Nissan Connect DEAD... BUT still can get Station Updates?

[gmcjetpilot]

I last used Nissan Connect in Dec or Jan 2022. It gave me charge status. I just tried to use it and it's dead dead dead (as expected).

HOWEVER I can update charging stations and see the Antenna signal strength meter shows good signal strength?

So is Nissan still going to update charging stations? Is that 3G or something different?

My guess AT&T 3G is still working in my area, but Nissan shut down the NISSAN CONNECT.

I also suspect Charge Station Updates are AT&T 3G will stop soon?

COMMENTS?

UPDATE UPDATE UPDATE
Well on local TV news they even reported AT&T 3G was shut down and some devices (phones, messaging) may stop working. I got this EMAIL today from Nissan. The last part is please don't bother to sue us because it's in your terms of service. Not sure what specific part of the terms but I am sure it says they can terminate the NissanConnect service anytime....

NOTE My Car Wings is working and downloaded charge stations, Nissan Feed about my energy efficiency and my "ranking". I also got POI powered by Google.. I still see signal strength???

Nissan is committed to providing the highest levels of customer satisfaction. With that in mind, we want to provide you with an important update regarding cellular network changes that will affect your access to the NissanConnect® EV & Services features in your 2015 Nissan LEAF.

Your vehicle is equipped with a TCU (Telematics Control Unit) designed to connect to the AT&T 3G cellular network. This connection to the 3G network is necessary in order for NissanConnect® EV & Services to operate. The 3G cellular network service provider, AT&T, has announced its decision to discontinue 3G cellular network coverage on or before February 22, 2022. As a result of AT&T’s termination of 3G network coverage, NissanConnect® EV & Services features that require a 3G network connection will no longer operate in your vehicle, and your NissanConnect® EV & Services subscription will become inactive.1 This decision to discontinue 3G network coverage was not made by Nissan and this change is not within Nissan’s control.
What this means to you:
Your subscription will continue based on your service agreement until (1) the date it expires, (2) the date AT&T discontinues service; or
(3) February 22, 2022, whichever comes first.

After the date AT&T discontinues service, NissanConnect® EV & Services will no longer operate in your vehicle, and you will not be able to re-enroll to receive services.
You may cancel your NissanConnect® EV & Services subscription at any time via the MyNISSAN Owner Portal. All subscription cancellations are subject to the terms and conditions of your NissanConnect® EV & Services Subscriber Agreement. For any questions about cancellation, please contact customer care at (855) 426-6628.

 

[Nubo]

Any data would have to come through the 3G modem so when 3G goes away so does the data. If the signal meter is working I assume it means you're still near a working 3G tower. Not sure what's going on with Nissan's servers. AT&T pulls the plug on 3G tomorrow, iirc though there was some talk of brokering a delay because of medical devices.

 

[Stanton]

The only telematics that will work after the 3G shutdown (for Gen1 Leaf owners) are the traffic updates to the Nav system. Of course, that's only if you subscribe to Sirius/XM. The truth is I've never used the Leaf to locate a charging station, but I do use the Nav (which uses the GPS antenna) from time to time (and did the "final" map update for Gen1's a couple years ago).

 

[gmcjetpilot]

Thanks for replies. I'm guessing I still have 3G.
Nissan Connect server is off line by Nissan.

I do have Sirrus and NAV in my SV. I did not use traffic or notice it. I generally don't care for factory nav displays. I have a Garmin in my other car portable that's mounted discreetly off the side of steering wheel. Far superior to anything car makers have. I checked into a new knob database chip and it was stupid expensive.

My Garmin through FM radio stations that transmit data on their extra carrier wave have traffic and weather the Garmin can pick up. It's free. However Waze for traffic is best. Weather is easy to get on phone as well.

Not too sad. This is the first car I've ever had with some kind of wireless phone at app. It lasted 4 years. I've been driving for 40 years and was able to live without it before. I can live w/o. It was a little glitchy at times and kind of frustrating, so I guess it's best it's dead. It was not the main reason why I got the car. Battery will dead 10 years from now, when the pack is toast.

