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Comments
The situation: for the automatic transmission, the transmission fluid is pumped through heat exchangers in the front of the vehicle- one in the bottom of the radiator, one just behind the grill. The heat exchanger inside the radiator begins to leak, allowing antifreeze to enter the transmission fluid and eventually into the transmission itself. The antifreeze seems to have devastating effects on the internals of the transmission over time. Unfortunately, by the time you notice something is wrong, it's too late.
I'm not 100% sure, but I think the one in the radiator is to help warm the transmission fluid during cold weather to allow for smoother shifting. I don't see how it would help cool the fluid, since the radiator will be warmer during normal operating conditions anyway.
I just completely bypassed the radiator with a male-male barb fitting. I disconnected the hoses from the bottom of the radiator, connected the two with the barb fitting, clamped them down, and capped the old fittings on the radiator. I then made sure to tie the hose up out of the way, and make sure it wasn't kinked.
My wife has been driving it without issue for about 2 years now. We don't tow anything of significant size, but the heat exchanger in front behind the grill does enough to keep it from overheating, and I haven't noticed any issues during cold weather shifting.
For normal around town driving, I don't see that the radiator heat exchanger is needed. I think it was just a stupid design flaw on Nissan's part.
From what I've seen, the transmission fluid should never be as hot as the radiator at normal temperature, so it gets heated in the radiator, and then cooled down behind the grill before going back to the transmission. I just eliminated the additional heating, as well as the potential for destroying the transmission. And I live in the south east US.
2) From a few who have posted the same issues who have 2010 models.
Was your's still under warranty?
I was really worried that it will not be covered by nissan, since I don't have any warranty at all on my vehicle. My truck is a 2007 pathfinder with 79,988 miles on it. They said they will replace them for FREE since my vehicle has less than 80k miles. They told me that's the cut off on the coverage. It was really a close call. I'm glad the dealer is only a mile away from my house and not 13 miles away. Whew...what a releif.
I guess what I'm trying to say is if your truck has less than 80k miles, nissan will replace them for free.
I have had the fuse blow for the starter about twice, cold start resulting in stalling unless key is turned to start before it hits zero rpms or your on the gas, and for the past 2-3 months I have had the P0740 code coming up.
I havent had the fuse blow in a while (April 10 2012 is last time).
Cold Start problem I have no clue- tried replacing fuel pump and fuel filter based on similar symptoms with a work vehicle, replaced the intake hose that was cracked (not known if it was leaking).
P0740 Code I have not gotten a definitive answer from the few people I have asked about it. I asked the dealer on cost and they said $2300 to replace the solenoid, i later found out that was all the solenoid. I got one educated guess that took a look at the car and they said its about $300.00 to fix.
Oh yeah anyone loose control of your air conditioner (on/off and fan speed controls non-operational/malfunctioning)??
Cpl Orbinati :confuse:
I will recommend to you that you take it to a dealer ASAP and tell them to fix it. You may have to report it to the NTSB and or look for a recall cause this is a common issue. This needs to be done BEFORE you go over your Standard warranty/extended warranty.
Cpl Orbinati
Who else is having issue of water in transmission? Its not just older models I have '07.
Everything felt fine except at high speeds and decelerating, the transmission kind of jerked. That's what spawned me to question the transmission and research it online. Then found out about this "intermix" issue.
It is a very poor design to say the least. And since Nissan isn't really covering it as a defect, it is likely your car will be out of warranty before it occurs after 80k.
I took the car for a pre-sale inspection at a third-party Nissan dealer to have a certified Nissan tech look it over. They informed me that he intermix issue was pretty rare, but occurs on NIssan Pathfinders, XTerras from about 2005-2007 and it is more about the location of the factory where was made than it affecting all vehicles. I have also seen some things about some Frontiers as well online.
Anyways, the mechanic did mention there is that third party converter to add a radiator for the transmission only and re-route the lines independently as some people mentioned on this thread (est. $300). You need to catch it in time though.
