Hello everyone,
I am new to the forum and this will be my first post. I just bought a 2006 Pathfinder a few weeks ago and I've been extremely happy with it so far.
I noticed a vibration from the transmission a few days ago at about 41 mph when the transmission was in coast. I haven't noticed any other issues at any other speeds. I just had a chance to check the tranny fluid and it's definitely milky pink in color.
I plan on doing the radiator bypass tonight as well as a transmission fluid flush. Here are my real questions at this point:
1. Will this preventative maintenance be enough to save my tranny this late in the game?
2. How long do I have before total transmission failure?
3. What else can I do to slow the process of transmission failure?
I am about to leave on a 600 mile trip to Texas and I NEED to know that it will make it there and back without dying on me. Anyone's immediate help would be much appreciated.
I also need links to walkthroughs on the tranny cooler bypass AND transmission flushing. Anyone know where to find this information? Thanks everyone. I wish my luck was better.
Ark
Found mixed fluids. How long until the tranny goes???
Moderator: volvite
UPDATE
She's got 116300 miles. I bought her because she was in such great shape for the mileage. The oil was clean, but since the tranny dipstick was bolted down I decided not to check it (kicking myself now, but if the tranny fails I'll be kicking the sh*t salesman who worked me over)
UPDATE: Ok folks, I'm in the middle of my second round of transmission fluid changes. I'm going to do three tonight and maybe another before our trip. Here's the skinny on my situation up to this point:
1. Definitely had a good deal of antifreeze in the rad. I had lost enough into the tranny that the heater wasn't coming to full temp. (Another warning sign that something was way wrong)
2. On a lighter note, I drove the Path all the way to work today with no shudder at all. I just drove it around the block to agitate the mixture before the next drain and I didn't feel any problems. In fact, she seems to shift a little smoother out of first now as well.
3. I performed the cooler bypass mod (extremely easy to swap hoses, I don't know why anyone messes with the double barbed fitting) and it seems to be flawless. I just hope it wasn't too late.
So thus far the signs are good, but who knows for sure. Does anyone with some real transmission work experience have any thoughts? I'd like to think I'm a good judge of mechanics and the transmission seems 2x better than before, but I'm not sure just how bad things get before the sh*t really hits the fan. I'm also curious to know how the hell you all got a hose into the fill hole on the tranny. I bought the ATF by the quart and the pump hose didn't even fit anyway. I finally just poured that sh*t right down the dipstick tube because I was tired of being covered in ATF. It all came out in the wash anyway though.
In any case I am still in need of some advice so anything you could offer up would be fantastic. I'm going to get back to the wrench, see you in the morning!
Ark
UPDATE: Ok folks, I'm in the middle of my second round of transmission fluid changes. I'm going to do three tonight and maybe another before our trip. Here's the skinny on my situation up to this point:
1. Definitely had a good deal of antifreeze in the rad. I had lost enough into the tranny that the heater wasn't coming to full temp. (Another warning sign that something was way wrong)
2. On a lighter note, I drove the Path all the way to work today with no shudder at all. I just drove it around the block to agitate the mixture before the next drain and I didn't feel any problems. In fact, she seems to shift a little smoother out of first now as well.
3. I performed the cooler bypass mod (extremely easy to swap hoses, I don't know why anyone messes with the double barbed fitting) and it seems to be flawless. I just hope it wasn't too late.
So thus far the signs are good, but who knows for sure. Does anyone with some real transmission work experience have any thoughts? I'd like to think I'm a good judge of mechanics and the transmission seems 2x better than before, but I'm not sure just how bad things get before the sh*t really hits the fan. I'm also curious to know how the hell you all got a hose into the fill hole on the tranny. I bought the ATF by the quart and the pump hose didn't even fit anyway. I finally just poured that sh*t right down the dipstick tube because I was tired of being covered in ATF. It all came out in the wash anyway though.
In any case I am still in need of some advice so anything you could offer up would be fantastic. I'm going to get back to the wrench, see you in the morning!
Ark
Back in Kansas with over 2000 miles on the Path and no fail!
I just got back home from Texas last night. We put over 2000 miles on the Pathfinder this weekend and I'm pleased and relieved to report that my transmission is still going strong (as far as I can tell).