 

[cwerdna]

I last received one of those Nissan LEAF update: Charging Complete/Stopped emails on Sat 2/19/22 from my Nissan for my Leaf I sold middle of 2021. I'm assuming they will cease completely quite soon, if that wasn't the final one.

 

[Nubo]

Thanks for replies. I'm guessing I still have 3G.
Nissan Connect server is off line by Nissan.

I do have Sirrus and NAV in my SV. I did not use traffic or notice it. I generally don't care for factory nav displays. I have a Garmin in my other car portable that's mounted discreetly off the side of steering wheel. Far superior to anything car makers have. I checked into a new knob database chip and it was stupid expensive.

My Garmin through FM radio stations that transmit data on their extra carrier wave have traffic and weather the Garmin can pick up. It's free. However Waze for traffic is best. Weather is easy to get on phone as well.

Not too sad. This is the first car I've ever had with some kind of wireless phone at app. It lasted 4 years. I've been driving for 40 years and was able to live without it before. I can live w/o. It was a little glitchy at times and kind of frustrating, so I guess it's best it's dead. It was not the main reason why I got the car. Battery will dead 10 years from now, when the pack is toast.

Yeah, it was nice in August, to hit the AC at my desk before walking out the car, or better yet on the 18th tee! I might tinker with OVMS; not yet sure.

 

[LeftieBiker]

I CURSE Nissan for not putting an "HVAC" button on the key fob, and for not doing it from the start.

 

[rhinOC]

<Deleted>

 

[rhinOC]

<Deleted>

 

[gmcjetpilot]

Well on local news they even reported AT&T 3G was shut down and some devices (phones, messaging) may stop working. I got this EMAIL today from Nissan.

Nissan is committed to providing the highest levels of customer satisfaction. With that in mind, we want to provide you with an important update regarding cellular network changes that will affect your access to the NissanConnect® EV & Services features in your 2015 Nissan LEAF.

Your vehicle is equipped with a TCU (Telematics Control Unit) designed to connect to the AT&T 3G cellular network. This connection to the 3G network is necessary in order for NissanConnect® EV & Services to operate. The 3G cellular network service provider, AT&T, has announced its decision to discontinue 3G cellular network coverage on or before February 22, 2022. As a result of AT&T’s termination of 3G network coverage, NissanConnect® EV & Services features that require a 3G network connection will no longer operate in your vehicle, and your NissanConnect® EV & Services subscription will become inactive.1 This decision to discontinue 3G network coverage was not made by Nissan and this change is not within Nissan’s control.
What this means to you:
Your subscription will continue based on your service agreement until (1) the date it expires, (2) the date AT&T discontinues service; or
(3) February 22, 2022, whichever comes first.

After the date AT&T discontinues service, NissanConnect® EV & Services will no longer operate in your vehicle, and you will not be able to re-enroll to receive services.
You may cancel your NissanConnect® EV & Services subscription at any time via the MyNISSAN Owner Portal. All subscription cancellations are subject to the terms and conditions of your NissanConnect® EV & Services Subscriber Agreement. For any questions about cancellation, please contact customer care at (855) 426-6628.

 

[gmcjetpilot]

On Jan 31, 2022 my Connect app just stopped working on my’22 SV+. SNIP A LOT...

You double posted *please delete one of them* and it's not super relevant to the thread. We are talking older 1st Gen LEAFS with 3G TCU (Telematics Control Unit).

However I understand your frustration. As far as your issue NissanConnect has always been glitchy even when it worked. The way to reset it is find the fuse that powers the TCU and pull it for 15 min. ALSO on your app clear all the cache and memory. You will have to log back in and may lose some of your history or settings. I found that fixed it most of the time but not always.

 

[LeftieBiker]

Sometimes - usually? - the Nissan servers that "power" the app temporarily go down, and it takes them a while to come back up. During those times the app is indeed "down," but not in the sense that it will never work again.

 

[Nubo]

I wonder, will this make any difference to the 12V battery if the TCU will start to continually "search" for cellular signal while parked?

 

[knightmb]

I wonder, will this make any difference to the 12V battery if the TCU will start to continually "search" for cellular signal while parked?

