Don’t Keep Nissan I-Keys With a Cell Phone

Nissan North America has warned customers to keep their intelligent keys away from their cell phones...or the keys may stop unlocking their cars.

Nissan of North America has issued a warning to customers whose vehicles are equipped with the company’s intellegent key (I-Key) access system: don’t keep your key too close to your cell phone, or you may not be able to use your car.

“We discovered that if the I-Key touches a cellphone, outgoing or incoming calls have the potential to alter the electronic code inside the I-Key,” said Nissan spokesman Kyle Bazemore. “The car won’t start and the I-Key cannot be reprogrammed.”

The keys are currently offered on the 2007 Nissan Altima and Infiniti G35 sedans. Nissan currently recommends customers keep their cell phones and their I-Keys at least one inch apart.

Nissan says key disruptions have occurred in a “very small percentage” of I-Key-equipped sedans sold so far, and the company plans to introduce a new—and hopefully less vulnerable—version of the I-Key laster this year. Nissan customers can obtain new keys from authorized Nissan dealers.