Probably this is a duplicate post, but I couldn't find an answer on my question.

I have 116,000 miles on my Rogue and I have never changed CVT fluid on it.

It has CVTF Deterioration date: 2712.

According to Nissan manual: "...replace the fluid every 60,000 miles OR request the dealer to inspect the fluid deterioration data using a Consult. If the deterioration data is more than 210000, replace the CVT fluid...."
I have checked CVT fluid, its color is amber and doesn't have a burning smell.

Now I am thinking of changing CVT fluid, but heard some frightening stories about how this late (?) fluid change can ruin a CVT transmission.

CVT Fluid deterioration is caused by driving while CVT temperature is too high (above 90 C). I do not drive my car in mountains and it doesn't have a tow hitch.

So why is it so dangerous to change it considering that my CVT fluid is not varnished or milky white and doesn't have metal powder mixed in?


Thank you in advance.

Changing it late is supposedly bad for all transmissions either automatic or cvt.

Speaking for myself ONLY, I prefer to throw caution into the wind BECAUSE of the horror stories about the Nissan cvt itself.

I was Late in the game by finally changing my cvt fluid at around 75,000 miles.

Best decision I ever made. It’s been driving milky buttery smooth ever since.

I also thought the fluid looked clear on the dip stick and paper napkin, but after draining into a clear empty plastic Hi-C juice jug, it looked absolutely dark. You can see it on an old post of mine.

Moreover, I drive on smooth flat roads 99% of the time.

I had the worse shuddering, hesitation from a complete stop that it was a herky-jerky terrible experience when driving.

Even thought it was normal because we have this crappy cvt.

But since the cvt, diff, trans, fluid changes, I have no more rubber banding, whiplash jolting drive anymore.

Engine so quiet that it’s hard to tell if it’s on, plus needing to confirm by looking at rpm display because steering wheel does not even vibrate to give you a clue that the engine is running.

Anything to make the cvt last longer, I was willing to do.

Luckily, on the 2009 model, it was as easy as removing a drain bolt and pouring new cvt fluid through the drainhole.

Much easier than a normal oil change since I don’t have to worry about a filter.

I did change the strainer during the 5 Drain & fills I have done so far.

Going now on a decade with my original cvt.

I really want to get some beefy all terrains but my setup is so perfect with tires balanced and not vibrating that I am still enjoying my present ride.

It runs so scary smooth and with a car like feel as it should.

I even think it runs smoother than our Lexus IS250 which is sporty and our Cadillac SRX which feels more bumpy to me and tank like.

While my 2009 rogue Is small and too the point, with no complex driving gadgets. It simply runs with the cvt still operating normally.

All I can wish for, hopefully is for another 60,000 miles.

Do what helps you sleep at night.

Personally, I don’t rely on that Nissan fluid deterioration data Mumbo jumbo. I decided to change it and over did it; you can say.

If you wait til Nissan tells you, you’re Nissan Rogue would probably be in a deteriorated state by then.

Since their goal is to sell more nissans.

You think they want your car too last for the lucky few who got the 10 yr/120,000 mile warranty? Funny how these cvt’s crap out after the warranty ends for those unlucky few.... if not earlier and replaced 2-3 times.

It’s bad enough with all the Nissan cvt stories as is, so yeah; I will do what’s best for my Nissan Rogue now.

I recently changed mine out at 84K kilometers and the dert date was 24,000 ish. Much smoother. it was also a single drain and fill. 4.5 liters approx.

@casperfun,

I appreciate your detailed response, but my question was: "is it too late/dangerous to change CVT fluid in my car?"
It is quiet and smooth @116,000 miles on the original CVTF yet.
I love this car and want to keep it for another 2-3 years. It is simple and reliable and it has never been in the Nissan stealership since the purchase date (that is why it runs like new ).
So, again, my question is not about when people changed their CVTF but rather am I screwed or not (116000 miles on original CVTF)?

Do what you want to.

I personally find it hard to swallow the trans has gone that long without dirtying or coloring the oil, I rebuild ATX and have never seen a trans do that ever. My '17 Altima is already getting the oil somewhat dirty at 25K miles. If the fluid started out clear then the amber color would likely be a temperature effect.

Relating to the Nissan number of 90C fluid temperature..........if the vehicle has a fluid to fluid cooler built into the CVT as so many of them do..........well, that number translates to 195F and is the temperature the engine normally 'cools' the fluid to. Actually probably a bit more as a 195 stat in car always runs engine temp about 10 degrees or so higher, meaning 205. If Nissan wants to call that 'excessive' then it is what it is. Trans fluid should be able to run up to 230F all day long and fine, past that it is getting too hot.

amc49 wrote: ↑

Thu Sep 05, 2019 9:11 pm

Relating to the Nissan number of 90C fluid temperature..........if the vehicle has a fluid to fluid cooler built into the CVT as so many of them do..........well, that number translates to 195F and is the temperature the engine normally 'cools' the fluid to. Actually probably a bit more as a 195 stat in car always runs engine temp about 10 degrees or so higher, meaning 205. If Nissan wants to call that 'excessive' then it is what it is. Trans fluid should be able to run up to 230F all day long and fine, past that it is getting too hot.

No questions that a transmission can withstand 230F but for how long before fluid needs to be changed?



I have started this discussion to get an answer on how long CVT fluid can be used in CVT transmission considering that Deterioration date is very low, in my case 2712, and how conservatively I am driving this car. Which can't be driven aggressively just because it is not a muscle car.
I was monitoring CVTF temperature during my 130 miles commute and temperature has never reached 85C (185 F)
People, I believe, in many cases kill their transmissions by pushing them to the limits when CVT fluid must be changed every 10,000 - 15,000 miles but they just ignore it. But this is just my non professional opinion.