Since the search is in receive mode and not send mode, it will actually use less power because it will never get a chance to send "anything" like confirmation packets, etc. A weak cell signal requires more power since the cell service is a 2 way communication, not just a one-way like getting a radio station. But with no service, well, there is nothing to send when no stations are found in the scan to send to.

In the grand scheme of things, it would save power to just disable the service in the dash settings or just unplug the modem power, but I don't know if that will cause annoying "errors" on the dash or not.

 

[gmcjetpilot]

I wonder, will this make any difference to the 12V battery if the TCU will start to continually "search" for cellular signal while parked?

Good point I may pull the fuse. BUT.....

Again yesterday I used CAR WINGS in Nav Display... Funny in over 4 yrs rarely if ever used it. IT WORKS. I got charge station updates. I use POI powered by Google. I searched Mexican Restaurants Near Me. Got list and even detailed info if selected. I even got Car Wing "Information" to work which gives you your average energy use and ranking in the World. The charging stations near me or near destination or update worked. HOW?

I thought it might be using my cell phone. So turned off Bluetooth. It still worked. So where is CAR WINGS getting this information? I still like know why or how Car Wings works.... I guess I will try to use it from time to time. It works or not, I have no control over what Nissan does.

The local news reported AT&T was shutting down 3G. There are some people who still had 3G phones or devices apparently. They did not mention Nissan LEAF owners. My LEAF SV came with 2G and got the upgrade to 3G under warranty. Too bad they did not jump to 4G. The 2G apparently was used in a lot of wireless vending machines and ATM's for credit card or ATM payments.

I had a Sprint phone 4G. I was very happy but T-Mobile bought Sprint. Forced to get a new 5G phone that works on the T-Mobile system. I got a free-be, I was a Sprint Customer continuously since 1994.

I have gone through the 5 phases of grief. denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. It took me a day to get to acceptance. I am deleting my Nissan Connect account, deleting app, pulling fuse. RIP Nissan Connect (I doubt I will ever buy a Nissan unless it's a used 350Z/370Z and that will not have Nissan Connect).

 

[Stanton]

I wonder, will this make any difference to the 12V battery if the TCU will start to continually "search" for cellular signal while parked?

Good point I may pull the fuse. BUT.....

Again yesterday I used CAR WINGS in Nav Display... Funny in over 4 yrs rarely if ever used it. IT WORKS. I got charge station updates. I use POI powered by Google. I searched Mexican Restaurants Near Me. Got list and even detailed info if selected. I even got Car Wing "Information" to work which gives you your average energy use and ranking in the World. The charging stations near me or near destination or update worked. HOW?

A couple of points from someone "in the business" (I'll give you 3 guesses who I work for but you will only need 1 because it's directly related to the SIM card in the TCU modem).
1) They don't just "flip a switch" and the whole 3G network shuts down! Assuming you are in the US, it will take some time to move through the various regions so different people (and cars) will lose 3G service at different times.
2) Once you lose 3G service (or replace the TCU with OVMS like I did), I would absolutely disconnect the TCU (for various reasons, including phantom power drain). "Pulling the fuse" will disable other (audio) functions that you probably need.

 

[Nubo]

I wonder, will this make any difference to the 12V battery if the TCU will start to continually "search" for cellular signal while parked?

Good point I may pull the fuse. BUT.....

Again yesterday I used CAR WINGS in Nav Display... Funny in over 4 yrs rarely if ever used it. IT WORKS. I got charge station updates. I use POI powered by Google. I searched Mexican Restaurants Near Me. Got list and even detailed info if selected. I even got Car Wing "Information" to work which gives you your average energy use and ranking in the World. The charging stations near me or near destination or update worked. HOW?

A couple of points from someone "in the business" (I'll give you 3 guesses who I work for but you will only need 1 because it's directly related to the SIM card in the TCU modem).
1) They don't just "flip a switch" and the whole 3G network shuts down! Assuming you are in the US, it will take some time to move through the various regions so different people (and cars) will lose 3G service at different times.
2) Once you lose 3G service (or replace the TCU with OVMS like I did), I would absolutely disconnect the TCU (for various reasons, including phantom power drain). "Pulling the fuse" will disable other (audio) functions that you probably need.

