Hi!
I’ve found so much information in this forum, it’s often the first place I look when something is going on with my car, everyone has so much knowledge to share.
I’ve been stressing all weekend when I realized I should finally join so I can ask for your opinions.
I have a 2010 Nissan Altima 2.5L S that I bought about a year ago, which has been so well maintained.
Lately it’s been acting funny, I try to accelerate and not much happens at first, it doesn’t go as fast as it should be considering the pedal is pressed to the floor but if you ease up on the gas it catches up, most of the time it happens on the highway.
I didn’t really think much of this at first bc all the other cars I’ve owned had a v6 n I thought maybe that’s just what driving a 4 cylinder car was like n I just had to stop trying to drive it the same way I’m used to.
Then it did the same thing early last week, but a couple times when the light turned green n I tried to move from being stopped.
That I kno wasn’t right.
Last Thursday twice it started vibrating a bit when I hit the gas n after work the service engine light went on.
So I pulled over n I have this obd2 code reader thingy in my glove box, I used that n it came up code p1778 step motor, so I googled that n it sounded like was a pretty serious transmission issue that needs to get fixed soon but it was still driving ok so I drive it to my mechanic n left it for him to check out in the morning.
I spent most of the night googling that code n none of it was good news, sounds like these cvt trans r nothing but trouble
But I read a good post on here from a guy who saved himself from replacing the transmission by buying a step motor for $35 on eBay n fixing himself with the help of some dental floss I believe ( I’m really paraphrasing that but it was a great idea everyone thought)
I was hopeful, maybe it’s not this transmission death code as someone else described it.
Friday afternoon my mechanic calls n says yep he got the same code plus another transmission one, he also took it for a drive n he can tell the transmission is going.
I do trust him, he’s always been very honest.
He said he could only find 2 that fit my car in pretty much all of southern Ontario.
One for $600 with unknown km n the other $1400 with 82,000 km both from salvage yards, I asked about a rebuilt one he said no no cuz that could be $4000 then labor, so we agreed that he’s gonna check the rest of the car over Monday morning to make sure everything else is still in good enough shape n worth investing that much into n he wants me to think about it over the weekend too if I wanna spend around $2500 with labor n tax or maybe think about getting another car.
So that’s why I’m here, to ask for your opinions.
Should I get the repair done?
Or am I wasting money getting another cvt transmission that is just gonna do the same thing?
I think I want to get it fixed bc I love this car, it 2 door, black, leather seats, sunroof, windows tinted n has a killer stereo n sound system installed (which I kno can come out n go in another car) n up until now has been perfect.
Obviously I don’t want to spend $2500, I’m prob even gonna show him the post on here I saw about the $35 step motor on eBay n see what he says, (hopefully not offending him)
but I wouldn’t b able to find another car for $2500 nvm one I like this much.
So is this crazy getting it fixed?
My boyfriend says it is n so does my dad, they think it’s wasting money.
I would love to hear what you guys think and if you have any other ideas I would love to hear them too.
If you need anymore info please ask, maybe there’s something else I didn’t think to mention.
Oops I forgot to mention it’s automatic!!
Thank you for reading all the way to the end it’s so long lol

Only you know if it’s worth fixing as far as what the car means to you. If the rest of the cars in good shape and not rusted, which I assume your in Canada and there’s not much that comes out of the north 11 yrs old that isn’t. I’m in Ohio so I can sympathize. The motor is pretty bullet proof if it’s been maintained half ways decent so no worries there. I’d try the step motor first, nothing to lose but a few hours labor and $35. I’d also look online at cvts from nissan as they’ve come down quite a bit over the years. Cvts are trouble when they aren’t maintained, meaning fresh fluid way more often than nissan recommends. By more often I change mine every 10k. Honda actually recommended that interval for their cvts while nissan tried to look good with cost of ownership. I don’t know what the exchange rate is but $2500 for a used cvt installed sounds pretty steep to me. I’d shop around.

I didn’t think about rust, yes there prob is some, hopefully not a lot, I got it undercoated soon after buying it last September and the owner before said he had done that a number of times. Being in Canada that only helps so much. I’ve looked online at cvt’s and you’re right they are cheaper, the problem I’m having is I don’t know the transmission number, I’ve tried to find it online, also by looking up the vin with no luck, since the cars at the shop I can’t look for it on the trans n for some reason that sticker that should be inside on the door panel isn’t there. I read a post that said it was re0f10a, I found few of those for $830US on ebay but when I type in make n model they’re saying it won’t fit my car, so I haven’t got far with that but I’ve learned a lot about step motors this afternoon and have a list of questions to ask my mechanic tm, maybe I’ll get lucky and there’s another solution. At the very least, me keeping up on things may help us all stay honest
Thank you for your reply

There are two things that will prevent you from getting a bad used tranny. The most important one is to get the TCM out of the donor vehicle along with the trans. You can hook the TCM to your own car before installing the new tranny and see if it had issues before it went to the JY. Pay attention to CVT-A and CVT-B (overheat memory) and not just stored codes. Secondly, if the TCM tests clean, drop the pan and check for major metal. A coating of fine shavings on the magnets is normal, but it shouldn't be metal city in here.

Btw, getting the TCM along with the trans will also save you a bunch of reprogramming after the swap.