I've been driving my PF for a while now ('05 SE 4x4). Recently I started driving my wifes '08 Xterra. The X shifts SO much smoother. The PF has a definitive "pause" between gears - almost 1-2 seconds between gears. But when in gear I can floor it and there's no slipping or whatnot. Just a pause between gears.

It's going to the dealer tomorrow for this and other issues. But wondering if anyone has insight as to what this could be? Just so I ensure the dealer does their due-diligence....

ours is very smooth

I dunno about 1-2 seconds.....but there's a delay between gears on mine that seems longer than average. I think in reality it's only a split second longer than normal but probably seems longer. By normal I mean...most every other auto transmission vehicle I've driven. It's smooth and it almost seems like that delayed shift is part of the smoothness. Usually when a transmission shifts very fast it feels rough....like it's slamming into the gears. The smoother the shift...the slower the gear change.

I have been having the same issue with mine. Some people said that it might be the rad and transmission mixing fluids or something. I am taking mine in to have looked at in a week or so.

Yea, I'm probably stretching the "2 seconds". But it's a definite delay between gears - more than any other auto-tranny I've owned. And especially after comparing to my Xterra - which is like silk. I would think they are the same tranny since the engine is, but I could be wrong. This could totally be normal for this tranny. It doesn't feel like it's grinding or anything, just a longer delay than I would expect, and the engine doesn't rev up either. But I'm especially wonder if when off-roading, say climbing a hill and it shifts with that delay - wonder what damage or whatnot that can cause...?

I'll see what the dealer says tomorrow.

Citcope wrote:I have been having the same issue with mine. Some people said that it might be the rad and transmission mixing fluids or something. I am taking mine in to have looked at in a week or so.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

a week or so?
if you suspect transmission fluid/coolant contamination, it would be a real good idea to find out right away!
caught early-on, sometimes the transmission can be saved.........
it can mean the difference of many thousands of dollars

I should clarify that mine only does the "above average delay" when romping on it (i.e. higher rpms). It shifts quite fine when driving normal. I've started using manual mode when passing because it takes the delay out of waiting for it to downshift and then the shifts are quicker as well.

It may be the same engine/tranny but it's a heavier vehicle and perhaps the designers are worried about the gears slamming with the extra load. I dunno.

When my radiator tranny issue happened, the way it shifted was the last symptom I noticed. It did the rumble strip thing first. Then, under certain conditions, it wouldn't down-shift until I gunned it. It would pause (rpm stayed static) where it should shift and then when I tapped the gas, it would clunk down into the lower gear.

The last symptom was hard shifting. It would audibly (and you could feel it) clunk on every gear shift. With a newly reconditioned transmission, the time it takes to shift isn't very quick, but it's smooth and the car doesn't stop accelerating, noticably during the shift.

The symptoms of the trans oil/coolant contamination problem seem to vary, probably dependent upon the severity of contamination, and time/mileage elasped since the on-set.
At least it's easy to determine if it is a problem, and as horribly expensive as this issue can be, it seems prudent to make that determination right away.
And if it is a problem, waiting to diagnose (and do something about it) can only cause more damage.
It could mean the difference in cost of a few fluid flushes vs. a transmission overhaul.

eieio wrote:The symptoms of the trans oil/coolant contamination problem seem to vary, probably dependent upon the severity of contamination, and time/mileage elasped since the on-set.
At least it's easy to determine if it is a problem, and as horribly expensive as this issue can be, it seems prudent to make that determination right away.
And if it is a problem, waiting to diagnose (and do something about it) can only cause more damage.
It could mean the difference in cost of a few fluid flushes vs. a transmission overhaul.

Agreed! which is why I've done the tranny cooler bypass.

Spoke to couple transmission shops this week. They had never heard of this issue, and questioned why I would bypass the cooler. Didn't even know the truck has the aux cooler.

Hopefully I will find someone who knows what the hell they are talking about, as I would like to add some coolers and don't have the time/wherewithal to do it myself right not.

t

eieio wrote:The symptoms of the trans oil/coolant contamination problem seem to vary, probably dependent upon the severity of contamination, and time/mileage elasped since the on-set.
At least it's easy to determine if it is a problem, and as horribly expensive as this issue can be, it seems prudent to make that determination right away.
And if it is a problem, waiting to diagnose (and do something about it) can only cause more damage.
It could mean the difference in cost of a few fluid flushes vs. a transmission overhaul.

disallow wrote:Agreed! which is why I've done the tranny cooler bypass.

Me too, both trucks. No need to worry about them anymore!

disallow wrote:Spoke to couple transmission shops this week. They had never heard of this issue, and questioned why I would bypass the cooler. Didn't even know the truck has the aux cooler.

No surprise there!

disallow wrote:Hopefully I will find someone who knows what the hell they are talking about, as I would like to add some coolers and don't have the time/wherewithal to do it myself right not.

Lotsa Luck!
I'm not (yet) convinced that any additional coolers are necessary. I can't imagine that transmission fluid circulated through a radiator full of hot coolant is going to get much cooling anyway.

it's a trait of the 08. 05/06 are the most direct drive feeling. do a search and you'll see....i've been working on this for a while

Well, the dealer says all is working normal for my '05 PF (tranny type). One thing that DID tic me off though, after getting home I read the repair form/receipt and the tech noted that a tranny flush is recommended. The svc adviser did NOT mention this. And since it has less than 500 miles/6 weeks since I bought it from them, this should have been done. I will be calling him in the AM.

Tech wrote:it's a trait of the 08. 05/06 are the most direct drive feeling. do a search and you'll see....i've been working on this for a while

Tech - I'm confused by what you mean with the 05/06's. That the "delay" is normal? Did some searches (on this forum) but came up blank. Wrong search words...or site(s)?