So, existing 3G transmitters continue until either they fail, or get removed during some other periodic maintenance visit?

 

[knightmb]

So, existing 3G transmitters continue until either they fail, or get removed during some other periodic maintenance visit?

Yup. The frequency used determines the size of the sector antenna. The lower the frequency, the bigger the antenna is. Big antenna can work for higher frequencies, but not in reverse is you are trying to run a low frequency through a small antenna, causes all kind of issues. But... 3G, 4G, 5G are all protocols not frequencies, so they could run 5G through a low frequency antenna that was being used for 3G, but it lowers data output which defeats the point of 4G/5G then. Each generation of 2G, 3G, 4G, 5G, blah G, etc. is more spectrally efficient than the previous. For years, many sites have been running a mixed mode of 3G/4G (5G if supported) and some sites actually have pairs of antenna running 3G equipment on one set and 4G on another set, using GPS signals to advance timing, etc. So, those sites will have the equipment removed and maybe even the extra antenna removed (I've seen a lot of tower sets doing this now).

Maybe another way to think about it, if you know anything about your home wifi routers, they can usually run in B mode, G mode, and N mode. Some wifi routers can run all of them in a mixed mode (B,G,N) at the same time, but you are limited to the performance of the B mode if you have a clients connected to it with really old wifi equipment. (Don't get me started on A mode, that's really old)
So imagine your house has a bunch of connected devices all working on the fast N mode and Grandma is using her old Windows 95 Laptop with a B mode card built it and connected to the Internet. When she is watching a youtube video at 5 mb, everyone else is limited to that speed also. The only way to speed up the network would be to run a G/N mixed mode instead and only be limited to the performance limit of G mode instead of B mode.

Apply the same logic to the whole 3G/4G/5G thing. Running a site where it can handle all 3 is limiting the performance of the other 4G/5G devices connected to it. Switching off the 3G will give a performance gain to everyone else. That is an over simplification of course because everyone using 4G/5G phones for years was not getting 3G speeds, but during busy times, everyone would notice the slow down. Also remember that calls have priority over data, so even though they use very little bandwidth, get enough people talking and the Internet becomes slow on your phone again.

Now granted, it all makes sense to shutdown slower services to make way for faster services, but with so many devices dependent on 3G service (Leaf for example), alarm systems, medical devices, security systems, etc. If the phone company really wanted to, they could have removed all the 3G equipment and still operated in a very limited compatibility mode for 3G devices with the new equipment. It would give priority to the 4G/5G network and thus be slow (compared to how fast it was running before) for the other 3G devices, but these devices don't depend on how fast you can watch a YouTube video, they just need basic data transfer to do simple things like "turn on climate control" or "alarm triggered" which don't need millisecond ping times to work. There is no technical reason why 3G could not just run in a low priority compatibly mode, the equipment already supports it, it's just said phone companies are for-profit and it's a convenient excuse to make you upgrade your phone and generate sales for them. They like to tote stats about how only 1% of the traffic they do is 3G but that is because it was those same devices that did not require high-priority bandwidth to work to begin with, not lack of users upgrading to more expensive phones. :roll:

 

[LeftieBiker]

Interesting. I bought a new phone, but even though it's locked to Boost, it came with the wrong SIMM card for Boost's 4G system. So I'm waiting for a new card to come in the mail. I had thought that my phone was using WiFi to make calls today, but I guess it's still running on my 3G account and they haven't gotten around to killing 3G for it, yet?

 

[Stanton]

Interesting. I bought a new phone, but even though it's locked to Boost, it came with the wrong SIM card for Boost's 4G system. So I'm waiting for a new card to come in the mail. I had thought that my phone was using WiFi to make calls today, but I guess it's still running on my 3G account and they haven't gotten around to killing 3G for it, yet?

There's a lot wrapped up in that question...but the short answer is: Yes.
I can't tell you how many times I've tried to explain the concept of SIM cards (and their ownership) to folks asking about replacing their Nissan TCU with an open systems OVMS.