edited for the sake of me not knowing what the hell I'm talking about

mc01ta wrote:Thank you! I liked the videos, what do you mean he is by_passing the oil cooler that way? Maybe I misunderstood you. I have an 07' pathfinder, do we have an oil cooler? If I followed his video would I mess anything up doing if his way?

It looks like he reused clamps and re-routed the tubes

I haven't done the bypass myself yet, but probably will when it warms up again. The guy in this video doesn't even understand why/how coolant can get into the transmission fluid. In other words, he's doing this because others told him to, yet he doesn't really know exactly why. Yes, the Pathfinder has an external oil cooler that is mounted on the front of the radiator. If you do the mod, the external cooler will still be used.

My simple understanding is that one ATF line goes into the bottom of the rad on one side, then another line exits from the other side. The objective is to bypass the rad altogether by pulling both those lines off the rad and connecting them together. Add a couple of vacuum caps & clamps to close off both the old entry and exit holes on the rad.

EDIT: I forgot the 2nd and easier approach to this. Somewhere in this lengthy thread is mention of pulling the longer of the 2 hoses and connected that to the inlet and outlet on the rad. The shorter hose just gets flipped and connected to where the longer hose connected.

NVSteve wrote:The guy in this video doesn't even understand why/how coolant can get into the transmission fluid. In other words, he's doing this because others told him to, yet he doesn't really know exactly why.

I totally agree. I should have given a disclaimer. He, at least, is pointing out the correct areas to bypass.

I do not tow nor plan to. I live in VA. So if I'm following right than I fan simply connect the hoses as the video shows and be set?

I have not done the bypass and the path just turned 70K. i have on 05.
car was at dealer beginning of November for the timing chain shoe replacement issue.
I routinely check the radiator fluid to see if any color or trans fluids. but have not notice any.
i was wondering if this is transmission contamination how soon does it become apparent when i check thru the radiator cap?
I've notice some issues with my rpm's at 2000rmp. a vibration like feel, idle or moving. not sure if that is trans related since I can feel the vibration while idle.

mtbpath wrote:I've notice some issues with my rpm's at 2000rmp. a vibration like feel, idle or moving. not sure if that is trans related since I can feel the vibration while idle.

My 06 does that as well. This was mentioned on another thread and someone said that this "shuddering" is normal.

dawgn86 wrote:
Jack..afterwards, you may want to blow some compressed air through the cooler to blow out any remaining flush or ATF left. I did this with about 25lbs.

Thanks for the advice but I was one step ahead of you. Found a transmission cooler flush at Napa for like 15$. The can looks like a can of fix-a-flat with a hose coming off the nozzle. It was compressed air and a non corrosive cleaner. Dumped the whole can and it blew out the tranny oil and then went clear once it was all clean.

Forgot to mention Autozone also had a kit that came with the can of flush, hoses, clamps, and some kind of filter. But it was also 30$ and was a special order item. You can search there site for trans flush and it should pop up.

JackHerer wrote:

dawgn86 wrote:
Jack..afterwards, you may want to blow some compressed air through the cooler to blow out any remaining flush or ATF left. I did this with about 25lbs.

Thanks for the advice but I was one step ahead of you. Found a transmission cooler flush at Napa for like 15$. The can looks like a can of fix-a-flat with a hose coming off the nozzle. It was compressed air and a non corrosive cleaner. Dumped the whole can and it blew out the tranny oil and then went clear once it was all clean.

Forgot to mention Autozone also had a kit that came with the can of flush, hoses, clamps, and some kind of filter. But it was also 30$ and was a special order item. You can search there site for trans flush and it should pop up.

Jack

good point and I didnt think of that..even though I have blown compressed air t hrough, Im sure there is some ATF fluid left..I think I will try what you did and be sure it is totally clean...

NVSteve wrote:Yes, the Pathfinder has an external oil cooler that is mounted on the front of the radiator. If you do the mod, the external cooler will still be used.

Ok...I feel really dumb now. Why is savingxterras.com suggesting an aftermarket transmission cooler kit when there's one already one in our PFs? Why is Nissan running the coolant below the radiator?

I suppose the thought process is that since you are removing a cooler, you are therefore lowering the cooling capacity of the system.

Not sure that is true though. Engine coolant runs at 180 - 210F. so the most cooling you'd get would be the hottest temp in your trans (may 250F?) and the delta isn't that great, so may you'd get 15F out of it.

One of the theories we've bandied about here is that the cooler in the rad is actually a heater. I live in a (usually) pretty cold environment. When the temps are -40F and lower, I suspect the rad based cooler actually helps bring the trans to proper operating temp much quicker. In fact, this is the only thing I noticed doing the bypass, that when the engine/trans is cold, the shifts are rougher than they were before I did the bypass.

I wouldn't feel stupid. But I think it would be wiser to invest in a proper trans temp gauge than an extra cooler. Then at least you'd know if you need another cooler or not, based on your usage and application.

t

I began having a slight shudder when driving, been going on now for atleast 2 weeks. The problem only occurred once or twice while driving, and I could let off the gas for a sec and the problem would go away. I stumbled across this thread and think I am a day late and a few thousand $$$ short. I performed the bypass and the fluid and is a cloudy brown color. I now have a couple of questions.....
1.. Do I need a complete flush or drain and fill the tranny a few times til I see clean fuid?
2. What are the steps involved in performing both tasks?
3. Which transmission fluid should I use? The mechanic used j type fluid the last time..do I go back with that and do I need to continue to buy the Nissan ATF fluid only?

I have an 05 Path, with 127,000 miles. I will also do a coolant drain and fill or do I need to do a flush with that also? I will attach a pic of the fluid later tonight...After the big game...The tranny fluid was last changed around 90,000 miles..

Check out my post in the Engine/Drivetrain section dealing with this same issue. I have recently dealt with the problem and I am waiting to see if my work will pay off. I believe if you get to the transmission and get the antifreeze out of there ASAP you can save your transmission or AT LEAST extend it's life. Hope this helps!

http://www.thenissanpath.com/viewtopic.php?t=6278

Ark

I think I'm going the zero cost route others have used. Are the images correct in the procedure that member who posted drawings of? I don't plan on buying clamps fittings etc that others have. Seems several people simply use factory fittings a adjust hoses. I just hope I understand what I'm looking at when I get under there soon. I'm sketched out about doing this

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Do caps need to still be used if you ate using all factory fittings? I guess I wish there was one single way to do this mod instead of 2-3 and reading various threads from two different forums to understand this more easily

mc01ta wrote:I think I'm going the zero cost route others have used. Are the images correct in the procedure that member who posted drawings of? I don't plan on buying clamps fittings etc that others have. Seems several people simply use factory fittings a adjust hoses. I just hope I understand what I'm looking at when I get under there soon. I'm sketched out about doing this

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use "bellwilliams" drawings on page 8 of this thread
no extra parts needed
make a copy of the drawings, get under your truck, and you'll see what needs to be done............
easy pickins'