svillegas2253

So my 03 6- speed is now at 145k miles. I purchased it at 136k and have no idea when the last owner might have done the last trans tune up.

Transmission works and shifts smoothly as always but makes a little whiney noise as it speeds up to high speeds. I think that may be comming from the diff.

So my main question is, How do i check the fluid level and where might be the best place to get it flushed and refilled??
Thanks in advance

george__

iTrader: (1)

Drive the car around and when transmission is warmed up check the transmission dipstick (inside engine bay). It's on your RIGHT

http://www.agcoauto.com/content/news/p2_articleid/141
http://transmissionrepairguy.com/wha...mission-fluid/

Child_uv_KoRn

iTrader: (7)

Do Not Flush

svillegas2253

Is that bad for the tranny??

dwapenyi

iTrader: (3)

Your 6 speed manual tranny takes GL-4 fluid. Do not use GL5 or GL4/GL5 compatible.
Just drop the fluid and replace with just under 5 qts of GL-4. Redline and Amsoil are popular GL-4 gear oils here on the forum.

Download your FSM here;

http://www.boredmder.com/FSMs/Nissan/Maxima/

Goto the maintenance section (MA) page 20. The drain and fill procedure is highlighted there. You do all the work from under the car so you need a set of jackstands or equivalent.

a33_ridah

iTrader: (10)

Dang i wanted to do this on my auto at 90 k....had heard a lot about amsoil and redline oils. My auto has a 9 quart capacity according to the fsm...cheapest i see online is about 15 a quart....thats damn near 150 in oils. ouch

D.Stillwell

^ to those Redline + Amsoil gear oils for 6MT, dont flush do drain and fill with those.

For the 4AT you actually want to use OEM Nissan Matic-D fluids. And the best place to get it is actually in Cali so thats a plus for you, that's where I bought mine...It was about $8/qt when I got mine, right now it's $5.95 a quart on sale!

http://www.thenismoshop.com/NISSAN-M...00P_p_312.html

I bought a few full boxes from there just to have it when I did my two drain/fills. Got about 8.5 qts out of mine.

talkinghorse

iTrader: (121)

Group Deals section:

https://maxima.org/forums/group-deal...ing-avail.html

https://maxima.org/forums/group-deal...available.html

I sell a lot of these products to our members and the feedback is outstanding

svillegas2253

Thanks alot man. Very helpfull I didnt know weather to flush or just drain. Ill be doing this today

QueensMAX

If its not broke don't fix it.. I remember someone here saying it is a myth that replacing really old fluid with new fluid can damage a transmission. It is not a myth.. I've seen many cars drive into a shop for a trans flush had to be towed out! I screwed up a honda transmission last year doing the same thing.

talkinghorse

iTrader: (121)

True, but MT's aren't "flushed"...drain and refill. Servicing with a good quality GL-4 can't hurt.

The Automatics have a drain plug and the procedure outlined in the FSM is to do a drain and refill...no flushing probably for the reason you stated. I've run these cars for well over 300k doing drain and refills on the automatics and the transmissions continued to work flawlessly.

Nissan recommends transmission fluid changes (manual or auto) every 2 years or 30,000 miles if operated in adverse conditions. High-quality synthetics have longer service life

talkinghorse

iTrader: (121)

NissanMatic-D is a petroleum-based fluid that is sold by Nissan and meets Nissan's spec. There's nothing magic about it...any fluid labeled as meeting Dextron III can be used as a direct replacement.

If you want a synthetic, AMSOIL (and others) offer a higher quality fluid. AMSOIL Universal ATF is specifically labeled as meeting Nissan-Matic D, J and K and the low viscosity formulation is labeled as meeting Matic-S. I've used it in my cars and those of customers for decades with outstanding results

D.Stillwell

Of course, any Dextron III can be used. Yes.

But Nissan fluids seem better for the autos. Plus at the price of the nissan atf online, you cant beat it. Thats all im sayin.

