09 Nissan Altima 2.5 CVT Fluid change

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I can't seem to locate the trans drain plug on this vehicle. Do you think any harm would be done if I disconnect the return line, let it pump at idle until I see bubbles, then refill? I really don't want to drop the pan,as if I have a warranty claim, Nissan my use that as a reason to deny a claim.
 
Why would they deny your warranty claim? Honestly, the dealer is not even going to know if you dropped the pan.

If you're that worried, just have the dealer change the fluid.
 
No thanks on the dealer, Why would they not honor a claim, lol, because they can.
 
How many miles do you have on that '09? I wouldn't worry too much about it unless you had 60k+. I have the same car and I am saving up for the Dealer to do it. That is a picky Transmission and that is about the ONLY thing I'd have the Stealership do the service for on that engine. JMHO.

Matt
 
Just did a transmission service on my sisters 09 altima. 90 worth in eneos cvt fluid 13qts. Dealership will charge around 160(drain and fill) to 250(machine). I called them becuz I was skeptical at doing it first. I think a pan drop would be your best bet.
 
See if you can find a torque spec for EVERY thing you have to tighten back up. And be sure to use a good method to measure the torque you apply. These modern parts are built with so little excess material that is is real easy to strip them. Rockwell makes a special tool to tighten all bolts on transmissions including the pan. This machine even takes into account if there is anything fouling the thread such as dirt or shavings left over from manufacturing. Before this tool was used there was a high rate of rejects during manufacturing because threads would get stripped from over-torquing them.

If you strip a thread you are opening up a who new can of problems. You will have to go up to a larger size or healy-coil it.
 
Originally Posted By: finalyzd
Just did a transmission service on my sisters 09 altima. 90 worth in eneos cvt fluid 13qts. Dealership will charge around 160(drain and fill) to 250(machine). I called them becuz I was skeptical at doing it first. I think a pan drop would be your best bet.


I think your right, Is the Enos the same color as the NS2?

BTW the car has 30k on it. It was a rental that I bought for my daughter. That's why I am changing it now.
 
A single drain/refill every ~15k is good maintenance for a CVT.

And, since its a rental, I'd definitely consider it soon.
 
Originally Posted By: jeff194
Originally Posted By: finalyzd
Just did a transmission service on my sisters 09 altima. 90 worth in eneos cvt fluid 13qts. Dealership will charge around 160(drain and fill) to 250(machine). I called them becuz I was skeptical at doing it first. I think a pan drop would be your best bet.


I think your right, Is the Enos the same color as the NS2?

BTW the car has 30k on it. It was a rental that I bought for my daughter. That's why I am changing it now.


I would change it out and eneos fluid is bright red don't know about the nissan fluid color, I'm assuming red as there past fluids have been that color
 
Originally Posted By: finalyzd
Just did a transmission service on my sisters 09 altima. 90 worth in eneos cvt fluid 13qts. Dealership will charge around 160(drain and fill) to 250(machine). I called them becuz I was skeptical at doing it first. I think a pan drop would be your best bet.

Is a pan drop necessary? My understanding is that there IS a drain plug.

My 2008 will hit 30K in December and I was planning to do a single drain/fill at that time and continue to do so every 30K from there on out.
 
I had a 07 Altima. I traded it in before it needed a CVT service. Here is a DIY CVT change from my old forum I use to hang out on.

CVT service
 
I changed the CVT fluid on my friend's 2008 Altima 2.5 SL. It was very easy, and there was definitely a drain plug at the bottom of the CVT pan. There is no need to remove the pan.

Basically, we drained the fluid, refilled with the appropriate Redline CVT fluid, and then disconnected the fluid line leading to the radiator to help push the old fluid out of the torque converter. We idled the car for 30 seconds until the fluid started to sputter slightly, and then refilled with the proper amount of fluid. After a good drive, we checked the level according to the FSM procedure, and all was good.

Honestly, the colour of the Nissan NS2 fluid that came out of the CVT was pitch black. Nissan would never know the difference if you used a different fluid. My friend only had 40,000 miles, and it was completely black. The Redline fluid feels silky smooth. Way better than the stock fluid.
 
Originally Posted By: il_signore97
I changed the CVT fluid on my friend's 2008 Altima 2.5 SL. It was very easy, and there was definitely a drain plug at the bottom of the CVT pan. There is no need to remove the pan.

Basically, we drained the fluid, refilled with the appropriate Redline CVT fluid, and then disconnected the fluid line leading to the radiator to help push the old fluid out of the torque converter. We idled the car for 30 seconds until the fluid started to sputter slightly, and then refilled with the proper amount of fluid. After a good drive, we checked the level according to the FSM procedure, and all was good.

