Intelligent Key Warning Light not turning off (Not Steering Wheel Lock)

High_Octane

Alright guys, a little background on this.
The car is a 2011 6 speed manual.

Got in my car, turned on to ACC and noticed the Intelligent Key Warning Light came on and was not going away.



I have already pulled the steering lock fuse a long time ago, so that is definitely not the cause.
Prayed hard and I could start the car with no issues, but the Intelligent Key Warning light stayed on throughout the entire drive.
Another symptom is I could not set my cruise control, and there is no indication of what is wrong. I could turn on the cruise control (the green cruise light came on), but when I tried to set a speed, nothing happens. The green cruise control light just stayed on and wasn't blinking or doing anything weird. I could still turn it off from the steering controls.

So after much thought of how these could be connected, I narrowed down to the clutch pedal after hearing from a friend how his Auto 370Z's brake pedal switch broke.

I found out the clutch pedal has 2 switches.



As seen in the image, there are two switches. One that detects the pedal is fully released (used to cancel the cruise control), and another that detects that the pedal is fully depressed (used when starting the engine).
Notice on the left arm, there is this rubber bumper. That is what presses the switch down.

Found out the rubber bumper for the right switch that detects the clutch pedal is fully released broke.



Guess after years of smashing it, it broke into pieces
Interesting to discover this also causes the Intelligent Key Warning light to come on.

As a quick fix, I got rubber bump stops which are around the same height, such that the switch is depressed when the pedal is released but not causing the clutch pedal to "float".



Just stick them onto the arm and make sure it is pressing down on the switch. Glue is highly recommended to keep the bump stop in place.

Started the car up and no more annoying Intelligent Key Warning light!
Hope this buys me enough time till I source for the actual rubber bump stop that fits into the hole.

Hope this helps others who are facing this problem!
I bet the stealership would have asked me to change the entire clutch pedal assembly!

Update:
Found the replacement parts.



The part no. for the clutch bump stop is 46584-S0100.
If you wish to change the bump stop for the brake pedal, it is 46584-5P010

Just spray some lithium grease on the smaller knob and squeeze it through the hole.

UPDATE:
Quick update, the other rubber bump stop broke and this time, I could not start the car since it can't detect that I fully depressed the clutch pedal.
So, symptoms to check if any of your rubber bump stops are broken:-

1. Intelligent Key Warning Light came on and was not going away. Unable to set the cruise control, and there is no indication of what is wrong.
The bump stop that presses the switch when your clutch pedal is released is broken.

2. Unable to start the car.
The bump stop that presses the switch when your clutch pedal is fully depressed is broken.

3. Brake lights not turning off.
The bump stop on the brake pedal is broken.