I am not a mechanic and need to be educated but scientifically not based on some horror stories that are currently circulating on the Internet.

And this is not about the fluid flush . I am thinking of the fluid exchange, which is a half of full capacity.

In my opinion, the horror stories are usually associated with automatic transmissions. Personally, I never read about cvt transmissions failing because old fluid was finally changed 100,000 or later.

The train of thought is in automatic transmissions, you would perhaps not change the fluid anymore after 150,000 miles because of the fluid pressure and all the dirty debris in the torque converter is the reason the transmission is still working.

And by changing to new fluid, the automatic transmission would start slipping.

This is why you may not want to change your fluid if you believe that this might happen to a cvt transmission as well.

Considering that over 100,000 miles on a cvt can be seen as a normal lifespan for these crapshoot transmissions, you might wanna drive with care on this same fluid.

Personally, going by your chart, you have reached the life expectancy for your transmission fluid at the temperature you been running for over 100,000 miles.

So I would personally change the fluid now base on that.

The real horror stories are the cvt’s failing early, not because old transmission fluid was changed way later than usual.

But if you think that dirty debris in your transmission oil is the only reason the car is running to this day, don’t change it.

Even though you think the fluid looks clean, you still fear the transmission will fail because it’s over 100,000 and messing with it might ruin it.

But your meticulous view on temperature and transmission oil longevity trumps all, and by following that chart it’s due for a change according to you.

Hence, do a drain & fill which is as easy as doing a normal oil change.

If your changing your motor oil every 3k-5k miles, than changing your transmission oil after 116,000 miles should be no problem.

Your car, your call. If it was mine or I had just bought it, I’d change it. There is a complete drain and fill procedure, 8.5 quarts in the DIY section at the top of the page.

Like Rogue says - "do it ", I say J.F.D.I. ( Just F'n Do It ) . DO NOT MAKE the MISTAKE so many seem to have done - Ya gotta put back (at least) the same amount of fluid . You'll See , hear , " It seemed overfilled , and i put ' like ' one quart less " , that's STUPID.

IF you have no shift/perf. problems , and unless your an experienced EXPERT at the fluid level check ( Do check before to get a "baseline" ) gotta put back SAME amount of DEALER spec fluid , underhood tag rules on type - NO aftermarket "everything rated" fluids now.( Like Castrol etc. has NS2 AND NS3 rated - yah Right! )

Measure accurately somehow, I use a graduated drain pan, or you could pour out into bottles(don't spill ). I Rev. blow out the screen , or new like $40 ,do try to get a NEW O-ring for the screen at Dealer along with fluid !! For the record I took a shot of pan cond. / debris w/ I-phone.

I bought the pan gasaket - but the pan had one of those "perfectly mated" hard melded plastic lips that simply wetting with fluid sealed fine ( NO pan gasket from factory!), I tried and OK , no leaks ! Shelved pan gasket , save for future need?

This is a followup post.
I know that I went too far with my ignorance (+ 1 year and + 10,000 miles), but anyway, I have changed the CVT fluid on my 2011 Nissan Rogue SV (AWD).
And I did it at 127,000 miles ....

Just a reminder that it was the first CVT fluid change on this car.

What has been done:

1. Drained oil w/o removing the oil pan: 4 qts
2. Removed an oil pan, drained another 2 qts of cvt fluid
3. Cleaned magnets and the oil pan
4. Replaced a CVT filter (31728-1XF03)
5. Replaced an oil pan gasket (31397-1XF0C)
6. Torqued oil pan bolts with 6 lbf*ft
7. Torqued a drain bolt with the new crush washer (11026-JA00A) with 25 lbf*ft
8. Add 6 qts of Nissan NS-2 (999MP-CV0NS2) (checked the oil level after warming up the CVT fluid to 122-176 F)
9. Reset/cleared CVTF Deterioration date (the latest was 2900)

3 qts of old oil is still inside, but it doesn't bother me.

Paid for parts $160 including shipping.

Do not ask me about how the old fluid looked like ...

It looked ugly, of course, but with no metal shavings in it (filtered the first 10 oz of the drained oil thru the coffee filter).

Magnets were covered with metal dust.

This was a very, very emotional repair procedure (after reading some bad stories about late transmission fluid change), just felt that I have to bite the bullet.

I am by no means advocating here for this kind of extreme mechanics. People, do it earlier.

If you DIY and remove an oil pan and filter, buy 6 qts of CVT fluid.

I was lucky that in 2011 model Nissan re-designed the CVT transmission cooling system. This https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2012/ ... 0-8764.pdf has been addressed in 2011 models.

The transmission feels and sounds much better now.

The next project is going to be changing the rear differential and the transfer case oil which have never been changed before.

Sounds like a very thorough drain & fill. Alot of feeling of satisfaction after that accomplishment.

The differential is easy peasy.

The transfer case is slightly more difficult where you need to contort your arms, body, etc to remove the fill bolt.

I dumped NEW fluid after a few weeks on 80W-90 and went with the crowd in here and refilled with synthetic 70W-90 severe gear oil. Damn ocd.

BTW, @casperfun and @Rogue Jarhead, thank you for encouraging me to do this procedure.
Just forgot to mention that one of the oil pan bolts has been initially tightened with the force under some angle, I believe, by some bleeping JATCO assembler. The thread in the aluminum body was partially stripped and I was unable to torque it properly. But the pan is not leaking (crossing my fingers). What I can't figure out is how that nasty guy knew that I will buy this car?