My '09 Rogue broke down on me last night

[sheaitisnotso]

So i'm leaving work last night and about a mile down the road my Rogue begins to shake a little bit and I hear a POP. All of a sudden it won't drive, RPM's go up when I press on the gas but it's not doing anything. Luckily I had enough speed to coast to a side street and out of the way. I work at an airport and called over our vehicle maintenance mechanic to take a look and he said it doesn't look good for the transmission. He pulled out the dipstick and said the fluid should be red in color, and what came out was light brown. Also had some smoke come out with the dipstick, yikes!

So I had it towed to my dealer and now almost 24 hours later, still no word. I just called and they said they are looking at it now so we'll see. I'm very good about on time maintenance and I even went to my dealer about a month ago for some Customer Appreciation Complimentary Oil Change and Vehicle Checkup and they found nothing wrong with it. Since the dealership was already closed by the time I got there I wasn't able to request a rental car and since I had to work early the following morning I just rented one from the airport. My insurance already covered the tow and they say they will cover a rental car up to $30/day but sounds like this is something Nissan should take care of. Car is only 2.5 years old with 37,000 miles and luckily the drive train is 5 years/60,000 miles so I should be covered.

Anyone have anything like this happen to them?

[300ZXttZMAN]

Sounds like the transmission burnt up

You should be covered for sure. I am guessing you bought the Rogue off the lot?

[casperfun]

I know this is not related but did the weather changed dramatically in your area. There's a blizzard in some parts of the country.

Anyway, let us know what happen.

Thanks

[sheaitisnotso]

300: Yes I did buy off the lot from this dealer.

Casper: Weather has been pretty consistent here in Columbus, OH. Cold temps ranging in the 30s-40s and on and off rain. When the incident happened it was dry though.

[philipa_240sx]

He pulled out the dipstick and said the fluid should be red in color, and what came out was light brown. Also had some smoke come out with the dipstick, yikes!

Nissan CVT fluid is actually a clear amber color NOT RED like that found in conventional automatics. DO NOT substitute anything other than genuine Nissan CVT fluid otherwise it can result in permanent transmission damage.

The dipstick has a locking tab to prevent lube shops, etc from inadvertently filling with the wrong fluid. It also has a warning label regarding the use of Nissan CVT fluid. This is also mentioned in the owners manual.

Car is only 2.5 years old with 37,000 miles and luckily the drive train is 5 years/60,000 miles so I should be covered.

Nissan extended the warranty for 2003-2010 vehicles equipped with the CVT transmission to 10 years/120,000 miles:

http://www.nissanassist.com/web/CVT/index.php?menu=8

[sheaitisnotso]

Thanks Philipa. Obviously from my original post I'm by no means a car guy, so that is good to know.

Just got off the phone with the shop and they said it is an "unknown internal transmission failure." So looks like they're replacing it with a new one that should be delivered tomorrow.

[philipa_240sx]

So looks like they're replacing it with a new one that should be delivered tomorrow.

I spoke to a Nissan tech regarding these CVT's. It's not something that can be easily repaired as it requires specialized equipment to assemble/disassemble and technical knowledge. Simple service tasks like replacing sensors, control valves, etc can be done by the dealer. If it's anything else, the dealer simply replaces the CVT with new.

Your new CVT should be covered under the same 10yr/120,000mi warranty.

[ralican2130]

are you using the O/D function??

[kerrton]

Good points on the CVT, in particular the one regarding the specialized fluid.

Random transmission failures will happen with all makes and models, even the most reliable Honda will have a small number of outright failures, it's just a fact of life and it's very unfortunate if it happens to you.

The Nissan CVT including the one in the Rogue has been very reliable overall with the small exception of some of the early 2008 units which were corrected under warranty. If you look at any of the consumer reports, or even better the TrueDelta.com site with real world stats, the Nissan Rogue CVT and vehicle as a whole have reliability ratings significantly above the average. Also reports of outright failures that you leave you strandard are almost non-existent. Of the handful of owners who have reported CVT's replaced on this forum, almost none of them had outright failures, there were early indications of problems such as noises or performances issues but the car was still drivable and didn't require a tow. Yours is one of only 2 cases that I can remember reading about with outright failure requiring a tow.

It's unfortunate that you had CVT problems, the good news is you will quickly get a brand new CVT transmission installed, no re-builds or repaired units.

[sheaitisnotso]

Ralican: No, I have never used O/D.

Kerrton: Thanks for the reply. I have no ill will towards Nissan and I understand it was just a random freak thing that happened. Looking forward to getting my own car back and just hope Nissan will still cover my rental car, as it was Monday night when this happened, the dealer was already closed so no loaner available. Also had to work the next morning, who knew how long it might be in the shop with Christmas coming up so I just did a week rental.

[kerrton]

I'm glad that your issue was diagnosed and will be fixed quickly and without hassle. In some cases it's actually better if you get an outright part failure because then it's very easy to diagnose and there is no chance they can deny the repair.

You're actually lucky that they can ship in a new CVT transmission so quick too, especially around Christmas. I had my CVT replaced on my brand new 08 FWD Rogue shortly after purchasing it due to a bit of a rattle noise at low speeds. The new replacement CVT has been absolutely flawless for the past 3.5 years and 45,000 km and the fluid still looks clean and like-new. I'm sure you'll be very satisfied with your car after the repair is complete, and I can't stress enough the how significant it is that you are getting a brand new replacement transmission and not a rebuild or having the tech's repair a component of your existing CVT as most other manufacturers would do.