The transmission line runs through the radiator in these vehicles. It broke inside radiator and put transmission fluid into cooling system and coolant into transmission, causing failure of both systems. When problem was detected(service engine light came on and transmission slipping) I took to mechanic, we flushed transmission and cooling system. Transmission is systematically failing ,
2007 Nissan Frontier transmission complaints
Page 4 of 9: complaints 71 to 100 of 222, newest first, as owners wrote them.
The transmission failed due to a known design flaw that allows collar from the radiator to leak into the transmission causing it to fail. On my vehicle it failed at 100,800 miles, just barely outside warranty. It will no longer climb hills and has great difficulty gaining initial momentum on flatter roads. It doesn't stall, just sits in one place, rolls backward instead of forward, or excelerates like a 3 toed sloth. The first time it happened we were driving up steep driveway and it just stopped moving. The second time we were on a less steep busy roadway and we're forced to roll backwards in traffic until we could find a place to turn around. Issue had not been specifically noticeable prior to this.
Transmission slipping and vibration when driving also hard knock. This happens while driving in the city or high ways
My nissan frontier pick up went completely dead and would not start after I had refueled at a gas station. I checked out the battery connections and ignition and found nothing out of the ordinary. I then called a local dealership service department and had it towed in for diagnosis for repair. The service manager called me the next day and informed me that the transmission valve body was in need of replacement at a cost of $1800.00. After a week or so I called and was told my vehicle was ready. I picked it up and paid the bill. Shortly afterward I noticed the vehicle was shifting an little hard but dismissed it as possible characteristic of a new part functioning differently. After about 4 months I noticed an increase in this shifting and so I checked transmission fluid level which was a little low but a healthy color. I added transmission fluid and transmission operated ok for about 6 weeks now the transmission is shifting very hard and slips and some times the vehicle jump forward just slightly when at a stop sign or stop light. I have began investigating this problem online and discovered this is happening a lot with nissans vehicles not just the frontiers, but also pathfinders and exterras. Some consumer group are seeking a recall for this problem and I hope they get it because I cannot afford to pay $1800.00 every six months.
Vehicle is well maintained with 115,000 miles odometer reading. This is the 2nd time the rear axle seas have failed, resulting in gear oil soaking rear brakes, resulting in oil contamination of brake pads and rendering the parking brake ineffective. The reason was explained by nissan as a rusted $14 breather tube in the differential housing causing pressure build up to ruin the $7 dollar seals. The result is a repair any where fro $1500 for a difficult axle pull to get to the seals or up to$6500 to replace the entire rear assembly. The problem with seal replacement is it is difficult and time consuming and must be performed perfectly or the seals will leak again. The root cause is a poor breather system,. Nissan is aware of this problem and refuses to acknowledge the defective design and application. Continued use will cause premature rear brake failure and too much stress on the front brakes to stop the vehicle.
The problem began as "shudder" resembling what is felt when the car moves onto the "rumble strip" near the shoulder of the road. This occurred while traveling at lower rpms (1500 - 2000) at average highway speeds in 5th gear (55 - 65 MPH). Since the vehicle is primarily driven in town at lower speeds, the "shudder" occurred rarely and was not initially identified as a problem. Over the course of several months, the problem began occurring more frequently and at lower speeds, but always at lower rpms (1500 to 2000) and in all gears. As the shudder worsened, the vehicle also began to shift more roughly, often jarring as it moved from one gear to the next. (this occurs at all gear changes.). The vehicle is now "slipping" quite badly as it moves from 4th to 5th gear. The vehicle was taken to a mechanic who diagnosed torque converter problems and possible transmission failure. The mechanic has recommended replacement of the transmission. It appears there may have been a valve body failure in the transmission and cross-contamination of the coolant and transmission fluid.
