2006 Nissan Xterra

THE TRANSMISSION FAILED DURING HEAVY COMMUTE TRAFFIC HWY AT 60MPH CREATING A NEAR MISS MULTI VEHICLE COLLISION. NO INJURIES OR ACCIDENT OCCURED BECAUSE OF THE MALFUNCTION. THE VEHICLE LOST POWER AND WAS PULLED SAFELY TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. THE CAUSE OF THE TRANSMISSION FAILURE WAS DIAGNOSED TO BE TRANSMISSION FAILURE DUE TO CONTAMINATION FROM ENGINE COOLANT. A COMMON PROBLEM WITH THIS MAKE AND MODEL AS THOUSANDS OF CONSUMER COMPLAINTS HAVE BEEN FILED BUT IGNORED BY THE NHTSA AND NISSAN. THE FACTORY RADIATOR HAS A KNOWN DEFECT WHICH CAUSED THE INTERCOOLER TUBING FROM THE TRANSMISSION TO THE RADIATOR TO CRACK AND FAIL THUS CAUSING CROSS CONTAMINATION OF TRANMISSION FLUID AND ENGINE COOLANT FROM THE RADIATOR TO MIX AND DESTROY THE TRANSMISSION. THE FAILURE REQUIRES REPLACEMENT OF THE RADIATOR AND REPLACEMENT OR REBUILDING OF THE TRANSMISSION AT A COST OF $5,500. IN OVER 45 YEARS OF DRIVING ALL MAKES,YEARS AND MODELS OF VEHICLES BOTH FOREIGN AND DOMESTIC, I HAVE NEVER HAD ONE FAILURE OF THIS TYPE BEFORE, EVEN IN VEHICLES WITH OVER 300,000 MILES OF USE. IN MY HUMBLE OPINION, THIS IS NOTHING LESS THAN AN ENGINEERING DEFECT EITHER PURPOSEFULLY DESIGNED AS BUILT IN OBSOLESCENSE, OR OVERLOOKED AND DENIED BY NISSAN AS A MATERIALS DEFECT IN MANUFACTURING. ANYONE CAN USE A SEARCH ENGINE ON THE INTERNET TO FIND THAT THIS IS A COMMON OCCURANCE BUT NO RECALL HAS BEEN ENACTED BECAUSE THERE HAS BEEN NO DEATHS REPORTED YET. BECAUSE MY VEHICLE IS OUT OF WARRANTY, BUT OF THIS LOW MILAGE, IT WAS NOT A MAINTENANCE ISSUE, AS IT IS A 2 WHEEL DRIVE VEHICLE NOT USED FOR OFF ROAD BUT STANDARD PAVED ROADWAY USE. OIL CHANGES AND INSPECTIONS WERE COMPLETED AS RECOMMENDED.

WE WERE PULLING A LIGHT 18 FOOT TRAILER UP A STEEP HILL, AT LOW SPEED DUE TO THE GRADE. IT WAS ON HWY 89, ABOUT 5 MILES W OF GARDEN CITY, UTAH. THE RPM OF THE CAR RACED UP TO 4,000, IT LOST POWER AND LUGGED. WE WERE FORTUNATE THAT THERE WAS A TURN OFF A VERY SHORT DISTANCE AHEAD. WE WERE ALSO FORTUNATE THAT THE FAILURE DID NOT OCCUR WHEN WE WERE TURNING LEFT IN FRONT OF ON-COMING TRAFFIC. THE ENGINE WAS SMOKING HOT, EVEN THOUGH THE RADIATOR DIDN'T SHOW ANY HEAT. IT TOOK A WHILE TO RECOGNIZE THE ISSUE.

ON SUNDAY, AUGUST 30, 2015, WHILE DRIVING FROM MARYLAND TO VIRGINIA, ON A SPEED LIMIT OF 55, VEHICLE SLOWED DOWN AND TRANSMISSION WONT ENGAGED WHILE ACCELERATING THE GAS PEDAL, RPM WAS GOING TO THE HIGHER NUMBER/RED ZONE AND CAR WILL NOT MOVE FASTER UP TO THE NOTED SPEED LIMIT. WHEN WE STOP AT THE LIGHT, AND THE LIGHTS TURN GREEN, THE VEHICLE WILL NOT MOVE AND MAKE LOUD NOISE AND RPM GOING HIGHER TO THE RED ZONE NUMBERS. THIS CAUSED TRAFFIC BEHIND US BACK UP BECAUSE OF SPEED TOO SLOW IN A 55-MILE PER HOUR SPEED. I WAS AFRAID IT COULD HAVE CAUSED AN ACCIDENT. THIS HAPPENED SEVERAL TIMES DURING A 200-MILE TRAVEL FROM MARYLAND TO VIRGINIA. I READ THAT THERE WERE SEVERAL COMPLAINTS ABOUT NISSAN VEHICLES ABOUT RADIRATOR WATER LEAKS TO THE TRANSMISSION AND CAUSING IT TO MALFUNCTION. ACCORDING THE PRICE TRANSMISSION EXPERTS, THIS IS THE SAME PROBLEM AND THE COST TO REPAIR WILL COST $4,400.00 I WOULD LIKE TO HAVE NISSAN PAY THE REPAIR COST.

