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1991 Maxima Tranny Issues, HELP!

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Old Sep 10, 2012 | 11:03 PM
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1991 Maxima Tranny Issues, HELP!

I'm a brand new member on the site. But I joined so I can get help with my 3rd gen maxima.

My max is shifting late from 1st to second. It'll rev up the rpms for a lil bit until it kicks into second gear. But sometimes it doesnt. I dont get it. What could be causing the late shifting? I was told I might have a worn out linkage bushing because sometimes when I put it in reverse and switch it back to drive, it wont go into gear. It takes a couple tries to go into drive.
Would a broken linkage bushing have anything to do with the late shifting?

And someone else told me I might have to adjust my kick down cable, but someone else told me my tranny is electronic with no cables.
Now I'm curious... does my tranny have a shifting cable at all? It's 1991 Maxima GXE.

Somebody out there HELP ME! PLEASE!!!!!!!
Old Sep 11, 2012 | 07:25 AM
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Originally Posted by jayvaq
I'm a brand new member on the site. But I joined so I can get help with my 3rd gen maxima.

My max is shifting late from 1st to second. It'll rev up the rpms for a lil bit until it kicks into second gear. But sometimes it doesnt. I dont get it. What could be causing the late shifting? I was told I might have a worn out linkage bushing because sometimes when I put it in reverse and switch it back to drive, it wont go into gear. It takes a couple tries to go into drive.
Would a broken linkage bushing have anything to do with the late shifting?

And someone else told me I might have to adjust my kick down cable, but someone else told me my tranny is electronic with no cables.
Now I'm curious... does my tranny have a shifting cable at all? It's 1991 Maxima GXE.

Somebody out there HELP ME! PLEASE!!!!!!!
sounds like your transmission is slipping.
check the fluid level..top off if needed. if it's at the right level then you're due for a transmission rebuild.

if the linkage bushing is bad/missing...you'll have a very sloppy shifter and it will go into P but won't let you pull the key out...or it'll be tough to get to D from N. it shouldn't affect the 1 to 2 shift.

yes there's a shifter cable.
Old Sep 11, 2012 | 08:12 AM
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Originally Posted by DanNY
sounds like your transmission is slipping.
check the fluid level..top off if needed. if it's at the right level then you're due for a transmission rebuild.

if the linkage bushing is bad/missing...you'll have a very sloppy shifter and it will go into P but won't let you pull the key out...or it'll be tough to get to D from N. it shouldn't affect the 1 to 2 shift.

yes there's a shifter cable.
That's the thing. I just dropped another Tranny in there with 90k on it a week and a half ago. But it's warranteed up til the 20th. That's why I want to figure out whats really going on before I opt for another tranny again and have to pay more labor charges to lift it out and drop another one in.I also have a question. Is it possible for it to be a bad solenoid even if there's no check engine light?
Old Sep 11, 2012 | 08:16 AM
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Originally Posted by jayvaq
That's the thing. I just dropped another Tranny in there with 90k on it a week and a half ago. But it's warranteed up til the 20th. That's why I want to figure out whats really going on before I opt for another tranny again and have to pay more labor charges to lift it out and drop another one in.I also have a question. Is it possible for it to be a bad solenoid even if there's no check engine light?
did you check the fluid level?
yes it can be a sticky or lazy solenoid. there will be no check engine light for transmission issues. you have to count the light that blinks in the A/T button. the P button will blink in sequence. going have to search for the way to get the codes.
Old Sep 11, 2012 | 08:56 AM
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Originally Posted by DanNY
did you check the fluid level?
yes it can be a sticky or lazy solenoid. there will be no check engine light for transmission issues. you have to count the light that blinks in the A/T button. the P button will blink in sequence. going have to search for the way to get the codes.
Yeah fluid level was good.Had my mechanic check it yesterday. Matter fact he sucked some out because there was too much in there while he was doing the tune. I had him do a tune up on it thinking it might've contributed to the laggy shift but I was wrong.I'm going to have to try and research those codes I guess. Do you think if they adjust that cable I mentioned earlier it'll change anything though by any chance?
Old Sep 11, 2012 | 09:09 AM
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Originally Posted by jayvaq
Yeah fluid level was good.Had my mechanic check it yesterday. Matter fact he sucked some out because there was too much in there while he was doing the tune. I had him do a tune up on it thinking it might've contributed to the laggy shift but I was wrong.I'm going to have to try and research those codes I guess. Do you think if they adjust that cable I mentioned earlier it'll change anything though by any chance?
shifter cable has nothing to do with your 1 to 2 shift quality.
maybe it's time to get another transmission and maybe the transmission didn't only have "90k" on it.
Old Sep 11, 2012 | 09:21 AM
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Originally Posted by DanNY
shifter cable has nothing to do with your 1 to 2 shift quality.
maybe it's time to get another transmission and maybe the transmission didn't only have "90k" on it.
The funny thing is... it's like 50/50. Sometimes it shifts into those gears just fine. And then sometimes it'll slide a little before engaging. And if I'm at about 40mph it'll do a slight jerk as it decellerates to previous gear. And sometimes as the mph go up the rpms stay at 2 for a long time and the gas pedal feels heavy. Like I'm so confused dude lol. I hate this.And how do I check the flashes on the a/t button? Because I have no idea how to.Thank you bro I appreciate it.
Old Sep 11, 2012 | 09:52 AM
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Originally Posted by jayvaq
The funny thing is... it's like 50/50. Sometimes it shifts into those gears just fine. And then sometimes it'll slide a little before engaging. And if I'm at about 40mph it'll do a slight jerk as it decellerates to previous gear. And sometimes as the mph go up the rpms stay at 2 for a long time and the gas pedal feels heavy. Like I'm so confused dude lol. I hate this.And how do I check the flashes on the a/t button? Because I have no idea how to.Thank you bro I appreciate it.
SEARCH...i'm not going to sit here and spoon feed you all the information...sorry.

it does sound like sticky solenoids...keep driving like that and it's going to need a rebuild.

