Recently, Ipurchased a 1988 Maxima off ebay for $400. Wasn't sure what I was getting into but the car has 100K on it and the engine runs like a dream. Also, the physical condition of the body is great with the exception of the front and rear bumper. Quieter than my 4th gen. This car was purchased as a beater so I can let my 4th gen rest during the harsh winter months. So far heres what I've done with the car the 6 weeks I've had it:

Rack and pinion was leaking (replaced) - $300 (parts/labor)
Control arms were bad and all struts were dead - $450 (parts/labor)

Now I am happy with the car accept the transmission is slipping going from 2nd - 3rd. Not all the times but some days it does it and some days it won't. I wanted to know how soon I would have to worry about replacing. I've already put $500 more than I wanted to with any repairs I wanted to do and my mechanic says it could cost around $1000 to have one rebuilt. I know not to have the transmission flushed but my frined was having ther same problem and he said he just drained the fluid and re filled it with new fluid and he hasn't had a problem since. His car is also a second gen. Anyone have any thoughts about the transmission of these cars?

Thanks,
Mike

 

Not trying to state the obvious, but is the fluid level correct. I noticed the same problem w/ a 1st gen I used to own - thought the same thing as you until I noticed that there was no fluid on the dipstick. Filled it up and problem went away.

 

I take it this is an automatic? It could be electrical, since the tranny is electronically controlled.

 

Interesting. Can you elaborate further on this???

 

It is complex to explain :} A service manual for the 88 could do a better job than me. In a nutshell, instead of the tranny shifting gears by just hydraulic means, it shifts electronically, using solenoids to change gears. The solenoids last a while, but sometimes they do go bad. When that happens, a variety of things can happen (missed shifts, no shifts, etc) Like 83 Max said, check the fluid first, then go from there. Checking the solenoids, if I'm correct, involves a trip to the repair shop, since there is a special tool, that is used to check that they're operating correctly. Good luck

 

Thanks. I actually left my car witrh a friend and he changed the fluid for me all together. He drove and it was fine. I drove it once and it seemed fine. But the other issue I have is the battery keeps dying. I think there is a short. Let me ask... is the securtiy light suppose to keep flashing all the time after you lock the doors? I thought maybe fora couple of secs but it flashes all the time. Let me know.

 

You're welcome. Hopefully your tranny will be fine. Regarding your question, yes some alarms do flash the light. It lets the owner/driver know the alarm is armed. I don't know, though, if the Maxima has the same feature. The alarm, should be disarmed, when you're in the car and/or driving. You may need a stronger battery, since the alarm if it is armed, draws power from the battery when the car is not running. It should take a while for it to deplete the battery, though. You could have a short. Alarm systems, can and do go bad. If you don't want the alarm, I think there is a fuse you could pull that would disable the alarm all together. Good luck

 

The thing is I am not talking about an aftermarket alarm. This is the factory alarm. Right next to the trunk lid switch is a light for the factory security alarm. It never stops flashing and my father thinks that might be the problem as he bought one of these cars brand new back in 88. Any suggetions for this?

 

Hmmm...I've been wanting to know more about these trannies myself. I have 2 1987 GXE's that refuse to shift into overdrive until the engine is warmed up to about 1/8 on the dash indicator. Would this be an electronic trigger, and if so, which heat sensor does it get it's signal from? I'm guessing it's not a direct signal but passed through the ECU...this could be related to my cooling fan malfunctions, but that only affects one of the 2 cars.

I just got a Chilton manual a couple weeks ago, guess I'll see what it has to say. The problem seems to be, the manual is good at telling you how to take stuff apart and put it back together, but usually doesn't explain in much detail how things actually work.

 

Note on the 2nd gen tranny. It's not electronic controlled. It's mechanically controlled, but has an electronic overdrive.

S

 

So after the swap of transmission fluid it still slips on some days. Well actually, in the last two weeks, it slipped one day after driving it consistently for a couple of hours. But nothing more than that. I really only use this car to go to and from the train station and on days where the weather will be bad. I heard that transmissions for these things are much dinero. I will dirve it until the tranny just does and from there see what I will do with the car. Only has a 100K on the dail and the engine is quiet as a mouse. Does anyone think I have to worry about the tranny going before next year?

 

I was thinking about this and looked back at your first post...can you elaborate a bit on the "slipping"? Do you mean, the engine has revved in 2nd gear to the point where you sense that it is starting to shift, but it takes a while (5-10 seconds? more?) to finish getting into third? Or do you mean it slips totally and the engine revs high like it was in neutral?

The reason I ask is I have several issues with these trannies. The 1987 Max I've had for about 5 years will not shift into overdrive until it's warmed up and gone about 2 miles. It seems like when I first got the car it did the 'long' shift (5-10 seconds) so I checked the fluid and it was actually too high. I drained some off and the problem went away. I have another one now that does the overdrive thing. BTW, that one came from Massapequa L.I.

I'm actually hesitant to change the fluid in my trannies. My truck had the trans die about 3 months after a change, with about 90K miles. I can't help but wonder if it would have just kept plugging away if I'd left it alone.

 

Oh yeah, I may have mentioned before - I have 2 parts cars. One is an '86 and the other is an '88. The '86 I'm fairly certain has a good trans, the '88 I'm not sure - odometer reads 266K miles and there's not enough left of the car to try running it. Anyway, if your trans goes, I may be selling parts from one or both of these. If you decide to ditch the car, I may be interested - good thing I have 5 acres of land...

 

the transmission on these won't shift into overdrive until the engine has warmed up to a pre-determined point. it gets the signal from the coolant temp sensor

 

Hmmmm...that's what I assumed, but I'm also having trouble with that/those sensor(s) and/or the rad fans on the one car (I mentioned this in another thread...as soon as I have enough posts I plan to start a new thread on that).
Does this signal pass through the ECU?

Thanks - CZ

 

theres a separate computer for the transmission that controls the o/d

 

Well no, I don't have the 5 to 10 second problem. I think as it is going from second to third, it slips for about 3 - 5 seconds like in nuetral and kicks in. But it hasn't happend in about a week and a half. But then again, I don't drive the car much. Someone told me from when they saw the transmission slipping that it will only ghet worst in the summer, so I think it has something to do with the tranny fluid getting hot. I hope it lasts until next year and then I willk replace it. Can't afford to put anymore money into this car.

And about changing fluid, I think its safe to do but they say just don't get it flushed. Changing tranny fluid and flushing tranny fluid is two different things. Flushing is definitely a NO NO.

 

Will never ditch. Engine runs better than my 95 and is quiet enough to hear a pin drop. Plus the body is mint. This is definitely a keeper.

But I may be interested in a tranny. Please PM me with details.

Mike

 

Actually, that may be normal. It tells the owner and any would be car thief the car has an alarm and it is armed. I've seen parked cars that have had the light flashing indicating an alarm system.

 

But it has already been said by others that theres goes off after about 30 seconds. Not normal for a maxima.

 

You're probably right. I don't know what all is involved to be sure the alarm is working properly, though.

 

Hey guys I have a problem today my transmission made a winding sound and the car stop moving. It sounds like the torque converter is gone because of the winding sound and the fact that is wont go into any gears. Well what I need to know is what kind of toque converter I need to buy. Any links would be great. Thank you

 

just tell them what year your car is and they will give you the correct one where you buy it