jay_johnson

I just sent my maxima to the shop to get new struts. I overheard a conversation between my father and my mechanic in which my mechanic said that i have messed up my car from driving to hard. He said that I need a new transmission and a few other things. I don't drive that hard... i don't think. Has anyone else had to have repairs done because of your driving habits? If so, what have you had to have done. My car feels fine to me on the road. The tranny feels strong, ride is fine... a little rough, but that's what the new struts are for, and I don't hear any strange noises. Am I about to become victim to a bad mechanic? Please help me!

98BlaximaSE

Just go get a second opinion from another mechanic. Also how old is your car? Did you get it used?

njmaxseltd

iTrader: (19)

I'd love to know how a mechanic "LOOKS" at your car and decides you need a new transmission? I wouldn't even let that guy change my oil after hearing a comment like that.

deezo

iTrader: (3)

All you should need from hard driving is pads and rotors. If you run your car into crubs then you'll need new struts. If your car is not bouncing all over the place, you don't need struts. If the tranny is shifting smoothly, you don't need a new transmission. Tell your father not to listen to the mechanic.

pblaze

Sounds to me like you're being set up for a scam. In the first place, when struts fail they usually blow a seal and leak fluid. The result is a soft and bouncy ride, not a harsh one. Struts CAN sieze, but the ride would rattle your teeth, and there would be no mistaking the problem. With a 7 year old car though, it may not be a bad idea to have a new set put on anyway. Alldata.com says that OEM struts are $90 each. Standard labor for the job is 3 hours to do both sides and an alignment.

Now for the big $$. Ask for a clear answer as to why you need a tranny. If you have an auto, it should: shift into and out of gear without delay, shift smoothly when accelarating, never "pop" out of gear, and not make any whining noises. Also, the transmission fluid should not look or smell burned. If any of this has happened you'll need to dig deeper. If none are happening, then you need some answers. Look at it this way, if the guy says it needs a tranny, but if the cars goes fine now, what will it hurt to drive the car until it really shows symptoms?

If you have a bad standard trans, the signs won't be subtle. Got fewer than 5 speeds? Do the gears ever grind while shifting? (bad driving aside) No? Then you can be pretty sure that nothing is broken and the syncros aren't worn out. Again, if the car goes fine, why do the swap now. In either case, I'm not recommending that you drive your car into the ground. Just be aware that major transmission problems will show symptoms that you will notice.

What's the worst that could happen? The guy could charge you $1500+, take a good transmission from you and throw a piece of junk into your car. Get a second opinion. I hope this helped. Good luck.

iwannabmw

iTrader: (3)

Hard driving?? Sounds like he's scamming you. My car is track driven (road courses), autocrossed and driven hard daily. The only things I've done to my car are religious preventative maintainance and replaced wear items as I chew through them. You really have to abuse these cars for them to give you major problems. You definitly need a second opinion.

MaximaRider

iTrader: (3)

BULLSH!T, get another opinion unless your doing nuetral drops(if ur auto) or burnouts/powershifting (if ur manual)

95maxrider

iTrader: (32)

how bad are neutral drops anyways? say from about 2500?

iwannabmw

iTrader: (3)

Probably about the worse thing you can do to a tranny besides running it with little or no fluid. Very bad.

Viscous

Being stupid as I was, I thought I could do a neutral drop in a auto tranny as if it was a manual tranny. I did one neutral drop from 6500rpm that left two even tire strip marks for about 50 feet from a parking space that I was in, and smoked up the place. Not to mention it must have annoyed all 50 heads of people around me that turned to look. I feel stupid writing about it now, my tranny is still alive. Will probably be needing a new one soon

Sometimes when I add a bit of gas at around 25mph, when the car is automatically shifting from 1st to 2nd, the shifting is.. hmm how to describe it.. less than crisp. It feels like its slipping and does not fully shift into gear for about a whole second. In the mean time the car shudders slightly and the makes a rubbing noise from underneath. This only happens when I add throttle right before the car shifts... Anyone else had this problem or situation? I am curious to know.

Well, its about time for a new tranny and Don's VB mod.

95maxrider

iTrader: (32)

Are all your tranny problems related to the one neutral drop you did, cause my car needs some boost right off the line, and if I drop from 3000, how bad would that be? i already have 80000 on my auto....

Viscous

One neutral drop will not damage the vehicle enough so that you can notice it immediately, but it is cumulative, meaning the more often you do it, the sooner your tranny will fall apart. So in terms of longevity, just stay away from anything stupid like that. I never knew it before, and now I know. Don't be dumb like me!

95maxrider

iTrader: (32)

so how can i get a good launch? thats whats killing me in races

Viscous

Brake torquing. Hold down the brake and apply gas to about 2500 rpm and let go of the brake and apply WOT as soon as you have the go. Its definitely not as effective, but it won't kill your car before its time.

Justin95SE

iTrader: (1)

yah i wont take my car to a place that asks me if its a 4 cylinder or a V6.

iwannabmw

iTrader: (3)

Trade it for a 5 speed

deezo

iTrader: (3)

The shop your advertising is in Andover, do you work there??? I may have to stop up and get some lubricants for the ride.

RapidMax

iTrader: (2)

I have that same situation(I'm hoping it's not a problem) and I have 27,000 miles on my car. I notice it most when I start to accelerate and someone hits their breaks and I have to stop accelerating right away. Doesn't happen very often and I always thought(hoped) it was just the tranny being confused about which gear to go into. I've only had the car for 8k miles and I drive a little harder than average but don't abuse my tranny so I think its probably normal. Anyone else know what this is?

meccanoble

iTrader: (22)

how do u drive hard???

98BlaximaSE

Romping the gas almost all the time.