Redstone

How many of you go to the dealership to change you transmission fluid or do it yourself instead? I would need go to the dealership for a flush, but since I am only draining and refilling I am on the fence about it and would like to get some feedback from others who have done their own before. Thanks in advance.

Terrentius

I do tranny fluid changes at the Dealership cause my tranny is still under warranty. When the warranty is up, then I will go to my regular mechanic.

STARR

iTrader: (1)

Took my 06 into the dealer, what they charged to do the service was equal to or less then what I could have done it for and without the headaches, Im getting to old for this BS car crap, I at the age where I enjoy some stuff but I don't have the time or patients for it anymore, thankfully because of my chosen career path I will have the money to pay my mechanic/tech one day down the road.

My 09 only sees the dealer, but I still get a kick out of kids and newbies trying to save money by doing things themselves only to realize, things don't go according to plan and now I need to pay someone to fix it again, I have made the costly mistakes so I know

Redstone

Luckily over the past 20 years or so working on my own cars I have not run into that situation by screwing something up so bad and then have to look like a fool and take it in to the dealer so everyone can get a good laugh out of it. I have always owned manual transmission cars and this is my 2nd Maxima which is an automatic just like the 5.5 gen I had. I have never been a fan of messing with anything transmission related even before hearing about the issues people have had with the transmissions in some of the 6th gen. Before posting this I was kinda leaning towards what Terrentius said by taking it in because it is still under warranty and even if the warranty was expired I probably still would have them do it anyway. I look at it this way I am not the kinda guy who is going to go in there to have my headlight bulbs changed or brakes done. There are people who fork up hundreds of dollars for this stuff no this guy. Thanks for the comments and I think I am sold on taking it in for this job.

NiZMo1o1

iTrader: (45)

I would request if your going to the dealership is to have them flush and vaccum the extra fluid out, they have a machine that does it, when you ask the service writer question him that not only you want a FLUSH , you need it vaccumed out then a full drain.

What happens is I belive our tranny holds like 7 quarts, you never really get to drain it all out because the Torque convertor itself holds a QT.

Therefore they have a machine they hook up and vaccum and sucks ALL the old fluids out and then top it off..

If they tell you they DONT have it , call another dealership.

I know for a fact SEARS has the machine to do this, if you got that route to sears, purchase your own K-Matic Nissan Fluid OR change up to AMSOIL synthic K-matic

2o4Max

I'm missing something here, last time I was told and even after reviewing the actual drawings of the transmission it is a sealed unit. I'm not sure about the CVT if the return lines are available for hookup or not I would have to look at the drawings once again. Which tranny do you have?

rawmax1

@204max On the 5spd auto yes it is a sealed unit. Only coolant lines going to case. Drain and Fill is all the 5spd autos can do. I get out about 3.2 every drain and fill

yoshiki2

You can take it to autoshops.. or other mechanics.. as long as you trust them..

BadBlackMaxSL

iTrader: (1)

I had mine done at the dealer this week, I had a coupon for 10% off and a $25 gift card plus I HATE being UNDER the car. Anyway, had them drain and fill with 5 quarts of trans fluid and I had them do an oil change too since it was time. I would highly recommend this to all of the 5 speed auto Maxs. Mine has 65,XXX and this was the first time I had any trans fluid changed and the shifting is now as smooth as it was when it was new. It was starting to clunk on me when going into 2nd when cold or when it downshifted from 3rd to 2nd but not anymore. I will be doing this every 30,000 from now on. I have not held onto a car this long in 15 years so I never realized the benefits of this service.

SuperMario

I have the 5 speed auto with about 85K. Mine is a little jerky at times, not always. Will the flush help?

Reading the comments here, this is a sealed unit, can it be vacuumed or not?

One last thing, how much does Sears charge for this compared to the dealership? Or will it be more inexpensive to pass this one to my personal mechanic?

InFaMoUsI

thanks guys im new here and was looking for information about a tranny flush, i think im going to go the dealer, any suggestions to which fluids to with?

po8pimp

if you have a 5 speed auto, it holds 14 quarts of fluid. cost of fluid is around $160 total. so if you get a flush for around or under that total worth getting the dealer to do it. I pay the extra for piece of mind knowing it was done right by doing it myself. extremely easy to do as well. almost as easy as oil change.

Orbit

Anyone know when the CVTs are supposed to be done?

