2006 Nissan Maxima: CVT failure

Filed Jan 28, 2015 · Transmission · 112,000 miles · GA

My 2006 nissan maxima began hard shifting while driving, reversing, and shifting into drive. I took it in to have it serviced over the summer and the nissan dealership recommended a transmission flush and said nothing was wrong. Of course that did not fix anything. The problem has gotten progressively worse to the point where it can take up to 5 seconds for the car to shift into gear when I am putting it into drive. I contacted the nissan corporation and they advised me to go to the dealership and have it diagnosed. Well of course now the dealership says we need to have the transmission replaced...to the tune of $3,000. When I contacted the nissan corporation they informed me there was nothing they could do to help me and that my car didn't fall within the parameters of the CVT transmission extended warranty. So not only are we out $150 for a diagnosis that we already knew what the problem was, but now we have to get the vehicle repaired or it won't be safe to drive. We have owned two nissans and the previous one was a 1996 maxima that never gave us any problems. I wish I had that car back and not this "upgraded" model. I use to think that nissan was a company that stood by its customers and strived for satisfaction, but I now know that is not the case. Will the federal safety agency ever look into these complaints and force nissan's hand as far as this transmission issue goes? There needs to be a safety recall, not just a bulletin.

Filed Apr 1, 2014 · Fuel system, Transmission · 55,410 miles · NY

This car has had hardshifts, between 2-3 gears and horrible downshifts. Nearly impossible to drive in stop and go traffic. Many other people have these issues. Flair shifts when coasting. Slipping in and out of gears. Please help! The car shifts erratically and this is due to a production issue with these transmissions. Nissan knows of these problems and that's why they now use CVT transmissions. Please issue a recall!

Filed Feb 6, 2013 · Transmission · 89,000 miles · LA

Within the last month or so my vehicle has begun to display what appears to be a transmission problem. When I put it in reverse, then back into drive it hesitates and then jumps into gear. When I am accelerating (about 30-40 MPH), my vehicle will hesitate or struggle to shift into the next gear. This happens most often at 30-40 MPH but it has happen at faster and slower speeds and has happened with accelerating and decelerating. I have brought my vehicle to a repair shop who replaced the engine mounts at a cost of almost $1000 and that didn't fix the problem. Now they are stating the problem is the valve body. I brought it for a second opinion to the nissan dealer and they state that I need a new transmission at a cost of $3500. I am about to bring it for a third opinion to a transmission shop. This is a safety concern in my opinion because the transmission could completely stall or give out while driving. I have researched this problem extensively online and have found hundreds of other stories of maxima owners with the same or similar problem. I don't understand why nissan hasn't been forced to recall these faulty transmissions. They obviously pose a danger to the public and they are obviously aware of the situation. I have found out about class action lawsuits against nissan and have found out that nissan has extended the warranty on the CVT transmissions (in the altima), but I don't have that type of transmission. I would like to request that the federal safety agency look into this problem further and take a look at the sheer number of owners who are dealing with this problem or who have. I would like to request that you demand nissan to recall these vehicles and correct this problem. There is no reason that a transmission should need to be replaced in a vehicle after 70, 80 or 90 thousand miles. Thank you!

Filed Oct 25, 2011 · Transmission · 52,200 miles · NV

My vehicle began to shift violently (car would jerk roughly) from 1st to 2nd, and subsequent gear shifts (2-3, 3-4, etc.) would shift very slowly (the car's RPM's would race as the transmission delayed shifting into the next gear, then jump very hard into gear). Also, when slowing to a stop, the car would remain in a higher gear without downshifting, then once stopped for a few seconds the car would violently downshift, which would cause the car to lurch forward. Shifting from park or neutral to drive or reverse would take 5-10 seconds to engage, and would cause the car to again jerk and lurch violently. The final issue occurred on saturday, october 22, when the car was in drive, but no longer engaged the gear while stopped at a stoplight in busy traffic. I shut the car off and let it sit for a minute and started it again. When I did this, I was able to get first gear to engage enough to roll to a parking lot. Once in the lot, the gear stopped working and no gear would engage again. I had to have the car towed to the dealership, in which they advised that the transmission would need to be replaced at my expense ($3300-3500 was the estimate) as my warrantee had expired "3 months ago". This is unacceptable, and judging by the thousands of complaints that I am seeing on the internet with the exact same issues, I am disgusted that nissan is not recalling for this issue, nor extending the warrantee coverage for a clearly defective transmission, as they did for the CVT that they offer in the newer model year maximas. These issues all occurred within a one month period. The transmission fluid was checked and found to be at the correct level and color/consistency.

Filed Oct 17, 2011 · Transmission · PA

After taking my maxima to the dealer because of the transmission free wheeling and shifting erratically they said they were not aware of issues. They flushed the trans fluid and suggested I get a new trans if the problems continued. I went and researched the issue on the internet only to find out that there are many complaints about the CVT maxima transmissions. I have again taken the car back to the dealer and now they tell me the trans valve body may fix the issue but not 100% sure at a cost of $1800. They also told me that several other items were in need of replacement which I had checked at a local garage and they found none of the so called worn out parts but that is another story. I feel this is a design flaw like many other nissan owners. They need to make good of the problem.