I have a 06 M35 2wd. I've noticed two things with the transmission and i'm wondering if they are signs of worse things to come.

1. Occasionally i notice what i would call a shudder when the tranny shifts from 5 down to 4th. It almost feels like the gears slip a little before engaging. It only happens when i am driving at a steady speed uphill and the tranny shifts down own its own. It does not happen if i press on the gas hard and make it downshift. I've only noticed this about 5 times in the 4 months (6000 miles driven) ive had the car so it does not do it all the time.

2. If i am backing up and shift from reverse into drive and i hit the gas too quickly i get a little slip/shudder feeling also. If i shift into drive and give it just a couple seconds i dont have the problem. I've noticed that 2 or 3 times. I have not purposely tried to make it do it.....don't want to hurt anything.

I've not noticed this before with other vehicles i have owned and just wondered if any of you have any insight on what this might be?

HEY sorry to say but thats exactly what my 2002 Toyota Camry (yes a toyota built in America not Japan) did and the tranny went bye bye. O its starts off barely noticeable at first, usually when u driving at 56 and it will either pause like btween the gears or totally jerk you back and forth . Then the fun parts comes later after a couple of months ( i drive a lot) when u back up it stops hard and jerk u back into your seat bcause u shifted and when u put it back in drive it makes a loud clunking sound. At this lovely stage of the game u will need to start buying engine mounts bcause all that jerking around puts a strain on the mount and they break. Other words u r screwed royally - if its under warranty take it in right FU**ing now stop reading and go. or u can do like me and wait and replace the engine mounts a couple of time then get the tranny fixed. And on that note i waited to long; ran out of warranty and had to pay to get the tranny fixed - it lasted five months bfore it went bad again. $5,000 later. Then i went to toyota who took mercy on me and only charged me with the labor which was awesome of them but i think they know the have tranny problems in all their cars which they do. Anyway that fix up cost me $2.000 something with also replacing more mounts and GUESS WHAT IT FU##ING went bad again in about a years time. ALL AND ALL WHEN THE TRANNY GO BAD TRADE THAT b**ch IN FORTHWITH. Any one out there disagree let me know. i hoped this helped.

If you take a look through the G M and even FX forums you will notice a lack of common transmission related concerns in the Jatco RE5R05a. These are very well designed and take a fair beating without complaint. All of the automatic transmission I have replaced have had sketchy pasts and burnt fluid.

The Reverse to Drive shock that you are feeling is not always an indicator of a failure. If the engine is cold when it happens than the boosted line pressure has a slight impact on initial shift shock.

Overcoming maximum TCC lockup duty should not really be noticeable...unless after a long cruise at a consistent speed where the short term shift logic setting are set into an "economy" mode and may take some heavy throttling to defeat. This is a charachteristic Infiniti has put into the computers of these cars in an effort to increase highway fuel economy.

Not all of you will notice this as we all drive differently. I notice this usually after an hour or so at a cruising speed with very little deviation. I however drive with cruise though.

I concur with Steve - jatco's are very stoubt from factory as comparable to other transmissions out there. Not many stock auto's can hold 350-400rwhp with no mods. Yes these transmissions do this on G's and Z's all day and we share the same trans. After looking through the build up on the M45 trans they show actually a little more stoubt being build with heavier duty 5 or 6 gear planetary gearsets rather than the 4 gear planetary of the G and Z. I would imagine that is because of the weight increase of the M over the G & Z. Heck, even the Titan's with the 5.6L uses the same trans as we do. Very well designed and most commonly the damage done is due to heat.

That being said, the problem you describe being a "shudder" it actually sounds like a torque converter or a cracked flexplate.

the second issue just sounds like you aren't allowing enough time for it to fully engage the gear. Almost like doing a nuetral drop and can feel quite disturbing if you don't anticipate it. If you truely are giving it the opportunity to engage and it is still doing what you describe, then there could be something hanging up in the valve body.

Either way - pray it is still under warranty or learn how to rebuild transmissions. In reality they arent that difficult. Just requires some special tools, a clean working environment, and a working knowlege of automatics - all of which are available online. I love technology!

Thanks for the comments guys. Steve i think you clued me into something....regarding the torque converter......the shudder i feel is when i have been cruising at a constant speed for a while. Like i said before it does not always do it. I drive my M to work occasionally. Its 45 miles on two lanes with no traffic at a pretty contstant 60mph. There is one long hill where the tranny will shift down(or maybe its just the torque converter unlocking) and thats when i feel the shudder.

The issue if feel between R and D is only if i rush it a little....so maybe that is normal.

I forgot to mention in my original post that i had it towed once. They towed it about 2 miles with the rear wheels on the ground. The next morning they towed it to the dealer on a flatbed. Is the tow with the wheels on the ground bad for the 2wd? If so what does it damage and what are the symptoms.

