Update: Steering Lock issue - Bypass Kit!

Originally Posted by wdkwang

Hi all,

2010 owner here that recently encountered the steering lock failure and resolved it.

I've known about the problem for a while but never paid much mind to it since I naively thought it wouldn't happen to me. Well, it did, at ~51k miles. I was stranded on a Sunday night in the city and was nerve-rackingly trying to DIY fix it via the resources on this forum to no avail. No amount of hammering to that steering lock was going to get it to work. I had to get it towed home. I found out about the Voluntary Bulletin but they declined me because I have a revision C, and the Bulletin only covered revisions A and B. The next thing was to chance it by buying a used steering lock on ebay. They're going for $150-200. However, I came upon this one seller that had sold over 700 of these so called Bypass Kits for $103. It appeared to be an official Nissan part but I found it odd that there was almost nothing about it when searching via its serial number, including this forum. I took a chance and bought it. Had it installed by a friend and voila, it worked!
With this bypass kit, you don't need to cut any wires or pull any fuses after. It's a direct plug and play replacement to the steering lock except there's no more steering lock. No need for reprogramming by the dealer (this is a lie by them to get you to cough up another $200-300).

As advised by others already, don't wait until your steering lock fails on you and leaves you stranded. They made up to a revision D or E, which all will fail over time. If you have a 2012 or newer model, they eliminated the steering lock on them so you don't have to worry about this issue. If you have decided to ignore all warnings and ended up here reading this thread wondering how to get your as$ unstranded. Take a hammer and bang away at the steering lock located under the steering column while pressing the start button. You'll know it worked if you hear the steering unlock disengage. If that didn't work then you'll just have to pay for a tow like i did.

Now onto the actual fixing, I don't recommend spending the money on another steering lock module that will eventually fail. Just pay the $100 for this bypass kit and be done with it. It says Altima in the title, however the cars that have been effected and are compatible with this kit are Altima, Maxima, 370z, and GTR.

Part no. 48708-9N00A

Link to ebay item: 09-10 ALTIMA MAXIMA STEERING LOCK BYPASS KIT FOR 48700-9N00B NO PROGRAM NEEDED | eBay

Would appreciate a rep if this was helpful. Thanks all