Hey all,
I am new to this forum, and apologize in advance if I posted in the wrong place. But I am desperate for some advice.
I have a 2004G35X sedan that I absolutely love. It has a fwe issues, some of which I will ask about at another time as I learn the site better
But today came a biggy, I was pulling out of my driveway in reverse, put it in to drive and it acted odd, the AT light came on and the car would not accelerate, it went very very slow like it was starting in another gear. I coasted to the end of my street, pulled over , put it in park and shut it down. When I went to restart it...nothing.... The dash lights, interior lights all that came on. Radio, seat adjust...you get the point. But when I turn the key all the way nothing, no crank attempt, click, not a thing. My nearest dealership is an hour away, I take care of scheduled maitinence religiously, for all of my 185,000 miles and am worried about my car...advise.......

 

Does your horn work? Every time my battery has died, my interior lights would still work, it just wouldn't crank, and the horn would sound really funny or just stop working altogether. It might just be the battery. If your alternator is the factory part, it may not be putting out enough juice to run the car with a compromised battery.

The AT light coming on meant something went wrong with the initial self-test upon starting. I think it could be attributed to lower than required voltage levels too. That is , if you haven't had any problems with the AT prior to this.

Hope this helps.

 

Horn still works, AT light didnt come on until I shifted in to drive from Reverse. Then it seemed to just creep along down the road....

 

OK so it's not electrical most likely. When you shut it off the last time do you think it actually made it to PARK? I'm thinking it maybe stuck in gear and it can't start while in gear.

What you experienced was the car going into LIMP mode. It causes the engine to not go over 3k ish rpms and not to shift out of 2nd or 3rd gear (can't remember which). It did this cause a fault was detected. There's got to be an error stored in the computer. See if a friend has a portable ob2 scanner to pull the code and then work from there.

 

Would it start in Neutral if that were the case? It is just so weird that it does everything electrical but then a big ole nuthin!

 

An AT should start in neutral as well so yeah you can try that. I still think there's a code stored in the computer that will help you narrow this down. That's what it's there for.

 

Im going to try in Neutral, and I tried rocking the car a bit thinking it may not be engaged in park correctly. I will have to hunt around and see if I know someone who has the thing to read the codes (yeah I know I am technically inept). Didnt know if anyone else ever had these kind of issues....

 

So yeah I tried it in Neutral, rocked the car and all that....and nothing.
Turn the key, all the usual lights come on, turn the key all the way and it doesnt click , or turnover or even make a peep

 

you're battery is done is my guess.
try boosting and see if it starts. had this happen to my xterra and yes it was just the battery.

has the battery been replaced before or is it still the original one?

and i don't think AT's starts in neutral

 

seems odd, but I am going to try and boost it. I would think that if the battery was dead it would not do all the lights, and alarm and windows and what. Going to go try it now. I read somewhere there is a fuse at the battery somewhere?

 

So I boosted the battery, not a thing. Thank you to everyone for all the great advice and help, still on the hunt for what it is. Even after a boost to the battery when the key is turned to starting position it does absolutely nothing. All of the lights come on as normal, with the exception of the AT light and the AWD light staying on. I can hear clicking that sounds like the fuse box area, but definately not trying to turn over or even engage.....
still looking....

 

Oh when you start the car you hear rapid fire clicks? That how this car does when the battery dies

 

You need to buy a obd scanner and get the codes. For now, try hitting the starte solonoid with a piece of metal and at the same time jump start it. Also check all of your fuses.

 

I knew saying the click was going to throw folks off...it is just a single click when I turn the key, not the rapid fires of it trying to start. Im going to go back thru and check the fuses and selenoid and all that while I find someone with a scanner to pull the codes. Will let you all know what they are, thanks again for the help. Keep it coming..

 

Dang, sorry to read about all your troubles. I agree that an obd scan is the best next step.