Lastly i am still under warranty......56K and planning to call Courtney in Scottsdale to get it extended.

I can't imagine it not being OK (from a technical standpoint, for instance, how else would one determine for sure a drag is coming from the transmission) to put a car in neutral while driving, and I would think if it is OK to drop a vehicle in neutral at 60mph driving down the road that it should also be OK to tow it down the road in neutral to 60mph as well. That said, I don't understand how towing with the rear wheels on the ground and the transmission in neutral can cause damage, but my manual says it can, as do many posts in this forum.

The00Dustin wrote:if it is OK to drop a vehicle in neutral at 60mph driving down the road that it should also be OK to tow it down the road in neutral to 60mph as well.

Agree totally, but there must be sometinge else to it. Maybe having the engine running makes a difference.

Steve the tech guy.....enlighten us please.

Sorry to say this, but I use to own a 2002 infiniti i35, 60k miles, tranny was shot, repaired under warranty, 2006 M35x, 40,000, had to have engine replaced, small block and long block, and then a few thousand later, had the tranny replaced, all under warranty of course, but none the less. these issues did occur, and were taken care of.

mjlyn wrote:Agree totally, but there must be sometinge else to it. Maybe having the engine running makes a difference.

Steve the tech guy.....enlighten us please.

Steve can chime in, but I will add my two cents.

It is absolutely a Bad Thing™ to tow a Nissan or Infiniti car (probably most modern car automatic transmissions) with the drive wheels on the ground. The transmission fluid is not warmed up or pressurized under normal operating conditions. This can definitely and permanently damage the internals of the transmission - even for short duration tows.

You must flat-bed, or raise the drive wheels on a dolly (so ... low-speed, non-highway, towing), or tow with the non-drive wheels on the ground (as a last resort). the AWD models MUST have all four wheels off the ground (flat-bed or dolly) for towing.

Read the "Towing Recommended by Infiniti" section of your Owner's Manual. As well as the section of "Flat Towing".

Z

Been three weeks since I purchased my 06 M45 - I am enjoying the drive. I do have a related question/concern about possible transmission problem. Every morning I notice a hesitation and a hard pull/jerk when putting the car into reverse. This only occurs after the car has sat idle overnight or long period (6 hours plus) of time. Anyone else have this issue, is it normal behavior? Appreciate any input.

The00Dustin wrote:I can't imagine it not being OK (from a technical standpoint, for instance, how else would one determine for sure a drag is coming from the transmission) to put a car in neutral while driving, and I would think if it is OK to drop a vehicle in neutral at 60mph driving down the road that it should also be OK to tow it down the road in neutral to 60mph as well. That said, I don't understand how towing with the rear wheels on the ground and the transmission in neutral can cause damage, but my manual says it can, as do many posts in this forum.

Classification: GI99-002e

Reference: ITB99-014e

Date: August 8, 2008

LIMITATIONS ON FLAT TOWING OF INFINITI VEHICLES

This bulletin has been amended to apply to all current production models. Please discard all earlier versions.APPLIED VEHICLES:All Infiniti

APPLIED DATES:1992-2009

SERVICE INFORMATION

This Bulletin contains important guidelines and limitations concerning towing of Infiniti vehicles with all four wheels on the ground ("flat towing").CAUTION: Failure to follow these guidelines can result in severe transmission or drivetrain damage. For all towing including "emergency towing" procedures refer to the Owners Manual.

1. 4WD/AWD vehicles equipped with Automatic Transmission:

^ DO NOT Flat Tow - doing so will damage internal transmission components.

^ DO NOT use a tow dolly - doing so will damage drivetrain components.

2. FWD vehicles equipped with Automatic Transmission:

^ DO NOT Flat Tow - doing so will damage internal transmission components.

^ An appropriate vehicle tow dolly MUST be placed under the vehicle's front wheels.

^ Always follow the dolly manufacturer's recommendations when using their product.

3. RWD vehicles equipped with Automatic Transmission:

^ DO NOT Flat Tow - doing so will damage internal transmission components.

^ An appropriate vehicle tow dolly MUST be placed under the vehicle's rear wheels.

^ Always follow the dolly manufacturer's recommendations when using their product.

4. 2WD vehicles equipped with a manual transmission:

^ Always flat tow with the manual transmission in Neutral.

^ Always flat tow a manual transmission vehicle facing forward.

^ Maximum speed while flat towing: 60 MPH.

^ After towing for 500 miles, stop. Start and idle the engine with the transmission in Neutral for two minutes - failure to do so may cause damage to the transmission.

AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSIONTo tow a vehicle equipped with an automatic transmission, an appropriate vehicle dolly MUST be placed under the towed vehicle's drive wheels. Always follow the dolly manufacturer's recommendations when using their product.