THE FIRST INCIDENT WAS A COUPLE MONTHS AGO WHEN MY CAR JUST DECIDED TO STOP IN TRAFFIC ALL THE SUDDEN. JUST SHUT DOWN. THEN YESTERDAY I WAS DRIVING TO WORK AND A CAR IN FRONT OF ME DECIDED TO SLOW DOWN. WHEN I HIT THE BREAKS TO SLOW DOWN THE CAR WOULD NOT ACCELERATE BACK UP IT DECREASED. I COULD NOT GET IT TO GO. I RESTARTED THE CAR AND IT TURNED ON AND WENT AGAIN. I LOOKED AT THIS WEBSITE AND SAW ALL THE COMPLAINTS.I HAVE HAD ALL THE SAME ISSUES WITH STALLING, NOT STARTING, AND NO ACCELERATION. I TOOK IT TO A TRANSMISSION SHOP AND THEY COULD NOT DETECT ANYTHING WRONG AS NO CODES AND OF COURSE IT DID NOT DO IT FOR THEM WHEN THEY TEST DROVE IT. I TOOK MY CAR TO THE NISSAN DEALERSHIP SHOWED THEM THE PRINT OUT FROM THIS SITE AND TOLD THEM I AM HAVING ALL THOSE PROBLEMS WITHIN THE LAST COUPLE MONTHS. THEY TOLD ME SINCE MY VIN WAS NOT INCLUDED IN THE RECALL THEY BASICALLY COULD NOT HELP WITHOUT CHARGING ME $900 FOR A RADIATOR PLUS THE ENGINE CONTROL MODULE $78. I HAD TO PAY $100 JUST FOR THEM TO LOOK AT IT. THEY TOLD ME A WHOLE NEW TRANSMISSION WOULD BE $9000. THIS IS A HORRIBLE PROBLEM THIS VEHICLE IS HAVING AND IS VERY DANGEROUS FOR YOUR CAR TO JUST TURN OFF WHILE DRIVING. I HAVE A SMALL CHILD IN THE CAR WITH ME. VERY SCARY WOULD COULD HAPPEN. I DO NOT CARE WHAT THE MILEAGE IS ON THE VEHICLE. NISSAN NEEDS TO INCLUDE ALL XTERRA'S NO MATTER WHAT THE VIN IS FOR THE TIME FRAME! ALL THESE COMPLAINTS NEED ACTION. I LITTLE TO QUINKY DINK THEY ARE ALL HAPPENING NOW! NISSAN DEALERSHIP TOLD ME THEY WOULD RECOMMEND: ECM RELAY $78, RADIATOR $740, PLUS SOME OTHER MAINTENANCE STUFF. WHEN I WENT TO LEAVE AFTER HAVING THEM REPLACE THE. ECM I HAD A LOVELY LETTER STATING THEY DID A COMPLIMENTARY APPRAISAL OF MY VEHICLE. THEY DID EVERYTHING TO CONFIRM IT IS THE PROBLEM, BUT OFFERED NO HELP UNLESS I FORK OUT THE $$$$$.

I HAD JUST EXITED THE INTERSTATE AND WAS STOPPED AT A TRAFFIC LIGHT. MY TRANSMISSION HAD BEEN MAKING A NOISE BUT I DID NOT KNOW WHY. WHEN I ATTEMPTED TO PULL AWAY FROM THE LIGHT MY TRANSMISSION WOULD NOT ENGAGE INTO GEAR. MY VEHICLE HAD TO BE TOWED TO THE REPAIR SHOP WHERE IT WAS DETERMINED FLUID FROM MY RADIATOR WHICH HAD CRACKED THE PREVIOUS MONTH HAD MOVED THROUGH THE COOLANT LINES INTO MY TRANSMISSION AND CAUSES ITS FAILURE. IF THIS HAD HAPPENED WHILE STILL ON THE INTERSTATE I WOULD HAVE BEEN AT HIGH RISK FOR A FATAL WRECK TO HAVE OCCURED

