How long can it sit ? Battery/keyless entry

fwellers · Nov 27th, 2007, 06:28 AM

Hi,
New to the forum, just bought an Altima Coupe for my wife. I just have a quick question, that may seem dumb but what the heck.

We are going away for 2 weeks. With the keyless entry system, is there any reason for concern for the battery running down with the car sitting for that long ?

The reason I ask, is that I also own a Prius, and that car has a switch to disable the keyless entry system. On the Prius forums they said to disable it if the car is going to sit for a while, so the battery doesn't drain.

I called the service dept for Nissan, and they said not to worry, but thought I'd check with the forum also.

Thanks for any input.

Host47 · Dec 4th, 2007, 01:05 AM

Hello fwellers,

I'm going to assume that the Altima Coupe is a 2008. ;-)

The keyless entry, I believe, is only really activated the moment you press the button on the door handle. As well, the car recognizes that you are in the car only when you 'sit' at the drivers seat. At that time, the car sends out the signal to verify that your key fob is the correct one, and allows you to use the desired function.

When leaving your car for 2 weeks, or even a whole month, the keyless entry system should not drain your battery at all. If it would, it would be such a minuscule amount it would surely not take more than a tenth of an amp from your battery, and that would be regained the next time you drive your car.

If you think about it your car has to, 24/7, listen for your remote to send a lock/unlock, etc. signal to your car. That 'signal receiver' runs all the time, in every car that you own. The keyless entry is the same idea, and I would have to say you will be fine for the two weeks that you are gone.

I hope that this has answered your question, and I hope that your wife (and you) enjoy your Altima Coupe!

fwellers · Dec 4th, 2007, 05:03 AM

Yes you assume correctly that it's a 2008! I think 2008 is the first year of the coupe.

thanks for your thoughtful reply. I won't worry about it. On my Prius I'll be disabling the keyless system ( since it's just a button to push ), but on the Nissan I won't give it a thought.