Hey everyone, trying to see if anyone else is experiencing the same issues with the CVT as i am. Got a 2016SR with 1700 miles on it and at about a 1000 miles i started to noticed that the cvt has a surge/jerk to it at low speeds. At around 35 mph the car will jerk and the tachometer will bounce up and down from 1000rpm to 1500rpm. Its impossible to maintain 35mph without the cvt jerking. Then when slowing down and coming to a complete stop with the foot on the brake pedal and at about 15mph the car will kind surge itself slightly forward to where i must press the break pedal even a bit harder. I did a research online about such cvt behavior and only found a bunch of Altimas that had such a problem, no one with a Maxi has reported anything like that. Well people lets hear it, does anyone else have an issue like that?????? Ill be taking it back to the dealership next week, but im afraid those guys like always will say that they cannot duplicate the problem, as it happened back in the day with other issues on the 7th gen. Really frustrating that a new car has problems like that!

 

I have a platinum which will do the same, generally at lower speeds. I have a neighborhood that I have to go through that is 20mph and I get the same thing. I was going to address it at my next service. I have been just switching the trans over and setting it to 2nd/3rd to prevent it.

 

See this thread:

https://maxima.org/forums/8th-genera...nsmission.html

 

I suspect there may be two different issues with the cvt. I had the judder, which shakes the car - getting a new cvt valve body seems to have fixed that. However, I now notice wild rpm bouncing occasionally when I let off the gas and let the car cruise. This doesn't shake or jerk the car, as it seems that the torque converter is released at the time.

 

Hopefully it's not a common issue with the new CVT.

keep us updated please.

 

Its pretty rediculous that that'swhat we need to do (i mean switching ratios) in order for it to be smooth. No reason a 40+ grand car should be doing this. Once i have them look at it ill keep you posted on what my dealer tells me! You should let me know as well.

 

Has anyone resolved the CVT surge/jerk at low speeds? I just bought a 2017 and it is doing the same thing.

 

I took my plat for first 6k service an mention it was jerky. They replaced CVT valve body, seemed to help some.

 

mine did that as well for the first 10,000 miles drove me nuts. when I got the oil changed they said they needed to do a ECM update Engine control module . they hooked up a lap top and battery charger to the car the whole thing took about 1/2 hr start to finish. the report came back Transmision Judder. supprised me that the car knew there was an issue. Since the ECM update it complety stopped doing it. Not sure why or what the new program does but so far so good 2,500 miles later working normally?

 

It is a common issue and maybe the computer update addresses it. This is my 3rd CVT and to a lesser extent, they all have done this when coasting to a stop (feels like the transmission disconnects as you approach a stop). Some may interpert it as a surge. Another quirky issue I have is when in cruise control on a decline it tends to surge then release then surge-release, kinda like too much acceration then has to release, then too much acceleration then release...annoying.

 

I started noticing same jerking at low speeds, going through traffic everywhere does not help. It puts stress on person because I do feel the car won’t stop or stops suddenly. when using Manuel mode the gears don’t match engine and sometimes doesn’t catch up or kind of misses gear. It really sucks I thought they upgrade CVT in 2017!!!!

 

Mine does the same, I need to get it checked.

 

My '17 SL with 12k miles started acting a little weird about a month ago. While trying to maintain speed at about 35mph your accelerator foot naturally tends to slightly increase and then slightly lessen pressure on the pedal. This occurs almost at 1100 rpm each time. Every time I slightly let up on the pedal the engine rpm goes up about 100 rpm, and at that point I get a slight "bump" feeling. All the time while trying to hold speed and rpm I consistently feel that "bump". It kinda feels like a manual in second or third gear where you let off on the pedal and there is slight engine braking. I complained to the dealer, so he pulled codes and said no transmission codes were set so THE TRANSMISSION IS FINE! It may be my imagination, or maybe I never noticed this for 12k miles but this slight lurching or engine breaking (whatever) does not seem right. My '07 Altima at 140k never exhibited this. It was smooth under all throttle conditions. Oh, and it does the same thing in SPORT mode, but not when shifting in manual mode. 1 week later: I've driven it all week and hardly noticed it. Gonna have to live with it (nature of the beast).

 

Once I let my family out of the car, no more jerks...ba dum tsss.

 

I have this issue also. For those of you that had the problem did you resolve it, or learnt to live with it?

 

Well I don't know if I had the same problem as he original poster, but my car had a distinct thump/jerk when pressing lightly on the gas in around the 40mph range. It was very pronounced when I first had the car, but it's pretty much gone away on its own.

I had brought this up in other threads in the past, and from what I've been told the CVT "learns" how you drive, and tends to be better behaved over time. In my case that seems to have been true.

 

At 34500 miles I began to notice a distinct "judder" at about 25 to 38 mph from my 2016 Maxima Platinum. What began as an ocassional judder seems to have progressed to a most of the time occurance. Thanks to many of you already posting on this issue, I made the service appointment and learned that the was indeed a CVT error code stored in my cars computer even though there was no indicator light lit on the dash! The good news is the dealer was able to replace the the suspected valve body in the CVT and get me out the door the same day. They also provided a no cost loaner. The car is back to its old self again all under waranty !