I AM WRITING THIS IN REGARD TO THE RADIATOR CRACKING AND LEAKING COOLANT INTO THE TRANSMISSION FLUID. THIS PROBLEM COMPLETELY RUINS TRANSMISSIONS AND THERE IS NO WAY TO TELL THE PROBLEM IS OCCURING. I HAVE HAD THE VEHICLE INSPECTED REGULARLY AND MAINTAINED TO ALL MANUFACTURER SPECIFICATIONS. I RECEIVED ZERO NOTIFICATION FROM NISSAN ABOUT THIS ISSUE. THIS IS MY PRIMARY VEHICLE I USE TO TRANSPORT MY CHILD. I WAS LEFT STRANDED ON THE SIDE OF A BACK ROAD IN EXTREME HEAT DUE TO THIS DEFECT. THE COST OF REPAIRING THIS ISSUE IS WELL OVER THE WORTH OF THE VEHICLE ITSELF.

CRACKED RADIATOR HOSE CAUSED COOLANT TO MIX WITH TRANSMISSION FLUID THEREBY RUINING THE TRANSMISSION. COST INCLUDED RADIATOR AND TRANSMISSION (USED) REPLACEMENT. THIS ISSUE WOULD HAVE BEEN PROACTIVELY REPAIRED / REPLACED THE RADIATOR PRIOR TO THE ISSUE OCCURRING HAD NISSAN NOTIFIED ME OF IT. INSTEAD, IT COST AN EXTRA $3500 TO REPLACE BOTH RADIATOR AND TRANSMISSION. A TOTALLY PREVENTABLE SITUATION, NEVER MIND THE POTENTIALLY HAZARDOUS SITUATION HAD THE TRANSMISSION FAILED AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS. NO EXCUSE FOR NISSAN.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 NISSAN XTERRA. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 25 MPH, THE VEHICLE LOST POWER AND STALLED WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE NISSAN DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT RADIATOR COOLANT AND TRANSMISSION FLUID MIXED TOGETHER AND CAUSED THE TRANSMISSION TO FAIL. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED AND DIAGNOSED THE FAILURE AS "POWER TRANSMISSION CROSS TRAIN". THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 118,000.

AS I CAME UP TO STOP AT A RED LIGHT, THE XTERRA BEGAN TO SHUDDER AND THE TACHOMETER STARTED RISING AND FALLING UNTIL I FINALLY STOPPED, THEN THE TACHOMETER DROPPED BELOW 500 RPM AND THE TRUCK TURNED OFF. RESTARTED IT FINE, BUT IT STALLED AGAIN. I QUICKLY FIGURED OUT THAT ALTHOUGH IT IS AN AUTOMATIC, I NEEDED TO DRIVE IT LIKE A MANUAL. SO I PUT IT IN NEUTRAL, STARTED IT AGAIN, IT DID NOT STALL, THEN I REVVED THE ENGINE TO 2,000 RPM AND PUT IT INTO DRIVE. OFF I WENT, AND IT DID NOT DO IT AGAIN THAT DAY. HOWEVER, OVER THE NEXT MONTH IT BECAME A GROWING PROBLEM, UNTIL IT FINALLY WAS OCCURRING EVERY SINGLE TIME I STOPPED UNLESS I PUT IT IN NEUTRAL. I TOOK IT TO THE MECHANIC WHO SPENT 4 HOURS DIAGNOSING IT TO BE CERTAIN OF THE PROBLEM. WHICH THEY SAID WAS A FAILING TORQUE CONVERTOR AND PLATE. IT FAILED DUE TO COOLANT LEAKING INTO THE TRANSMISSION FROM A BROKEN HOUSING COMING OFF OF THE RADIATOR (APPARENTLY A VERY COMMON PROBLEM FOR WHICH NISSAN REFUSES TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY). NOT HARD TO VERIFY THEIR FINDINGS DUE TO THE PRESENCE OF PINK MILKSHAKE LOOKING LIQUID IN THE RADIATOR. FINAL VERDICT, AT BEST IT NEEDS A NEW TORQUE CONVERTOR AND PLATE, BUT WITH THE AMOUNT OF EFFORT TO INSTALL THOSE AND UNKNOWN FURTHER DAMAGE FROM THE COOLANT LEAK, A NEW TRANSMISSION WAS RECOMMENDED.