Good morning everyone:

Since I got a rise in my pay check (Wohooo!) I have been purchasing some minor upgrades for my car (2001 SE). And it just crossed in my sight the Transgo Shift Kit (SK RE4F04B) that costs $55 and many users got it excelent reviews because it improves the way to work of the automatic transmission.

Since I live in a Calid zone (at least 45°C in summer) and the transmission got installed a secondary oil cooler; I must do the Transgo upgrade too or leave the transmission alone?


Some notes about my car, use and the environment around it
Mileage: 80,000
Most common driving conditions: City
Transmission: A/T without LSD
Weather: Very hot in summer, with temps around 45°C
Last ATF change: 2,000 miles ago
Issues with the A/T: Yes, a minor slip between 1st and 2nd gear



Thanks!

 

I heard good things about the kit, but never had the ***** to install it lol, and there aren't many tranny specialists around me.

 

Make it even better and add PUR mounts and an ETL.

Mine was slipping between 1-2, went the the VB mod from Maxximum tuning (essentially the same as the HD kit, except, you buy the entire VB, vs installing the kit yourself), and haven't looked back. That was 8+ years ago and 90k miles, still going strong.

 

Is it necessary? No.
But, I suggest you consider what your goals are for the car. The minor slippage is typical due to the overly soft shift setup from Nissan. With mostly city driving, those soft shifts shouldn't be bad or a hindrance, at least in my opinion. But it's your car. I suggest only if you are looking at modding up your car and you anticipate increased aggressive take offs/driving should you do the HD kit in order to avoid worsening the slippage.
Inspecting and replacing bad engine mounts is a must. As previously suggested, I also recommend either the Aaron's torque link or Rays Wrayth Mount for the torque mount (Wrayth mount for the tranny mount is overkill IMO unless heavily modded or boosted).

 

I got the hd2 kit on my 4th gen max. No complaints so far.

 

Where you get that and how much?

 

400+ core though. Maxximum tuning, in Glen Cove NY.


Are you dosing me with sarcasma, the date rape drug?

 

Ha no! Just thinking about this uk "maxima" i35

 

In other words do you have an Auxiliary Transmission Cooler installed? If not I was going to suggest trying that for about the same price as the Transgo Kit. I believe that would fit the bill better from what I can tell. They are a great little mod.

If you already have a ATC and still feel this way about the transmission... then search and get some more impressions/information on this mod & speak w/ chrisgregg & NmexMAX more since they have varying yet revelant opinions on this mod.

 

I already replaced the stock motor mounts. Now they are solid motor mounts.

Installing the complete VB will be a PITA and will get my car off the road for several days, also I don't trust any mechanic for this job.

8 years without any issue it's a great review make me feel more confident in Transgo.

The main goal is to keep her for a long time; for daily driving and in some occasions for drag race.

Every month I hit the highway and some reviews say that with this kit the transmission works in a smooth way.

It got some mods installed but all N/A and I don't got any plans for going into the way of the forced induction.

Well, yes. I got a secondary transmission cooler installed. The main cooler (radiator) works fine but in summer the transmission feels a little weird by all the damn heat, also the extra cooler helps you to extend the duty life of the A/T reducing the temp and making it work in a proper way.

If any one want to install one Transmission Cooler, I followed this indications:

http://www.agcoauto.com/content/news/p2_articleid/231

I'm still searching more reviews about the transgo shift kit, and I'm finding very good opinions about it. The chances for bought one are around 80%

Thanks everyone for your suggestions, I'll keep looking for information until I'm 100% sure in buying this kit.

 

The VB is easier to change than the HD kit is to install, IMO.

Get 9 quarts of ATF, and the VB, it shouldn't take more than 2-3 hours, and that's even pushing it.

Whereas the HD kit requires removal of VB, actual modifying it, then reinstalling, vs, removing old VB, reinstalling new VB and being done.

 

My tranny mechanic did the HD install in about 3-4 hours, can't recall specifically, but I sat in the waiting room while he did it and I'm including the hour he gave the tranny to cool before disassembly. Yeah, have to find a good tranny guy, it took me a couple weeks to find this guy, he helped build and used to race drag cars locally. I called him originally and he was the only guy who could talk intelligently about the Maxima and their transmissions. That was my ruler for finding someone, they have to know at least as much as I do.

So, if you got on the car and have a few bolt ons, mounts are good, then I highly suggest the HD. any posts I made previously in other HD threads about concerns and harshness, I found that all was solely due to bad mounts. Now, it's definately firms and crisp from 1-2, but it suits my aggressive driving tendencies! It's not harsh or jarring. Best comparison I could make would be like a clean, crisp, solid, and very quick 1-2 shift in a manual.

 

Or pay for someone else to do it.


Truer words have never been spoken, I need to add this disclaimer to any of my harsh claims about the II.5.

 

The install is pretty easy just make sure to remember we're all the bolts went if you race the car a lot then it is worth it if not I wouldn't bother

 

I don't race mine and I still think it's worth it, either way.

 

I was worried about doing it but reading the instructions over and over before actually doing it helped a lot. They are very helpful and easy to understand. I have never done anything like that before and it was not a problem.