My nikon 4300 lens stays out and won't retract properly and the scteen says system error.

Lens errors are fairly common. Usually it's sand or grit interfering with the lens extension mechanism. Or the camera's been dropped with the lens extended. Or the camera has been powered on, but the lens had been blocked preventing its extension. Or the battery ran down with the lens extended ...Here are some troubleshooting steps that you can try that may (or may not) correct it. They only seem to work for less than 40% of the lens errors, but if the camera is out of warranty (or repair cost approaches that of the camera), they're worth that try. Some of the later steps do involve some risk to the camera, so carefully weigh your options before deciding to conduct them.
And here's a video summary of some of the steps (note that the above link goes into much greater detail):

Hello

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This is a suggestion. If you do not feel comfortable trying it, you will need to take the unit to your nearest service centre. Feel free to let me know if you need any assistance.

The problem might be that the lens has become stuck in the barrel. There are some DIY solutions you could try, but the probability is that you will have to get it fixed by a professional.

Use these at own risk as it may further damage the camera.

Firstly , try connecting your ac adapter or usb cable.

Try holding the shutter button while switching on the camera.

Look at the lens , and if some of the lens 'circles' is misaligned or not concentric then try wiggling it (while holding camera lens down).

Try gently pushing or pulling the lens when it extends but this is risky as it may cause the lens barrel to slip out of its guidance system.

Another way to do this is to place the camera lens down on a hard surface and then power it up. Be sure to use a soft cloth or something similar as to not scratch your lens or casing. Let the lens push the camera up and down a few times and sometimes the little resistance provided by the camera is enough to get things going again.

Try hitting your camera near the lens on the body with the soft tissue on the palm of your hand.

Other than that , I would take the camera to a repair centre for a evaluation to see if it would cost more to repair than to replace the camera.

If it is still under warranty I would suggest you take it in before trying any of these steps and remove any off-brand batteries or accessories as some stores are really fussy about warranty repairs on camera's with non-brand accessories.

You can also have a look at THIS link.

Hope the advise is useful. please do not hesitate to let me know if you need any further assistance. Also, please be so kind to let me know if you found this helpful.

Regards
Andrea

Hi.

Check the articles below and follow troubleshooting in case of lens error:

Lens not retracting on digital camera.

Lens Error.

Regards.

Hi,
When system control does not get lens initialize signal while extending it, then it try again by folding it and extending and still no required initialize signal then generate error and stop further functions.

Please remove battery and open camera and remove flexible wire of lens mechanism from connector, there would be lock that needs to release to remove flexible wire. Clean wire terminals with alcohol, let it dry and put back flexible wire in connector and lock it. Now put battery and power camera up, hopefully lens will work properly.

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Thanks.

Lens error is usually caused by mechanical faults concerning lens assembly. The lens cannot extend or retract fully, the error is detected and lens error is returned.
Sometimes this can be fixed playing with the lens during extraction or retraction to help the lens asset getting back to normal.
More often the camera lens must be disassembled and re-assembled by a technician to fix the problem.

This error occurs if camera is turned on before lens cap is removed. If you are removing the lens cap before turning the camera on and still getting this message, camera should be serviced by a qualified technician.

0013 indicates that your camera has a hardware (related to Lens) defect.When dirt gets into the lens mechanism the lens wont retract properly.. You wont believe what i have suggested for a similar problem and it worked! Its a similar lens stuck error..
http://www.fixya.com/support/t240817-camera_error_e45

Apparently often related to a lens motor malfunction. My old 4300 just gave this error for the first time today. The lens extended but made a whirring noise before the message popped up. Nothing I tried would fix it - but after I drove home it worked fine again.

I had a similar problem over a year ago after the camera fell out of my backpack (it was in its own bag but not well padded). When I used it the lens stuck and refused to retract, but I don't recall a "System Error" message. After a few tries, the lens went in and it's been fine since, until today.

Make sure there's nothing (dust, dirt) stuck in the lens barrels. Otherwise, just keep turning it on and off and hope it works.

Are you sure the lens is actually going all the way out? If there is debris in the zoom gearing it can cause the lens to stop extending which would in turn cause the camera to re-retract the lens and show an error. Other possible explanations are that the sensor which determines when the lens has reached full extension has failed, so the camera keeps extending the lens until it reaches the physical limit - and then behaves just as if there was a jam as described above. The fact that this occurs both when you power on and power off the camera leads me to think this may be the case. The loss of date and time settings is due to a dead backup battery. Check your manual to see if this is replaceable by you or if it requires disassembly. David Millier Advance Camera Repair

the temptarture has probaly mellted or damaged the insides did you leave it in a car in the summer