The name Nissan originated in Japan and the founder was named Yoshisuke Aikawa. He first became president of Nihon Sangyo in 1928 which was a foundry and auto part company. Nihon Sangyo moved on to the Tokyo Stock Exchange under the name NISSAN in 1933 and expanded from there. In 1958 Nissan came to the United States as Datsun and was the first mass-produced Japanese vehicle. 

Nissan became a player as Datsun due to the unique style of sedans and compact pickups. Nissan showcased its first Datsuns as a 1000cc car and truck. This was done at the 1959 Los Angeles Auto Show. Nissan expanded to Mexico in 1966 and followed into both Australia and Taiwan. 

Officially Nissan in the United States was established in Gardena, California. In the same year, the first sports car was introduced, the SPL 201. Eventually, the Datsun 2000 roadster became well known for its style and value. But as the band progressed in modern times, various transmission problems became apparent. 

What Does a Transmission Do?

The transmission takes power from the engine and pushes it to the wheels. It means that the transmission plays a role in controlling your vehicle. It is responsible for making sure the power goes where it is needed.

All cars have a transmission, but not all car owners understand what is going on with the transmission. This can make it difficult to diagnose problems, but it can be difficult to understand the issues unless you have education. Your vehicle that can be difficult to decipher unless you’re trained to do so. 

Converting Speed

The transmission maximizes the efficiency of your car’s engine. It works to reduce fuel consumption while avoiding any negative effects while driving. For example, when taking off from a stoplight, the transmission uses a lower gear. This means there is less torque at lower RPMs. This provides just the right amount of power to move the wheels.

When you drive on the highway, your transmission uses a gear with a higher ratio. This moves the vehicle at high speeds and attempts to keep the engine RPMs low.

Manual Transmission

Automatic transmissions have become more popular in the last few years, but manual transmissions are easier to fix. These gears are made of output shafts and input shafts. The gears of one shaft will engage the gears from the other shafts. 

Manual transmissions work by manually moving the shift lever. This then controls the movement in the input shaft. Each part works together with the two gears and is changed by shifting either left or right. Finally, the gear is engaged by pushing the clutch pedal, which disconnects the engine and the input shaft. This leads to the gears moving and disconnects the power between the transmission and engine. 

When the gear is chosen and the clutch is released, the power will re-engage in order to move the vehicle.

Automatic Transmission

Automatic transmissions work similarly to a manual transmission but work on their own. You do not need to shift the gears yourself and they do not have a clutch. Instead, there is a torque converter that works with the gear set and engine. You may not be able to shift but it does it automatically for you.

What Is a CVT?

Most Nissan cars use the Nissan CVT transmission. There are a number of well-known problems with this transmission, and it is important to know exactly what a continuously variable transmission is. Known as CVT, is also called a shiftless transmission or a pulley transmission. It is a form of automatic transmission that utilizes variable-width pulleys as well as a flexible belt. Other transmissions use fixed gears like a regular automatic transmission. CVTs are supposed to offer a better type of seamless acceleration by helping cars to avoid shifting. The idea is that this avoids the car hesitating or jerking.

There are other cars using CVT systems as well. Companies such as Audi and Honda as well as Subaru and Toyota use them. Out of all, Nissan is known for using the CVT system religiously. Nissan actually owns a stake in JATCO, which is a company that has been responsible for building most of the CVT transmissions in the world. Despite this, there are plenty of issues with the Nissan CVT system.

The Introduction of the Nissan CVT

Nissan did not begin adding CVT’s to their cars until the early 2000s. It began with the 2003 Nissan Murano, released in 2002. This was the first CVT transmission in the U.S., called the XTRONIC CVT.

This marked a change in how Nissan would make transmissions. After a few years, all of the transmissions in Nissan cars were CVTs. CVTs were soon found in Nissan Altimas, Nissan Pathfinders, Nissan Rogues, Nissan Sentras, and Nissan Versa. After a short while, Nissan CVT transmission problems became very apparent.

Signs of a Bad Nissan Transmission

When Nissan first started introducing CVT technology a lot of consumers were excited. Many people thought that the CVT could be the best transmission ever created in automatic options. Despite this, it did not take long for people to see the issues. The 2003 Nissan Murano was the first to show signs of a bad Nissan transmission and saw that this CVT transmission was a huge problem. Common signs included:

• Difficulty accelerating
• Shaking or stuttering during acceleration
• Hot running transmission
• Transmission shutting down without warning

What Nissan Models Most Commonly Have Transmission Issues?

2003 Nissan Murano

The CVTs in these Muranos commonly went out unexpectedly. This was common on an average of 118,000 miles. This then led to the cost of $4,100 for transmission repairs. Most often, these Muranos required a complete transmission replacement. The end result was Nissan having to extend the original warranty. Although they continued to push out the Nissan CVT, it contained many problems for generations to come.