STARR

iTrader: (1)

Every Nissan Dealer I have been to has recommended a 30k service, I did that on my 06 and will do it on my 09, the CVT is still relatively new and I would rather pay for trans service then push my luck.

I know certain cars that have bullet proof transmissions, and Nissan does not fall into that category.

As far as I know my 06 was just a drain and refill, they called it a flush cause that term has been used for years, but it was just an R&R, I guess the CVT will be the same.

LucKie1nE

I am a technician and work for a dealership, unfortunately, I don't work for Nissan yet.. I do all my own work on my ride and hate the fact of letting any random "joe smoe" work on my baby.. Unless it's under warranty.. It's like letting some random dude touch your girl.. I did my CVT drain and fill at 40K.. I know Nissan recommends it at 30K.. For all you CVT guys/gals out there, if you plan to do it yourself.. There is special CVT ATF for your ride.. Don't put just regular ATF, you will smoke your tranny.. On the power flush, I asked one of the senior tech's at Nissan and he doesn't recommend doing it.. He said you'll do more damage in the long run.. He also said the service writer will sell it to you anyways but they just do a drain and fill..

pet1700

Guys, quick question…on the drain and fill method, do I simply put the tranny in park with car off and unscrew the plug to drain whatever tranny fluid will come out, close the plug and refill the same amount? I just want to be sure I am not missing any steps such as going through gears during the process, etc.?

Kryogen

YES. That easy, and its all you can do. Then go drive tehe car around 5 minutes, then do it again. Then drive for a week, then do it again.

I did that and my tranny that I though was going dead, now shifts like new. I'll do a flush every 20K now.

QwikKota

iTrader: (3)

Did you use a ladder to get up on that high horse?

I have no problem paying for service as far as the cash goes, but some do, as I did in the past, only way to fix or service was DIY. What I do have a problem with is paying someone else for things I can do myself. If you think all technicians are brilliant at what they do you must not have had an oil pan plug cross threaded or brakes improperly installed at some point by a service employee. Most menial tasks are done by the lowest totem pole member who is still "learning". Good luck with that mantra.

A more suitable reply would be to say that if you do a tranny drain yourself you are not getting all of the old fluid out of the converter and cooler. A dealer or other service establishment uses a pump to force every ounce of old fluid out, which may be worth the cost to some owners.

CVT service interval is 60,000 miles. 30k is Schedule A or whichever the more paranoid one is. Warranty can only hold you to Schedule B.

Kryogen

5 speed cannot be flushed anyway

pet1700

Agreed and confirmed with dealer...only drain and fill (and dealer charges $180 plus tax for changing only about 6 qtrs of fluid)...

Kryogen

Why, do they do it twice? cause it drains just like 3 quarts max

STARR

iTrader: (1)

I actually used that ladder to ****s some pretty expensive stuff up on my own cars, I have paid and learned my lesson, and I was a Nissan tech but when I was on the job I saw many DIY bring cars in to have things fixed that should have never been done, and now cost the original price or more

Im not telling anyone to bring it to the dealer, my opinion is bring it to the dealer.

As for my CVT service, I will bring it in at 30k and get it changed, I can probably wait until 60k but won't, also I usually go by the dealer recommended intervals.

One again, Im to old to be changing stuff on my car I would rather pay someone to do it, who has the tools, and lift.

Kryogen

STARR, if you want to bring the car to the dealer for everything, why are you here anyway.... do like my mom, and have the inspection every oil change, they will tell you what needs to be fixed.

Like oh ya, once they charged 400$ to replace the strut rubber bellows on a 2 y/o car. Then they replaced all 4 rotors on my dads pickup with 15 000 miles. And when you replace rotors, you need new pads too, and an alignment, right. 1500$.

(but I have to say that according to some people here, you change rotors every 5K with oil......) so maybe they werent wrong.

LiquidIce

iTrader: (1)

Drain and Fill on my 5speed auto wa all I could do.. it's exactly like an oil change minus a filter and way more messy since the fluid shoots out at somewhat an angle not straight down. I don't know how much came out but I added 4qt's back. I bought 12 qt's so I could do this job myself a few times every few thousand miles to clear out the fluid.

What happens is you won't get all of it out in once sweep.. the new fluid will mix with the old.. Also make sure you clean the magnetic hexbolt that grabs a bunch of shavings.. I wish I had a picture of mine as It was a shiny silver film across the top of it.. the particles were micro.