It seems like I may have caught the problem just in time. I reported in an earlier post that I had experienced vibrational problems at certain speeds and under certain loads. I didn't experience anything like that over the course of this trip. It seems like the addition of some good clean tranny fluid was the key to eliminating the vibration and preventing future failure.
I'm still not convinced that there isn't some slight residual damage to some of the internals in the tranny, because I have no idea how long this thing had been driven with the internal cooler leak before I bought it. Judging by how quickly the symptoms cleared up I'd like to think that I'm in the clear. However there are still some rough spots in the power band that I can't quite get over. They may be normal operating conditions for this vehicle at 118,000 miles but I wish I could be sure. Here are the hiccups I'm noticing:
1. Shifting from first to second is hard and abrupt, but only if you accelerate to the shifting point and then let off just before the shift. For example, the type of driving you do in traffic or in a parking lot. If you keep pressure on the accelerator and let it continue to shift into second it's smooth as silk. Thoughts?
2. In the same conditions that prompted the heavy vibration before I'm now getting much better results but there is still some VERY FAINT feeling as if something just isn't tight enough. This only happens when the engine and transmission match speeds as you hit a cruising speed between 20 and 40 mph. I'm not getting the "rumble strip" feeling anymore but it definitely feels like something isn't quite right. I don't think it's getting worse with the fresh tranny fluid in there, but maybe a bushing or bearing got worn down slightly while the fluid was still contaminated? Any ideas?
All in all I think I avoided disaster, but I'm still interested in finding out more about the problem and the details surrounding it. Once again, anyone who has rebuilt this transmission or knows about transmission operation, I would love to pick your brain. Thanks.
Ark
It seems like I may have caught the problem just in time. I reported in an earlier post that I had experienced vibrational problems at certain speeds and under certain loads. I didn't experience anything like that over the course of this trip. It seems like the addition of some good clean tranny fluid was the key to eliminating the vibration and preventing future failure.
I'm still not convinced that there isn't some slight residual damage to some of the internals in the tranny, because I have no idea how long this thing had been driven with the internal cooler leak before I bought it. Judging by how quickly the symptoms cleared up I'd like to think that I'm in the clear. However there are still some rough spots in the power band that I can't quite get over. They may be normal operating conditions for this vehicle at 118,000 miles but I wish I could be sure. Here are the hiccups I'm noticing:
1. Shifting from first to second is hard and abrupt, but only if you accelerate to the shifting point and then let off just before the shift. For example, the type of driving you do in traffic or in a parking lot. If you keep pressure on the accelerator and let it continue to shift into second it's smooth as silk. Thoughts?
2. In the same conditions that prompted the heavy vibration before I'm now getting much better results but there is still some VERY FAINT feeling as if something just isn't tight enough. This only happens when the engine and transmission match speeds as you hit a cruising speed between 20 and 40 mph. I'm not getting the "rumble strip" feeling anymore but it definitely feels like something isn't quite right. I don't think it's getting worse with the fresh tranny fluid in there, but maybe a bushing or bearing got worn down slightly while the fluid was still contaminated? Any ideas?
All in all I think I avoided disaster, but I'm still interested in finding out more about the problem and the details surrounding it. Once again, anyone who has rebuilt this transmission or knows about transmission operation, I would love to pick your brain. Thanks.
Ark
UPDATE
UPDATE!
Here's an update to my situation folks:
I have now put over 3000 miles on the Pathfinder since I discovered fluid contamination and performed the radiator bypass. So far the transmission seems to be operating smoothly and we've had no indications of any impending failure.
I have now performed a partial flush of the transmission fluid 4 times, each time draining the approx. 4 quarts in the pan and adding 4 quarts of fresh fluid through the dipstick tube (NOTE: I did have the fill hole open in order to ensure that I didn't OVERFILL the tranny.) Each time I put everything back together and drove the vehicle around the neighborhood for a few minutes to get everything exchanging properly.
This last weekend I performed the last of the "flushes" along with an oil change. While the fluid is still not perfectly ruby red and clear, it has improved greatly with every interval. So has the performance of the transmission, including the complete disappearance of the "rumble strip" vibrational noise.
I'm a poor guy and I'm a mechanic myself so I can't afford to have the transmission professionally flushed. Also I've heard that certain types of flushing equipment can damage our transmissions??? In any case my plan is to continue performing these flush cycles every time I change the oil for the next year or so, to ensure the eventual purging of most if not all of the antifreeze contaminant.