4th and 5th Generation Nissan Altima

The 4th generation Nissan Altima was introduced in 2007. Eventually, it was replaced by the 5th generation Nissan Altima in 2012. These both had a series of complaints regarding different transmission issues. This included steering wheel lock failure and even cases of dashboards melting. One of the biggest issues was CVT's complete failure. 

The 2007 Altima typically saw CVT transmission failure at around the 100,000-mile mark and eventually cost the owners around $4500 in order to repair. The 2012 Nissan Altimas also had the same issue, but only had a cost of $3,200.

As the 5th generation Nissan Altima arrived, Nissan attempted to fix the issues. Despite this, the Nissan CVT transmission problems began to occur at the 53,000-mile mark. This was at a cost of $3000 to fix, and Nissan went on a downward spiral. 

3rd and 4th Generation Nissan Pathfinder

Nissan CVT transmission problems are not only known for the Altima, but also for the Pathfinder. The Nissan Pathfinder was one of the first Nissans after the Murano to have a CVT transmission installed in 2005. When the first 3rd generation Nissan Pathfinder was released, it was known as one of the worst Pathfinder model years.

It was well known that those who owned a 2005 Nissan Pathfinder had transmission problems such as:

• Coolant leaking into the transmissions 
• Transmission failure
• Sputtering

These problems started to appear at the 90,000-mile mark and ended up costing around $3500 to fix it. In the 2006 and 2007 Nissan Pathfinders, it was also apparent, but Nissan decided to reduce the CVT-related issues found in Pathfinders.

Class Action Lawsuit

The 4th generation Nissan Pathfinder was released in 2014 and was eventually involved in a class-action lawsuit. This lawsuit stated that the Pathfinder would shake when driven only 15 to 30 miles per hour. This was dangerous and hit as soon as the 2014 Pathfinder hit the 30,000-mile mark. It was a $4000 fix. 

1st and 2nd Generation Nissan Rogue

First released in 2007, the Nissan Rogue essentially replaced the Murano as one of the most popular Nissan models of all time. When originally released, it was not received well, but is now seen as a huge part of the Nissan family. Despite this, the Rogue has many transmission problems, which it has experienced since pretty much the beginning. The 1st generation Rogue was made from 2008 to 2013, and the 2nd generation was made from 2014 to 2019. They both have issues with the transmission systems.

• 2008 Rogue: Problems included stopping in acceleration or stopping driving completely. This usually occurred due to Nissan CVT transmission problems at 86,000 miles. This cost was around $3000 and close to the cost of other transmission issues. In some cases, Rouge owners found their transmissions failing completely at 125,000 miles. This cost was anywhere around $3,200 to replace the transmission.
• 2014 Rogue: This was the 2nd generation, and started to show signs of trouble at around 80,000 miles. These costs were anywhere from $3,500 to $3,600. 

Although there have not been many problems reported with Rogue recently, it has shown that they are not incredibly reliable as the masses might think. 

6th Generation Nissan Sentra

The Nissan Sentra is a long-running Nissan car and was released in the 1980s. It still continues today and is well known in the lineup. Despite this, it was found with a variety of Nissan CVT transmission problems as well. The 6th generation Nissan Sentra was released in 2013, and problems occurred such as:

• Revving 
• Jerking 
• Total CVT transmission failure
• Slipping

This was common at 80,000 miles and cost around $3,500. The 2013 and 2014 Nissan Sentras also seemed to give major issues when it came to the CVT transmission problems.

1st and 2nd Generation Nissan Versa

There was one huge problem with the 1st generation Nissan Versa. These were released between 2007 and 2011 and created a lot of negative feedback for Nissan. First, it was found that the Takata airbags placed into the cars were defective, and the cars were required to be recalled. This occurred in May 2016 and July 2017. Next, there were transmission problems in many 1st generation Versas. Owners of the original 2008 Versa, began stating that there were transmission problems that appeared at the 120,000-mile mark. This was a cost of around $3,700.

In the 2nd generation Versa, there was a common transmission failure, specifically in the 2012 model. These occurred at 72,000 miles and ended up being more than $3,500 on average. This led to another class-action lawsuit against Nissan stating that these CVT systems were defective. It was eventually settled with the condition that Nissan would provide extended warranties.

Average Cost of Nissan Transmission Repairs

For anyone who owns a Nissan the average to fix or replace a transmission was anywhere between $3,500 to $8,000. This pushed Nissan to extend the warranties on many of their cars. Although it began at five years or 60,000 miles it then moved to 10 years or 120,000 miles.

Is Fixing Your Nissan with Transmission Problems Possible?

Nissan often steps up in order to make things right with their cars by offering extended warranties. Despite this, you may be wondering what to do with your Nissan that is struggling with transmission problems. The first step is to speak with Nissan as they may be able to offer an extended warranty. This can help you to afford to fix your transmission although it will not cover the problems that are not covered by a warranty, to begin with.

If you want to get rid of your Nissan that has CVT transmission problems, then we can help you to sell your current car. The best place to do that is at CashForCars.com. Not only will this allow you to buy a safer car, but it will be less expensive than attempting to fix your car.