ECO mode NISSAN SENTRA 2009 Owner´s Manual

Tire and loading information label
1Seating capacity: The maximum num-
ber of occupants that can be seated
in the vehicle.
2Vehicle load limit: See loading infor-
mation in the “Technical and con-
sumer information” section.
3Original tire size: The size of the tires
originally installed on the vehicle at
the factory.
4Cold tire pressure: Inflate the tires to
this pressure when the tires are cold.
Tires are considered COLD after the
vehicle has been parked for 3 or more
hours, or driven less than 1 mile (1.6
km) at moderate speeds. The recom-
mended cold tire inflation is set by the
manufacturer to provide the best bal-
ance of tire wear, vehicle handling,
driveability, tire noise, etc., up to the
vehicle’s GVWR.
5Tire size – refer to “Tire labeling” later
in this section.
6Spare tire size (if so equipped) .
LDI0545
Maintenance and do-it-yourself8-33
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Owners Manual—USA_English(nna)
10/27/08—tbrooks


7The word “radial”
The word “radial” is shown if the tire has
radial structure.
8Manufacturer or brand name
Manufacturer or brand name is shown.
Other Tire-related Terminology
In addition to the many terms that are
defined throughout this section, Intended
Outboard Sidewall is (1) the sidewall that
contains a whitewall, bears white lettering
or bears manufacturer, brand, and/or
model name molding that is higher or
deeper than the same molding on the
other sidewall of the tire, or (2) the out-
ward facing sidewall of an asymmetrical
tire that has a particular side that must
always face outward when mounted on a
vehicle.
TYPES OF TIRES
WARNING
●When changing or replacing tires, be
sure all four tires are of the same type
(i.e., Summer, All Season or Snow) and
construction. A NISSAN dealer may be
able to help you with information about
tire type, size, speed rating and
availability.
●Replacement tires may have a lower
speed rating than the factory equipped
tires, and may not match the potential
maximum vehicle speed. Never exceed
the maximum speed rating of the tire.
●For additional information regarding
tires, refer to “Important Tire Safety In-
formation” (US) or “Tire Safety Informa-
tion” (Canada) in the Warranty Informa-
tion Booklet.
All season tires
NISSAN specifies All Season tires on some mod-
els to provide good performance all year, includ-
ing snowy and icy road conditions. All Season
tires are identified by ALL SEASON and/or M&S
on the tire sidewall. Snow tires have better snow
traction than All Season tires and may be more
appropriate in some areas.
Summer tires
NISSAN specifies summer tires on some models
to provide superior performance on dry roads.
Summer tire performance is substantially re-
duced in snow and ice. Summer tires do not have
the tire traction rating “M&S” on the tire sidewall.
If you plan to operate your vehicle in snowy or icy
conditions, NISSAN recommends the use of
SNOW tires or ALL SEASON tires on all four
wheels.
Snow tires
If snow tires are needed, it is necessary to select
tires equivalent in size and load rating to the
original equipment tires. If you do not, it can
adversely affect the safety and handling of your
vehicle.
Generally, snow tires have lower speed ratings
than factory equipped tires and may not match
the potential maximum vehicle speed. Never ex-
ceed the maximum speed rating of the tire.
If you install snow tires, they must be the same
size, brand, construction and tread pattern on all
four wheels.
For additional traction on icy roads, studded tires
may be used. However, some U.S. states and
Canadian provinces prohibit their use. Check
local, state and provincial laws before installing
Maintenance and do-it-yourself8-37
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10/27/08—tbrooks