Child_uv_KoRn

iTrader: (7)

LMAO, I read automatic

If you sleep this doesn't happen.

svillegas2253

^^ haha yea I thought so

I checked the oil this morning and it is a bit on the dark side of red, So im gonna go ahead and let it drain

Child_uv_KoRn

iTrader: (7)

I turned Redline MT-90 brown in 20k miles LOL

I'm not sure if it actually matters on MT fluid, but I thought it was funny.

maxiiiboy

Interesting reading.
Because I want to keep my car for a while, I want to take a VERY good care of my AT tranny (2000 SE, Auto, original owner). Here is what I have learned so far, mixed with some open questions that I still have:

• To avoid confusion, It is important to differentiate between (power) flushing and draining. (Power) Flushing is done by special equipment. Because it uses pressure, many people don't recommend its use because it may damage the clutches in your AT transmission, especially if your tranny is older. Draining on the other hand uses no pressure; it is therefore harmless and you can do it yourself without special tools. As one drain&fill typically replaces only 1/3 of the content of your AT tranny (5-6 qts out of 12-15 qts), it follows that if f you want to completely replace your AT fluid, you need to do about three or four consecutive drains&fills.
• The recommended AT fluids for our cars are: a) Nissan Matic D, or b) Dex III/Merc. Matic D can be purchased for $(5.95 + shipping) = $7.99 per quart from http://www.thenismoshop.com/NISSAN-M...00P_p_312.html . Dex/Merc is a lot cheaper - it can be bought for $16-18 in gallon jugs (Walmart is probably the cheapest). A synthetic version of Dex/Merc (called Valvoline MaxLife) can be purchased for ~$25/gal. It has good review on the sale sites; I would love to see a few endorsements from our members.
• Nissan recommends that the AT fluid be replaced ever 30,000 miles or every 60,000 miles, depending on your driving habits and conditions. Interestingly, Nissan makes no recommendation on how/whether/when to use synthetic AT fluids.
• The Nissan FSM tells you how to "drop the pan" an how clean the filter/screen inside the transmission. However, the Maintenance schedule and the User Manual imply that this service is not needed. The Nissan mechanic I talked to said - "We don't do this - dropping the pan is not necessary". I suspect he may be right - as long as don't plan to to keep your car for 200+k miles like some of us do.

CORRECTION 10/16/2014: After more digging, I now think that neither Matic D, or Valvoline Maxlive, could be described as "synthetic" oils.

So, with all this knowledge in my head, here is what did with my tranny:

• I had it drained an filled with Dex/Merc every 30k until 90k (done by my mechanic).
• Afterwards, when I decided to keep the car longer (my new goal is 250+k miles), I switched to draining and refilling with Matic D every 15k (I am now doing this by myself).
• At 125k, I dropped the pan, cleaned the filter and did tripple "drain & fill". To my surprise, my tranny was very clean - less than 1mm of "metal mud" on both magnets.
• I am in the process of switching from Matic D (which is not synthetic) to Valvoline MaxLife Dex/Merc (which is synthetic, and a lot cheaper at $25/gal). I have some questions about this - see below.

My questions are:

• Anybody has experience with Valvoline MaxLife Dex/Merc? It's inexpensive, it's synthetic, and because it contains "sealing agents", it's supposed to be good for older vehicles like ours. Check it out at http://www.walmart.com/ip/Valvoline-...allon/15125768 .
• Do these sealing agents have any bad side-effects??
• Any other comments?

BTW, my AT transmission performs flawlessly. I feel that reducing the servicing interval from 30k to 15k was a factor.

Prophecy99

iTrader: (1)

I used Vavoline Maxlife for a little while, it was great, didn't see any adverse affects.