Mind you I drive my car like a gramma and try to avoid over revving to get to the next gear since I know which gears my car struggles to catch onto. Most of the time it's unavoidable but people will pass me when I am first accelerating in the morning on the 2 lane because I take my time to let the gas release at almost the right time to make the shift smoother rather than jerkier (that a word??)..

Long story short theirs a guide on changing your tranny fluid. I recommend and many others recommend using the genuine Nissan Matic K fluid for 6th gen 5 speed auto. Model # 999MP-MTK00P if you want to be sure.

Measure like the sticky says how much came out so you know how much to put back in. I'ts a messy job if you don't have a lift or a large/wide container to catch it all. My fluid was brownish if it helps anyone feel better. I did notice the car shifted a bit smoother afterwards. I plan to do another one.. I am about 3K miles into my new fluid and will change again soon of these 3 changes I will do from my order of 12 one quart bottles..


Best of luck to everyone and keep those tranny's going!

QwikKota

iTrader: (3)

The change interval for the CVT is not even listed in the manual. You are looking at the Premium Maintenance, it says Optional. You are wasting money changing it before 60k. I looked up the manual for your '09 as well, it's not in there, go figure.

Kryogen

drain/fill was 2.6 liters exactly for me, 4 times.....
Doing it 4 times fixed all my tranny issues that I though was going bad. 3x same day, and 1x few months later.

stonelovecrew

Anyone had any problems with the 2008 maxima auto tranny not shifting?

QwikKota

iTrader: (3)

Sounds like it's working fine to me.

STARR

iTrader: (1)

Things changed for me, I left my job, went back to school, I no longer have a driveway or house, my tools are in NY, I live in GA, the dealer is all I have, my 06 is gone, now Im stuck with an 09, I prefer to save money but pay the dealer to do preventative maintenance, its not that I don't care but now Im 30, let the 20 somethings play with their cars

STARR

iTrader: (1)

The 4 and 5 speed autos had no change intervals, it was all done by routine inspection, never understood it but just went with it, like all my cars I changed the fluid at 30k, then 60k.

Most dealers recommend you change the fluid at 30k, if you buy a maintenance package they don't change your fluid until 60k

When I worked for Nissan 4th and 5th gen Maximas suffered from failed transmissions with 90-120k on the clock with no fluid change ever, 6th Gens are all over the place, my buddies who are still at Nissan relate it to hard driving, heavier car, and not changing the fluid, burnt fluid does not protect,

Goliath27

My dealer wants 80/90 bucks for a drain and fill(I can't remember how much) but he said it's only 4 quarts? Is that an actual drain and fill or will they do it 2-3 times?

I was gonna do this at a local shop or somewhere I can get royal purple done but I feel like it would cause more headache than anything?

Kryogen

use only nissan fluid.

If they say they drain and fill, thats what they do.....

Just buy the nissan fluid and do it yourself 3x.

Goliath27

I moved to Ann Arbor for school and don't have a garage or proper tools to even do my own oil. Can't imagine doing this even though the How-To made it very easy.

Kryogen

Then I would buy a box of it at the dealership, and pay a garage to do the flushes.

drain/fill 3x and in between, start the car, and switch to all gears for a while, then turn engine off, drain/fill....

Doing this 3x solved all my transmission rough shifting issues.... guess I got it before it was too late and crusty, and jammed the valve body...

Goliath27

So I take it the dealerships "drain and fill" isn't the same as I expected, and as you just explained?

I'll see what I can do about a local shop, but all I can find here are name brand shops, gotta look deeper!

Kryogen

Im sure the dealership is the same process.
But he said that for 90 bucks he will do it ONCE. You need to do it at least 3 times. I did 4. Just get a case of 12 bottles at nissan and do it yourself, or bring it to a garage.
I got a bit under 3 quarts per drain, so 3x4=12=case.

I did it once, then went for a drive 5 minutes, a bit of reverse, then drain, repeat 3x.
I did 4th drain and fill a month later.

Tranny is noticeably smoother and doesnt slam anymore.
I will probably do it once a year now (one drain and fill).

Goliath27

I'll be looking to do it myself now, as well as an oil change while I have the car on a lift.

But as for shifting, did you have any signs like a bumpy shift or even downshift? I feel like I have that now where if I let go of the gas pedal, it feels like I just hit the brake, when all I did was let go of the pedal.