so my car has been acting weird ever since I got it ,

just changed all fluids , and put in nissan ATF

car is a 1996 Automatic VG30 119,286 miles


when I give the car gas , it doesnt seem to "catch" till about 1500-2000 RPM , it kinda just revs and moves the slightest bit and then catches

also shifts at high RPMS are a bit rough , and also my car tends to hesitate to downshift when I give it more gas ,

sound like a tired 120k mile tranny?

 

check your tranny fluid level and make sure its amber red in color and not a dark red and burnt. also, your maf ( mass air flow sensor ) might need to be cleaned and/or replaced. use the search function as well to find more answers to this question. good luck.

 

Drop resistor or TPS. Sounds more like TPS to me.

Check FSM. There is a troubleshooting procedure for AT.

 

if you rev it then it catches are you saying it surges forward when it catches?

 

Is that happening when you come to a "rolling stop"?

If so, it could be the good old 4th gen 3rd gear take off with a downshift into 2nd, which is unfortunately normal.

 

sounds like a slipping trans. check the fluids like mentioned above.
it might also be the tps. need more description of the problems you are having.

 

yeah it kinda does it when I am rolling to a stop if I completely stop it is intermittent , I will check the tranny fluid for signs of burning which I know means the clutch plates in the TC are ****ed , which I hope thats not it , I am going to clean the MAF tonight and see if any difference , as well as a seafoam here pretty soon . the tranny shifts real smooth about 80% of the time obviously when cold it shifts rougher but thats normal.

as far as MAF's and TPS do I want OEM or can I use ol reliable rockauto lol I know some parts just are crap with certain brands ,

 

I don't think you have anything wrong with your transmission. Keep in mind the nickname for the 4th gen auto transmission is the "slush box". It's not performance oriented in any way. Smooth shifts and low RPM's is how it's designed to cruise. It does stay up in 3rd if you don't come to a complete stop. Taking off from there is annoying, with a little more gas it does jump down into 2nd to get you going.

 

Only found in 86-94 Maximas

 

i dont know whats worse, people dissin auto trans in a max or saying its normal. i never had a problem until i hit about 170,000 miles and then she would slip into second real slow when it got cold one winter and i knew she was toast. i could've kept drivin her that way, but found a 70,000 mile trans and i never looked back. if you hit it at every light, then your gonna burn out some gears man. like the eagles said, " take it easy, take it easy"

 

Im at 310,000 Miles on the original trans and engine... Its all about how you drive and take care of it.. I'd like to know the information behind why the TPS is involved in this? Also the tranny Could be at fault.. But i will say failures on these units are few and far between... I mean ****, look around how many people are on their original unit after 200,000 even?

 

yea iv got 245,xxx miles on my max and the 3rd gear take off is pretty annoying to me sometimes. but other than that the car is solid. i just recently drove to chicago with no probs. i love the car.

 

the tc has no clutch plates except for the tcc (torque converter clutch) i had the same problem i needed a new pump i went to a junk yard and bought a new trans on hills (when it was cold) it would roll back an acted like a manual. it was cool but expensive