Mattx

iTrader: (2)

I have used Valvoline max life. The full synthetic. I had started with Mobil 1 synthetic after I bought the car cause I've always believed in their products. However I PERSONALLY did not like the way my trans. felt after using it. Ad that to the expensive price of Mobil 1 and I started looking elsewhere. I tried Maxlife and have not looked back. My car shifts perfectly, I even installed the hd2 from Transgo. I never was experiencing tranny issues but the Mobil seemed like it made the car shift harder and not in a good way. Now I have no stake in any oil just a heavy equipment operator from Jersey so I don't know much, but Valvoline max life is a quality trans oil and I don't think I would use anything else in my max from now on.

a33_ridah

iTrader: (10)

[^^ @ maxiiiboy ] This is the correct method to drain and fill. Only correction to be made...
The capacity is approximately 9 quarts for automatics (not 12-15)
4.8 quarts for manual trannys according to fsm.

Sean_a33

Don't 2002 6 speed maxima's only take 2.5 quarts of tranny fluid??? That's what I've read everywhere and that's what I bought. But I see y'all saying how it take just under 5 or 4.8... That can't be right

talkinghorse

iTrader: (121)

The 2002 model (and later models) with the 3.5 and 6-speed take 2.5 quarts.

As a general rule, the earlier cars hold ~5 qts.

talkinghorse

iTrader: (121)

As a general rule, any fluid with the OEM's logo on it is going to cost more. Car makers don't make lubricants, but they want to create the perception that their product is better and/or that failure to use their product will somehow void the warranty. Nothing could be further from the truth and as a general rule, there's better products available than OEM-branded lubricants. They do nothing more than increase profits for the dealer. Nissan Matic-D is a petroleum based ATF...the price you're showing seems good for the Nissan branded fluid, but overpriced compared to a good quality D-III fluid you can purchase locally.

Much like you I typically do a drain and refill periodically throughout the life of the car. I've use AMSOIL ATF exclusively for decades in my own vehicles and those of customers and I have never had an issue. I typically do several drain and refills in short succession shortly after purchasing the vehicle...I do this in order to increase the concentration of AMSOIL in the system. I've done this as soon as the car/truck had 1000 miles on it and I'm convinced it prolonged the life of the transmission. My 4th gen had well over 200K before my kid totaled it and the transmission did not experience any of the woe's reported on this site for that particular model. Our Quest had over 300,000 miles on it before I lost track of it; transmission on my Frontier (still a baby with only 150k) works flawlessly; and I have many customers, one of which ran his Sentra ~360,000 miles on AMSOIL without any transmission issues. Unfortunately for him, he hit a chunk of cement on the highway and it essentially spelled the end of the vehicle. I've found that if I do a drain and refill at 30,000 miles, the fluid looks like new when I drain it...to the point where I can see thru the stream of fluid as it drains from the vehicle.

In my post in the Group Deals section for AMSOIL ATF, I've included a link to a field study where AMSOIL ATF was run in a Las Vegas taxi fleet for 200K without draining...the results of that test are impressive...check it out.

Nissan won't specify petroleum or synthetic unless a synthetic is required...such as on the differentials used on the Titan. Instead they state the specification the oil must meet (e.g. Nissan Matic-D or D-III). And keep in mind that specs establish minimum performance values the fluid must meet...oil makers don't get extra credit for making a better lubricant...a cheap dyno ATF that meets D-III is not in the same league as a premium synthetic labeled as meeting the same spec.

I've not used Max-life, but I believe the "sealing agents" you're referring to are additives to condition the seals. A good fluid (atf, motor oil, gear oil) will contain these additives from the get-go so the seals remain soft and pliable and you don't develop leaks. It makes no sense to me for oil manufacturers to sell products short on these additives, then sell you another product down the road that corrects a condition their entry product created. I guess that's how they make more money. But to answer your question, no, the seal conditioners won't hurt your transmission...they're good as they're designed to keep seals supple and prevent leaks.

svillegas2253

Thanks alot for your input everybody. Lots of very usefull info for me as I own an Automatic as well as a 6spd

a33_ridah

iTrader: (10)

...Didnt feel it necessary to make my own thread so im going to add from my experience here My post may be lengthy....

