When cold transmission shifts hard. Warmed up it is fine.

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shaxs
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Joined: Sun Dec 29, 2013 12:20 pm
Car: 2004 Infiniti I35

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So I bought an i35 recently.I test drove it when the car had been driven home from the guys work so it was nice and warmed up. So I didnt notice the transmission issue since it only happens when it is cold.

When cold, the shift from 1 to 2 is hard. From 2 to 3 it seems to rev and slip into 3rd. 3rd to 4th is fine.

When warmed up, it seems to shift fine. I have drained and re-added fluid 4 time (16 quarts) to dilute and flush the old fluid out. Fluid was pretty black. I would drain, measure, and refill. Go drive 5 miles. Come back and repeat. I filtered all the old fluid and didnt see any metal in the filter. So that is good. I bought 8 more quarts today to drain twice more. By that point, the fluid should be thoroughly changed out. I am using Castrol Import Multi Vehicle transmission fluid.

Any ideas what might be causing this behavior?


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lil754boy
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Car: Infiniti I35

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Mine does the same thing and have been doing so every winter for the past 3 years. I have become afraid to drive mine long distance as a result. I hate to keep a car that I do not wanna drive far and really would like to fix this issue aswell.

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maxhopper
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Car: 02 Maxima SE 6spd
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You need to drop the transmission pan. There are magnets on the pan to collect metal debris.

shaxs
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Car: 2004 Infiniti I35

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maxhopper wrote:You need to drop the transmission pan. There are magnets on the pan to collect metal debris.
I called my Infiniti dealer to ask about buying the self sealing screws for the transmission pan and they told me not to drop the pan and that it was not necessary. IF I dropped the pan, I am not sure where to get these screws. If I reuse the old ones, I need to put sealant on them right? If so, what kind of sealant exactly?

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maxhopper
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Reuse the old ones and use blue Loctite on the threads.

shaxs
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Car: 2004 Infiniti I35

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maxhopper wrote:Reuse the old ones and use blue Loctite on the threads.
Okay thanks. Should I try replacing the filter? On all the forums I see not to touch those either.

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maxhopper
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I would go ahead and replace the filter.

What you need to look at is the amount of metal debris on the magnets in the pan. Some debris is normal, but excessive metal debris may be indicative of extreme wear or damage.

shaxs
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Car: 2004 Infiniti I35

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Okay dropped the pan, cleaned it and the magnets with carb cleaner, installed the new filter, put in 4.5 new quarts of transmission fluid and sealed her back up with a new gasket. I soaked the pan bolts in purple cleaner while I replaced the filter, they rinsed, dried, and applied permatex blue thread sealer and put the pan back on.

I am still surprised at how black the tranny oil is. I have put 3 gallons of new fluid through it. I am going to change it yet one more time for a total of 20 new quarts of oil through it.

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maxhopper
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You have to also realize that the torque converter holds fluid, and that isn't being replaced when you drain the pan. The total fluid capacity of the 4sp AT is 9.75qts, the 5sp AT is 7.75qts.

shaxs
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Car: 2004 Infiniti I35

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Im sorry what?

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the converted
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Spammer.

shaxs
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the converted wrote:Spammer.
Ah, didnt even see his silly links :)

2f@ce
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Joined: Mon Jan 20, 2014 4:58 pm
Car: 2003 nissan maxima dropped on bc coilovers

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You need to drain the old tranny fluid and replace it with new fluid!! :dblthumb:

shaxs
Posts: 20
Joined: Sun Dec 29, 2013 12:20 pm
Car: 2004 Infiniti I35

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2f@ce wrote:You need to drain the old tranny fluid and replace it with new fluid!! :dblthumb:
Unless you do a power flush, which is highly NOT RECOMMENDED, you cant get it all out at one time. You have to do it in batches and dilute the old with new which I have done with close to 3 gallons now.


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