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Nissan recalls 166K vehicles for ignition-switch defect

The Juke, Sentra, Versa and others are included in the recall of 2017-2018 vehicles.

Jake Holmes Reviews Editor
While studying traditional news journalism in college, Jake realized he was smitten by all things automotive and wound up with an internship at Car and Driver. That led to a career writing news, review and feature stories about all things automotive at Automobile Magazine, most recently at Motor1. When he's not driving, fixing or talking about cars, he's most often found on a bicycle.
Jake Holmes
2017 Nissan Juke

The Juke, which has since been discontinued, is part of Nissan's latest recall action.

Nissan

will recall 166,000 vehicles in the US and Canada over concerns about defective ignition switches. The recall affects 2017 and 2018 model-year versions of the Juke (which was discontinued after 2017), Frontier, , , , Micra (which is not sold in the US), NV, and NV Taxi, Nissan told Roadshow today in an emailed statement.

The recall issue only affects cars sold with a traditional key-in-switch ignition, not the push-button versions that are optional on most of the specified models. Over time, components inside the ignition switch can wear, causing "reduced durability." Coupled with excessive vibrations, the key could inadvertently bump from the "on" position while driving. Nissan's statement says the automaker isn't aware of any injuries due to this problem, but it's obviously rather dangerous for a car to shut off suddenly while in motion.

Nissan plans to inform owners about the recall this month so they can have the problem repaired for free at a dealership. Though serious, this recall is, fortunately, relatively small compared to the similar problem General Motors had in 2014 with defective ignition switches that would turn off while owners were driving.

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