Car manufacturer Nissan has begun a massive international recall that could include cars in New Zealand.
An engine defect has caused the recall of about two million cars worldwide, but the company is stressing that the problem does not affect vehicles' safety.
"It is a problem with a component in the engine.It can cause cars to stall or to have problems starting, but it does not affect their safety," Nissan spokesman Mike Perez told NZPA today.
He said the company's New Zealand division was still awaiting news from its parent company in Japan as to which New Zealand cars were affected.
Popular models such as the Nissan Pulsar and Primera were affected internationally, but Mr Perez said he did not know what New Zealand models were affected until he received more information.
The parent company would provide its New Zealand division with identification numbers for all the affected vehicles. Local Nissan staff would then go about contacting owners and would repair the defect free of charge.
The repair of the "crank position sensor", where the defect was situated, took about an hour.
However Mr Perez said the offer only applied to New Zealand-new vehicles. That included vehicles imported by Nissan which were now second or third hand, but no privately imported Nissan vehicles.