IMO you have the warranty...use it and get another transmission.
Old Sep 11, 2012 | 10:25 AM
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Originally Posted by DanNY
SEARCH...i'm not going to sit here and spoon feed you all the information...sorry.

it does sound like sticky solenoids...keep driving like that and it's going to need a rebuild.

IMO you have the warranty...use it and get another transmission.
Ok I appreciate it.I apologize for being a pain. It's just I'm a rookie with this stuff. I only go off what mechanics tell me & they're all telling me different things.Thanks for all the info though bro.
Old Sep 11, 2012 | 10:44 AM
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Originally Posted by DanNY
IMO you have the warranty...use it and get another transmission.
THIS. Hands down.

That's what a warranty is for. Take it back to the tranny shop and drive with the guy. And you shouldn't have to pay labor if ANYTHING is done under warranty...
Old Sep 11, 2012 | 08:42 PM
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Originally Posted by Amerikaner83
THIS. Hands down.

That's what a warranty is for. Take it back to the tranny shop and drive with the guy. And you shouldn't have to pay labor if ANYTHING is done under warranty...
That's the thing that sucks. The Tranny is from a guy out in Arizona. And I live in Connecticut. real nice guy though. I just dont feel like going thru that freakin hassle of having the tranny taken out, shipping it back & waiting for another one. & then paying about 600 bucks in labor charges.
Old Sep 11, 2012 | 08:48 PM
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wait...

you bought the thing in CT, but it came from AZ? Did you buy it from a shop there in CT? I'm confused.
Old Sep 11, 2012 | 08:59 PM
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Originally Posted by Amerikaner83
wait...

you bought the thing in CT, but it came from AZ? Did you buy it from a shop there in CT? I'm confused.
My original tranny was shot. So I took it to a tranny shop to get it rebuilt. The guy gave me a call & said "Hey listen, we took the tranny out of your car & this thing is blasted. I cant find another tranny for it and I cant find parts to rebuild the tranny because it's such an old model. But I'll keep looking"

So I took the initiative to find a tranny on my own for it online. And that's where I stumbled on to that guy from AZ. I found him thru ebay. He had 50 transactions with a 100% positive feedback all dealing with both trannies & engines.
Old Sep 11, 2012 | 09:09 PM
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oh, gotcha. I thought when you said warranty, it was all done at the shop (including part sourcing).
Old Sep 11, 2012 | 09:14 PM
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Originally Posted by Amerikaner83
oh, gotcha. I thought when you said warranty, it was all done at the shop (including part sourcing).
Yeah I know I should've explained it better.Funny thing is, tonight it drove fine. Hit all the gears correctly.I dont know dude.I'm gonna just keep driving it and put it to the test until around the 19th-20th when my warranty is up and make my decision from there.Hopefully every thing works out.
Old Sep 12, 2012 | 06:24 AM
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so this is what i see.....
you found the used transmission on your own...so that means even if the transmission is warrantied...the labor is not. is that correct?

transmission slipping and missing shifts won't go away on it's own. this will continue to get worse. there's either something stuck in the VB or a solenoid is sticking. sometimes it'll be ok...sometimes it will slip. either way it'll require you to open it up. the slipping is probably creating massive wear on the clutches and steels so even if you repair the VB the rest of the transmission is crap now.

BTW your mechanic sucks. these transmissions or a variation of these transmissions were used in virtually all the FWD nissans and some non nissans....do a google search and i can tell you a ton of places selling rebuild kits or parts all over the web. you're better off going to a GOOD transmission shop instead of your local grease monkey which knows jack about internal workings of a transmission and just charges you to swap parts in and out.
Old Sep 12, 2012 | 07:19 PM
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Originally Posted by DanNY
so this is what i see.....
you found the used transmission on your own...so that means even if the transmission is warrantied...the labor is not. is that correct?

transmission slipping and missing shifts won't go away on it's own. this will continue to get worse. there's either something stuck in the VB or a solenoid is sticking. sometimes it'll be ok...sometimes it will slip. either way it'll require you to open it up. the slipping is probably creating massive wear on the clutches and steels so even if you repair the VB the rest of the transmission is crap now.

BTW your mechanic sucks. these transmissions or a variation of these transmissions were used in virtually all the FWD nissans and some non nissans....do a google search and i can tell you a ton of places selling rebuild kits or parts all over the web. you're better off going to a GOOD transmission shop instead of your local grease monkey which knows jack about internal workings of a transmission and just charges you to swap parts in and out.
def agree witchu on the mechanic. It was the first time I ever went to him. And I regret it. I had a bad vibe from him. There were 2 other places that I took my car to after that, that actually sounded sincere. Wish I would've took it to them first. But you live and you learn.Now the other thing is... I been driving it the past 3 days and it hasnt been bad. There's just a lazy shift in first gear periodalically when I take off. All other gears are fine. I been coasting on the highway. It's just sometimes on my take off, that first gear gets lazy. I think I'm goinf to try that self diagnostic tomorrow cause I'm off. Hopefully I'll do it right and get an answer. wish me luck.
Old Oct 5, 2012 | 12:36 AM
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have you tried manual 1-2 shifting? overdrive on and off? if you can read a powerflow diagram, this diagnosis will isolate the problem. how old is the fluid in it? you sure it's the right one?
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