Nissan has issued a recall action for certain Pathfinder SUVs from the 1996-2004 model years and Infiniti QX4s from the 1997-2003 model years due to a possible corrosion problem that could lead to the loss of steering.
The recall affects a total of 195,991 Pathfinder and QX4 SUVs sold or currently registered in the states of Connecticut, Delaware, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington D.C., West Virginia and Wisconsin.
In these states, a lot of road salt is used during winter, with the aforementioned models being at risk to get water and salt into the upper strut housing through a hole. Over time, this can lead to the breaking of the strut housing from its attachment point under the hood, followed by grinding noises and increased steering effort.
The Japanese automakers said that while the vehicles remain drivable, continued use could lead to the breaking of the steering column, resulting in the loss of steering control.
Nissan said it will inspect the strut housing of the affected models and will repair the vehicles if necessary, free of charge. The company will notify owners on or before May 16.
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