Superficial signs are "pink slime" and "whitish film" on the radiator cap and on the transmission dip stick. But if the radiator fluid and transmission had recently been flushed (possibly to cover-up the issue by a deceitful seller), it would need to be driven about 100 miles before you could detect the intermix.
Anyways, the dealer still has the vehicle for sale at the original "reduced" price (now I know why it was reduced), and I think that is very poor business as I have shown them the inspection report and they are aware of the problem.
I just want to warn a potential buyer, so they don't get suckered into a $6000-$7000 quoted repair for a new transmission and radiator per the inspection.
beware of this vehicle:
2006 Nissan Pathfinder SE Off Road
Black
VIN 5N1AR18W76C619660
http://www.nissanassist.com/web/Radiator/index.php?menu=20
NEVER BUY NISSAN again.
Nissan fix this problem? My pathfinder is an '07, I'd consider getting a 2010 if problem had been addressed, other wise I guess I'll look into Armada issues, if any. But if anyone know what years exactly this issue is happening to that would get me a little bit ahead of the game when I take this to Nissan dealer in my town. Thanks a bunch for the feedback, VERY appreciated!!!!!!
My mom had an 02 Xterra and it was good just too big for her.
So my next plan is to get the word out to as many people as possible about their service and this defect. I own an animation firm and am currently having one of my employees model the defective coolant system and then will animate the process and why it fails. I am working with a transmission repair facility and a mechanic to make sure its on spec. If anyone has photos of the failure please contact me as I would like to include them in the final animation.
Thank you
I own an animation firm and am currently having one of my employees model the defective coolant system and then will animate the process and why it fails. I am working with a transmission repair facility and a mechanic to make sure its on spec. If anyone has photos of the failure please contact me as I would like to include them in the final animation.
Thank you
Jason
I have a 2006 just spent $5,600 on repairing the transmition a new radiator and a new Torque converter
Any information that could be shared regarding a class action lawsuit would be greatly appreciated. - Albany, NY
A salesman tried to say it only affected 2005, but he was obviously not very knowledgable since the 2006 I took in for an inspection had the problem, including many others on this forum.
A mechanic told me that another sign other than the "milky-chocoloate milk-like" radiator fluid (NEVER check radiator when hot!) and "pink slime" in the transmission (you can check the transmission dipstick located near firewall on passenger side - requires loosening bolt 6mm), the transmission typically jerks or is rough when shifting between 30-40mph. Although, the Pathfinder I test drove had a shifting bump when decelerating from 70mph down to 60mph and it suffered from this issue.
If you own one under those criteria, I would recommend taking it in for inspection. You can get the aftermarket kit which is about $300 to prevent it and have some peace of mind.
note: the extended warranty that another user posted looks like it only applies towards the radiator assembly, no mention of the transmission.
Check this out. NHTSA has begun an investigation re: the transmission/radiator nightmare.
http://www.autoguide.com/auto-news/2012/06/nissan-suvs-under-nhtsa-investigation- -for-transmission-issues.html
http://www.carcomplaints.com/news/2012/nissan-transmission-investigation-possibl- e.shtml
However it is critical that those who have experienced this nightmare report it to NHTSA. And if you had even a close call to what was or could have been a dangerous situation, this is so important to note. NHTSA looks at the dangers, not the cost. I know we are far from the only owners who came close to what could have been tragic due to the vehicle lurching forward in heavy 40 MPH traffic. Others have reported their transmissions dying while in the middle of heavy traffic. We finally have a chance to get these vehicles either off the road or fixed and also hopefully be reimbursed. Below is the site to the report starting the NHTSA investigation. This is where you can file a complaint: https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/VehicleComplaint/index.xhtml
http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/problems/defect/defectresults.cfm?start=1&Sear- chType=DrillDown&type=1&year=2005&make=NISSAN&model=PATHFINDER&component_id=171&- summary=true&PrintVersion=YES