2002 Nissan Altima 2.5s auto tranny, 15K miles

[DaveInLA]

I've had this car for 3+ years and all I've done is oil changes. Car is running fine.

Anyway, I figure it's time for the dealer to do a 15K or 30K service. I know a lot of it is fluff like "inspect hoses" that anybody can do, but I'd rather not mess with the transmission and cooling systems.

My main question is this. They only do transmission and cooling system drain and fills. That is, they only drain ~5 qts from the tranny without flushing the system out (I don't know much about transmissions), and about the same for the coolant. They empty the radiator without draining the engine block. Trans and coolant flushes cost a lot extra.

Given the mileage and year of my car, should I even bother with this stuff? I can't do any of this work myself, so my decision is between the basics vs. the "extra" stuff (ie, flush). When do cars need to completely flush the transmission? What about the coolant system? Thanks.

 

[The Critic]

If you drain and refill the transmission and cooling systems frequently enough (U])30K, I wouldn't worry about the flushes.

 

[deepsquat]

just a drain is fine...if you do your own oil changes ...just drain the tranny at the same time...there is a drain bolt on the bottom of the tranny pan ..very easy , very simple.

 

[DaveInLA]

I know where the transmission fluid bolt is-- very accessible. You're saying that as long as I change this frequently enough, I'll essentially be "washing out" the old stuff with new stuff? How often are you talking about here?

 

[The Critic]

I'd say at least every 30K. On most cars, you remove about 40% of the fluid at each drain/refill. I'm not familiar with this particular transmission, but if it seems to be especially hard on fluid due to high operating temps, and it is quite easy to service, you may want to shorten the service interval to 15-20K, which is what I do for most Hondas.

 

[DaveInLA]

I don't put a lot of miles on this car (that may change, though). If I average 5K miles per year, it's still okay to wait 15K miles?

 

[unDummy]

Nissans are tough on trannies.
You have a drainplug, use it every year. It'll take
Drain/refills are an excellent form of maintenance on the cooling or ATF. And, IMO, you're overdue on both so it isn't something to ignore.

IMO, dealer checkups and bogus tuneups are a waste. When you bring a car for service, have it serviced. Be specific and don't pay for hours of 'fluff' inspections.

 

[GimmeTorq]

What unDummy said

Regular drain and fills are cheap insurance on Nissan trannies. I do my Maxima's every 10K-15K using Mobil1, but any non-synthetic quality Dexron III ATF (or Nissan MaticD if you prefer OEM) should do fine. And the drain plug makes it so easy...

 

[BearZDefect]

Here is part of the service list a Honda dealer gave to a friend of mine for 30k service on '03 Accord i4:

- Operation of all lights
- Inspect CV boots
- Check parking brake operation
...
- Check parking brake adjustment
- Inspect drive shaft boots
- Check all lights

Repetitions of 1-minute inspections to make the page look impressive enough to charge $310?

Most of the rest of the list is equally unimpressive with things like "Check horn operation" and "Check battery eye color"...

I offerred to perform all the 10-second inspections for free and replace all the fluids and filters required per Honda service schedule at cost.

As unDummy wrote, drain and fill your ATF and cooling system. Both are partial replacements but very easy. Since that would leave about half the used coolant in there I would consider Nissan OEM coolant to refill for maximum compatibility. Or read up in the Cooling Fluids section.

 

[CharBaby]

I drove my 04 Altima 2.5 S up on to some car ramps and drained the ATF from the drain plug in the pan and I coundn't beleive just how much ATF came out of the pan. I had already purchaced 5qts on Mobil 1 Syn ATF(DexIII/Merc). I had to return the AutoZone and buy 3 more to bring the level to normal. I understand that the auto tranny in an Altima 2.5, holds about 9.5 qts. I put back in 7.5 qts. I used the rest in the P/S system after removing .5 qt from the resivoir.