HELP regarding Tranny bypass/flush

[BlazerScott]

I have an 05 pathfinder with 117k. just started at 40-45mph if in overdrive it seems to shudder but if I give more gas to cause a downshift or hit the button to turn off overdrive it goes away immediately. It will also occur if I'm doing 70 in OD and happen to let off the gas and slightly accelerate again, but is shorter in shudder duration. I hear no grinding or clunking or anything like that.
I checked the Radiator and it is foamy and it has mixed fluids obviously.
I've not seen too many responses from people who've had this exact symptoms and posted of successes without tranny repair. At this point, since it just started doing this crap, is it worth trying to do the bypass and new fluid in the tranny? I need some help pretty quick on this....I work a field service related job and can't be without a vehicle...I don't want to buy a new car right now. Any and all opinions please!

[deermjd]

I have an 05 pathfinder with 117k. just started at 40-45mph if in overdrive it seems to shudder but if I give more gas to cause a downshift or hit the button to turn off overdrive it goes away immediately. It will also occur if I'm doing 70 in OD and happen to let off the gas and slightly accelerate again, but is shorter in shudder duration. I hear no grinding or clunking or anything like that.
I checked the Radiator and it is foamy and it has mixed fluids obviously.
I've not seen too many responses from people who've had this exact symptoms and posted of successes without tranny repair. At this point, since it just started doing this crap, is it worth trying to do the bypass and new fluid in the tranny? I need some help pretty quick on this....I work a field service related job and can't be without a vehicle...I don't want to buy a new car right now. Any and all opinions please!

Hey neighbor. I hope you caught this soon enough but I'm afraid it may be too late. If it was me, I'd do the bypass and drain and refill the AFT 2 or 3 times to get most of the contaiminated fluid out. The cost of doing this is nothing compared to the potential repair costs for a transmission. You've got nothing to lose. Maybe it will at least buy you some time. The bypass is quick and simple to do. Just remove both transmission cooler hoses from the bottom of the radiator and connect them using a 3/8" barb fitting. Then cap the connections of the transmission cooler in the radiator to prevent coolant from leaking out. Good luck! Let us know how it turns out.

[CPLTECH]

Great news
http://www.thenissanpath.com/viewtopic. ... 6&start=15
Did you see where Nissan paid for trans but not labor. Why not look into that possibility?
Maybe you are too far over 100K, but others may see this and have it taken care of.

Posting by PC05, Jan 09, 2012: Got pathfinder back and wow what a difference! We had been driving it broke like this since 64k miles and it now has 76k on it. Shifting is as smooth as the new 2012 altima they gave us to drive while pathy was in the shop. Great experience through this whole thing, even asked for some oil plug crush washers and they gave me those N/C. I feel for the guys who's path is over the 80k mark but the service writer was telling me that they have been fixing peoples at the 100k mark, nissan paid for tranny and customer pay for labor.
Hopefully this thing will give us many miles of trouble free service from here on out. Fingers crossed.

[BlazerScott]

Thanks neighbor! I'm going to do it today and see if this helps.

[BlazerScott]

CPLTECH,
Nissan corporate tells me today that their stance on the issue is the same that because of my mileage (117k) and because I didn't bring it in for a service history that they won't cover it. I do all my own maintenance where i can, and have bought Nissan parts where needed, but that doesn't seem to matter or count in their opinion. F Nissan. We have an Oddessy that had a problem and Honda covered everything. It's about customer svc, and Nissan has been terrible on the issues i've had to deal with on this vehicle and the warranty extentions too low...after most people have eclipsed the mileages:
the Fuel sending unit sensor problem, the ECM Relay (they did cover that (was cheap), and now the transmission/Radiator problem.

Right now...Im not a customer they are concerned about retaining. I just need to get this POS to last a little longer and hopefully keep it's value from tanking before trading it.

[deermjd]

BlazerScott,
Sorry to hear that Nissan will not cover your transmission problems. But you've found a good forum. Good place to research problems or vent with other Pathfinder owners.

[skinny2]

Bum deal but the fact is, if you want a dealer to help you with goodwill repairs...usually you need to have some type of relationship with them beyond showing up with your hand out. My family used to own a dealership and the service managers could get warranty coverage on all kinds of things if they wanted. Obviously they didn't usually do much for random people off the street, but good customers could usually get something done. I've seen full transmissions and engines paid for well above 100k miles, even on vehicles without known problems.

