Hey guys,

Bought the Max recently and I believed it's time for a transmission fluid change (drain/fill), I called up the dealership and they wanted $176 to change!!! wth...$176 for a transmission fluid change?

I was thinking of buying the fluid and do it myself but the Nissan dealership is the only place (that I know of, called around) that I can get the approved CVT NS 2 transmission fluid and it's about $20 a quart and the car needs 5 to 6 quarts!!

Is it really that expensive to change our transmission fluid? Any of you guys know where to get this approved transmission fluid for cheap? Are there any other alternative brands I can use and is approved by Nissan and not void the transmission warranty? How much do you guys pay for your transmission fluid change?

 

under $200, where it's 100-120 in just to get the fluid....just let them do it.

 

why do you need your tran fluid changed?
high miles on car?
my friend has 65k on his 09 max and hasnt done his and prob wont since the trans is under warr for 100 or 120k thru nissan

i have a friend who has been a trans specialist for over 15yrs and he always said never change the trans fluid unless your feeling something wrong with shifting etc, if its running fine -leave it alone when it comes to transmission

 

Not bad deal, really...that's the CVT right? My 4AT fluid got changed drain and fill for that price at a regular trans shop.

 

Gears shift fine...I just thought it's necessary to change the transmission fluid every 30,000 miles or so...is it different for a CVT transmission?

 

yeat it's CVT...that costly to change the fluid huh?

 

Even on a normal car, I have never heard of 30k for tranny fluid. I would just let it ride if you are at 30k miles. I had an '09 with 50k miles on it and never even thought of doing this job on it.

As stated above, I have heard people say don't start flushing the tranny or changing the fluids because once you start, you always have to perform this job on it. If it is running fine then just let it run

 

30k it is suppose to be done..isnt it in your manual? check your manual

 

WOW !!! My stealership said $400 to change my fluid.....I havent done it yet tho. I just got the 09 max cause I killed the one pictured below...lol.

Even when I inquired about it on my 08 they said its not necessary to change it until 100000 miles....

Maybe its caused I geeked out on the phone when they said that **** would cost me $400.....

 

And btw..if you have a CVT, the words "the gears shift fine" should never, NEVER be said. u don't got no gears to shift.

 

Oopps haha I forgot!

 

How did you killed it? Racing? Engine mod? Plow into something?

 

I had a 75k mile limit on my previous cars before a tranny flush and fill was due. I guess I'll check the manual to see what it says, but 30k does not sound right.

Related story - the manufacturer of my last car (not Nissan) for several years was telling new owners that the trans fluid is good "for life". But then those owners whose "lives" exceeded 100k began to experience the pleasure of a $5000 rebuild because the fluid was shot.

 

Lot of contradictions!! My car is at 70K, should I change the fluid or wait till 100K???

 

Some "yougin's" backed into me while I was behind them at a traffic light. Once they realized it my hood was blocking my entire view.....They threw the Yukon in drive, bent the corner and took off.

They were good and around the corner before I could even get out the car.

Insurance fixed it but I hate driving a car thats sustained front end damage. Just went and traded it for a 2009 with the same car note.....SMH

Im gonna be driving a maxima FO' LYFE....lls

Technically the car wasnt killed, Just needed a new hood and light but after seeing it that way I didnt want it anymore.

 

Damn kids now a day...sorry to hear that!

You made a wise choice choosing the max! It's a fun ride

 

Lemme tell u bout that !

I actually bought an 08 Acura TL. The mileage was low and my payments CRASHED so I figured hey its good all the way around. I'm a new young dad so saving money anywhere is ALWAYS a plus !

Well the car is ONLY nice to look at. I hated that SHYT !!!!! I started searching for another car....still wasnt thinking about another Max until I was walking through the Infiniti lot when I saw it.....

It was like Love at first sight !! I HAD TO HAVE IT....I left off the lot with it and left that Craptastic TL right where I parked it !!!

Acura was REALLY slumming in 2008....I started to go get a 2011 but they looked so weird to me....

Im happy wit my MAX kinda wish I woulda got a 2011 but wuts 2 years and they look virtually identical anyway so.......

 

I asked my old Nissan service guy asked me about when to do a transmission flush and he said your fine for now at 42k miles and that at 60k+ you should be fine even though it says to change at 30k in the manual

 

Yea 30k Miles sounds like some big bs. I would recommend 100k on any car but it also depends on how you run your car.

 

Yeah same thing with me..went to a Toyota dealer and tried to look at the 10-11 camry for an everyday work car...test drove a few camrys and really didn't have the love for them...sure they are reliable and great cars but boring as f#@%..finally spot the Max in the last lot that they took me, drove it and love how it handled and the way it looked...took it home that day

 

thanks bud!

 

Mainly highway driving...no crazy acceleration and I rarely use the sport shift...I should be ok till 100K...thanks for the response

 

I have never changed transmission fluid in my life and have never had a transmission problem.

 

I agree. I have never performed a trans change or flush
On any car I've owned. Nor would I ever have one done even if my car had over 100k on it. If its Running that' long fine- leave it alone..
All I ever hear is once people change the trans fluid is all the problems they have.

Someone on here can be the ginny pig lol

 

Thanks for your inputs guys...appreciate it

 

Actually the manual says to begin inspecting the CVT fluid at 15K, and every 15K after that. I believe they use a test strip or some such method that actually tells them how spent the fluid is.

IIRC, most people who have had it inspected at 60K indicated that the fluid showed quite a lot of mileage left.

