I-KEY SYSTEM FAULT

I have a Nissan Leaf 2014 is a USA vehicle brought to Canada.
I only have it for week. when I was parking I got this message "When Parked apply parking brake" follow by "I-KEY SYSTEM FAULT" \
after I can start the car with no problems... I took it to Nissan, they told me that it was related to the 12volt battery, they replaced it.
I went home, parked and the message came back again. I went back to Nissan. I has been there for 2 days and they are monitoring the car but am not sure if they are doing or trying something different to fix it. anyways, I am worry that message will appear again. my question is.

has anyone have this issues resolve?

any good information on why this is happening?

any good Nissan leaf certified mechanic that can help me?

Thanks

Have you recently plugged in an OBDII dongle?

Second what Ben said, the Konnwei KW902 OBD2 dongles had a recent bad batch. If that's applicable to you, search these forums for more info.

I Don't know, what is that ?

A device you would have purchased in order to use LeafSpy

No I don't... if I buy it will this device help me to resolve the I-Key message fault?

No, just mentioned it because that's the exact same fault that those with that defective device connected have seen.

How long have you had the car? If you recently bought it, the previous owner may have left a dongle attached. Unlikely, but worth checking if you just bought it.

oook that's a great point! so where in the car do I find it ?

was looking at pictures of theses and I guess It will be very visible or will be hidden somewhere in my leaf ?

You are looking for the white diagnostic port in between your steering wheel and your brake pedal.

Here is a good photo of it:
http://eco-energie-montreal.com/Wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/port-obd2-nissan-leaf-under-steering-1-1.jpg

If there's anything plugged into that port, unplug it.

You didn't mention what year of Leaf you have. On 2013 and newer, it's located where Ben's photo shows (above the brake pedal, on the underside of the dash. However, on a 2011/2012, I think it's behind an access panel located on the front of the dash, near the steering column - not sure though...

Thanks Guys I will check it out tonight

alozzy said:

You didn't mention what year of Leaf you have. On 2013 and newer, it's located where Ben's photo shows (above the brake pedal, on the underside of the dash. However, on a 2011/2012, I think it's behind an access panel located on the front of the dash, near the steering column - not sure though...

Click to expand...

Same place on all Leafs, under the dash on drivers side, kind of where you knee is

Thanks Jeff, for some reason I thought the 2011/2012 Leafs OBD2 port was in a slightly different place. Good to know they are all the same

Hey guys it wasn't there... I am running out of ideas on what to do to fix this issue. I took it to Nissan again and they can't figure it out. They told me to leave my car at the shop for a couple more days.

So far we can say...

No problem with 12v battery and DC/DC converter that charge the battery

No problem with having a dongle attached to the car.

Maybe we will look into the DRL install in the car when it came to Canada.

The guy in this thread had a similar problem, wasn't definitive but appears it may have been caused by the way the DRLs were done:

http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?t=22159

In this post, the root cause was the BCM was getting wet due to a leaky windshield - same "I-Key" message you are getting:

https://speakev.com/threads/i-key-system-fault.8746/

I also remember reading on these forums somewhere that there's a squirrel cage blower unit next to the BCM. Apparently, the intake for the blower can be an entry point for water too and the BCM can get wet as a result. As your mechanic to check around the BCM to see if there's any evidence of water entry in that area.

Good luck!

Thanks alozzy They called me back from the shop and say that they did a software update and the fault hasn't come back... I am going to pick it up at the end of the day...

do you guys know what software update may be and what supposed to fix?

I will found out in a few days if message still comes up when I take home.

Nope, nothing I've run across yet but I'm a pretty new Leaf owner too.

So finally I went to pick it today, and they found out that the reason of the I-key message was because of the DRL installation when the vehicle came to Canada. so we realized that when I turn off the car with the lights on the message will come up. The disconnected the DRL turn off the car with the lights on and message didn't appears and again connect it back in and message will come up. The problem now is that because it was put there after market by the privius owner warranty won't apply, so it will be around $400 to install a new DRL with the proper wiring. So the tech that gave me the quote told me. You don't have to do it you just have to remember to turn off your lights before you turn the car off. I hope these help other leaf owners!

Hi, I have the same / similar fault.

It’s a 2013 leaf. When I turn the car on I get the I-key error.



But then I get the apply parking brake error code:


At this point I can’t turn the car off!?! It just keeps turning itself back on. If I get out and shut the door an alarm goes off. I have to disconnect the battery to turn it off. If I leave it and the connect it up again. The same happens.

It had a new battery about a month ago as I previously got the T/N warnings. I have just removed the battery and charged it. Put it back in and no difference.

I’ve never plugged in an obd. I want to but the things I have read have put me off. I have an iPhone so can’t use the leaf spy app.

I don’t have any after market alterations to the lights or anything.

Can anyone suggest anything / help me!?!