Drove a very short distance near my work and heard a bubbling sound in the engine compartment, knew immediately something was wrong with the radiator. A few seconds later it was like a small explosion and I was able to park. The goo coming from underneath was unlike anything I had seen before. I had usaa tow it off, dealership said crack in the radiator caused fluids to mix and corrupt the transmission and found out 15 days later that nothing would be covered. Didn't know about the massive, wide-spread problems with this exact scenario. Dealer didn't know, insurance and adjuster never said anything. Wasn't until a small town mechanic told my mother-in-law, that we heard about these issues from other nissan owners. I am hesitant to have factor parts put back in it if, according to others, the same problem could re-occur.
Transmission failed due to coolant intermixing with transmission fluid. This is the second time this vehicle has had catastrophic transmission failure due to a crack in the cooling system. First time was just over the warranty so I was forced to pay a $2500 copay. The vihicle started showing signs of a secondary failure just prior to 100000 miles and when I brought it to the dealer they lied to me and said there was just residual oil in the radiator from the first failure... Now I am past any warranty copay and the transmission is failing at just 100500 miles. That is just two years (less than 18000 miles) after they replaced the radiator and transmission. This is unacceptable that consumers are being forced to pay for a known issue of poor engineering especially when it was supposedly fixed by the dealer with nissan parts. They have obviously not fixed the problem but just replaced with another defective part. On top of that they denied there was a problem to so I would continue to drive the vehicle until it was past the extended warranty (from 2012 class action lawsuit). While there was no accident in either indecent there was a near collision the first time as I was in the middle of a busy intersection and the second there was traffic behind me that had to avoid rear-ending me as the vehicle stopped, this is a dangerous defect that could result in injury or death.
Tl* the contact owns a 2007 nissan frontier. While driving the vehicle, a clunking and stuttering noise emitted from the vehicle. The contact took the vehicle to a certified mechanic and dealer who diagnosed that the transmission failed. The transmission and main computer needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The contact stated that the federal safety agency investigation number: dp12004 (power train) was directly related to the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 65,000. ....updated 07/05/16 *bf
Transmission total failure. Radiator line broke and mixed into transmission, destroying it. Occurred while driving up a hill.
Entering 4 lane highway with 70 MPH traffic. Kicked frontier into passing gear to enter ongoing traffic. Frontier stalled and slowed instead of increasing speed. Transmission slippage and jerking caused motor to increase rpms. I had to move my truck over to right of paved lane and onto pulloff area in order to prevent accident. I was told at the nissan dealership that I had transmission damage due to radiator fluid leaking into transmission . It cost me $2500 to repair a problem that could have cost lives. I understand this was a problem that was not recalled by nissan.
"takata recall" transmission failure due to water damage of transmission valve body due to coolant leakage from radiator into transmission. I began to notice a vibration around 1200 to 1600 RPM that would smooth out at higher rpms.
Transmission will not go into gear due to coolant leaking into transmission. It is a manufacturer defect that nissan has known about, but refuses to fix. They do not tell the buyer of the looming catastrophic failure, and continued to manufacture the vehicles for several more years even after discovering the problem, probably because it fails after the warranty is up. I now have a truck that I bought just a little over a year ago for $17000 that will not move. The cost to fix the problem can range anywhere from $4000 to $10000 depending on how much damage was caused by the defect. If it were to have been in a wreck and that much money in body damage would have occurred it would be totaled. How ever since it is a mechanical issue I am stuck paying $360 a month for a useless vehicle, that even if I could afford to get it fixed, I would be putting way more money into it than it is worth. When I purchased it from the nissan dealership it had an as is no warranty tag in the window, but that was not true. Nissan had a warranty for that specific problem, but the dealership did not tell me. When I called and asked the service department, the service writer pretended not to know anything about it until I started grilling him about it. He then admitted it was a big problem in 3 of their vehicles, then told me it wasn't his problem, it was sales problem and transferred me to them. I talked to the manager, he said that the extended warranty nissan offered, the one they neglected to mention, expired the month before my transmission failed, and even then I would have been out $2500 for a known defect that they continued to put in the vehicles for several more years. I was lucky it failed in a parking lot and not when I was pulling out into traffic where I could have been hit by another car and injured or killed! This problem is not the consumers fault, it is nissans!
