Just had the alternator replaced on an otherwise great car. However I noticed prior to the radio and speedometer which zeroed when the electrical problem 1st arose last week, the speedometer would occasionally get stuck at 60km/h and then unstick to 100km/h. Probably 2 different problems. Now this 276000km car has a refurbished alternator but early mornings after sitting through a cold night for several hours, the radio and wipers don't work, until she heats up!?! Any ideas why that happens ...could a relay be responsible for this heat sensitive issue? Please advise

Hi Altamama. That's a good one. My guess is that there's a fusebox/relay in the engine compartment that is collecting condensation that has to burn off. But that's a wild stab at an unusual problem. If you don't want to drop a dime to your local Nissan Service Manager you may want to post your questions here to see if some like-minded individual has run across this too! Good luck! http://www.nissanforums.com/forum_index.php

Having an amazing, although semi-retired, mecanic from Europe has its benefits. Upon sharing the problem with him, he said that the copied key was not making all the right contacts following ignition... that either I should get better copies of the key or jiggle the key in the ignition column to its most appropriate position. I tried jiggling, it actually solved the problem, pending I get better copies of the original 12 year old key!