●Always drive your vehicle at a moderate
speed.
●When backing up, hold the bottom of the
steering wheel with one hand. Move your
hand in the direction in which you want the
trailer to go. Make small corrections and
back up slowly. If possible, have someone
guide you when you are backing up.
Always block the wheels on both vehicle and
trailer when parking. Parking on a slope is not
recommended; however, if you must do so:
CAUTION
If you move the shift selector lever to the P
(Park) position before blocking the
wheels and applying the parking brake,
transmission damage could occur.
1. Apply and hold the brake pedal.
2. Have someone place blocks on the downhill
side of the vehicle and trailer wheels.
3. After the wheel blocks are in place, slowly
release the brake pedal until the blocks ab-
sorb the vehicle load.
4. Apply the parking brake.
5. Shift the transmission into P (Park) .
6. Turn off the engine.To drive away:
1. Start the vehicle.
2. Apply and hold the brake pedal.
3. Shift the transmission into gear.
4. Release the parking brake.
5. Drive slowly until the vehicle and trailer are
clear from the blocks.
6. Apply and hold the brake pedal.
7. Have someone retrieve and store the blocks.
●While going downhill, the weight of the
trailer pushing on the tow vehicle may de-
crease overall stability. Therefore, to main-
tain adequate control, reduce your speed
and shift to a lower gear. Avoid long or
repeated use of the brakes when descend-
ing a hill, as this reduces their effectiveness
and could cause overheating. Shifting to a
lower gear instead provides “engine brak-
ing” and reduces the need to brake as fre-
quently.
●If the engine coolant temperature rises to a
high temperature, refer to “If your vehicle
overheats” in the “In case of emergency”
section of this owner’s manual.
●Trailer towing requires more fuel than normal
circumstances.●Avoid towing a trailer for your vehicle’s first
500 miles (805 km) .
●For the first 500 miles (805 km) that you do
tow, do not drive over 50 MPH (80 km/h) .
●Have your vehicle serviced more often than
at intervals specified in the recommended
Maintenance Schedule in the “NISSAN Ser-
vice and Maintenance Guide”.
●When making a turn, your trailer wheels will
be closer to the inside of the turn than your
vehicle wheels. To compensate for this,
make a larger than normal turning radius
during the turn.
●Crosswinds and rough roads will adversely
affect vehicle/trailer handling, possibly caus-
ing vehicle sway. When being passed by
larger vehicles, be prepared for possible
changes in crosswinds that could affect ve-
hicle handling.
Do the following if the trailer begins to sway:
1. Take your foot off the accelerator pedal to
allow the vehicle to coast and steer as
straight ahead as the road conditions allow.
This combination will help stabilize the ve-
hicle.
– Do not correct trailer sway by steering or
applying the brakes.
9-24Technical and consumer information
REVIEW COPY—2009 Sentra(sen)
Owners Manual—USA_English(nna)
10/27/08—tbrooks


2. When the trailer sway stops, gently apply the
brakes and pull to the side of the road in a
safe area.
3. Try to rearrange the trailer load so it is bal-
anced as described earlier in this section.
●Be careful when passing other vehicles.
Passing while towing a trailer requires con-
siderably more distance than normal pass-
ing. Remember, the length of the trailer must
also pass the other vehicle before you can
safely change lanes.
●Use the Tow Mode or downshift the trans-
mission to a lower gear for engine braking
when driving down steep or long hills. This
will help slow the vehicle without applying
the brakes.
●Avoid holding the brake pedal down too long
or too frequently. This could cause the
brakes to overheat, resulting in reduced
braking efficiency.
●Increase your following distance to allow for
greater stopping distances while towing a
trailer. Anticipate stops and brake gradually.
●NISSAN recommends that the cruise con-
trol not be used while towing a trailer.●Some states or provinces have specific
regulations and speed limits for vehicles that
are towing trailers. Obey the local speed
limits.
●Check your hitch, trailer wiring harness con-
nections, and trailer wheel lug nuts after 50
miles (80 km) of travel and at every break.
●When launching a boat, don’t allow the wa-
ter level to go over the exhaust tail pipe or
rear bumper.
●Make sure you disconnect the trailer lights
before backing the trailer into the water or
the trailer lights may burn out.
When towing a trailer, transmission fluid
should be changed more frequently. For
additional information, see the “Mainte-
nance and do-it-yourself” section earlier in
this manual.
FLAT TOWING
Towing your vehicle with all four wheels on the
ground is sometimes called flat towing. This
method is sometimes used when towing a vehicle
behind a recreational vehicle, such as a motor
home.
CAUTION
●Failure to follow these guidelines can
result in severe transmission damage.
●Whenever flat towing your vehicle, al-
ways tow forward, never backward.
●DO NOT tow any continuously variable
transmission vehicle with all four
wheels on the ground (flat towing) . Do-
ing so WILL DAMAGE internal transmis-
sion parts due to lack of transmission
lubrication.
●For emergency towing procedures refer
to “Towing recommended by NISSAN”
in the “In case of emergency” section of
this manual.
Continuously Variable Transmission
To tow a vehicle equipped with a continuously
variable transmission, an appropriate vehicle dolly
MUST
be placed under the towed vehicle’s drive
wheels.Alwaysfollow the dolly manufacturer’s
recommendations when using their product.
Technical and consumer information9-25
REVIEW COPY—2009 Sentra(sen)
Owners Manual—USA_English(nna)
10/27/08—tbrooks


