2005 Nissan Altima, 5-speed M/T Oil Dilemma...

[il_signore97]

Hey everyone,

I'll try to make this as brief as possible. When I bought my 2005 Altima 3.5 SE 5-speed m/t brand new, the shifting action definatley left something to be desired. It was very hard to shift in the morning (on a cold start), and would grind from 1-2 and 3-4. I was not able to downshift to 2nd from 3rd unless I double clutched (and even then, it still would grind). The tranny would absolutely not go into 1st unless the car was completely stopped. This behaviour would go away after about 15-20 minutes of driving, but downshifting to 2nd and to 1st was still not perfect and would sometimes grind.

I switched over to Amsoil's GL-4 MTG 75-90, and there was no change in behaviour, although warm shifts did feel a bit better.

Then I drained that out, and tried a mixture of Redline MTL and Redline MT-90 (55% MTL, 45% MT-90 as recommended by Dave at Redline). Immediately, almost all of my problems dissapeared. There was no more grinding at all, at any temperature, downshifting was beautiful, and the morning stiffness was considerably reduced to about the first 2 minutes of driving, which seems acceptable to me.

However, after 40,000 km on the Redline mix in 1 year, the morning stiffness is starting to return, as is a slight grind on occasion from 1st to 2nd. Warm shifting is still 100% perfect, and downshifting is still fine as well. Is it possible that the fluid needs replacing already?

This brings me to my next question... The Redline mixture worked beautifully, and I would not hesitate to put the same mix in there again. However, I've heard so many great things about SF MTL-P fluid for this tranny, and I'm wondering if it will perform even better than the Redline mix. I'm in Toronto, so the weather can range from -40 C in the coldest of the winter to +40 C in the hottest of the summer.

What are your opinions on the matter? Thanks for all your help in advance!

 

[04SpecV]

All you can do is try it. Theres so many opinions about which fluid is best on here.
When I was looking I put a 50/50 Mix of Amsoi MTL/MTG in mine.
Most seem to recommend around 30,000 mile fluid changes anyway. You would think a fluid that costs 8-10$ per quart would provide good performance longer than that tho.

 

[Pablo]

Nissan is specifying too viscous of a fluid by asking for a 75W-90 (especial for oh Canada). Dave gave you some good advice - but maybe even that is borderline.

Maybe you need a 10-12 cSt fluid. Blend Amsoil MTF 75% with MTG 25%. That is basically what I did for my Volvo. Shifts great.

 

[ccs v2.0]

Actually Pablo, his Alti originally came with "Genuine NISSAN Manual Transmission Fluid (MTF) HQ Multi 75W-85 or API GL-4" per his manual. I understand that Mola has a 75W85 GL-4/5 available. Can't speak for SF, but as SpecV states, all he can do is try.

 

[Pablo]

OH Ok - then in the case of calling for a 14-15 cSt 75W-90, the Amsoil book recommendation is wrong for Canada. I didn't calculate the viscosity of the Redline brew - maybe 12 or so??

Mola's MTL-P is about 11 cSt IIRC.

 

[Pablo]

But best to compare cold temp viscosities, none the less. Hence my MTF/MTG blend.

 

[ccs v2.0]

The recommendation probably hasn't been updated. Nissan went 75W85 for the 04MY and was backwards compatible to the 01MY IIRC.

I wonder what the shipping costs north of the border would make it worth while. Don't you need to involve brokers?

 

[Pablo]

That's why there is an Amsoil warehouse in Canada. Canada has it's own pricing structure and we even have a Canada site sponsor! (Don)

 

[04SpecV]

Do you have any fluid left over?
If you had any MTL maybe you could just drain some out, refil. Worth a shot.
If I lived there - I would probably go with straight Redline MTL. Its practically an 85W anyway.

 

[ccs v2.0]

Toronto isn't that far north. It's about the same latitude as Milwaukee.

 

[il_signore97]

^lol... Toronto basically has some of every kind of weather. For most of the winter, the temperature is just below the freezing mark. The end of January / beginning of Feb is typically the coldest time of the year and can be as low as -40 C (-40 F)... but just for a few weeks typically).

In the summer, it's generally in the high 80's I guess, with the occasional rise into the low 100's.

So I am looking for a fluid that will work year round, if at all possible. Running straight Redline MTL doesn't make me feel good about summer time protection especially when the tranny calls for something a tad thicker.

One thing I can't believe though is how bad the Nissan fluid was in the beginning. Ever since I switched to Redline, I've always wondered how they could sell cars that don't shift properly and grind all the time simply because of ________ fluid!

Thank you to everyone for all the great suggestions. I guess I'm presented with the following choices:

Redline mix (60% MTL, 40% MT-90)
Amsoil mix (MTF/MTG as Pablo stated above)
Specialty Formulations MTL-P

I guess it wouldn't be the end of the world if I wasn't happy with my choice anyway. I could just drain it out, replace it with something else and take the loss. It would just be more of a waste than anything. But I'll let you guys know how it goes. I'm planning on changing it within the next 2 weeks or so, as the morning shifting is beginning to be quite annoying again.

Cheers.

 

[ccs v2.0]

I'm sure you already know it, but your tranny only needs 2 liters of gear oil, so to make such blends, you may have to purchase way more than what you need.

 

[il_signore97]

Actually, last time it took over 2.5L to fill it. I think the manual is not accurate in terms of capacity. It also states with a * that the capacities are only approximate. So I do have to buy "way" more than I need.

In the case of Redline or Amsoil, I can just use the remainder of the thicker stuff in my brother's Vibe, since he need to change his M/T oil as well.

 

[ccs v2.0]

They usually give you a range, but it's less than a two tenths of a liter. So I must ask, was your car level? If it's like my Maxima and you raised the front to reach the plug, it may have taken more as the filler would be on the front.

 

[JohnBrowning]

If the MTL-P is not going to kill you price wise I would give it a try. No fluid has garnered more praise from high end users then Specialty Formulations Manual Transmission Lubes!!!!Everyone that has tried it rates it as being even better then Redline wich says a lot!

If you can not get SF products to your door for a reasonable price I would try MTL-70% MT90-30% that is going to get it done about as good as you can get without going to 100%MTL. I do not think I would worry much about running 100% MTL. If your transmission is tearing up Redline in 1 years time then your transmission must be really hard on gear lubes.

 

[il_signore97]

ccs,

The car was definatley level. I thought about that when I did the fluid change, so I raised both the front and back on a level surface to ensure a proper fluid level without overfilling.

Your Maxima 6-speed takes less fluid than mine. I know this because I changed my uncle's M/T oil in his Maxima and it took less than mine did. (Both cars were level while changing).


JohnBrowning,

It definately appears that these trannies are hard on oil. My driving is mostly high speed highway (not much shifting, but high fluid shear I would imagine) followed usually by getting stuck in traffic (which probably increases fluid temperature by a lot due to all of the engine heat suddenly making it's way into the tranny after stopping). So I'm sure my daily grind has something to do with that.

I think I will try the SF MTL-P in this car. I too have heard nothing but praise, and the cost is not unreasonable. I just hope the shifting quality is as good or better than the Redline fluid was when I first put it in. And if I'm lucky, it just might last longer too!

 

[ccs v2.0]

Actually, mine is an 01 5 speed (with rod linkages). It takes about 4.4 to 4.7 liters (no VLSD). It makes it a lot easier to blend larger volumes of MTFs.