This was a very helpful maintenance Task! On my recently acquired car with now 84k miles I have no idea when the previous one owner may have done a fluid drain/fill.
I was experiencing some notchy shifts and at times i felt like it "held gears" on some runs when i wished it had shifted. Decided i really wanted to get this done....Looking though threads like this, and the FSM..i realized if a drain and refill was all that was to be done why not do it myself!

To anyone afraid or unsure if they do need to do this?? My suggestion is you have nothing to loose. Easy task Even more so, on a white rag...when i inspected my oil before the drain it "appeared" pink. Even spread in a red tint on the towel. I was almost thinking i didnt need to do this..as i thought darn i was hoping it was darker (because i truly thought it wasnt a whole lot diff than the new oil i had peeked at (color). Well read on...

With all my supplies/tools handy I went straight to it. I let it drain for about 15 mins total (few pandora songs lol) I cleaned my engine bay a tad in meantime. Measure it accurately as possible as to how much you drain out. Replace with exacly that amount. With the additional tip mentioned below i drained out 4 quarts and 20 ounces.

Now my car shifts absolutely beautiful! Drives like new again. No more gears being held smashing around enjoying my new intake :wink: No more jerky 1-2 shift. No more car confused as to what gear it should be in. I cant wait for the next interval to do it again. Total time spent about an hour.


helpful Suggestions and hints:

*After you Open the drain bolt; once it gets to a slow trickle...Jack up the front about 6 inches and let drain further for another 5 mins. Nearly 5 mins went by with a steady stream still. Gets more out resulting in a higher concentration of new! Fill and measure with car flat again.

**** Use two containers (i used two empty water bottles) to keep small samples handy. The idea here is I now have a visual comparo of my first batch of oil that came out (straight from the trickle from bolt; not your catch can) and clean oil. At my NEXT drain and refill approximately 3-5k miles from now I will catch another sample of what comes out and compare those. I expect them to be in between the shades. This helps guage the blend towards the highest concentration of all "new" oil. Makes sense?? Its genius trust me.***

* Before your initial drive after refill wipe down the bolt area fully....drive around 5 mins roughly and re-inspect bolt area. It should be dry if all is well

Big Thanks to D.Stillwell for convincing me to stick to oem Nissan D Matic Fluid plus some diy tips and tricks. Called up my local dealer and told them another dealership has it at so and so price...they did me one better! 12 quarts in hand for $88 spent.

Pics below to prove that visual inspection on a white rag truly wasn't enough...i honestly thought it wasn't dirty. I kid you not...it drew a pink red line on rag. Unlike dirty motor oil Tranny oil doesn't show so well on rag or dipstick from my experience today.

New oil on Left..Old on right for color comparo

D.Stillwell

^ Awesome. I love those before and after pics, really lets people understand what this does. My fluid looked way cleaner, so I can only imagine you are really feeling a difference.

Wait till you do it the 2nd time, cuz thats when I really felt a big difference. First one you will feel it, second time you will REALLY feel it. Its kind of like a virgin being.....let me stop lolz

I never thought about jacking up the front end more while draining to get more out, I did mine on a lift at buddys tire shop. Id imagine this is a good useful tip. Especially for the 2nd drain/fill because less fluid usually comes out the 2nd time around. (4.5qts 1st time and only about 3.2 second time for me)..

It is hard to tell with ATF, color wise on a white cloth. All that blackness in there isnt very visible until you pour it out since all that black **** settles on the bottom from mechanical friction...If your fluid looks black just from looking at tranny dipstick, I feel bad for your tranny and it will start slipping soon if hasnt already. Black is normal wear tho, as long as theres no metal specks.

