Hi guys,

question- do you think its normal to have your auto tranny slip on a first drive if you havent driven the car for a while? Here's the story I test drove a 2003 se auto yesterday with 59k on the clock. I started the car, and it was running for about 2 min before I got on the road. I noticed some slip as she was shifting from 2nd to 3rd (revs shot to like 3000 for a sec after I punched the gas lightly ) then she stabilized. I stopped at least two other times and this never happened again. I checked with the sales guy and and he mentioned that the car hadn't been driven for quite a while, a few weeks at least. Its a local dealership- sorta small, and they have about 80 vehicles on the lot but they also have a garage next door- probably why they're offering a 100k warranty.

Anyway, does this sound normal- that the tranny would slip slightly on the first drive because it hasnt been driven for a while? I'm also wondering if with 59k the tranny fluid has been flushed.

 

A friend of mine test drove a 03 with 45k and it did the same thing. I have an 02 and it happens sometimes with mine exspecially when its cold If you search around that is if the search agent works worth a crap you will find some answers too. There is a transgo shift kit that will help solve this problem.

 

Ha ha, so its a known issue! Glad to hear it. They're offering a sweet deal and I drove home yesterday thinking it sucked as I might not get the car over that. Thanks Nismo!

 

Yes, this is normal. Happens even more in the cold, at least based on my experience.

 

its quite common with maximas...not saying im ok with it but it is what it is...and it absolutely sucks donkey ***** in cold weather. Very annoying and frustrating to see a recently bought car act like that.

 

If it's really cold outside, sometimes it will rev more than 3k, but that has only happened ONCE to me so far. That was in sub-freezing temperatures though.

After it's warmed up, normal shifts should be around 2000 RPM.

 

Yea, i hear you man. I'm going to take a look at that mod once I get the car. Its seems like an issue one can live with since max's are solid otherwise- My '96 has about 250k and thats nothing.

 

Got it. I've got a manual tranny on my current car right now but needed something I can just drive and go. I'm getting old I think!

 

2-3 shift slip is very common on our cars especially in the colder weather. When you see that its slipping(the RPM flares) back off the gas otherwise your wearing out your clutch packs which will eventually lead to a rebuild. Best thing to do is go nice and easy on her when the engine is cold and then you can open her up when it reaches operating temp. This way your protecting your engine and tranny from any damage

 

Do this.

I just baby mine when it is cold and at 147,100 miles on the original transmission, it still shifts great when warmed up. Loving this warm weather now, no cold soft/slip 2-3 shift.

Probably going to get the Transgo shift kit before winter comes back as long as the transmission still shifts fine. According to those who have installed it, that fixes the cold weather soft/slip shift.

 

Thanks Blitz. I'm actually one of those "idiots" that will not drive the car until I can see the temp gauge slightly past the "c". if that's what's needed, i'm good. Will definitely look at the shift mod before winter though.

 

Thanks Scott. I'm doing some research to see what i can learn on the Transgo shift kit but plan is to get that done before the winter.