Honestly, the colour of the Nissan NS2 fluid that came out of the CVT was pitch black. Nissan would never know the difference if you used a different fluid. My friend only had 40,000 miles, and it was completely black. The Redline fluid feels silky smooth. Way better than the stock fluid.


They most definitely would know.

The NS-2 fluid has a green-ish tint to it. It also, most likely, has a chemical identifier. In the event of a CVT failure, Nissan will pull a fluid sample and analyze it to ensure that the NS-2 fluid was used. So if your friend experiences a failure under the newly extended 10/120,000 mile warranty, he's screwed.
 
Originally Posted By: il_signore97
Basically, we drained the fluid, refilled with the appropriate Redline CVT fluid, and then disconnected the fluid line leading to the radiator to help push the old fluid out of the torque converter. We idled the car for 30 seconds until the fluid started to sputter slightly, and then refilled with the proper amount of fluid. After a good drive, we checked the level according to the FSM procedure, and all was good.

I wonder if all of that is necessary? I've read elsewhere that Nissan's standard procedure on the CVTs is to simply drain and fill twice. I have the service instructions for a 2007 Sentra and that's what it instructs.

On the topic of fluid, this sounds like the Honda Z1 debate. Personally, I'm not going to take any chances with the 10-year / 120,000-mile warranty and am going to stick with NS-2.
 
Originally Posted By: The Critic

They most definitely would know.

The NS-2 fluid has a green-ish tint to it. It also, most likely, has a chemical identifier. In the event of a CVT failure, Nissan will pull a fluid sample and analyze it to ensure that the NS-2 fluid was used. So if your friend experiences a failure under the newly extended 10/120,000 mile warranty, he's screwed.



I highly doubt that they would be able to tell the difference. I guess you missed the part about the fluid being pitch black (worse than dirty engine oil). So if it was green in the NS2 bottles, it certainly doesn't stay green for very long in the CVT in service. Secondly, if they do pull samples, it will be primarily to check for contamination with conventional ATF, as I'm sure many people have inadvertently had their fluid changed improperly at a quick lube and had subsequent failure.

Thirdly, I hypothesize that most of the CVT failures are due to the fact that people never changed their fluid, or not on time, and in combination with very high fluid temperatures within the unit. My friend and I have done a fair bit of investigation.

And best of all, you wouldn't believe the difference in ratio changes between the stock fluid and the Redline. It's like night and day, and my friend did purchase his car brand new. It never changed ratios so smoothly, both in manual mode with the preset ratios, or in auto mode.

I doubt my friend will ever have the need to take advantage of Nissan's warranty if he continues his frequent maintenance and use of the Redline CVT fluid. This transmission is NOT exclusive to Nissan, and many manufacturers recommend their own fluid for the very same transmission. It's all marketing and scare tactics if you ask me.
 
Originally Posted By: barlowc

I wonder if all of that is necessary? I've read elsewhere that Nissan's standard procedure on the CVTs is to simply drain and fill twice. I have the service instructions for a 2007 Sentra and that's what it instructs.

On the topic of fluid, this sounds like the Honda Z1 debate. Personally, I'm not going to take any chances with the 10-year / 120,000-mile warranty and am going to stick with NS-2.



It is not necessary to do all of this, but it there are acutally both procedures listed in his factory service manual. The first suggests doing 3 successive drain and fills to flush out the CVT satisfactorily of old fluid, and the second suggests disconnecting the cooler supply line and running the car to flush the fluid through. So we kind of did a combination of both. He had to order the Redline by the case, so we had a few extra bottles to play with.

He's done about 20,000 km on the Redline so far, with much better feel and "shift" quality than the stock fluid (new or old). He has been monitoring his fluid temps, and I think he is considering adding a thermostatic cooler in addition to the stock cooler (piggy back installation). He also intends to use his car for towing a trailer, which adds to the initiative to add an auxillary tranny cooler to it.
 
Quote:
I changed the CVT fluid on my friend's 2008 Altima 2.5 SL. It was very easy, and there was definitely a drain plug at the bottom of the CVT pan. There is no need to remove the pan.


I guess I'll take a better look at the pan, I didn't see a plug, but I've been wrong on occasion before. Thanks for all the replies. I'll probably stick with the NS-2, if the ENOS is red.
 
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Originally Posted By: il_signore97
there are acutally both procedures listed in his factory service manual. The first suggests doing 3 successive drain and fills to flush out the CVT satisfactorily of old fluid, and the second suggests disconnecting the cooler supply line and running the car to flush the fluid through.

My dealer offers a "Transmission Flush" service, recommended at 30K miles, for $135. Given the high price of NS-2 fluid, I can't imagine they're doing either of those procedures for that price. They're probably doing a single drain/fill which I believe I can easily do myself for less at the same time I'm changing oil.
 
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