Transmission Fluid Matic-J

Covering the 2003-2015 first-gen and 2016+ Titan and Titan XD lineup
titanup
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Joined: Thu Apr 23, 2009 12:57 am
Car: 2004 Titan LE

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I have a 2004 Titan 4X4 LE I recently had a hose go bad and had to replace it and add trans fluid. I used Castrol Import, now my trans seems to be slipping. My question is have I done damage to my trans or can I drain it, add matic-J from the dealer and be OK? I put about 75-100 miles on it.


RT
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Car: 1991 nissan king cab pick up

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what is castrol import? does it meet the specs for the tranny? is it over filled?

titanup
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Joined: Thu Apr 23, 2009 12:57 am
Car: 2004 Titan LE

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Castrol import multi-vehicle transmission fluid. I checked the fluid level several times, it is good.

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C-Kwik
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Permanent damage can occur. Hopefully it has not. Try replacing the fluid, but you will need to try and get as much of the old fluid out as possible. I'd recommend having the dealer do it for you, but if you do want to tackle it yourself, follow the procedure in the service manual as it will pretty much replace all the fluid. Its a messy procedure to perform with typical tools though.

titanup
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Car: 2004 Titan LE

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Thanks for the info. I grew up in Ontario, do live any where near there?My last house was in Hesperia.

titanup
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Car: 2004 Titan LE

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I would like to find out what the difference is between matic-d and matic-j, what kind of damage can occur if I use castrol import multi-vehicle trans fluid, and if I change to nissian matic-j from dealer could the transmission be or work ok?

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C-Kwik
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titanup wrote:Thanks for the info. I grew up in Ontario, do live any where near there?My last house was in Hesperia.
I'm in Orange County...Stanton to be more specific. It's probably about an hour drive from Ontario.
titanup wrote:I would like to find out what the difference is between matic-d and matic-j, what kind of damage can occur if I use castrol import multi-vehicle trans fluid, and if I change to nissian matic-j from dealer could the transmission be or work ok?
Not sure what the specific chemical differences are.

I've heard of Titan guys who used the wrong fluid and switched to matic-J immediately and had no noticable problems. But I've also heard of people who needed to replace their transmission after adding the wrong fluid. There could be a number of factors that affect this. My suggestion would be to try and swap out the fluid (do not dirve it until you do; tow the vehicle to a shop if you will have a shop/dealer do it). If the tranny is toast already, the few hundred you spend will be the least of your concerns.

titanup
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Car: 2004 Titan LE

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Thanks (C-Kwik).

CPS
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Matic J is no longer offered by Nissan. It has been replaced by Matic S. So if you go to the dealer and get it, don't think they sold you the wrong fluid.

And, yes, you need to get that Castrol stuff out immediately. There is no known compatible fluid with Nissan's automatic transmissions with the exception of Matic D.

titanup
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Joined: Thu Apr 23, 2009 12:57 am
Car: 2004 Titan LE

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DO NOT USE CASTROL MULTI-IMPORT TRANSMISSION FLUID!!!!!!!!!!!!!!MY TRANSMISSION IS TOAST.ONLY USE NISSIAN MATIC-J IF THATS WHAT YOUR OWNERS MANUAL RECOMMENDS.

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C-Kwik
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Sorry to hear man! I'm not sure there is much else that can be said. If money is an issue, you might be able to try and locate a used one. Its unfortunate OE's are moving towards more specialized fluids. Not surprising given technology advancements and is probably the reason they got rid of transmission dipsticks in newer auto tranny vehicles. And it definitely doesn't help that some tranny fluids claim to be compatible for all applications.

bwarren228
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Car: '05 Nismo Frontier... '90 240 hatch

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For a temporary fix, Lucas trans additive works wonders.

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azeiler
Posts: 170
Joined: Mon Nov 10, 2008 9:23 am
Car: 2006 Infiniti M35 w/Luxury Package
Location: Fort Lauderdale, FL

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CPS wrote:Matic J is no longer offered by Nissan. It has been replaced by Matic S. So if you go to the dealer and get it, don't think they sold you the wrong fluid.

And, yes, you need to get that Castrol stuff out immediately. There is no known compatible fluid with Nissan's automatic transmissions with the exception of Matic D.
Fluid manufactures have long since identified what the ingredients were in J-matic and there are plenty of substitutes. There are other threads (I don’t remember right now where) that give the exact make up of J-matic and what other fluids have the same ingredients. I just had my M35’s fluid changed by a local tranny shop (Automatic Transmission Factory in Davie, FL) that used Amsoil synthetic and a bottle of Lubeguard. What a huge difference!! The tranny shifts smoother when I drive nice, but kicks harder when I jump on it. I never expected these kinds of noticeable results just from switching fluids. And I have been a Castrol guy for 20+ years.

By the way, this same tranny shop just rebuilt my wifes Honda tranny, and it runs better than new. I have to say these guys know what the heck they’re doing. My son’s Stratus is going in next.

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jdansmith
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A service center I worked at years ago used Lubeguard in Chrysler Products with Dextron on vehicles calling for ATF + 3 and never had a issue with a service.

Not recommended for Nissan though.http://www.transmissionpartsus...0.htm

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azeiler
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jdansmith wrote: A service center I worked at years ago used Lubeguard in Chrysler Products with Dextron on vehicles calling for ATF + 3 and never had a issue with a service.

Not recommended for Nissan though.http://www.transmissionpartsus...0.htm
Check Lubegaurd's website: http://www.lubegard.com/C-110/Transmission. There are a few different tranny additives. The one your link goes to is the black bottle, which is not for Nissan.

The tranny shop I went to (http://www.atfspeed.com/) builds racing tranny's and have done so for many years. In fact, they are the pit crew for Jim Blair's Silver Bullet (6.844 @ 202.91), so I have some degree of confidence in them. Besides, the results I experienced speak for themselves. BTW, they used Lubegaurd's Platinum in my M (silver bottle).

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jdansmith
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I shot them a e-mail to see what the recommend and hope their product is suitable for older Nissan transmissions ( ie my 89 hardbody).

Titainup, its worth contacting them in your situation. I liked the results it gave on Chrysler transmissions that where abused and had soft shifts and minor slippage.


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