Cracked radiator leaked fluid into the transmission cooler ruining the transmission.an issue nissan knows about, yet does nothing but extending a bogus warranty. Truck has 68k.
Transmission fluid cooler failed causing water to to get into the transmission fluid which damaged the transmission computer valve body and other transmission parts. After looking @ numerous complaint on the web I have learned that this has been a common problem that nissan is aware of. I am very disappointed that nissan did not send out any notification that there was a problem with this cooler failing. I read where they extended the warranty on some vehicle but no notifications were sent out to consumers who owned affected vehicles. Even if they did not do a recall it would have been better if they would have warns consumers of the possibility of this happening. It's much less expensive to change a radiator than to rebuild or replace a transmission! Fortunately my transmission went just after I made home from a trip. Now I am stuck with over $3500.00 transmission rebuild that could have been avoid if nissan had done the right thing by letting people know that they had problems with their transmission coolers.
Nissan is aware of leaking radiators and not until a class action lawsuit was filed they did not take responsibility and only help pay with a copay if the vehicle is less then 90,000 miles. Which is ridiculous because it should it be unlimited mileage for that type of repair. Radiator leaked coolant fluid into transmission and corroded and broke seals on transmission caused it to brake and have car shut down
My truck stopped running as I was getting off the highway. I tried to put it in gear and it wouldn't go. I turned it off and on couple of times til I got it to slowly drive off thr traffic lane. I parked it then had it towed, turned out the radiator coolant has leaked into my transmission. It's been in the shop for over 3 weeks now and the repair cost is going to be around $6500.
Tl* the contact owns a 2007 nissan frontier. While driving 30 MPH, there was an odor emitted into the vents and the contact noticed smoke under the hood. The contact coasted over to the side of the road and noticed oil and antifreeze fluid spilling from the reserve tank onto the transmission. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the spill caused the transmission and radiator to fail. Both the radiator and transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The VIN was unknown. The approximate failure mileage was 94,000. Updated 04/14/16*lj updated 04/18/16.
Trans cooler rupture and mixing coolant with transmission fluid. Ruined transmission/computer/radiator and left stranded on road. Very expensive fix for a problem that nissan has with 2005-2010 models and were aware of. Nissan deceived the consumers and has not done enough to satisfy customers. I will not purchase another nissan vehicle. I think they need to send letter to each VIN with proper instructions on how to fix this issue so it does not happen again.
Around 3 months ago I started noticing between 1000 and 2000 rpms and usually between 40 and 60 MPH my vehicle would shake like I was driving on rumble strips. Turns out I had a cross contamination issue with coolant and atf. Looking in my radiator looked like a strawberry milkshake. Also dropped the transmission pan and found a brown shiney mixture of atf and coolant. I immediately went out and bought a new radiator and fluids for my truck. Total cost around $400 so far. After the fluid flushes and new radiator truck ran good for about 1700 miles. About a week ago 01/20/2016 a slight rumbling started again. 2 days ago the issue turned very severe. Rpms were staying very high around 3000 then would get a very violent clunk as the transmission shifted gears. This happened multiple times. I drove the truck yesterday and was sitting in traffic and went to start went light turned green. Rpms went to almost 3 with no movement from the truck then all of a sudden truck gave the violent clunk again and slammed into gear and started moving. I did not drive the vehicle today in fear of a catistrrophic breakdown or worse. Like a transmission lock up at 60 MPH causing an accident. I have been shopping transmission shops and it looks like definitely need transmission rebuild or replacement at an estimated fee of $3000 to $6000. This is for an issue that nissan has been aware of and failed to communicate or take responsibility for with their customers. Issue seem to be when driving straight city or highway at the above speeds and rpms range.