That being said...it was certainly worth a try given the known problem on these. I would try the tranny flush and bypass since it doesn't sound like it's shifting that hard yet. I think keeping a close eye on these is very smart and if you catch it at first it really shouldn't do much damage. It wil shift bad just because the fluid is all goofed up.

I don't go to the dealer for my PF. I did use the dealer for my wifes Honda Odyssey simply because of the known transmission issues. They did end up paying for a few things out of warranty that they may not have if I wasn't a good customer. So it probably pays off...it's just not convenient for me with the Pathfinder.

[ric4044]

I have the same problem with my 05 Pathfinder with 127k on the odometer...I posted questions on the another thread (that long thread with 28 pages) But I will attempt to flush my tranny in the am and see if this helps. My car only shudders once in a while, usually right around 40 mph or so. Will the fluid in the tranny look milky brown, or will it be another color if the coolant has contaminated it. I already did the bypass and examined the fluid that came out and it was milky brown in color. The coolant in the radiator was not milky, but it wasn't green/yellowish either. I spent a whole day pricing tranny fluid and doing research on how to flush the tranny, but I am not certain my fluid is contaminated. I even picked up an empty 5gal cooking oil container to see the fluid that is being flushed out. Either way I am performing the complete flush in the am and I will keep you guys posted. Since we all stay in Bham maybe we should show up at JBurke Nissan and protest to see what happens. Now if anyone wants to add some simple - and complete instructions - with pictures- on how to flush your tranny after the radiator bypass that would be great!!!!!!

[deermjd]

Sounds likegood you transmission is just old. When wasthe the lastnew time itI was changed? The easiest way to change the fluid is to do a drain and refill. There is a drain plug on the bottom of the transmission pan that makes this simple. When you drain the fluid only about 4 quarts will come out. There are about 10-12 total quarts of fluid in the transmission. So you may want to drain and refill 2 or 3 times to get most of the old fluid to drain out. Of course you'll want to drive the car a little between each drain and refill to mix the fluid around so you're not draining all the new fluid you just put in.

[ric4044]

I was preparing to do a complete flush with the wifey sitting behind the wheel of the car. From what I read, you first drain the 4 qts in the tranny via the drain port on the tranny. Then tighten the drain bolt. Pour in 4 qts of new fluid or whatever amount was drained into the dipstick opening in the motor area. Next remove the hose attached to the metal trans line (passenger side of the car). This is the same hose that was used in the radiator bypass. Attach some more hose to it to extend the length and put that hose in a clear container - I am using an empty 5 gallon cooking oil container. I poured 1 qt of water in the container using a measuring cup and then marked the outside of the container with a marker - going up to 9 qts high. I will have my wife turn on the ignition for a few seconds and then measure the amount and color of fluid coming out. Try to do this in 2 qt increments. I will re-add 2 qts of new fluid to the dipstick for every 2 qts of old fluid that is drained. I will have the wifey cycle thru the gears to make sure all of the old fluid is pushed out. The car should only run in 10 to 20 second intervals. The way I read it, by the time I get around to draining 6 or 7 qts into the cooking oil container, it should start to come out looking clear like the new fluid that was put in. Remember, I will have drained 4+ qts from the drain in the transmission to start with. It just made more sense than doing a drain and refill. One guy on the forums said something like this, if you had 12 qts of piss and drained 4 qts and then added 4 qts of fresh water and stirred the container. Then do this same thing 2 more times (4 x 3=12 qts) and stir or shake the container each time. How much piss is still left in the container at the end? Doing it this way seems like you'll get better results. I could be wrong on the procedure...feel free to chime in! My mechanic said he drained and refilled 5 qts at around the 90k mark. I know he did because I saw the empty Nissan Trans J containers in his trash. If the fulid looks this way less than 30K miles later after draining and refilling with 5qts, I want to completely flush this gunk out to see if it performs better.

[mtbpath]

besides those signs you guys are describing at shuddering.
and visual inspection of the trans fluid or radiator fluid to see if contamination as occurred.
isn't there a way to put the car on a dyno type machine and drive it and see if the rpm's matches the correct speed?
I've been following all the threads on trans and bypasses.
many have done bypasses.
while others have discovered the problem shortly after the warranty expired.
that's my concern that its not discovered soon.
also, what if the bypass is done but the trans contamination as occurred prior.

[deermjd]

Ric,
The method you described is better than a drain and refill, especially since you have a helper. Hope it goes well for you.