Folks,

I would like to have your practical advice. I have a 94 Maxima with Automatic transmission that has 160K. I am a DIY enthusiast and have done most of the maintenance on the car by myself including timing belt job. Couple of days ago transmission started behaving strange, when some of the gears were not engaged at the same rpm and it also generated tolerable (at least at this point) rattling noise, when gas pedal is not applied.
I showed the car to expert mechanic and he diagnosed the problem as differential degradation or transmission partial failure. I still can drive the car, but sometimes it jumps out of the gear or has difficulty engaging in the gear.

So the question is. Is it worth to install remanufactured transmission on the car with 160K? I will not be able to do it myself, so in a shop the job is approximately estimated at $2200 in our area. My concern is that it is a complicated job and something could go wrong with assembling/disassembling of it and then the possible issue with the remanufactured transmission as well.
What would you do? Also if there are guys who have their AT rebuild (or replaced with remanufactured), I would like your input how are you satisfied with the job and what was the cost in your area.

Thank you.

 

go to a reputable shop who warrants their work. you could still do most of the job yourself if you do the swap. that way, you slice the cost down to a third.

 

if you are willing to rebuild an auto tranny... you have *****.. thats all i can say....

 

had my 89 auto rebuilt about a year ago. I found the redbuild on ebay and it just so happened that they were located in PHX near me. They installed the tranny and all for about 1800. Did a good job, took it back twice for a readjustment and tranny mount replacement.
So far I have not had any problems with the rebuild, however the car sometimes "jumps" into drive.
If your gonna front 2200 for a rebuild make sure you find a place that'll do it right.

 

i agree with hectic, i found a mechanic who used to work at a nissan dealership (incidentally) who agreed to let me drop the tranny myself and bring it in. granted it was a 5speed but he did it for $450 which made me very happpy..

 

If i were you I would get a used transmission. You can buy another car for what it will cost you to get an automatic rebuilt, unless you find a very good deal. I've also seen a couple of people do five speed conversions, although that is very labor intensive.

 

I have a '92 Maxima with 177K miles. It still shifts just fine, but what you're expereincing now has been one of those "What should I do if that were to happen" question that's been looming in my mind since I passed 150K.

I saw this on eBay.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/89-94...QQcmdZViewItem

If the car is otherwise in good condition, I would buy the remanufactured AT, take it to a reputable local shop, have them swap it out.

 

I was in the same position last fall. You either need to plan on selling the car before it happens, plan to have the tranny rebuilt, or plan on swapping. If you have the time and the tools to do it, I highly suggest swapping. Also, if you go this route, start collecting parts NOW, before something blows. There are enough resources around here to do it and if you do work on cars chances are you have some friends that could help you.

 

i have dropped many auto trannies, and they arent hard at all... the most difficult is the axle nuts... but it is only hard if you dont have the right tools...

 

The axle nuts eh? Hmm...if that's the hardest part then maybe you should start offering your services to people...Seems like a real quick way to make a buck or three...tell ya what, I'll take off the nuts and you line everything up.

 

Anyone know what a decent price for a used transmission would run? If I go to the yard and pull it myself, they run $75, but not guaranteed.

 

For 75 bucks, that's a risk I'd be willing to take...If one doesn't work, go pull another.

 

i jus experienced this on my truck not my maxima. got a rebuilt unit from "reputible shop" with warranty for $1600. wish i wouldve followed my instinct and got a transmission myself for either salvage yard or ebay and jus had them install it. the one they put in is actin up already not even a 1000 miles later and i have to take it back in to get it done again and have nothing to drive since my max is in pieces gettin work done.

 

Jeez,
You could be my brother! Maxima-wise anyway B-). I have a 94 Max SE with 160K, and a slipping AT as well. I can still drive it, but it has almost no second gear band left. It won't shift 1->2 until around 4.5K on the tach or until I lift off the throttle after accelerating. So what I did was buy a used transmission off eBay for $400 and installed it myself. I bought a new hydraulic jack since mine had bad seals for $39 and a tranny jack adapter on sale for $19 for the jack. I also had to buy a remanufactured driver side CV axle for $66 as the guy shipped me a non-VSLD transmission by mistake. So total was $524 in parts/tools and my son and I did the work. The hardest part was installing the new transmission onto the flexplate since it is kind of tight in there. But the trans jack adapter works great for this. There is a tilt adjustment on it that worked perfectly. Beware that there are a couple of brackets that hold the trans on the drivers side that get in the way when removing and installing. I will also warn you that you will have to jack the car way up off the ground in order to get the trans in/out. If you have the tools, time and energy it is not that difficult, it just takes some time removing the various pieces so you can get at the trans. You will also need a 36mm socket to remove the spindle nut so you can remove the CV axles. Good luck and if you have any more questions regarding the swap just ask.

 

automatics are the devil!!!

 

exactly

Current black '90: $300 cash, blown TC
POS parts car '89: $450, brand new clutch
tune up- ~$120
Running 5 speed max done myself: priceless.

~Alex

 

I also have a bad auto transmission and was considering the 5 speed swap. But i was wondering if i could get the transmission from another gen max?

 

are you qualified to be a wise as$ on the subject at hand? i'll agree with vans in that removing/re-installing the right axle and bolts is the most annoying part of the job.

luckilly, you don't even have to mess with the rh suspension (or even take the wheel off) if you're just pulling and re-installing the transmission. all that does is make the job more difficult.

 

only third gen maximas.....

to pull-reinstall the tranny, you need to take both front wheels off and axles to drop the tranny

 

actually...you don't. pry the tranny away from and off of the passenger axle. reverse for installation.

 

To prevent gear damage it is recommended to remove both axels. Better safe than sorry IMO.

 

well maybe on an auto. still though, if you're careful, i don't see how it's any more harmful then jamming the axle in till it clicks anyway if it's truely harmful at all. where's this recomendation coming from?

 

it is how the pros do it..... plus i see it easier if you DONT have a lift to take the axles off..... plus some people change axles and axle seals while they are at is too

 

actually, professional mechanics probably don't remove both. in fact, they will take shortcuts whenever possible. Anyway, you originally said you "need" to as in it's required, which i don't blame you since that's what the fsm says. BUT the fsm is misleading, there's all sorts of useless steps it tells you to take. it also goes without saying that if you're going to replace something, you have to remove it first but go ahead and do it the hard way, it's not my time and labor.

 

it is much more of a pain to take the right side axle out than the left but if you've never taken out the tranny before its worth giving yourself the extra room. the first time i dropped the tranny, i really did drop it...