 

i haven't heard of anyone having issues with a drain/fill. its the transmission flush that usually kills stuff. a simple drain/fill should have no negative effects, but i would never ever ever do a transmission fluid flush unless for some reason you needed it to address something specific and were told to do that by a master Nissan tech.

im planning on doing my own drain/refill at 60k. its super easy to do on your own, but yeah the fluid itself is expensive

 

^ that's 500% false information tell your friend to retake the ASE.

for a PREMIUM service if you own your maxima drain and fill it every 30k miles and its 4.75qts NOT 5-6qts which is in the pan the tranny holds 10qts in ALL including the pan

for a regular service or if you car is leased do it every 60K or Until your tranny starts shifting funny oh yeah we got a CVT duh it doesn't shift I ment to say until the METAL belts in the CVT start making whining noises like you have a supercharger cause it Alrdy started happening to my friends 7th gen with 80k n he never listened to me but he listened to his ASE certified friend....

make sure you DO NOT FLUSH tranny because doing a drain n fill on tranny is easier then changing your oil .....

I made a post on the Facebook group in my Sig to a alternative NS-2 CVT fluid from Japan that's $13 a qrt n its the same as Nissan NS-2 fluid

 

Had the opportunity to stop by the dealership today, and spoke to the service manager. He informed me that they actually check the condition of the CVT fluid using the Consult computer, like they do all other diagnosis through the OBD port. Apparently the sensing mechanism is built into the transmission - and wired through the car's computer.

The computer gives a reading of the condition of the fluid, and if it's above a certain level, the fluid must be changed. He indicated that they haven't tested one yet that had a reading high enough to mandate drain and fill, but several owners had opted to D/F at 100K for peace of mind.

 

I did a little internet searching and found what you said on other CVT/Nissan vehicles, Im still a little skeptical because of the 1st gen Murano CVT failures but I am approaching 30k and will see what my dealer suggest, but I also know several guys who own 6th and 7th Gen Maximas who have done the 30k CVT service of drain and refill and the dealers never said not to change it I think flushing is a thing of the past.

Some info for those who think the 10year 120k extended warranty covers the CVT, it only covers the trans due to an unexpected failure, if you have 110k on the trans and the trans fails due to burnt fluid, that is all on you, Nissan will not pick up that bill, that is due to lack of service

 

Just had mine changed at 32k. I really think its a good idea and did the same on my 3.5 Altima-every 30-45k change the fluid. I push my cars pretty hard and can usually hear a slight whine when the fluid starts to break down and the change cures it ....

By the way, my dealer charged $180 for the change-it was $350 for my Altima back fours years ago but the fluid has dropped a lot since then

 

After i hit 90K, I went to every 50K miles for my CVT. Prior to that, i kept it at 30K between drain/refill. So far, at 163K, she works like new.

 

BINGO!! There is no fluid change interval on these vehicles. PERIOD. It's not SUPPOSE to be changed at 30K, 45K, 60K, or even 90 or 100K. It's SUPPOSE to be changed when the car tells you its suppose to be changed. The ECM/TCM keeps track of fluid life. The dealer can look at that value using the Consult-III.

Per the factory service manual:

“CVTF DETERIORATION DATE”
More than 210000 : It is necessary to change CVT fluid.
Less than 210000 : It is not necessary to change CVT fluid

I plan to check mine tomorrow (can be done with the Autoenginuity with Nissan enhanced which I have). I'll post up and let you all know what it spits out for mine.

Late,
Trav

 

Please let us know!

Thanks Trav

 

How do I get access to this factory service manual

 

WOW! those CVT's require some expensive care, when I first got my 00 auto I went to the dealer and got a drain and refill for 80 bucks, I do that myself now though. whatever you do get it done right the first time.

 

So, for those that don't know, Autoenginuity can basically do whatever the Consult-III can do.

I haven't played around with it for quite some time, but knew that the most recent version added support for this CVTF Deterioration Date. I tried it out and the only thing it support is resetting the value (as in after fluid is changed). I called their tech and talked to him and he called his goto guy to figure it out since nowhere in this program or in the CVT module does it have the option to check the value the TCM has stored.

So, long story short, he says that the 210,000 value is actually 210,000 miles. He said it usually gets ignored since its apparently just a mileage counter and doesn't factor in heat and rpm. I don't know if I'm completely sold on that, yet. He said they will add that into the program on Monday or Tuesday and see what it says. Hopefully it will be made available for download shortly thereafter and we'll see what mine says. Obviously, if the odometer and the CVTF value are the same, then we will know that this CVTF deterioration date is a load of crap.

Late,
Trav

 

Dude, do it yourself. Amsoil cost me $75, took me about 30 minutes to do the job! One of the easiest under-car jobs I have ever done...barely had to crawl under the car, as the drain bolt is right in front of the engine. Drain, fill, drive for 15-20 minutes, drain again, and fill.

 

Where do find the CVT NS-2 on AMSOIl.com? They don't carry the fluid.

http://www.amsoil.com/mygarage/Produ...ATSUN+MAXIMA+2

 

Yeah...I'm not real sure where Bruiser came up with the Amsoil because to my knowledge, Nissan NS-2 OEM CVT fluid is the ONLY fluid you can safely use. Redline, Nippon oil ENEOS and Valvoline make some formulations that they say is compatible with Nissan CVT's. I'm not gonna be the 1st to try it, though. Amsoil does not have a CVT fluid that is compatible with Nissan.

Late,
Trav