Correct as at 29th March 2024. It may be superseded at any time.

Extract taken: from Vehicle Inspection Portal > VIRMs > In-service certification (WoF and CoF) > Technical bulletins (general) > Inspection for corrosion in Nissan Terrano and Mistral rear floorpan assemblies

2 Inspection for corrosion in Nissan Terrano and Mistral rear floorpan assemblies

Reference

General vehicles:

Safety concern

There is concern about corrosion that can occur in Nissan Terrano or Nissan Mistral vehicles of the type whose rear floorpan assembly consists of a two-layer (double-skin) panel. If moisture gets trapped between the two layers of the floorpan, corrosion can occur around the seat or seatbelt anchorages, affecting their integrity. Corrosion can also occur where the under-floor reinforcing panel overlaps the top floor skin.

Clarification

The rear floorpan assembly consists of a two-layer (double-skin) panel. The lower layer is a reinforcing panel spot-welded to the upper layer floor section.

The Terrano has a rear seat with three seating positions. Situated in the rear floor, beneath the seat, are four seatbelt anchorages and two seat anchorages.

The Mistral has a stressed bench seat in the rear (the seatbelts are attached to the seat) with two seat anchorages in the floor and two seatbelt anchorages in the wheel well at the sides of the seat.

Inspection

The inspector must lift the rear seat to examine this area effectively. Any carpet and sound insulating material covering the panel that the seats are mounted on must be pulled back far enough to expose the rear seam of the panel (the area most commonly affected by corrosion). It is important to note that damage may be more extensive than can be detected during this inspection.

The vehicle must fail if any signs of corrosion are detected during the inspection, such as:

A vehicle that has been ‘patch’ repaired before 8 January 1997 (Nissan Terrano) or 10 November 2003 (Nissan Mistral) may pass the inspection provided that:

Repair options

If any corrosion is detected and the vehicle failed, the floorpan must be replaced.

However, for the following models the Low Volume Vehicle Technical Association (LVVTA) has provided an alternative option to floorpan replacement.

Nissan Terrano Model D21
Nissan Mistral Model R20 5-door

For information about these seatbelt anchorage modifications, and for a list of the LVV certifiers who can certify them, see www.lvvta.org.nz.