The Trouble With Nissan Transmissions

Transmission issues make up roughly 35% of all Nissan owner complaints. The majority of the issues have been reported by Pathfinder owners.

The complaint we hear about most often is coolant leaked into transmission in the 2005 Pathfinder.

Common Transmission Problems

  1. Should You Trust Nissan's CVT?

    For a while cracked radiators were the number one enemy of Nissan transmissions, but these days it appears the transmissions are their own worst enemy.

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  2. Coolant Leaks Destroy Transmissions

    Automatic transmissions in certain 2005-2010 Nissan SUVs and Trucks are under attack from their radiators. Leaking coolant is mixing with transmission fluid through the cooler lines to create a toxic hell stew that irreversibly damages ever…

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  3. Premature Automatic Transmission Failure

    Whether it's hesitation between gears, rough shifting, sudden stops or diminished acceleration, there's absolutely nothing good about these garbage transmissions.

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Where Transmission Complaints Happen

Sometimes it helps just to tally up the complaints and see where the biggest stacks are. Use this information to learn about troublespots or to run for the hills.

Worst Issues

Worst Models

Recent Transmissions News

There's a lot of news out there, but not all of it matters. We try to boil down it to the most important bits about things that actually help you with your car problem. Interested in getting these stories in an email? Signup for free email alerts over at CarComplaints.com.

  2. A CVT lawsuit will proceed after a judge approved most of the plaintiffs' claims

    in a class-action Nissan asked the court to dismiss. The[lawsuit accuses the automaker of concealing transmission defects since 2012 and covers owners of the 2013-2014 Altima in California, New York, and Pennsylvania.

    Nissan argued those claims didn't hold because the plaintiffs had not adequately pleaded any of its express or implied warranty claims. However, the judge ruled claims about express and implied warranties survive, which automatically means Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act claims survive.

    keep reading

  3. Altima owners have been waiting for a recall and/or extended warranty for the terrible continuously variable transmission (CVT)

    in the 2013 and 2014 model years. Well, certain owners decided they’ve waited long enough and sued Nissan.…

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  5. A lawsuit has been filed in New Jersey saying the 2014 Sentra has a defective Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT)

    that shakes, jerks, has trouble accelerating, and experiences sudden downshifts. The lawsuit, Pinto of Montville Inc. v. Nissan North America, Inc, was filed by a garbage collection company which is oh so appropriate given the CVTs trashy reputation.

    "The plaintiff claims Nissan has concealed the defective transmissions while never ordering a recall, even after years of owner complaints. In addition, the automaker allegedly falsely advertised the transmissions as having fewer moving part to reduce friction and heat which makes the transmissions last longer."

    The lawsuit mentions that Nissan issued a warranty extension campaign, but that only included the 2007-2010 Sentra, not the 2014.

    keep reading

  6. Certain Nissan vehicles have a defective cracked radiator that leaks coolant into the transmission fluid, creating a toxic hell stew

    that kills the transmission entirely. If it hasn't happened to you, you've probably at least heard of it. And if you haven't heard of it, well ... I'm sorry to be the bearer of some really bad news.

    Unfortunately, the news gets worse. There were high hopes that the government would open an investigation that would lead to a recall, but we now know that ain't going to happen.…

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  7. Nissan's Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT) has received a continuous stream of complaints.

    One of the most common? How it violently jerks and shakes during acceleration. This is commonly attributed to a "CVT belt slip" and can be dangerous.

    A few lawsuits have been filed by owners with similar themes.…

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  8. The North Carolina Consumers Council (NCCC) recommends that no-one buy a 2005-2010 Nissan Pathfinder, Frontier, or Xterra.

    That would have been very helpful advice, say, 5 or 10 years ago. Next they might tell us the sun is very bright and they recommend not looking directly at it.

    The radiators in these vehicles --- as most of you know by now --- are ticking time-bombs. They leak coolant into the transmission, killing it.…

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  9. 45,000 Rogue owners should be careful where they park because the SUVs are going rogue (you had to see that coming).

    The [2015 Rogue] transmissions could move out of the "Park" position by mistake. Parking the vehicle and walking away could cause the Rogue to roll away, especially if parked on an incline.

    Normally you need to depress the brake pedal fully before you can shift the transmission into gear, but the Rogue has a faulty shift selector knob that is bypassing this important safety feature.

    The affected Rogues are all from the 2015 model year and built between 02/10/15 and 05/13/15. The recall is expected to begin at the end of December and full details are available on our site.

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  10. A class-action lawsuit aims to get to the bottom of an alleged transmission defect in the 2013-2014 Nissan Pathfinder.

    The lawsuit says Nissan installed transmissions that can shake and shudder violently when accelerating between 15mph and 30mph. They then continued selling the defective transmissions even after they found problems.…

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  11. Next time you leave your vehicle in park, don't count on it being there when you get back.

    According to Nissan a problem with the transmission can make it impossible to actually get your vehicle in park. Specifically interference between the parking rod and transmission house can cause the parking pawl to not engage. And yes, pawl is a real word (but I admittedly had to look it up).

    The problem affects 2015 Armadas built between September 15 and October 14, 2014.

    Nissan hasn't announced when the recall will begin. Once it does dealers will inspect affected cars and in some cases replace the entire transmission. Owners with questions can contact Nissan at 800-647-7261.

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  12. Last October, Nissan extended their radiator warranty for what they called a “small percentage” of vehicles that may experience issues with coolant leaks.

    Namely, how those coolant leaks seep into the transmission and render it useless.

    While the automaker has offered an extended warranty for the radiators, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and other safety organizations have received numerous complaints from owners alleging they have spent thousands of dollars for transmission repairs because the added radiator warranty coverage only applied to vehicles with fewer than 80,000 miles.

    That “small percentage” appears to be on the rise, as this problem regularly tops the CarComplaints.com trending problems list.

    Because it’s an extended warranty, and not a recall, Nissan isn’t obligated to tell owners about it. And, for those who know, it isn’t exactly clear if the radiator warranty extension covers damage done to the transmission by the leaking coolant.

    keep reading