Zaisersoze

Hi everyone--

I'm not a car tecchie and I don't fix my own automobile; I'm just a girl with a $20,000 paperweight because the Nissan dealer told me they couldn't fix my 2014 370Z and gave it back to me and I don't know what to do. I'm dubious that they can't fix it because they will give me trade in value for it, so my guess is that my third party warranty company will not pay them what they want for diagnostic time, but they can actually fix it and make money off it on re-sale. I have called the Nissan customer care line and they are working on it.

Now, I don't ever repair cars but I do take copious and damn good notes, so if anyone is willing to help me, I would appreciate it.

Two and a half weeks ago, the Vehicle Immobilizer System disabled my car after driving about 200 yards into my morning commute. The Intelligent key sign was illuminated, but all other instruments on the panel, both digital and analog went dead.* I was able to drive extremely slowly (no power was getting to the engine when I pressed the accelerator.)* When I arrived at home, the car would not shut down using the ignition button. I had to release the clutch to stall the engine. The "On" mode remained illuminated in the ignition button, and the interior dome lights and the headlamps continued to work.* The key system registered when my key fob approached the vehicle.* There was a loud beep/buzz emanated from the engine compartment. I attempted to shut down the vehicle by inserting the physical key into the physical key slot, but it became stuck and I had to ask the dealership to remove the key.

Prior to this breakdown, I had a warning sign in that on March 20, while driving, my ABS and skid warning lamps illuminated spontaneously, but after shut down and start up, did not re-appear. I made note of this instance, because it resembled the breakdown I had a year earlier.

PROLOGUE-- ONE YEAR EARLIER

The first warning* signs of the problem were intermittent loss of some electrical components which, after the car was turned off, were fine. This occurred maybe 3 times over the course of a month.
*
First instance--ABS and skid warning lights came on, all other systems fine. (Similar to the incident on March 20, 2019)
Second instance--Radio and a/c died while driving, all other systems fine after re-start.
Third instance--All electrical in the cockpit died, except the vehicle kept running normally. Then, I pulled off to the side of the road and turned the car off. When I tried to turn it on, symptoms almost identical to what is happening now occurred.
a. Intelligent key lights came on
b. Car would start and not turn off unless clutch was let out
c. Electrical system was mostly not working (radio, a/c, instrument panel)
d. I drove the car after I finally was able to get it started, but no power was reaching the engine (limp mode); I was moving at 2 mph, and then the radiator hose burst.

I took car in for repair, and the dealership proceeded to replace/repair the following:
a. Radiator hose
b. ABS brake hydraulic unit
c. Computer
d. Engine Timing
After each repair (a-d above), the car would suffer the same symptoms as the third instance after driving a few days to a week: While driving, electrical system would fail-- mostly cockpit such as instrument panel (both digital and analog) and radio and a/c. Engine would run normally and car could be driven.


e) The final repair:

Relay fuse to the Velocity control Unit
*
This repair fixed the problem.

I know I have just written an epic saga and to anyone who read it, thank you! But does anyone have any ideas? I am desperate.