Due to legal requirements in some states and
Canadian Provinces, your vehicle may be re-
quired to be in what is called the “ready condi-
tion” for an Inspection/Maintenance (I/M) test of
the emission control system.
The vehicle is set to the “ready condition” when it
is driven through certain driving patterns. Usually,
the ready condition can be obtained by ordinary
usage of the vehicle.
If a powertrain system component is repaired or the
battery is disconnected, the vehicle may be reset to
a “not ready” condition. Before taking the I/M test,
check the vehicle’s inspection/maintenance test
readiness condition. Turn the ignition switch ON
without starting the engine. If the Malfunction Indi-
cator Light (MIL) comes on steady for 20 seconds
and then blinks for 10 seconds , the I/M test
condition is “not ready”. If the MIL does not blink
after 20 seconds, the I/M test condition is “ready”.
If the MIL indicates the vehicle is in a “not ready”
condition, drive the vehicle through the following
pattern to set the vehicle to the ready condition. If
you cannot or do not want to perform the driving
pattern, a NISSAN dealer can conduct it for you.
WARNING
Always drive the vehicle in a safe and
prudent manner according to traffic con-
ditions and obey all traffic laws.
1. Start the engine when the engine coolant
temperature gauge needle points to C. Al-
low the engine to idle until the gauge needle
points between the C and H (normal oper-
ating temperature) .
2. Accelerate the vehicle to 55 MPH (88
km/h) , then quickly release the accelerator
pedal completely and keep it released for at
least 10 seconds.
3. Quickly depress the accelerator pedal for a
moment, then drive the vehicle at a speed of
53 - 60 MPH (86 - 96 km/h) for at least 9
minutes.
4. Stop the vehicle.
5. Accelerate the vehicle to 35 MPH (55 km/h)
and maintain the speed for 20 seconds.
6. Repeat steps 4 through 5 at least 10 times.7. Accelerate the vehicle to 55 MPH (88 km/h)
and maintain the speed for at least 3 min-
utes.
8. Stop the vehicle. Place the shift selector in
the P (Park) or N (Neutral) position.
9. Turn the engine off.
10. Repeat steps1-8atleast one more time.
If steps 1 through 7 are interrupted, repeat the
preceding step. Any safe driving mode is accept-
able between steps. Do not stop the engine until
step 7 is completed.
READINESS FOR INSPECTION/
MAINTENANCE (I/M) TEST
9-28Technical and consumer information
REVIEW COPY—2009 Sentra(sen)
Owners Manual—USA_English(nna)
10/27/08—tbrooks


This vehicle is equipped with an Event Data Re-
corder (EDR) . The main purpose of an EDR is to
record, in certain crash or near crash-like situa-
tions, such as an air bag deployment or hitting a
road obstacle, data that will assist in understand-
ing how a vehicle’s systems performed. The EDR
is designed to record data related to vehicle
dynamics and safety systems for a short period of
time, typically 30 seconds or less. The EDR in this
vehicle is designed to record such data as:
●How various systems in your vehicle were
operating;
●Whether or not the driver and passenger
safety belts were buckled/fastened;
●How far (if at all) the driver was depressing
the accelerator and/or brake pedal; and,
●How fast the vehicle was traveling.
●Sounds are not recorded.
These data can help provide a better understand-
ing of the circumstances in which crashes and
injuries occur. NOTE: EDR data are recorded by
your vehicle only if a nontrivial crash situation
occurs; no data are recorded by the EDR under
normal driving conditions and no personal data
(e.g. name, gender, age and crash location) are
recorded. However, other parties, such as law
enforcement, could combine the EDR data withthe type of personally identifying data routinely
acquired during a crash investigation.
To read data recorded by an EDR, special equip-
ment is required and access to the vehicle or the
EDR is needed. In addition to the vehicle manu-
facturer and NISSAN dealer, other parties, such
as law enforcement, that have the special equip-
ment, can read the information if they have ac-
cess to the vehicle or the EDR. EDR data will only
be accessed with the consent of the vehicle
owner or lessee or as otherwise required or per-
mitted by law.A genuine NISSAN Service Manual is the best
source of service and repair information for your
vehicle. Filled with wiring diagrams, illustrations
and step-by-step diagnostic and adjustment pro-
cedures, this manual is the same one used by the
factory-trained technicians working at NISSAN
dealerships. Also available are genuine NISSAN
Owner’s Manuals, and genuine NISSAN Service
and Owner’s Manuals for older NISSAN models.
For USA
For current pricing and availability of genuine
NISSAN Service Manualsfor the 2000 model
year and later contact:
1-800-450-9491
www.nissan-techinfo.com
For current pricing and availability of genuine
NISSAN Service Manualsfor the 1999 model
year and prior, see a NISSAN dealer, or contact:
1-800-247-5321
For current pricing and availability of genuine
NISSAN Owner’s Manualsfor this model year
and prior, see a NISSAN dealer, or contact:
1-800-247-5321
EVENT DATA RECORDERS (EDR) OWNER’S MANUAL/SERVICE
MANUAL ORDER INFORMATION
Technical and consumer information9-29
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10/27/08—tbrooks


