ATF for Maxima

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Mau

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Hey Guys

So I picked up a 2001 Nissan Maxima SE 20th Anniversary as my winter beater. Did the winter maintenance on it it yesterday (oil change...the thing has a small oil sump!) and transmission fluid. The tranny fluid was quite dark blackish red. It shifts perfectly fine thoe. So I drained it and filled it with MaxLife® DEX/MERC ATF. Shifts were quick and crisp after this change however I did not change the "filter". I plan on doing another drain and fill when the weather gets better and will be doing the filter change as well.

Is Maxlife ATF good for this Nissan? The owners manual called of Matic D fluid and according to the bottle and Valvoline website its a valid replacement for Nissan Matic-D, Matic-J and Matic-K.

Oh and the car has 194,500KM (~121k miles)
 
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I personally recommend a DexIII compliant fluid (not also Dex6 spec) but they are hard to find.

I run Petro Canada Dura-Drive MV in my fathers' 00 Maxima automatic and it shifts flawlessly. It is Matic-J compliant which is what it called for back in 2000.
 
If I remember reading the PDF on Product Data of Maxlife you should be ok. I have read over both the new product and the old several time to make sure it is still good in all the vehicles that I service.

You might want to cruise out to the Valvoline website and check it out again.

As far as extending the lifespan of the transmission, dropping the pan is probably the #1 thing you can do. All the greasy metallic gunk is built up there on the pan an the magnet, replacing fluid gets bad fluid out, but there will always be that nasty stuff there to contaminate your new fluid with solid waste.

Also, read up on Magnefine filters. I have one on my wife's Xterra it was rather simple to install, and you could do it while doing a line drain and fill.
They should help significantly with that solid waste, but it will not make up for a pan drop.

After 100,000 miles that pan is going to be pretty darn gross.
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Originally Posted By: SLCraig
I personally recommend a DexIII compliant fluid (not also Dex6 spec) but they are hard to find.

I run Petro Canada Dura-Drive MV in my fathers' 00 Maxima automatic and it shifts flawlessly. It is Matic-J compliant which is what it called for back in 2000.


I re-read the manual and my 01 calls for Matic D. Strange yours calls for Matic J. It's the same car, but mine has a couple more ponies.

According to Valvoline's website:

Recommended for use where DEXRON, DEXRON II, III and VI, Toyota T-IV and WS, MERCON®, MERCON® SP and LV, Allison TES 389, Nissan Matic-D, Matic-J and Matic-K, Honda Z-1 (except CVT), Mercedes NAG-1, Mitsubishi Diamond SP-II and SP-III and many others are required.
 
Maxlife should be good for your Max. I have ML in my 96 I30 which is practically a Nissan Maxima. Transmission has 233K miles and shifts perfectly.

If you decide to change it out later on, I heard Castrol Import Multi Vehicle is also a good alternative.
 
Originally Posted By: SMB
Maxlife should be good for your Max. I have ML in my 96 I30 which is practically a Nissan Maxima. Transmission has 233K miles and shifts perfectly.

If you decide to change it out later on, I heard Castrol Import Multi Vehicle is also a good alternative.


Ya I heard good things about it. But its 7 dollars a qt and we need 4-5qts for a drain and fill. Maxlife for a 5L can is about 23 bucks. Good price and since this is my beater I don't really want to drop the coin for high quality stuff.
 
Originally Posted By: SLCraig
It is Matic-J compliant which is what it called for back in 2000.

The 2000 maintenance section of the FSM says "Genuine Nissan ATF or equivalent", and the 2000.5 section says "Nissan Matic D". 2001 also says Matic D. Don't know where you read Matic J.

In my Pathfinder, Maxlife wasn't shifting to my satisfaction (it was rather harsh IMO). I recently did a cooler line exchange with Castrol Import Multi-Vehicle and things are better now. My Pathfinder has the RE4A01A trans vs. the Maxima's RE4F04B or RE4F04W, so YMMV.

I also recommend a pan drop and a Magnefine install.
 
I have used M1 ATF in my Maxima since 30K miles with great results.

Also, the "filter" is nothing more than a metal strainer...not worth dropping the pan to remove.
 
Originally Posted By: 2002 Maxima SE
I have used M1 ATF in my Maxima since 30K miles with great results.

Also, the "filter" is nothing more than a metal strainer...not worth dropping the pan to remove.


Well I need to drop the pan to get to the magnet anyways. I've ordered the set from rockauto for cheap. When the weather gets better I'll change it out.

Any recommendations on Power Steering fluids for the Max? I know my Honda's require Honda PSF but I don't know if the Nissan's are picky. Can I go with a fluid found at Walmart or does it need to be Nissans ?
 
Originally Posted By: Towncivilian
Any PSF or ATF would work. I'd recommend running a synthetic ATF for best results.


Cool, would Maxlife work (I have some left over) or is it too thin? Should I use Castrol Import-Multi Vehicle ?
 
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Originally Posted By: Mau
Originally Posted By: 2002 Maxima SE
I have used M1 ATF in my Maxima since 30K miles with great results.

Also, the "filter" is nothing more than a metal strainer...not worth dropping the pan to remove.


Well I need to drop the pan to get to the magnet anyways. I've ordered the set from rockauto for cheap. When the weather gets better I'll change it out.

Any recommendations on Power Steering fluids for the Max? I know my Honda's require Honda PSF but I don't know if the Nissan's are picky. Can I go with a fluid found at Walmart or does it need to be Nissans ?



I'm using M1 ATF in the power steering fluid reservoir as well. Every oil change, I dump the reservoir and refill with M1 ATF.
 
Originally Posted By: Mau
Originally Posted By: SLCraig
I personally recommend a DexIII compliant fluid (not also Dex6 spec) but they are hard to find.

I run Petro Canada Dura-Drive MV in my fathers' 00 Maxima automatic and it shifts flawlessly. It is Matic-J compliant which is what it called for back in 2000.


I re-read the manual and my 01 calls for Matic D. Strange yours calls for Matic J. It's the same car, but mine has a couple more ponies.

According to Valvoline's website:

Recommended for use where DEXRON, DEXRON II, III and VI, Toyota T-IV and WS, MERCON®, MERCON® SP and LV, Allison TES 389, Nissan Matic-D, Matic-J and Matic-K, Honda Z-1 (except CVT), Mercedes NAG-1, Mitsubishi Diamond SP-II and SP-III and many others are required.


If it says Matic-D then that is what I meant. I know DexIII is a legitimate substitute, is really the point I was trying to make.
 
Well I dropped the pan this weekend. Cleaned it out. The two magnets were full of [censored] but not as bad as I was expecting. What shocked me was there was no gasket on the pan. Either Nissan was confident with their workmanship and that the oil pan will mate right up to the transmission perfectly or the previous person who dropped the pan on this vehicle never replaced it.

Any of you guys seen this on your Max or I30 ?

Either way the kit I ordered with the filter/mesh came with a gasket so it was put in.
 
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