Fixes to Common Nissan Frontier Problems
This page is a collection of problems that I've encountered, and solved, whilst owning a 2012 Nissan Frontier. The information will often be applicable to other Nissan & Infiniti vehicles. Owners of a Frontier, Titan, Xterra, Pathfinder, Armada, &/or QX may find the information below particularly useful.
Slip Light Stuck On
- Also known as Vehicle Dynamic Control (VDC), Electronic Stability Control (ESC), Vehicle Stability Assist (VSA) and other names
In my case, this was because I had recently disconnected the battery. This light will come on when the Wheel Angle Sensor is out of calibration. Apparently this can happen when you disconnect your battery (deleting the saved calibration). It may be exacerbated by disconnecting your battery when your wheels are turned to the side. There are 3 possible fixes that I know of. I'll list them from simplest to hardest:
- Drive for 10 seconds in a straight line above 10 MPH (this is what worked for me). [1]
- Ensure that your wheels are aligned straight ahead & that your steering wheel is centered. Disconnect the battery, wait 1 minute, reconnect the battery. (This did NOT work for me). [2]
- If neither of the above 2 fixes work, take your vehicle to a Nissan Dealership to have them perform a Steering Angle Sensor Neutral Position Calibration. (I never tried this). [3]
Airbag Light is Flashing
Apparently the Airbag System can generate an error during common DIY installs and other projects. I'm not sure what the exact cause is but it happened to me when I took my dash apart. The result caused the Airbag Light to flash. I was able to fix it by following the procedure below: [4]
- Turn the key from Off to On.
- When the airbag light goes from solid to blinking, immediately turn off the engine.
- Wait 5 seconds.
- Repeat steps 1-3 2 more times. You should run this cycle a total of 3 times.
- Turn the engine on again and the Airbag System will be in Diagnostics Mode. At this point the blinking will indicate a specific Error Code. The error code will repeat indefinitely until you turn off the engine. See below for information on how to decode the sequence.
- When you have identified the error code turn the engine off.
- Wait 5 seconds.
- Turn the engine on & the error code should be reset (meaning the Airbag Light should no longer be blinking).
Airbag Error Sequence Decoder
To read the Airbag Error Code you must watch 2 subsequent blink patterns. If it blinks once and then twice, that indicates error code 12. Below is a list of Airbag Error Codes (I HAVE NOT VERIFIED THE ACCURACY OF THIS LIST). [5]
- 12: Low Battery Voltage
- 13: Air Bag Circuit Shorted to Ground
- 14: Primary Crash Sensor Circuit Shorted to Ground
- 21: Safety Sensor Not Mounted to Vehicle Properly
- 22: Safety Sensor Output Shorted to Battery Voltage
- 23: Safety Sensor Circuit Input Feed/Return Circuit Open
- 24: Safety Sensor Output Feed/Return Circuit Open
- 32: Driver Side Air Bag Circuit High Resistance or Open
- 33: Passenger Side Air Bag Circuit High Resistance or Open
- 34: Driver Side Air Bag Circuit Low Resistance or Shorted
- 35: Passenger Side Air Bag Circuit Low Resistance or Shorted
- 41: RH Primary Crash Sensor Feed/Return Circuit Open
- 42: LH Primary Crash Sensor Feed/Return Circuit Open
- 44: RH Primary Crash Sensor Not Mounted to Vehicle Properly
- 45: LH Primary Crash Sensor Not Mounted to Vehicle Properly
- 51: Air Bag Diagnostic Monitor Internal Thermal Fuse. Fuse Blown Due to Intermittent Short to Ground
- 52: Backup Power Supply Voltage Boost Fault
- 53: Primary Crash Sensor Circuits Resistance to Ground or Air Bag Diagnostic Fault