Clock ......................4-24
(models without navigation system).....4-5
Clockset.....................4-5
Clutch
Clutchfluid .................8-14
C.M.V.S.S. certification label..........9-12
Cold weather driving..............5-26
Compact disc (CD) player.......4-25,4-29
Console box...................2-29
Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT). . .5-12
Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT)
fluid .....................8-13
Driving with Continuously Variable
Transmission (CVT).............5-12
Transmission selector lever lock
release....................5-15
Control panel buttons
Clockset...................4-5
Setting button................4-5
Tripbutton ..................4-3
Without navigation system..........4-2
Controls
Audio controls (steering wheel)......4-37
Heater and air conditioner controls.....4-7
Coolant
Capacities and recommended
fuel/lubricants.................9-2
Changing engine coolant..........8-9
Checking engine coolant level........8-8
Engine coolant temperature gauge.....2-6
Corrosionprotection...............7-6
Cruise control..................5-19
Cupholders...................2-27
Curtain side-impact air bag system
(See supplemental side air bag and curtain
side-impact air bag system)..........1-52D
Daytime running light system
(Canada only)..................2-21
Defroster switch
Rear window and outside mirror defroster
switch....................2-19
Dimensionsandweights............9-10
Dimmer switch for instrument panel......2-21Display controls (see control panel buttons)...4-2
Distance to empty................4-3
Door locks....................3-4
Door open warning................4-6
Door open warning light............2-10
Drive belt....................8-17
Driving
Cold weather driving............5-26
Driving with Continuously Variable
Transmission (CVT).............5-12
Driving with manual transmission.....5-17
Precautions when starting and driving . . .5-2
E
Economy-fuel .................5-21
Emission control information label.......9-13
Emission control system warranty.......9-27
Engine
Before starting the engine.........5-10
Blockheater.................5-27
Capacities and recommended
fuel/lubricants.................9-2
Changingenginecoolant ..........8-9
Changingengineoil ............8-11Changing engine oil filter..........8-12
Checking engine coolant level........8-8
Checking engine oil level..........8-9
Engine compartment check locations....8-6
Engine coolant temperature gauge.....2-6
Engine cooling system............8-8
Engine oil...................8-9
Engine oil and oil filter recommendation . .9-6
Engine oil pressure warning light.....2-10
Engine oil viscosity..............9-6
Engine serial number............9-12
Engine specifications.............9-8
Starting the engine.............5-10
Engine oil pressure gauge............2-6
Eventdatarecorders..............9-29
Exhaust gas (Carbon monoxide)........5-2
Eyeglass case..................2-25
F
Flashers
(See hazard warning flasher switch)......2-22
Flat tire......................6-2
Floor mat positioning aid.............7-5
Fluid
Brake fluid..................8-13
Capacities and recommended
fuel/lubricants.................9-2
Clutch fluid.................8-14
Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT)
fluid.....................8-13
Engine coolant................8-8
Engine oil...................8-9
Window washer fluid............8-14
F.M.V.S.S. certification label..........9-12
10-2
REVIEW COPY—2009 Sentra(sen)
Owners Manual—USA_English(nna)
10/27/08—tbrooks