Btw Deep ^ u paid $88 for the fluid? Nismo shop is cheaper @ $6/qt. So that would be $72 for 12qts. But I guess you didnt wana wait for shipping...

dwapenyi

iTrader: (3)

Doh! I mistook pints for quarts. My bad. Who uses pints anyway?

a33_ridah

iTrader: (10)

^^@ Stillwell- Im so glad i did this myself. It truly helped the driving feel of the car as a whole (cruising or playing racer boy lolz) Next will be second drain and fill and perhaps a Shiftkit for the max.

The nismo shop price comes out to 91.XX with shipping charges once you put zip code in for me. It was 14 in shipping via fedex..may vary for ppl. I am in socal; covina is only 90 miles from me. I called my first dealership in my city; spoke to them for 30 seconds about getting me a matched price to an online deal. I paid $6.80 a quart plus tax..This comes to $88.Xx- even better
No wait time; and i had enough $ still to buy three mcShytzzz at mickey D still lolz.

D.Stillwell

^ Thats what I thought.

LOL @ MCShyts hahahaha

Unclejunebug

I'm digging this. Nice info here! Just picked up a case of Matic-D that was price matched at my local dealer. Now I just have to find time to do the work. I have almost 110k on the car and have never done a drain/fill or flush. I'll definitely be keeping a sample as I go just to put on a smile on my face .

argenis69

iTrader: (2)

So, I've read this thread and I have to say that there's very nice information here, now I want to go ahead and also do this, but I want to ask :

1-My 2002 Maxima has over 172k Miles and I don't know if the Automatic transmission fluid has ever been changed, Will it be safe if I do this procedure now?

2- How many quarts of automatic transmission fluid do I need to complete this task? What brand/type you recommend?

Thank you.

D.Stillwell

^ You should be good with drain n fill. 2 times is good for lower miles. So with your mileage, I would consider doing it a total of 3 times.

Have you checked the current state of your fluid at all? That will help you decide whether you should do it twice or three times.

Anywhere from 3-4.5qts comes out each time so do the math. Get a few more to be on the safe side. I did two times and used ~8qts total

maxiiiboy

I recommend he following:

• Buy yourself four gallons (or more of Valvoline MaxLife AT Fluid) at Walmart for 18/gal. This should cost you about $75 total, plus/minus a few cents, depending on tax. Compared to the cost of a new transmission, this is peanuts!
• Drain and re-fill your transmission three times in a row; do this perhaps one week apart or so. When done, the transmission fluid in your tranny should be 95% new (or better).
• That's it - you are done.

Enjoy the ride and smooth shifting.

argenis69

iTrader: (2)

Cool, but how many quarts is needed on each drain and refill?

D.Stillwell

^^

Full box of 12 qts. That should be enough to do three times, and you can always get an extra one or two qts. just in case. Usually 4+ comes out first time, and less than 4 after.

argenis69

iTrader: (2)

Thank you

Unclejunebug

Did my drain/fill the other day. Old fluid is doody . I got about 3 quarts 24 oz out even with jacking the car up, though I may not have lifted the car enough to make a difference. I plan on doing this two more times and will keep samples from each cycle to track the color difference. I do notice smoother shifting but I can't say it's a major difference. That's ok with me though, I think just having cleaner fluid is worth it.

Old on the left, brand new on the right. I have about 109,400 miles currently on the car.

a33_ridah

iTrader: (10)

^^Good job keeping samples

Vistance

Has anyone had any luck finding 75W-90 GL-4 locally? I checked Advance, Autozone, and O'Reillys and only O'Reillys has 75W-90 GL-4. The other guys have 75W-90 but it's GL-5 compatible so no good. O'Reillys only sells it in cases so its far too expensive. It looks like ordering online is the only option, anyone else had luck getting this stuff somewhere else?

talkinghorse

iTrader: (121)

GL-4 can be hard to find locally.

Check Group Deals section of this forum: https://maxima.org/forums/group-deal...available.html

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