Radiator fluid mixed with transmission fluid due to faulty radiator, beyond useless extended warranty, resulting in my burden to pay, according to nissan a 2500.00 dollar deductible, plus taxes. Nice, my truck has only 49,000 miles on it, no off road use, and now getting to the point of useless. Thanks nissan. Oh, don't forget the towing charge to the nearest dealer over one hour away for repairs. I just started with transmission symptoms of intermittent grinding with overdrive engaged on the shiftier. Took my truck to garage for inspection, they checked the transmission fluid and, ya you guessed it, radiator fluid mixed with it.
My frontier died on 12/6 / on 12/7/2015, I had it towed to the boardwalk nissan and paid $100 to have the problem diagnosed. I was told the repairs would cost $10,500. The radiator caused the transmission to go out in turn causing the computer panel to burn out. I asked the service adviser was there something I could've done to prevent the problem. He said no, the problem happens. I then had the truck towed home. Now, I find out there was a problem that nissan should've known about, had they made the repairs to the radiator, my truck would be working today. This makes me angry. It makes me angry that I just paid $317.44 to replace tire sensors that may not have been needed!! The radiator issue resulted in a $417.44 expense that may not have been necessary ($100 for a diagnosis). The truck was parked in front of my house. I attempted to start the car on 12/6/15, it wouldn't start. Thinking it was a battery issue, I waited until the next morning; only to find out it wasn't the battery. I called boardwalk nissan and had the truck towed to the dealership for diagnostics & repairs only to find out it would cost me $10,500.
With no prior warning, transmission failed on the vehicle. This has now happened twice, in november 2013 and december 2015. In both cases, vehicle lost all transmission of power to the drive train. In both cases, transmission fluid could be smelled when the hood is opened afterwards. Manual clutch continues to function perfectly, and guage shows proper rpms, but the vehicle will not move. In both cases, vehicle was moving in a straight line, once at freeway speeds of about 65 MPH and once in a residential neighborhood at approximately 25 MPH. Because of the sudden loss of power, especially on the freeway, the problem caused a sudden slowing which affected the traffic around me.
My transmission failed to water in transmission due to faulty radiator because of recall I was never informed of untill I researched it after it happened 10 /17/15 it stayed in high gear on hwy 98 I almost got hit 2 or 3 times I had it towed to advanced trans. Spanish fort , al invoice #10892 water in trans. 3996.89 for rpairs
Was stationary ready to go to next appointment put it in drive and it would not go. Engine reved but not moving. Was told at dealership coolant has gotten into transmission. Needed new transmission . After repairs, headlights and windows did not function correctly.
The transmission doesnt shift down as it needs to when it is called for,and a chatter happens when it does shift down.
These vehicles contain a defective radiator cooler tank that ruptures and forces coolant into the transmission through the cooler lines. When the coolant mixes with transmission fluid it creates a frothy liquid that eats valves, errodes seals and causes corrosion. It's toxic, irreversible and will eventually kill the 5-speed automatic transmission. Which it did
Tl* the contact owns a 2007 nissan frontier. The contact stated that while driving at 10 MPH, the transmission cooler fractured and caused anti-freeze to spill into the transmission. The vehicle was taken to a dealer to be repaired. The details of the repairs were unknown. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 83,256.
Purchased the truck 8-1-2015, drove it about 2 months (1700 miles). While driving and turning left with oncoming traffic, the transmission hesitated nearly causing and accident. Took the truck to nissan to be checked out. They diagnosed that the radiator cracked causing contaminatiion of coolant into the transmission. Since the transmission cooler was built inside the radiator. Which after reading a little research was a known problem by nissan for 6 model years (2005-2010).
Tl* the contact owns a 2007 nissan frontier. While driving 40 MPH, the vehicle shook violently. The contact coasted to the side of the road and was able to restart the vehicle after thirty minutes. The contact also stated that the radiator cracked. The failure recurred numerous times. The contact was advised by the dealer that the vehicle needed a new transmission and radiator. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 82,000.
VIN decoder
See the problems and recalls for an exact car
Buying a used 2007 Nissan Frontier?
Check the exact car before you pay: accidents, salvage or flood titles, odometer readings and previous owners.
Check its history