 Nissan Altima and one of many Nissan and Infiniti owners that have experienced a problem with the passenger air bag occupant classification system (OCS) that causes the air bag warning light to flash on the instrument cluster and the passenger air bag “off” indicator to come on. This happens whether or not the passenger seat is occupied. When this happens, the passenger air bag will not work in the event of an accident. If you go to a mechanic or dealer, they may find one of the diagnostic trouble codes B1017 to B1022. If you have had this problem with a 2007 to 2011Nissan or Infiniti vehicle, please read on. This problem is not related to the Takata air bag recall.

Nissan created a voluntary recall (NHTSA recall 08V-521) for a select range of vehicles (see list below) that have this problem, but they will only fix the problem for free if they find the diagnostic trouble code B1022. Because I don’t believe Nissan is living up to its responsibility to fix this safety issue, I am launching a personal Internet campaign that I hope will result in NHTSA forcing Nissan to issue a broader recall to fix this problem. If you are interested in helping, please read on.

Vehicles Potentially Involved in NHTSA Recall 08V-521:

2007-2008 Nissan Altima and Altima Hybrid – manufactured 3/12/07 to 5/27/08
2008 Nissan Altima Coupe – manufactured 5/8/07 to 1/30/08
2007-2008 Nissan 350Z & 350Z Roadster – manufactured 5/21/07 to 11/8/07
2009 Nissan Murano – manufactured 10/23/07 to 11/24/07
2008 Nissan Rogue – manufactured 7/18/07 to 1/31/08
2007-2008 Infiniti G35 Sedan – manufactured 4/5/07 to 10/31/07
2008 Infiniti G37 – manufactured 6/20/07 to 10/25/07
2008 Infiniti EX35 – manufactured 11/5/07 to 11/14/08

You can find all the documents related to NHTSA recall 08V-521 on the following NHTSA page:
https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/acms/c...21&docType=RCL

I have done an extensive analysis of the airbag complaints for all 2007-2011 models on the following site:
https://www.aboutautomobile.com/Consumer-Complaint

My analysis shows that a high percentage of the air bag complaints for this range of vehicles are for the problem I described above. I have sent the results of my analysis to NHTSA with an appeal to investigate this issue.

If you are interested in helping, please register a formal complaint to NHTSA. If they receive a sufficient number of complaints, we may get them to investigate this problem and force Nissan to issue a recall. It’s all about the numbers, so please help your fellow Nissan and Infiniti owners by entering your official complaint about this problem. If you are willing to help, you should enter a complaint to NHTSA online at:
https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/VehicleComplaint/

The process is fairly simple, but the complaint category and description are important. Please enter your complaint under the “Airbag” category. Also, please follow the NHTSA instructions to describe the complaint clearly. If you know the specific diagnostic trouble code for your vehicle, please add it somewhere in the complaint.

I plan to pursue a response from NHTSA for my complaint. If I get additional information from them or Nissan on this issue, I’ll post it on this forum.

If you are interested in more details about this passenger air bag problem, please read on.

There are two technical bulletins created by Nissan for the 08V-521 recall, I’ve included the direct links below.

For Nissan owners, here is the direct link to the latest Nissan Technical Bulletin, issued Dec 2, 2015:
https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/acms/c...8V521-6978.pdf

For Infiniti owners, here is the direct link to the latest Infiniti Technical Bulletin, issued Nov 5, 2008:
https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/acms/c...8V521-8978.pdf

If you read the above Technical Bulletins carefully, you will see that Nissan is only committing to repairing cars that have the B1022 trouble code. Trouble codes B1017 to B1022 all relate to a malfunction of the OCS and/or its ability to communicate with the air bag controller (air bag diagnosis sensor unit). In all cases, the impact on owners is the same. If a passenger is sitting in the passenger seat, their presence will not be detected, the air bag warning lights will be on, and the passenger air bag will not deploy in the event of an accident. Since the impact on owners is the same, the passenger seat cushion must be replaced to repair the problem. The repair cost for a 2008 Nissan Altima is over $2000. Other vehicles may be higher.