Fire Hazard from Garmin Nuvi Prompts Recalls from Suzuki and Nissan

After Garmin announced a voluntary recall of 1.25 million units of its popular Nuvi GPS system at the end of August amidst concerns that the batteries could overheat and catch fire, Suzuki and Nissan followed with a recall on several vehicles equipped with the affected Garmin Nuvi navigation systems including the 750, 760, or 765 models for the same reason.

The recalled Garmin units can be found on certain Suzuki vehicles including the 2008-2010MY SX4 crossovers, 2010MY Grand Vitara SUVs, and 2009-2010MY Equator vehicles, and the 2008-2010MY Nissan Altima, Frontier, Pahtfinder, Rogue, Sentra, Versa and Xterra vehicles.

In both cases, the automakers will notify owners of the affected models, and the repairs will be performed by Garmin technicians who will replace the battery and insert a spacer on top of the battery free of charge.

2010MY Nissan Rogue SUV Priced, Starts from $20,340

Nissan has just released pricing for its 2010 model year Rogue SUV that is offered in two trim levels, S and SL, both of which are available with either front-wheel or four-wheel drive. Prices start from $20,340 and $21,930 for the FWD S and SL models and from $21,540 and $23,130 for the AWD S and SL versions respectively. In all cases, power comes from a 170-horsepower 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine linked to a CVT.

The only change for the 2010 model year is the introduction of a new 360° Value Package for the Rogue S models which includes 16-inch aluminum-alloy wheels, privacy glass, integrated rearview monitor, auto-dimming rearview mirror, rear spoiler and chrome grille. The package is priced at $1,040, and according to Nissan, it offers buyers a $1,000 savings compared to purchasing the items separately.