CVT "slipping" 2009 Murano

[Nepenthe1957]

The CVT in my 2009 Murano is misbehaving. No codes set and it wouldn't repeat at the dealer, thus it came back NTF. Here is the info I gave them.

********When it happens:I notice the problem most often when making a normal (non-aggressive, constant pressure/position of the pedal) launch from a stop on a street with a 35-40 MPH speed limit. Unfortunately it does not do this every time. I took the car out for 30 minutes last night and it did not happen once. On Sunday it happened on every launch for an hour.

Normal behavior:If one watches/listens to the RPM during such a launch, normally the engine starts at idle, climbs smoothly to perhaps 2200-2400 RPM, and smoothly backs down to the 1500 RPM range as the transmission “upshifts” and speed stabilizes at 40MPH.

Problem behavior:When it is misbehaving it starts at idle, but then the RPM swings high (around 3500 RPM). If I keep the gas pedal steady, the RPM will remain there and not “upshift” and back off as normal (hence my description of “slipping”), even at 40 MPH. If I wiggle (partially release and reapply) the gas pedal, the transmission reacts and the RPM drops down to the normal 1500 RPM range.

*******I have recently discovered that I can get it to recover from this situation by "double-tapping" the O/D off switch on the side of the shifter.

Any informed thoughts on the matter? Anyone else have this problem?

[Timmbo]

Certainly not a common problem, I wouldn't worry though, Nissan and your dealer will take care of you. I really have not heard of any issues on the '09 models, although I am sure they are out there.

[shaqatk]

its a common cvt transmission problem... nissan just didnt realize the problem they're cousing themselves when they made the cvt... what they did is they made a freaking rubber belt to pull 4000 pound car... take infiniti for example... they have normal steel pullies and so on, so u allmost never get any transmission problems... well atleast in new york city u dont (^_^)... i know someone who works in a shop and he told me that they get atleast 9-10 nissans with cvt transmission problem per month... compared to fx35 like 1 or 2 per like 2-3 months...

[kerrton]

You're way out to lunch on this one, there is absolutely no Nissan CVT with a rubber belt, like you said this is ridiculous and is not possible.

The belt is made of a metal alloy, it's flexible because it's actually many slats of narrow metal bound together to make a flexible belt - hard to explain but I know there is good diagram somewhere out there. Anyway, based on reliability ratings the transmission in Nissans is actually above average and this is NOT a common problem. It might seem common becasue you only hear about the handful of people with problems, all the millions of owners who have reliable trouble free CVT's don't get noticed but trust me, there are millions of them and the failure rate would be a small fraction of a percent. If your buddy gets 10 CVT problems per month, his counterpart in a Ford, GM or Chrysler shop probably gets 15 or 20, that's just life.

[govols0511]

I have a slipping problem but it's a bit different. WHen I move in reverse, and then shift to drive, the transmission slips. The dealer tells me this is normal. Anyone else had this issue??

[Hmason]

I have experienced this as well, however I notice it only occurs if you do not come to a complete stop before shifting into drive from reverse. Bring the vehicle to a full stop with the brakes, then shift to drive and I think your problem will be gone.

[shaqatk]

dude i actually saw the "belt" with my own 2 eyes... i meen it hurts me 2 say it but its true...By the way... just to make things clear im talking about 03-07 murano trannys...
Modified by shaqatk at 2:43 PM 6/27/2009

[richb]

Same thing here. It seems to me that it happens after the reverse thing, but especially after it idles for any extended period, say in a traffic jam. By extended I mean more than 5 minutes. And I must disagree about the Nissan will take care of it as they act like I am insane, even though I've been back twice to get this thing solved.

[BBISHOPPCM]

I've had an '06 CVT apart. It's a steel belt, just as the previous poster stated. There are CVTs out there that do, in fact, use a rubber belt. These include;

1990 Subaru Justy Most snowwmobilesMost motor scootersIndustrial equipment

Nissan is not going to stick a rubber belt inside the transmission of a $40,000 vehicle and charge $6000 to replace it when things go wrong. That would be corporate suicide.

[Desert Rat]

slippage in a CVT is inherent in the design - it's how they work. From your description it sounds like you're giving it a bit more throttle on the times the rpms jump.

To confirm, it's NOT a rubber belt.

[DanniCalifornia]

I am the original owner of a Nissan Murano 2009 that currently has 152,000 miles. At 150,000, I had the transmission replaced because it was hesitating, even as the gas pedal was to the floor. It mostly happened when I was going up hills, but towards the end it was even happening on the freeway. Well, after the new transmission was installed, it started happening again. Nissan told me that with the upgraded transmission and upgraded parts...I can expect that it will hesitate from time to time. I don't feel safe driving my car like this. If I had known that I would still experience hesitation while driving, I would not have dumped $3,000 into a new transmission.

Has anyone else experienced this?

[car5car]

Are CVT repairable? Nissan doesn't provide disassembly procedure in FSM. It should be much easier to repair than common transmissions.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c47caRqbbnE

[car5car]

extended warranty
http://www.nissanassist.com/faqs.php