 

Thanks for that info, rob. My 2016 Platinum tranny has given me no trouble whatsoever, but if it does, I will keep your experience in mind.

 

 

MaxBC

Understand your frustration. Sometimes a dealer switch helps get a fresh look as an issue that is not too uncommon after all. I had a great dealer here in the northern Chicago suburbs but they chose to close their Nissan dealership. I had to check out two other replacement dealers to get close to the service I had when I bought the car. Thanks for the TSB number which may help other board members when it might be needed.

 

As the Maxima becomes more of a used car bargain, I expect to see a renewal of CVT questions and some complaints. Its a given that no one seems to do the searches like Rick Smith does so the latest owner questions will surface. I would be interested in some high mileage reports on how the CVTs are fairing on this generation. My 43,000 mile 16 was great till the time it was traded for a 19 last month.

 

Is 67k higher mileage for a 16? I traded mine in January without a single transmission issue.

 

Being part of the drivetrain, I guess it's covered for at least 60k thousand miles. It seems most folks on this forum lease theirs, so it shouldn't be a worry at all. Let the shop take care of it

i prefer to buy my cars outright, slightly used so I don't pay new car prices. So I hope to keep mine beyond the 60k mark. But I don't lose sleep about it. I didn't pay too much so if I'm still happy with the car in 5 years, dropping 4K on a new tranny won't be the end of the world

 

Update: Problem cleared up all on its own. Thought it was cold-weather related but this past winter it was very smooth and continues to be this spring 2019. Go figure.

 

Thanks for the followup report. Sometimes things will clear on their own usually after a good road trip. Did you mention your odometer reading?

To Mason H >> 66k is great and I'm sure the new owner will get much more great service with the CVT.

 

She's at 24,000 mi. now.

 

glad to hear it's improved. Mine does that too sometimes, the slight thump when lightly pressing the gas seems to be a common issue, but Nissan won't admit it. It's more of an annoyance than anything, but I don't think it means anything is going to break. It's too bad, because one of the huge advantages of the CVT should be the smoothness of not switching gears

 

Hey guys! Just wanted to add to this thread as well. Just picked up an 18' SV 31,000 miles and Im having similar issues. I'll post a video of it when I can but it's exactly how the OP described. When im slowing down to a stop and the RPMs hit 1000, the car has a small surge and accelerates slightly and the RPMs jump to roughly 1200/1300. It corrects itself BUT It literally feels like the car isnt going to stop. Taking it into the dealer Tuesday morning to have them check it out. Anyone have this issue with a 2018??

 

Normally, this issue is due to internal leakage (resulting in low oil pressure) in the valve body.

 

So I know this is a Maxima forum but I have the same problem with my 2017 Altima 3.5 SL. I've been trying to figure this out forever. It doesn't do it that often but sometimes it'll do it for days. But recently I got it to stop on my own.

From what I have gathered at about 25 miles an hour when slowing, when car is acting normal, the engine brake disengages and you coast to a stop and there is no jerk when applying the brakes.

Now for some reason, sometimes it seems as if the engine brake disengages at around 10-15 miles and hour, so when your applying the brakes, the engine brake disengages at 10-15 instead of 25, giving that lurch forward/jerking sensation that makes you feel as if you will hit the car in front of you.

My solution: And I tried everything, but what I have found is that the CVT gets confused between sport and regular mode when you stop the car in one mode then begin to drive in the other. Now I do know that the Max has a button instead so idk if it will work the same but it is worth a shot. So if your driving in sport and you put the car in park and turn it off, then the next day or next time you drive you start it up in regular mode, or vice versa, the CVT gets confused and causes this to happen.

So last time I got this fixed by driving for a little in regular mode, then putting it in park. Turn it off. Start in regular mode and drive. This fixed it for me. The CVT shouldn't get confused like this but it does. Try it out, it has worked for me.

 

Thanks for the tip on what appears to be an on going discussion on the CVT smoothness. I rarely use the sport mode as it seems to be best to let the car do its thing in the standard mode. Never any lingering issues on my past 2016 or current 2019 Platinum.

It does seem that if you get the dreaded "judder" it's time to have your dealer check the fault codes for a very fixable issue.

 

I can tell you that I get the jerk every now and then and its never from going back and forth from normal or sport mode. I actually used to get it alot more when I first got the car. I'm at about 12k miles now and don't have it nearly as much

 

i too don't use sport very often either, it's still quite peppy without it. But I certainly think it's less smooth in sport mode. The torque converter lock and unlock is more noticeable at low speeds, where it is smooth as butter in normal mode. Also, it tends to not want to "downshift" quickly enough if I take my foot off the gas quickly after having it wide open. I thought it was just a CVT thing until I had a similar experience with a rented Camaro (also in sport mode) this summer. So I dunno... probably just the result of too much electronics, trying to second guess my driving patterns

 

nope i have a 18sv no issues like that im at 40k as well...let me know what they tell you just in case mine starts to act up cheers.