If anyone has any further information to share it would be much appreciated, as I'm exploring uncharted territory here and no one seems to have any official advice from Nissan or any transmission shops who have intimate knowledge of this situation. Hope this information helps someone else out there in need before it's too late.
Ark
Here's an update to my situation folks:
I have now put over 3000 miles on the Pathfinder since I discovered fluid contamination and performed the radiator bypass. So far the transmission seems to be operating smoothly and we've had no indications of any impending failure.
I have now performed a partial flush of the transmission fluid 4 times, each time draining the approx. 4 quarts in the pan and adding 4 quarts of fresh fluid through the dipstick tube (NOTE: I did have the fill hole open in order to ensure that I didn't OVERFILL the tranny.) Each time I put everything back together and drove the vehicle around the neighborhood for a few minutes to get everything exchanging properly.
This last weekend I performed the last of the "flushes" along with an oil change. While the fluid is still not perfectly ruby red and clear, it has improved greatly with every interval. So has the performance of the transmission, including the complete disappearance of the "rumble strip" vibrational noise.
I'm a poor guy and I'm a mechanic myself so I can't afford to have the transmission professionally flushed. Also I've heard that certain types of flushing equipment can damage our transmissions??? In any case my plan is to continue performing these flush cycles every time I change the oil for the next year or so, to ensure the eventual purging of most if not all of the antifreeze contaminant.
If anyone has any further information to share it would be much appreciated, as I'm exploring uncharted territory here and no one seems to have any official advice from Nissan or any transmission shops who have intimate knowledge of this situation. Hope this information helps someone else out there in need before it's too late.
Ark
-
excalibur23
- Posts: 9
- Joined: Thu Dec 22, 2011 1:00 am
- Location: Hamilton, NJ
-
hockeymn25
- Posts: 1
- Joined: Tue Jan 24, 2012 12:00 pm
- Location: pittsburgh, pa
Ark,
I replaced radiator flushed tranny, new fluid, and mine seems to be running fine as well but a tranny shop I will be visiting tomorrow for u joint problem said they have not seen one survive after fluid mix. They said breakdown will happen in time so I guess we'll see because mine is running great after about 1500 miles after change.
I replaced radiator flushed tranny, new fluid, and mine seems to be running fine as well but a tranny shop I will be visiting tomorrow for u joint problem said they have not seen one survive after fluid mix. They said breakdown will happen in time so I guess we'll see because mine is running great after about 1500 miles after change.
-
curvecrazy
- Posts: 8
- Joined: Tue Jan 24, 2012 8:09 pm
- Location: Buffalo NY
Seems to me you bought this from a saleman and there are warranties are there not with used car purchase? Nobody mentioned it but I should think you could have issue with them on this but now that you flushed the snotty fluid all out I say what can you say??? But you should check see what warranty you have with that business unless I misunderstood and you bought private sale. Either way someone probably knew this and took you. I know not the consequence. I did the swap on mine. 95K and no tranny problems. But it is rusting out from under me and now I have emissions issues with code po174. Not sure what......
Hi there, I know this is an old thread, but I was wondering how your tranny held up after doing the flushes. My '05 has similar issues with 140k miles on it and was wondering if this is worth doing, thanks.arkangel wrote:I'm not convinced... The damn thing is driving really well right now. I guess only time will tell. By the way I've made it pretty clear that I am WAY over 85000 miles. NO WARRANTY. Anyone have anything constructive to say?
Ark
-
LessThanZero
- Posts: 28
- Joined: Tue Oct 21, 2014 8:27 pm
- Location: Illinois
I have 190,000 on my 08, had the problem around 120'ish. Had a new radiator installed and flushed EVERYTHING out. I know it's going to go out eventually but it's still running hard and still has the same shudder shifting from 2nd to 3rd, however it's only bad when it's hot out.
Yeah, I know I need to get it replaced, but until it gets worse I'm leaving it alone.
So, yes you should get the transmission rebuilt/replaced. Should you do it now, that's up to you. Pathfinder transmissions aren't exactly a cheap thing to work on.
Yeah, I know I need to get it replaced, but until it gets worse I'm leaving it alone.
So, yes you should get the transmission rebuilt/replaced. Should you do it now, that's up to you. Pathfinder transmissions aren't exactly a cheap thing to work on.
Find Your Forum!